Can I add 2 cameras? If so how?

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Can I add 2 cameras? If so how?

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RodneyFulk
Contributor III

I am a computer science major undergrad and next semester I will be taking a class in AI and I am looking at using these Boundary Devices i.MX6 reference boards I have to perform Computer Vision actions. For this I will need 2 cameras to do 3D stuff and I understand these boards should have support built in to use 2 cameras and the build in video processors to be able to accomplish my goal.

Can someone point me in the right direction on how to get the hardware necessary to do this and what I need to do to get the full openCV system up and running?

Thank you!

Rodney Fulk

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gary_bisson
Senior Contributor III

Hi Rodney,

Yes you can order the two cameras that are meant for our platforms directly on the website:

https://boundarydevices.com/product/nit6x_5mp_mipi/ 

https://boundarydevices.com/product/nit6x_5mp/ 

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Gary

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RodneyFulk
Contributor III

Yes you are probably correct then.

Do you have details on what it took to hook up the USB cameras?

I am assuming the mini PCIe adapter and a mini PCIe board but is there a specific board that is suggested for compatibility reasons with the BSP?

As to the cameras, I am assuming USB3 is required due to the data throughput. Otherwise would the USB2 ports be fast enough?

And what model USB cameras are compatible?

From previous research I understand the onboard GPU can be used to speed up processing of the video signals with openCV and I am curious if that will be an issue when using USB cameras?

I am guessing the USB type cameras would be a webcam type USB camera.

This could evolve into a drone or robot control system so I would like to maintain as much usability as possible.

(May play with Lidar and some different Radar systems)

Will your company have anyone at the upcoming NXP Detroit Conference at the beginning of October?

Thanks!

Rodney Fulk

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gary_bisson
Senior Contributor III

Hi Rodney,

1/ is there a specific board that is suggested for compatibility reasons with the BSP?

Not really, any standard PCIe to USB3 should do it.

2/ Otherwise would the USB2 ports be fast enough?

Depends on the resolution and framerate you want to achieve. But I would definitely do some prototyping on USB2 camera first.

3/ what model USB cameras are compatible?

Any UVC-compliant camera is fine, here is a list:

Linux UVC driver & tools 

4/ I am curious if that will be an issue when using USB cameras?

For sure having the stream coming from CSI/MIPI is better since it goes through the IPU which allows to do some on-the-fly CSC or doing some zero-copy with the GPU. Then it depends on what format is the USB camera providing, it is often RAW or MJPEG. Definitely using MIPI/CSI will offer the best performances and more flexibility, it's all about trade-offs you have to make (like how far the cameras need to be).

5/ Will your company have anyone at the upcoming NXP Detroit Conference at the beginning of October?

We have no plans to go there right now, I'll let you know if that changes.

Regards,

Gary

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RodneyFulk
Contributor III

Ok thanks. I believe I have a couple of the cameras on that list already so it looks like maybe I should start playing with what I already have and see what they can do and go from there. If I can do computer vision stuff with this setup it should  be good enough. Time to grab  a board and start tinkering.

Hmm, the NitrogenMax boards look very nice too but I can atleast start with what I already own.

Rodney

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RodneyFulk
Contributor III

Ok thanks. Very helpful. I didn't realize we could add 4 cameras to the i.mx6 systems.

I am assuming I will need one each of the different types of cameras in order to use two cameras without adding additional hardware at this time if I use the BD cameras with my "formerly" sabre lite reference boards?

Also assuming from the links shared that this board won't support multipile mipi cameras?

Rodney Fulk

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gary_bisson
Senior Contributor III

Hi Rodney,

Yes the Sabre-Lite only supports one MIPI camera (ov5640) and one CSI parallel camera (ov5642) at the same time.

Then you could add some USB camera if needed, we've had customers using PCIe to USB3 in order to get the best throughput from USB camera.

Regards,

Gary

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RodneyFulk
Contributor III

Ok for this project I want to use openCV and experiment with 3d Imaging so I only need 2 cameras. So looks like if I add the two cameras I am good. 

Is there an easy way to extend the connections so I can connect the cameras to a board? Looks like they otherwise have very short cables and I would have to be creative to make it work.

Rodney

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gary_bisson
Senior Contributor III

Hi Rodney,

The problem is that the signals (MIPI or parallel) are pretty sensitive which means that you can't extend those cables as you want.

If you really need some distance between both cameras and with the board, maybe the USB camera is a better solution in the first place.

Regards,

Gary

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gary_bisson
Senior Contributor III

Hi Rodney,

Yes you can order the two cameras that are meant for our platforms directly on the website:

https://boundarydevices.com/product/nit6x_5mp_mipi/ 

https://boundarydevices.com/product/nit6x_5mp/ 

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Gary