Burst Mode#

The Burst Mode camera feature controls how a series of images (a "burst" of images) is acquired and transmitted.

Using the Feature#

General Information#

You can configure the camera to acquire a series of images whenever it receives a trigger signal. The number of images per series is specified by the AcquisitionBurstFrameCount parameter. You can find more information about burst image acquisition in the Triggered Image Acquisition topic.

By setting the burst mode, you can control the timing of acquisition and transmission of each series of images.

Configuring the Burst Mode#

To configure the burst mode and set up burst image acquisition:

1. Make sure the camera is idle, i.e., not capturing images.
2. Enable frame burst triggering:
   1. Set the TriggerSelector parameter to FrameBurstStart or FrameBurstActive.
      For more information, see the Triggered Image Acquisition topic.
   2. Set the TriggerMode parameter to On.
3. Set the BslAcquisitionBurstMode parameter to one of the following values:
   • HighSpeed: Enables the High Speed burst mode.
     Note: This mode is only available if supported by your camera model. Also, frame burst triggering must be enabled (see step 2).
   • Standard: Enables the Standard burst mode.
4. Configure frame burst triggering as described in the Triggered Image Acquisition topic.

Available Burst Modes#

Standard Burst Mode#

The Standard burst mode is the default mode. It allows you to execute bursts in quick succession but offers lower frame rates compared to the High Speed burst mode.

In this mode, the timing of acquisition, readout, and transmission during a burst is identical to non-burst camera operation. The frame rate may be limited by the camera's ability to transfer data.

High Speed Burst Mode#

The High Speed burst mode may offer higher frame rates during a burst, especially on GigE cameras.

Usually, the frame rate of the camera is not only limited by its sensor and internal buffer but also by its ability to transfer data. This includes, e.g., the interface bandwidth or your network setup.

The High Speed burst mode allows you to work around these data transfer limitations and acquire a burst of images as quickly as possible.

To achieve this, during a burst, acquiring images and filling the camera's internal buffer is highly prioritized over transmitting data. Usually, images will only be transmitted after all images of a burst have been acquired. Therefore, acquiring many images per burst may result in a short delay after each burst, reducing the number of bursts you can trigger per second.

Monitoring#

The following parameters let you monitor the performance of the High Speed burst mode:

• BslResultingAcquisitionFrameRate: Number of frames the camera can acquire per second during a high speed burst with the current camera settings.
• BslResultingTransferFrameRate: Number of frames the camera can transmit per second after or during a high speed burst with the current camera settings.
• BslResultingFrameBurstRate: Maximum number of bursts you can trigger per second with the current camera settings.

Example: Assume you want to acquire multiple series of three images as quickly as possible. You enable the High Speed burst mode, configure the camera for burst image acquisition, and set the AcquisitionBurstFrameCount parameter to 3. Your camera reports the following values:

• BslResultingAcquisitionFrameRate: 170.0
• BslResultingTransferFrameRate: 155.0
• BslResultingFrameBurstRate: 27.03

This means that during each burst, the camera acquires 170 images per second. At the camera's output, the camera transmits 155 images per second. Therefore, each burst of three images will take 17.65 ms to acquire (1000 / 170 * 3) and 19.35 ms to transmit (1000 / 155 * 3).

In High Speed burst mode, acquisition and transmission don't overlap, so you must wait 37 ms (17.65 + 19.35) after each frame burst trigger before you can trigger the next burst. Or, in other words, you can trigger 27.03 bursts per second (1000 / 37 = 27.03). This is reflected in the BslResultingFrameBurstRate parameter value.

Using Acquisition Frame Rate with Burst Mode#

You can use the Acquisition Frame Rate feature to limit the camera's frame rate during burst image acquisition. This can be useful if you want to keep the frame rate at a user-defined rate.

For example, assume you want to acquire three images at 6 ms intervals, i.e., 166.66 fps. In Standard burst mode, the camera delivers 164 fps, which is too slow. In High Speed burst mode, the camera delivers 168.8 fps, which is too fast.

To resolve this, you enable the High Speed burst mode, set the AcquisitionFrameRate parameter to 166.66 and the AcquisitionFrameRateEnable parameter to true.

The camera now operates at 166.66 fps.

Specifics#

Show all camera models

Sample Code#

// Set the burst mode to High Speed
camera.BslAcquisitionBurstMode.SetValue(BslAcquisitionBurstMode_HighSpeed);

INodeMap& nodemap = camera.GetNodeMap();
// Set the burst mode to High Speed
CEnumParameter(nodemap, "BslAcquisitionBurstMode").SetValue("HighSpeed");

// Set the burst mode to High Speed
camera.Parameters[PLCamera.BslAcquisitionBurstMode].SetValue(PLCamera.BslAcquisitionBurstMode.HighSpeed);

/* Macro to check for errors */
#define CHECK(errc) if (GENAPI_E_OK != errc) printErrorAndExit(errc)
GENAPIC_RESULT errRes = GENAPI_E_OK;  /* Return value of pylon methods */
/* Set the burst mode to High Speed */
errRes = PylonDeviceFeatureFromString(hdev, "BslAcquisitionBurstMode", "HighSpeed");
CHECK(errRes);

# Set the burst mode to High Speed
camera.BslAcquisitionBurstMode.Value = "HighSpeed"

You can also use the pylon Viewer to easily set the parameters.