1 .. -*- coding: utf-8; mode: rst -*-
9 A buffer contains data exchanged by application and driver using one of
10 the Streaming I/O methods. In the multi-planar API, the data is held in
11 planes, while the buffer structure acts as a container for the planes.
12 Only pointers to buffers (planes) are exchanged, the data itself is not
13 copied. These pointers, together with meta-information like timestamps
14 or field parity, are stored in a struct :c:type:`v4l2_buffer`,
15 argument to the :ref:`VIDIOC_QUERYBUF`,
16 :ref:`VIDIOC_QBUF` and
17 :ref:`VIDIOC_DQBUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>` ioctl. In the multi-planar API,
18 some plane-specific members of struct :c:type:`v4l2_buffer`,
19 such as pointers and sizes for each plane, are stored in struct
20 struct :c:type:`v4l2_plane` instead. In that case, struct
21 struct :c:type:`v4l2_buffer` contains an array of plane structures.
23 Dequeued video buffers come with timestamps. The driver decides at which
24 part of the frame and with which clock the timestamp is taken. Please
25 see flags in the masks ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_MASK`` and
26 ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TSTAMP_SRC_MASK`` in :ref:`buffer-flags`. These flags
27 are always valid and constant across all buffers during the whole video
28 stream. Changes in these flags may take place as a side effect of
29 :ref:`VIDIOC_S_INPUT <VIDIOC_G_INPUT>` or
30 :ref:`VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT <VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT>` however. The
31 ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_COPY`` timestamp type which is used by e.g. on
32 mem-to-mem devices is an exception to the rule: the timestamp source
33 flags are copied from the OUTPUT video buffer to the CAPTURE video
37 .. c:type:: v4l2_buffer
42 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{2.8cm}|p{2.5cm}|p{1.3cm}|p{10.5cm}|
44 .. cssclass:: longtable
46 .. flat-table:: struct v4l2_buffer
54 - Number of the buffer, set by the application except when calling
55 :ref:`VIDIOC_DQBUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>`, then it is set by the
56 driver. This field can range from zero to the number of buffers
57 allocated with the :ref:`VIDIOC_REQBUFS` ioctl
58 (struct :c:type:`v4l2_requestbuffers`
59 ``count``), plus any buffers allocated with
60 :ref:`VIDIOC_CREATE_BUFS` minus one.
64 - Type of the buffer, same as struct
65 :c:type:`v4l2_format` ``type`` or struct
66 :c:type:`v4l2_requestbuffers` ``type``, set
67 by the application. See :c:type:`v4l2_buf_type`
71 - The number of bytes occupied by the data in the buffer. It depends
72 on the negotiated data format and may change with each buffer for
73 compressed variable size data like JPEG images. Drivers must set
74 this field when ``type`` refers to a capture stream, applications
75 when it refers to an output stream. If the application sets this
76 to 0 for an output stream, then ``bytesused`` will be set to the
77 size of the buffer (see the ``length`` field of this struct) by
78 the driver. For multiplanar formats this field is ignored and the
79 ``planes`` pointer is used instead.
83 - Flags set by the application or driver, see :ref:`buffer-flags`.
87 - Indicates the field order of the image in the buffer, see
88 :c:type:`v4l2_field`. This field is not used when the buffer
89 contains VBI data. Drivers must set it when ``type`` refers to a
90 capture stream, applications when it refers to an output stream.
94 - For capture streams this is time when the first data byte was
95 captured, as returned by the :c:func:`clock_gettime()` function
96 for the relevant clock id; see ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_*`` in
97 :ref:`buffer-flags`. For output streams the driver stores the
98 time at which the last data byte was actually sent out in the
99 ``timestamp`` field. This permits applications to monitor the
100 drift between the video and system clock. For output streams that
101 use ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_COPY`` the application has to fill
102 in the timestamp which will be copied by the driver to the capture
104 * - struct :c:type:`v4l2_timecode`
107 - When ``type`` is ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE`` and the
108 ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMECODE`` flag is set in ``flags``, this
109 structure contains a frame timecode. In
110 :c:type:`V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE <v4l2_field>` mode the top and
111 bottom field contain the same timecode. Timecodes are intended to
112 help video editing and are typically recorded on video tapes, but
113 also embedded in compressed formats like MPEG. This field is
114 independent of the ``timestamp`` and ``sequence`` fields.
118 - Set by the driver, counting the frames (not fields!) in sequence.
119 This field is set for both input and output devices.
122 In :c:type:`V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE <v4l2_field>` mode the top and
123 bottom field have the same sequence number. The count starts at
124 zero and includes dropped or repeated frames. A dropped frame was
125 received by an input device but could not be stored due to lack of
126 free buffer space. A repeated frame was displayed again by an
127 output device because the application did not pass new data in
132 This may count the frames received e.g. over USB, without
133 taking into account the frames dropped by the remote hardware due
134 to limited compression throughput or bus bandwidth. These devices
135 identify by not enumerating any video standards, see
141 - This field must be set by applications and/or drivers in
142 accordance with the selected I/O method. See :c:type:`v4l2_memory`
148 - For the single-planar API and when ``memory`` is
149 ``V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP`` this is the offset of the buffer from the
150 start of the device memory. The value is returned by the driver
151 and apart of serving as parameter to the
152 :ref:`mmap() <func-mmap>` function not useful for applications.
153 See :ref:`mmap` for details
157 - For the single-planar API and when ``memory`` is
158 ``V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR`` this is a pointer to the buffer (casted to
159 unsigned long type) in virtual memory, set by the application. See
160 :ref:`userp` for details.
164 - When using the multi-planar API, contains a userspace pointer to
165 an array of struct :c:type:`v4l2_plane`. The size of
166 the array should be put in the ``length`` field of this
167 struct :c:type:`v4l2_buffer` structure.
171 - For the single-plane API and when ``memory`` is
172 ``V4L2_MEMORY_DMABUF`` this is the file descriptor associated with
177 - Size of the buffer (not the payload) in bytes for the
178 single-planar API. This is set by the driver based on the calls to
179 :ref:`VIDIOC_REQBUFS` and/or
180 :ref:`VIDIOC_CREATE_BUFS`. For the
181 multi-planar API the application sets this to the number of
182 elements in the ``planes`` array. The driver will fill in the
183 actual number of valid elements in that array.
187 - A place holder for future extensions. Drivers and applications
192 - A place holder for future extensions. Drivers and applications
197 .. c:type:: v4l2_plane
202 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{3.5cm}|p{3.5cm}|p{3.5cm}|p{7.0cm}|
204 .. cssclass:: longtable
214 - The number of bytes occupied by data in the plane (its payload).
215 Drivers must set this field when ``type`` refers to a capture
216 stream, applications when it refers to an output stream. If the
217 application sets this to 0 for an output stream, then
218 ``bytesused`` will be set to the size of the plane (see the
219 ``length`` field of this struct) by the driver.
223 Note that the actual image data starts at ``data_offset``
228 - Size in bytes of the plane (not its payload). This is set by the
229 driver based on the calls to
230 :ref:`VIDIOC_REQBUFS` and/or
231 :ref:`VIDIOC_CREATE_BUFS`.
239 - When the memory type in the containing struct
240 :c:type:`v4l2_buffer` is ``V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP``, this
241 is the value that should be passed to :ref:`mmap() <func-mmap>`,
242 similar to the ``offset`` field in struct
243 :c:type:`v4l2_buffer`.
247 - When the memory type in the containing struct
248 :c:type:`v4l2_buffer` is ``V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR``,
249 this is a userspace pointer to the memory allocated for this plane
254 - When the memory type in the containing struct
255 :c:type:`v4l2_buffer` is ``V4L2_MEMORY_DMABUF``,
256 this is a file descriptor associated with a DMABUF buffer, similar
257 to the ``fd`` field in struct :c:type:`v4l2_buffer`.
261 - Offset in bytes to video data in the plane. Drivers must set this
262 field when ``type`` refers to a capture stream, applications when
263 it refers to an output stream.
267 That data_offset is included in ``bytesused``. So the
268 size of the image in the plane is ``bytesused``-``data_offset``
269 at offset ``data_offset`` from the start of the plane.
273 - Reserved for future use. Should be zeroed by drivers and
278 .. c:type:: v4l2_buf_type
283 .. cssclass:: longtable
285 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{7.2cm}|p{0.6cm}|p{9.7cm}|
292 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE``
294 - Buffer of a single-planar video capture stream, see
296 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE_MPLANE``
298 - Buffer of a multi-planar video capture stream, see
300 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT``
302 - Buffer of a single-planar video output stream, see
304 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT_MPLANE``
306 - Buffer of a multi-planar video output stream, see :ref:`output`.
307 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY``
309 - Buffer for video overlay, see :ref:`overlay`.
310 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_CAPTURE``
312 - Buffer of a raw VBI capture stream, see :ref:`raw-vbi`.
313 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT``
315 - Buffer of a raw VBI output stream, see :ref:`raw-vbi`.
316 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_CAPTURE``
318 - Buffer of a sliced VBI capture stream, see :ref:`sliced`.
319 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_OUTPUT``
321 - Buffer of a sliced VBI output stream, see :ref:`sliced`.
322 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT_OVERLAY``
324 - Buffer for video output overlay (OSD), see :ref:`osd`.
325 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SDR_CAPTURE``
327 - Buffer for Software Defined Radio (SDR) capture stream, see
329 * - ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SDR_OUTPUT``
331 - Buffer for Software Defined Radio (SDR) output stream, see
341 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{7.0cm}|p{2.2cm}|p{8.3cm}|
343 .. cssclass:: longtable
350 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-MAPPED`:
352 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_MAPPED``
354 - The buffer resides in device memory and has been mapped into the
355 application's address space, see :ref:`mmap` for details.
356 Drivers set or clear this flag when the
357 :ref:`VIDIOC_QUERYBUF`,
358 :ref:`VIDIOC_QBUF` or
359 :ref:`VIDIOC_DQBUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>` ioctl is called. Set by the
361 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-QUEUED`:
363 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED``
365 - Internally drivers maintain two buffer queues, an incoming and
366 outgoing queue. When this flag is set, the buffer is currently on
367 the incoming queue. It automatically moves to the outgoing queue
368 after the buffer has been filled (capture devices) or displayed
369 (output devices). Drivers set or clear this flag when the
370 ``VIDIOC_QUERYBUF`` ioctl is called. After (successful) calling
371 the ``VIDIOC_QBUF``\ ioctl it is always set and after
372 ``VIDIOC_DQBUF`` always cleared.
373 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-DONE`:
375 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE``
377 - When this flag is set, the buffer is currently on the outgoing
378 queue, ready to be dequeued from the driver. Drivers set or clear
379 this flag when the ``VIDIOC_QUERYBUF`` ioctl is called. After
380 calling the ``VIDIOC_QBUF`` or ``VIDIOC_DQBUF`` it is always
381 cleared. Of course a buffer cannot be on both queues at the same
382 time, the ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED`` and ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE`` flag
383 are mutually exclusive. They can be both cleared however, then the
384 buffer is in "dequeued" state, in the application domain so to
386 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-ERROR`:
388 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_ERROR``
390 - When this flag is set, the buffer has been dequeued successfully,
391 although the data might have been corrupted. This is recoverable,
392 streaming may continue as normal and the buffer may be reused
393 normally. Drivers set this flag when the ``VIDIOC_DQBUF`` ioctl is
395 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-KEYFRAME`:
397 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_KEYFRAME``
399 - Drivers set or clear this flag when calling the ``VIDIOC_DQBUF``
400 ioctl. It may be set by video capture devices when the buffer
401 contains a compressed image which is a key frame (or field), i. e.
402 can be decompressed on its own. Also known as an I-frame.
403 Applications can set this bit when ``type`` refers to an output
405 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-PFRAME`:
407 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_PFRAME``
409 - Similar to ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_KEYFRAME`` this flags predicted frames
410 or fields which contain only differences to a previous key frame.
411 Applications can set this bit when ``type`` refers to an output
413 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-BFRAME`:
415 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_BFRAME``
417 - Similar to ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_KEYFRAME`` this flags a bi-directional
418 predicted frame or field which contains only the differences
419 between the current frame and both the preceding and following key
420 frames to specify its content. Applications can set this bit when
421 ``type`` refers to an output stream.
422 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TIMECODE`:
424 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMECODE``
426 - The ``timecode`` field is valid. Drivers set or clear this flag
427 when the ``VIDIOC_DQBUF`` ioctl is called. Applications can set
428 this bit and the corresponding ``timecode`` structure when
429 ``type`` refers to an output stream.
430 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-PREPARED`:
432 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_PREPARED``
434 - The buffer has been prepared for I/O and can be queued by the
435 application. Drivers set or clear this flag when the
436 :ref:`VIDIOC_QUERYBUF`,
437 :ref:`VIDIOC_PREPARE_BUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>`,
438 :ref:`VIDIOC_QBUF` or
439 :ref:`VIDIOC_DQBUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>` ioctl is called.
440 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-NO-CACHE-INVALIDATE`:
442 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_NO_CACHE_INVALIDATE``
444 - Caches do not have to be invalidated for this buffer. Typically
445 applications shall use this flag if the data captured in the
446 buffer is not going to be touched by the CPU, instead the buffer
447 will, probably, be passed on to a DMA-capable hardware unit for
448 further processing or output.
449 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-NO-CACHE-CLEAN`:
451 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_NO_CACHE_CLEAN``
453 - Caches do not have to be cleaned for this buffer. Typically
454 applications shall use this flag for output buffers if the data in
455 this buffer has not been created by the CPU but by some
456 DMA-capable unit, in which case caches have not been used.
457 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-LAST`:
459 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_LAST``
461 - Last buffer produced by the hardware. mem2mem codec drivers set
462 this flag on the capture queue for the last buffer when the
463 :ref:`VIDIOC_QUERYBUF` or
464 :ref:`VIDIOC_DQBUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>` ioctl is called. Due to
465 hardware limitations, the last buffer may be empty. In this case
466 the driver will set the ``bytesused`` field to 0, regardless of
467 the format. Any Any subsequent call to the
468 :ref:`VIDIOC_DQBUF <VIDIOC_QBUF>` ioctl will not block anymore,
469 but return an ``EPIPE`` error code.
470 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TIMESTAMP-MASK`:
472 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_MASK``
474 - Mask for timestamp types below. To test the timestamp type, mask
475 out bits not belonging to timestamp type by performing a logical
476 and operation with buffer flags and timestamp mask.
477 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TIMESTAMP-UNKNOWN`:
479 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_UNKNOWN``
481 - Unknown timestamp type. This type is used by drivers before Linux
482 3.9 and may be either monotonic (see below) or realtime (wall
483 clock). Monotonic clock has been favoured in embedded systems
484 whereas most of the drivers use the realtime clock. Either kinds
485 of timestamps are available in user space via
486 :c:func:`clock_gettime` using clock IDs ``CLOCK_MONOTONIC``
487 and ``CLOCK_REALTIME``, respectively.
488 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TIMESTAMP-MONOTONIC`:
490 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_MONOTONIC``
492 - The buffer timestamp has been taken from the ``CLOCK_MONOTONIC``
493 clock. To access the same clock outside V4L2, use
494 :c:func:`clock_gettime`.
495 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TIMESTAMP-COPY`:
497 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_COPY``
499 - The CAPTURE buffer timestamp has been taken from the corresponding
500 OUTPUT buffer. This flag applies only to mem2mem devices.
501 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TSTAMP-SRC-MASK`:
503 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TSTAMP_SRC_MASK``
505 - Mask for timestamp sources below. The timestamp source defines the
506 point of time the timestamp is taken in relation to the frame.
507 Logical 'and' operation between the ``flags`` field and
508 ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TSTAMP_SRC_MASK`` produces the value of the
509 timestamp source. Applications must set the timestamp source when
510 ``type`` refers to an output stream and
511 ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMESTAMP_COPY`` is set.
512 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TSTAMP-SRC-EOF`:
514 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TSTAMP_SRC_EOF``
516 - End Of Frame. The buffer timestamp has been taken when the last
517 pixel of the frame has been received or the last pixel of the
518 frame has been transmitted. In practice, software generated
519 timestamps will typically be read from the clock a small amount of
520 time after the last pixel has been received or transmitten,
521 depending on the system and other activity in it.
522 * .. _`V4L2-BUF-FLAG-TSTAMP-SRC-SOE`:
524 - ``V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TSTAMP_SRC_SOE``
526 - Start Of Exposure. The buffer timestamp has been taken when the
527 exposure of the frame has begun. This is only valid for the
528 ``V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE`` buffer type.
532 .. c:type:: v4l2_memory
537 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{6.6cm}|p{2.2cm}|p{8.7cm}|
544 * - ``V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP``
546 - The buffer is used for :ref:`memory mapping <mmap>` I/O.
547 * - ``V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR``
549 - The buffer is used for :ref:`user pointer <userp>` I/O.
550 * - ``V4L2_MEMORY_OVERLAY``
553 * - ``V4L2_MEMORY_DMABUF``
555 - The buffer is used for :ref:`DMA shared buffer <dmabuf>` I/O.
562 The struct :c:type:`v4l2_timecode` structure is designed to hold a
563 :ref:`smpte12m` or similar timecode. (struct
564 struct :c:type:`timeval` timestamps are stored in struct
565 :c:type:`v4l2_buffer` field ``timestamp``.)
568 .. c:type:: v4l2_timecode
573 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{4.4cm}|p{4.4cm}|p{8.7cm}|
582 - Frame rate the timecodes are based on, see :ref:`timecode-type`.
585 - Timecode flags, see :ref:`timecode-flags`.
588 - Frame count, 0 ... 23/24/29/49/59, depending on the type of
592 - Seconds count, 0 ... 59. This is a binary, not BCD number.
595 - Minutes count, 0 ... 59. This is a binary, not BCD number.
598 - Hours count, 0 ... 29. This is a binary, not BCD number.
601 - The "user group" bits from the timecode.
610 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{6.6cm}|p{2.2cm}|p{8.7cm}|
617 * - ``V4L2_TC_TYPE_24FPS``
619 - 24 frames per second, i. e. film.
620 * - ``V4L2_TC_TYPE_25FPS``
622 - 25 frames per second, i. e. PAL or SECAM video.
623 * - ``V4L2_TC_TYPE_30FPS``
625 - 30 frames per second, i. e. NTSC video.
626 * - ``V4L2_TC_TYPE_50FPS``
629 * - ``V4L2_TC_TYPE_60FPS``
640 .. tabularcolumns:: |p{6.6cm}|p{1.4cm}|p{9.5cm}|
647 * - ``V4L2_TC_FLAG_DROPFRAME``
649 - Indicates "drop frame" semantics for counting frames in 29.97 fps
650 material. When set, frame numbers 0 and 1 at the start of each
651 minute, except minutes 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 are omitted from the
653 * - ``V4L2_TC_FLAG_COLORFRAME``
655 - The "color frame" flag.
656 * - ``V4L2_TC_USERBITS_field``
658 - Field mask for the "binary group flags".
659 * - ``V4L2_TC_USERBITS_USERDEFINED``
661 - Unspecified format.
662 * - ``V4L2_TC_USERBITS_8BITCHARS``
664 - 8-bit ISO characters.