GSCam

This is a ROS2 package originally developed by the Brown Robotics Lab for broadcasting any GStreamer video stream via image transport.

GStreamer Library Support

GSCam supports the following versions of ROS2 and GStreamer:

Dependencies

These dependencies will be picked up by rosdep and are required to compile:

• libgstreamer1.0-dev
• libgstreamer-plugins-base1.0-dev

These additional packages are often useful:

• gstreamer1.0-tools
• libgstreamer-plugins-good1.0-dev

Ubuntu install:

sudo apt-get install gstreamer1.0-tools libgstreamer1.0-dev libgstreamer-plugins-base1.0-dev libgstreamer-plugins-good1.0-dev

License

GSCam for ROS2 is licensed under the Apache 2 license.

Note that GStreamer is licensed under the LGPL, and GStreamer plugins have their own license requirements.

API

Nodes

• gscam

Topics

• camera/image_raw
• camera/camera_info

Services

• camera/set_camera_info

Parameters

• camera_name: The name of the camera (corrsponding to the camera info)
• camera_info_url: A url (file://path/to/file, package://pkg_name/path/to/file) to the camera calibration file
• gscam_config: The GStreamer configuration string
• frame_id: The tf2 frame ID
• reopen_on_eof: Re-open the stream if it ends (EOF)
• sync_sink: Synchronize the app sink (sometimes setting this to false can resolve problems with sub-par framerates)
• use_gst_timestamps: Use the GStreamer buffer timestamps for the image message header timestamps (setting this to false results in header timestamps being the time that the image buffer transfer is completed)
• image_encoding: image encoding (“rgb8”, “mono8”, “yuv422”, “jpeg”)
• use_sensor_data_qos: The flag to use sensor data qos for camera topic(image, camera_info)

Examples

See example launch files and configs in the examples directory.

These examples have been tested and work well:

• v4l.launch.xml: Standard video4linux cameras like USB webcams
• v4ljpeg.launch.xml: Same as above, but publishes compressed images
• videofile.launch.xml: Opens any videofile readable by GStreamer
• component_pipeline_launch.py: Launch an image pipeline using ROS2 composition

Changelog for package gscam

2.0.2 (2022-06-16)

• Update ROS2, Ubuntu and GStreamer versions (#85)
• fix: ros2 gstreamer timestamps (#83)
  • fix: correct gstreamer timestamp offset calculation for image header timestamp
  • docs: add use_gst_timestamps parameter to the readme file
• ci: update docker image for latest ros distribution (#81)
  • ci: update docker image of rolling
  • ci: add humble distribution
  • ci: add workaround for jammy
• Contributors: Clyde McQueen, Daisuke Nishimatsu, David Wong

2.0.1 (2022-02-28)

• feat: add yuv support (#78)
  • feat: add yuv support
  • docs: add parameter description about image encodings
• feat: add option to use sensor data qos (#79)
  • feat: add option to use sensor data qos
  • docs: add description about the new flag
• Improve Dockerfile (#77)
  • Use COPY instead of git clone

  * Copy source into gscam Co-authored-by: Daisuke Nishimatsu <<42202095+wep21@users.noreply.github.com>> * Small fixes Co-authored-by: Daisuke Nishimatsu <<42202095+wep21@users.noreply.github.com>>

• Merge pull request #76 from clydemcqueen/ros2 Fix uninitialized variable, adding more CI / test infrastructure.
• Merge pull request #9 from clydemcqueen/clyde_fixes Several fixes
• feat: add Dockerfile
• chore: support multiple CLion build envs
• fix: initialize variable
• Contributors: Clyde McQueen, Daisuke Nishimatsu, Jonathan Bohren

2.0.0 (2022-02-13)

• fix: fix test dependency in package.xml
• Add note on testing and examples
• Update README
• chore: fix for uncrustify
• fix: fix smoke test
• chore: fix copyright
• chore: fix flake8
• chore: fix pep257
• chore: fix lint_cmake
• chore: fix cpplint
• chore: change license
• chore: apply uncrustify
• chore: add linter dependencies
• chore: simplify parameter declaration
• adding explicit parameter types to string parameters
• Add smoke test
• Break deadlock for a clean exit
• fix: fix legacy group namespace
• chore: install examples directory
• fix: fix launch extension
• fix: fix launch executable name
• feat: create node exe from rclcpp components
• Update README
• Remove extra files, rename .h to .hpp
• Configure once, avoids re-declaring parameters
• Port launch files to ros2
• Remove support for gstreamer-0.10
• Use Github Actions and ros-tooling for CI
• Remove deprecation warnings, clean up includes
• Fixed crash in GStreamer 1.16.2, works on Foxy
• Minimal ROS2 port, works in Eloquent
• Contributors: Clyde McQueen, Jonathan Bohren, wep21

1.0.1 (2018-09-06)

• Merge pull request #52 from k-okada/add_travis update travis.yml
• Update README.md gscam -> GSCam
• update travis.yml
• Merge pull request #40 from ros-drivers/mikaelarguedas-patch-1 update to use non deprecated pluginlib macro
• update to use non deprecated pluginlib macro
• Contributors: Kei Okada, Mikael Arguedas

1.0.0 (2017-06-13)

• Gstreamer 1 0 support (#36 )
  • delete unused manifest.xml, rosdep.yaml
  • use libgstreamer1.0 for lunar
  • Fixing preproc switches so that the 1.0 branch still builds against 0.1 without the switch flags
  • Preliminary GStreamer-1.0 support see README for more info
• Contributors: Jonathan Bohren, Kei Okada

0.2.0 (2017-06-13)

• add ROS Orphaned Package Maintainers to maintainer tag (#35 )
• gscam_nodelet.h: include scoped_ptr.hpp to compile with boost 1.57 When compiling gscam with the currently latest boost version 1.57, it fails with: In file included from [...]/src/gscam_nodelet.cpp:5:0: [...]/include/gscam/gscam_nodelet.h:20:12: error: 'scoped_ptr' in namespace 'boost' does not name a template type boost::scoped_ptr<GSCam> gscam_driver_; \^ [...]/include/gscam/gscam_nodelet.h:21:12: error: 'scoped_ptr' in namespace 'boost' does not name a template type boost::scoped_ptr<boost::thread> stream_thread_; \^ It seems that the dependencies of boost/thread.hpp have changed and boost/scoped_ptr.hpp is not included anymore with boost/thread.hpp. Hence, the scoped_ptr is not defined in the gscam_nodelet header. After scanning quickly through the release notes of version 1.57, the boost bug tracker and a few changesets, I could not find not a hint what has changed in the thread library that gscam must include scoped_ptr itself. This commit simply addresses the compiler error by explicitly adding boost's scoped_ptr header in the gscam_nodelet header. As this commit also compiles with boost version 1.56, the commit is not expected to cause any problems with other build configurations. Signed-off-by: Lukas Bulwahn <<lukas.bulwahn@oss.bmw-carit.de>>
• Remove dependency on opencv2 to fix under indigo Packages can no longer depend on opencv2 as of indigo. I've updated the package to depend instead on cv_bridge as suggested by http://wiki.ros.org/indigo/Migration#OpenCV.
• Install the parameters file refered to in v4l.launch
• Update package.xml
• Examples: Added example for OSX (#15) Add a simple launch configuration for OSX. The camera can be selected by changing the default="0" to the appropriate integer.
• Adding libraries to gscam target Fixes #13, now builds on stricter linkers
• adding proper depends to catkin package call
• Update minoru.launch
• Contributors: CHILI Demo Corner, Jonathan Bohren, Kei Okada, Kenn Sebesta, Lukas Bulwahn, Russell Toris, Lukas Bulwahn

0.1.3 (2013-12-19)

• Removed special characters from changelog.

0.1.2 (2013-12-19)

• Added install targets for headers
• Adding note on blackmagic decklink cards
• Make sure nodelets are usable
• Add jpeg direct publishing without decoding
• Added system to use GST timestamps
• Valid test file for jpeg-based publisher
• Prepared for jpeg-only subscription
• Install some launch files + added nodelet pipeline demo
• Added missing bits to install the nodelet
• Support for gray (mono8) cameras.
• Remove unused bpp_ member.
• Expose default settings for image_encodings to the ros master.
• Add in support for mono cameras.
• Contributors: Cedric Pradalier, Holger Rapp, Jonathan Bohren, Russell Toris, Severin Lemaignan

0.1.1 (2013-05-30)

• adding missing nodelet dep
• Contributors: Jonathan Bohren

0.1.0 (2013-05-28)

• adding maintainer/authors
• making node name backwards compatible
• re-adding package.xml
• more info spam
• removing old camera parameters file
• updating gscam to use camera_info_manager
• Fixing nodelet, adding example
• Making gscam a node and nodeelt
• adding a note on the videofile player and wrapping readme
• adding option to reopen a stream on EOF and adding a videofile example
• Hybrid catkin-rosbuild buildsystem
• adding minoru example
• putting example nodes into namespaces, adding correct error check in gscam source, making tf frame publishing optional
• rst->md
• making gscam conform to standard camera_drivers ROS API, note, still need to add polled mode
• fixes for decklink capture, adding another example
• can't have manifest.xml and package.xml in same directory
• removing unneeded find-pkgs
• building in catkin ws
• hybrid rosbuild/catkin buildsystem
• Adding changes that were made to the distribution branch that should have gone into the exerpeimental branch in r2862. Added a bunch of enhancements and fixed bugs involving data missing fromthe image message headers. Index: src/gscam.cpp =================================================================== Added camera_name and camera_parameters_file globals for camera info. Moved ros init to the top of the main function. Gets the gstreamer configuration either from environment variable GSCAM_CONFIG or ROS param ~/gscam_config. Gets the camera calibration parameters from the file located at ROS param ~/camera_parameters_file, will look at "../camera_settings.txt" by default. A bunch of re-indenting for consistency. Updated a lot of error fprintfs to ROS_ERROR calls. Gets the TF frame_id from the ROS param ~/frame_id, can be over-written by camera parameters. Now sets the appropriate ROS timestap in the image message header. Now sets the appropriate TF frame in the image message header. Added more detailed info/error/warn messages. Modified the warning / segfault avoidance added to experimental in r2756. Instead of skipping the frame, it just copies only the amount of data that it was received, and reports the warning each time, instead of just once. In a large scale system with lots of messages, a single warning might easily get lost in the noise. Index: examples/webcam_parameters.txt =================================================================== Added example camera parameters (uncalibrated) for a laptop webcam. Index: examples/webcam.launch =================================================================== Added a launchfile that makes use of the new rosparam options and TF frame.
• avoid segfault when buffer size is too small
• ROSProcessingjs clean-up
• makefile so rosmake is more reliable
• gscam build tweak for oneiric
• fixes for Natty build per Willow request
• stop node on EOS
• File support courtesy of John Hoare of the University of Tennesse at Knoxville
• more conservative license policy
• fps workaround
• ding gscam
• back to before
• two publishers
• Lots of changes. AR Alpha now expects files in the bin directory, to facilitate roslaunch. Gscam must be started from the bin directory, or, again, using roslaunch. The localizer code now works correctly and has been tested on a Create, but has problems cause by AR alpha's processing delays.
• Bugfix: supply default camera parameters when real ones are unavailable.
• Fully-functional calibration file writing.
• Partial changes for file-writing gscam.
• Gscam now fits into an image processing pipeline with rectified images. TODO: Save camera configuration info.
• Handles built for camera info services, but no testing.
• Changed the name of the GStreamer camera package. probe will henceforth be known as gscam.
• Contributors: Jonathan Bohren, chriscrick, evan.exe@gmail.com, nevernim@gmail.com, trevorjay