Blaze

The blaze module is a base module which is available on every rc_visard NG and provides disparity, confidence and error images of a connected Basler blaze camera in an RGB-D setup, i.e. the blaze Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera in combination with the Basler aceA1300 color camera.

After connecting the Basler blaze sensor to the rc_cube, it can take up to about one minute until it is found. Upon first connection of the sensor to the rc_cube, the sensor must be calibrated before it can be used. Calibration can be done through the Web GUI on the page Camera calibration under Configuration in the respective pipeline. After storing the calibration, it will persistently reside on the rc_cube and automatically be used whenever the sensor is connected to the rc_cube again, regardless of the port or pipeline.

The blaze module only runs in camera pipelines of type blaze.

Viewing and downloading images and point clouds

The rc_visard NG provides time-stamped disparity, error, and confidence images over the GenICam interface (see Provided image streams). Live streams of the images are provided with reduced quality on the Depth Image page in the desired pipeline of the Web GUI.

The Web GUI also provides the possibility to download a snapshot of the current scene containing the depth, error and confidence images, as well as a point cloud in ply format as described in Downloading depth images and point clouds.

Parameters

The blaze module is called rc_blaze in the REST-API and it is represented by the Depth Image page in the desired pipeline in the Web GUI, when a Basler blaze camera is connected and running in the corresponding pipeline. The user can change the blaze parameters there, or use the REST-API (REST-API interface).

Parameter overview

This module offers the following run-time parameters:

The rc_blaze module’s run-time parameters
Name Type Min Max Default Description
acquisition_mode string - - Continuous Acquisition mode: [Continuous, SingleFrame]
ambiguity_filter bool false true true Ambiguity filter
ambiguity_filter_threshold int32 0 255 204 Ambiguity filter threshold
exp_value float64 0.0001 0.001 0.001 Exposure time of ToF camera
fill int32 0 4 3 Tolerance for hole filling in pixels
gamma_correction bool false true true Gamma correction
maxdepth float64 0.01 10.0 10.0 Maximum depth in meters
minconf float64 0.0 1.0 0.00488 Minimum confidence
mindepth float64 0.1 10.0 0.1 Minimum depth in meters
outlier_removal bool false true true Outlier removal
outlier_removal_threshold int32 0 8 5 Outlier removal threshold
seg int32 0 4000 200 Minimum size of valid segments in pixels
spatial_filter bool false true true Spatial filter
temporal_filter bool false true true Temporal filter
temporal_filter_strength int32 50 255 200 Temporal filter strength
thermal_drift_correction bool false true true Thermal drift correction

Description of run-time parameters

Each run-time parameter is represented by a row on the Web GUI’s Depth Image page. The name in the Web GUI is given in brackets behind the parameter name and the parameters are listed in the order they appear in the Web GUI:

exp_value (Exposure Time)

This parameter is the exposure time of the blaze camera in seconds. It controls for how long the photosensitive cells are exposed to light. If the operating mode is changed, the exposure time is set to the recommended default value. Reducing the exposure time may reduce measurement accuracy and is only recommended when the image is overexposed.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?exp_value=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?exp_value=<value>

acquisition_mode (Acquisition Mode)

The acquisition mode can be set to Continuous (Continuous) or SingleFrame (Single). The first one is the default and continuously provides depth images. In single frame mode, images are only captured when the Acquire button is clicked.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?acquisition_mode=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?acquisition_mode=<value>

mindepth (Minimum Distance)

The minimum distance is the smallest distance from the camera at which measurements should be possible. The minimum distance is given in meters.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?mindepth=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?mindepth=<value>

maxdepth (Maximum Distance)

The maximum distance is the largest distance from the camera at which measurements should be possible. Pixels with larger distance values are set to invalid in the disparity image. The maximum distance is given in meters.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?maxdepth=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?maxdepth=<value>

fill (Fill-in)

This option is used to fill holes in the disparity image by interpolation. The fill-in value is the maximum allowed disparity step on the border of the hole. Larger fill-in values can decrease the number of holes, but the interpolated values can have larger errors. At most 5% of pixels are interpolated. Interpolation of small holes is preferred over interpolation of larger holes. The confidence for the interpolated pixels is set to a low value of 0.5. A fill-in value of 0 switches hole filling off.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?fill=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?fill=<value>

seg (Segmentation)

The segmentation parameter is used to set the minimum number of pixels that a connected disparity region in the disparity image must fill. Isolated regions that are smaller are set to invalid in the disparity image. Segmentation is useful for removing erroneous disparities. However, larger values may also remove real objects.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?seg=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?seg=<value>

minconf (Minimum Confidence)

The minimum confidence can be set to filter potentially false disparity measurements. All pixels with less confidence than the chosen value are set to invalid in the disparity image.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?minconf=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?minconf=<value>

spatial_filter (Spatial Filter)

This parameter enables the spatial noise filter. The spatial noise filter uses the values of neighboring pixels to filter out noise in an image. It is based on the raw data of the image.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?spatial_filter=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?spatial_filter=<value>

temporal_filter (Temporal Filter)

This parameter enables the temporal noise filter. The temporal noise filter uses the values of the same pixel at different points in time to filter out noise in an image. It is based on the depth data of the image.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?temporal_filter=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?temporal_filter=<value>

temporal_filter_strength (Strength)

This parameter represents the strength of the temporal filter. The higher the value, the stronger the filter. High values may cause motion artifacts, while low values reduce the efficacy of the filter.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?temporal_filter_strength=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?temporal_filter_strength=<value>

outlier_removal (Outlier Removal)

This parameter enables the outlier removal filter. It removes pixels that differ significantly from their local environment.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?outlier_removal=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?outlier_removal=<value>

outlier_removal_threshold (Threshold)

This parameter determines the strength of the outlier removal filter. The higher the value, the more outliers will be removed.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?outlier_removal_threshold=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?outlier_removal_threshold=<value>

ambiguity_filter (Ambiguity Filter)

This parameter enables the ambiguity filter. The ambiguity filter removes pixels whose depth data is ambiguous. In certain demanding scenes, e.g., because of stray light or multi-path effects, detection may fail. In this case, the filter should be disabled.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?ambiguity_filter=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?ambiguity_filter=<value>

ambiguity_filter_threshold (Threshold)

This parameter determines the strength of the ambiguity filter. The higher the value, the stronger the filter. Higher values increase the reliability of the filter.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?ambiguity_filter_threshold=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?ambiguity_filter_threshold=<value>

gamma_correction (Gamma Correction)

This parameter enables gamma correction on the intensity image, which is a nonlinear operation to lighten the dark regions of the image.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?gamma_correction=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?gamma_correction=<value>

thermal_drift_correction (Thermal Drift Correction)

This parameter activates the correction of the thermal drift.

Via the REST-API, this parameter can be set as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?thermal_drift_correction=<value>
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/parameters?thermal_drift_correction=<value>

Status values

This module reports the following status values:

The rc_blaze module’s status values
Name Description
fps Actual frame rate of the disparity, error, and confidence images. This value is shown in the Web GUI below the image preview as FPS (Hz).
latency Time in seconds between image acquisition and publishing of disparity image
width Current width of the disparity, error, and confidence images in pixels
height Current height of the disparity, error, and confidence images in pixels
mindepth Actual minimum working distance in meters
maxdepth Actual maximum working distance in meters

Services

The Blaze module offers the following services.

acquisition_trigger

Signals the module to acquire a depth image, if the parameter acquisition_mode is set to SingleFrame.

Details

An error is returned if the acquisition_mode is set to Continuous.

This service can be called as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/services/acquisition_trigger
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/services/acquisition_trigger
This service has no arguments.

Possible return codes are shown below.

Possible return codes of the acquisition_trigger service call.
Code Description
0 Success
-8 Triggering is only possible in SingleFrame acquisition mode
101 Trigger is ignored, because there is a trigger call pending
102 Trigger is ignored, because there are no subscribers

The definition for the response with corresponding datatypes is:

{
  "name": "acquisition_trigger",
  "response": {
    "return_code": {
      "message": "string",
      "value": "int16"
    }
  }
}

reset_defaults

Restores and applies the default values for this module’s parameters (“factory reset”).

Details

This service can be called as follows.

PUT http://<host>/api/v2/pipelines/<0,1,2,3>/nodes/rc_blaze/services/reset_defaults
PUT http://<host>/api/v1/nodes/rc_blaze/services/reset_defaults
This service has no arguments.

The definition for the response with corresponding datatypes is:

{
  "name": "reset_defaults",
  "response": {
    "return_code": {
      "message": "string",
      "value": "int16"
    }
  }
}