Knowledge Base

Save Camera Settings

1. Click the Stop button.
2. In the Features panel, open the Configuration Sets item.

   Note: If you have multiple GigE cameras, make sure and save the settings for EACH camera.

3. From the Configuration Set Selector list, select User Set 1.
4. Next to User Set Save, click Execute. The camera settings set in the previous steps are now saved under User Set 1.
5. From the Default Startup Set list, select User Set 1. This means that the camera always starts with the settings contained in User Set 1.
6. Close Pylon Viewer.

These settings will be used each time you start up EthoVision XT.

Tip: You can also save different settings for the same camera in User Set 2 and User Set 3. Under Default Startup Set (User Set Default), select which you want EthoVision to use.

Color Camera Settings – Pylon Viewer

Aim

To make sure that the tracking of color markers in EthoVision XT is optimized. This topic applies to the Basler color cameras acA1300-60gc and acA1920-40gc. Note that the Basler acA1300-60gc is no longer officially supported and therefore not tested by Noldus.

Prerequisites

You have installed the camera, its driver software and EthoVision XT. The procedure below refers to the options available in the camera software. Most of the options are also available in EthoVision XT.

1. Close EthoVision XT and open pylon Viewer.

   Note: The Basler pylon Viewer software is installed automatically when you install the camera drivers.

2. From the Window menu select Features - All.
3. In the Devices panel, double-click the item Basler under GigE.
4. Open the item Image Format Control. Next to Pixel Format select:
   • YUV 422 Packed for the camera acA1300-60gc. Note that this camera has not been tested with EthoVision XT 18.
   • Bayer RG 8 for the camera acA1920-40gc.
5. Click Color Improvements Control.
6. Click the Continuous Shot button on the toolbar to view the live image.
7. Point the camera at a piece of white paper so that the camera image is entirely white. Click in the field next to Balance White Auto and select Once from the list.
8. To save the settings, see Item 7 in Section H above.
9. Close pylon Viewer and open EthoVision XT.
10. Open your experiment and in the Experiment Settings select Live tracking and the color camera.
11. Click the camera button and then in the window that appears click the Format tab. Choose the video resolution and frame rate.
12. Next to Color Space select:
    • For the camera acA1300-60gc: UYVY or YUV.
    • For the camera acA1920-40gc: BYRG. If the image stays black and white, select UYVY or YUV, then select BYRG again.
13. Select the resolution and frame rate.
14. Check the Current Frame Rate. If this is significantly lower than the rate you set, choose a lower resolution.

Settings for Low Light Conditions

When tracking animals in low light, you can adjust the camera settings so that colors are more apparent. The settings below apply to the camera acA1920-40gc. In pylon Viewer, do the following:

1. Under Analog Controls, set Gain to for example 240 or higher if necessary.
2. Next to Gamma Selector, choose User.
3. Next to Gamma, choose 1.0.
4. Increase the Digital Shift, for example to a higher value if necessary.
5. Under Acquisition Controls, set Exposure Time to for example a higher µs value. A higher value is not recommended.

For adjusting a specific color (usually not necessary if the white balance has been done correctly):

• Next to Color Adjust Enable, select the option.
• Next to Color Adjust Saturation, adjust color saturation (per color).

Color to Monochrome

If you have a color digital camera, you can temporarily change it to monochrome.

• In Pylon Viewer, change the Pixel Format to Mono8.
• In EthoVision XT, set the Color Space to Y800.

Note: This does not make your color camera infrared-sensitive. For that, you must either remove the infrared block filter (see below) from your color camera or use a monochrome GigE camera.

Tip: Basler cameras have model numbers like this: acA1300-60xx, where:

• xx = gm means monochrome.
• xx = gmNIR means Near Infrared, that is, monochrome with extra sensitivity to infrared light.
• xx = gc means color.

Color to Infrared-Sensitive

Most color cameras are not infrared-sensitive. To make them more infrared (IR)-sensitive:

1. Set them to monochrome (see above).
2. Remove the infrared-block filter, if present. For how to do so, see below.

Infrared-Cut Filter

Some color cameras may have a built-in infrared cut filter which prevents them from seeing some infrared light. If you bought a Color GigE camera from Noldus prior to July 2018, you can remove this filter to make your color camera IR sensitive.

Note: Color GigE cameras of model acA1300-30gc purchased after July 2018 from Noldus had the IR cut filter removed, making the color camera IR sensitive like the monochrome version (model: acA1300-30gm). If you have such a camera you can skip this procedure.

1. Remove the lens from the camera.
2. Check that the filter is present: you should see two circular holes at the sides of the filter.
3. Use a small Allen key or a similar object to lift the filter.
4. Put the lens back on the camera.

Experiment Settings – EthoVision

There are 3 camera settings in EthoVision XT (via Experiment Settings): Resolution, Frame Rate, and Color Space. These settings override the settings set in Pylon Viewer. Make sure that you also apply these settings in EthoVision XT.

Resolution and Frame Rate

• If you opt for a high resolution (for example 1280x960), the frame rate must be 25 or 30 fps or lower.
  • We recommend 25 fps unless you have fluorescent or LED lighting in the room and see flickering or the image changes between light and dark, in which case use 30 fps.
  • You can only use a high frame rate (for example 60 fps) with a lower resolution (for example 640x480).

Color Space Setting

• Default setting is Y800. This is recommended for black and white cameras (monochrome).
• For color cameras: if the image is black and white instead of color and a Moiré pattern appears in the image, try using another color space. Normally, the default color space gives good image quality. Otherwise, use YUY2.

Using Multiple GigE Cameras

If you will be using multiple GigE cameras in EthoVision XT at the same time, in the same experiment, you only need to set the above settings for the first camera. The settings are then applied to the other cameras automatically by EthoVision XT as the system mixes the images in a Picture by Picture configuration.

In the Merged Camera View row, select whether the Picture by Picture mixed image should have the same resolution as the image from the individual camera, or whether the resolution should be the sum of each camera image. The maximum resolution in this situation is 1920x1200; however, the camera make and model determines the maximum resolution. For GigE, the recommended maximum resolution is 1280x1024.

Source: EthoVision XT 18 - GigE Install and Setup, Noldus Information Technology