Stereolabs ZED - Using multiple ZED

This sample shows how to use multiple ZED cameras in a single application. Currently available on Linux only.

Getting started

• First, download the latest version of the ZED SDK on stereolabs.com.
• For more information, read the ZED API documentation.

Prerequisites

• Ubuntu 16.04
• ZED SDK and its dependencies (CUDA,OpenCV 3.1)

Build the program

Download the sample. In the sample directory, open a terminal and execute the following command:

mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
make

Run the program

Open a terminal in the 'build' directory and execute the following command:

./ZED\ Multi\ Input

How it works

• Video capture for each camera is done in a separate thread for optimal performance. You can specify the number of ZED used by changing the NUM_CAMERAS parameter.
• Each camera has its own timestamp (uncomment a line to display it). These timestamps can be used for device synchronization.
• OpenCV is used to display the images and depth maps. To stop the application, simply press 'q'.

Limitations

• This sample works on Linux only.
• USB bandwidth: The ZED in 1080p30 mode generates around 250MB/s of image data. USB 3.0 maximum bandwidth is around 400MB/s, so the number of cameras, resolutions and framerates you can use on a single machine will be limited by the USB 3.0 controller on the motherboard. When bandwidth limit is exceeded, corrupted frames (green or purple frames, tearing) can appear.
• Using a single USB 3.0 controller, here are configurations that we tested:
  • 2 ZEDs in HD1080 @ 15fps and HD720 @ 30fps
  • 3 ZEDs in HD720 @ 15fps
  • 4 ZEDs in VGA @ 30fps
• To use multiple ZED at full speed on a single computer, we recommend adding USB3.0 PCIe expansion cards.
• You can also use multiple GPUs to load-balance computations (use param.device to select a GPU for a ZED) and improve performance.