Video for Linux Two API Specication

Draft 0.12

Michael H Schimek
[email protected]

Bill Dirks Hans Verkuil

Video for Linux Two API Specication: Draft 0.12 by Michael H Schimek, Bill Dirks, and Hans Verkuil Copyright 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 Bill Dirks, Michael H. Schimek, Hans Verkuil
This document is copyrighted 1999-2006 by Bill Dirks, Michael H. Schimek and Hans Verkuil. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the appendix entitled "GNU Free Documentation License". Programming examples can be used and distributed without restrictions.

Revision History

Revision 0.12 2006-02-03 Revised by: mhs Corrected the description of struct v4l2_captureparm and v4l2_outputparm. Revision 0.11 2006-01-27 Revised by: mhs Improved the description of struct v4l2_tuner. Revision 0.10 2006-01-10 Revised by: mhs VIDIOC_G_INPUT and VIDIOC_S_PARM clarications. Revision 0.9 2005-11-27 Revised by: mhs Improved the 525 line numbering diagram. Hans Verkuil and I rewrote the sliced VBI section. He also contributed a VIDIOC_LOG Revision 0.8 2004-10-04 Revised by: mhs Somehow a piece of junk slipped into the capture example, removed. Revision 0.7 2004-09-19 Revised by: mhs Fixed video standard selection, control enumeration, downscaling and aspect example. Added read and user pointer i/o to video cap Revision 0.6 2004-08-01 Revised by: mhs v4l2_buffer changes, added video capture example, various corrections. Revision 0.5 2003-11-05 Revised by: mhs Pixel format erratum. Revision 0.4 2003-09-17 Revised by: mhs Corrected source and Makele to generate a PDF. SGML xes. Added latest API changes. Closed gaps in the history chapter. Revision 0.3 2003-02-05 Revised by: mhs Another draft, more corrections. Revision 0.2 2003-01-15 Revised by: mhs Second draft, with corrections pointed out by Gerd Knorr. Revision 0.1 2002-12-01 Revised by: mhs First draft, based on documentation by Bill Dirks and discussions on the V4L mailing list.

Table of Contents
Introduction........................................................................................................................................ix 1. Common API Elements.................................................................................................................. 1 1.1. Opening and Closing Devices .............................................................................................. 1 1.1.1. Device Naming ........................................................................................................ 1 1.1.2. Related Devices ....................................................................................................... 2 1.1.3. Multiple Opens ........................................................................................................ 2 1.1.4. Shared Data Streams................................................................................................ 3 1.1.5. Functions ................................................................................................................. 3 1.2. Querying Capabilities .......................................................................................................... 3 1.3. Application Priority.............................................................................................................. 3 1.4. Video Inputs and Outputs..................................................................................................... 4 1.5. Audio Inputs and Outputs .................................................................................................... 5 1.6. Tuners and Modulators......................................................................................................... 6 1.6.1. Tuners ...................................................................................................................... 6 1.6.2. Modulators............................................................................................................... 6 1.6.3. Radio Frequency...................................................................................................... 7 1.6.4. Satellite Receivers ................................................................................................... 7 1.7. Video Standards ................................................................................................................... 7 1.8. Controls ................................................................................................................................ 9 1.9. Data Formats ...................................................................................................................... 13 1.9.1. Data Format Negotiation ....................................................................................... 14 1.9.2. Image Format Enumeration ................................................................................... 14 1.10. Cropping and Scaling....................................................................................................... 15 1.11. Streaming Parameters....................................................................................................... 18 2. Image Formats .............................................................................................................................. 21 2.1. Standard Image Formats .................................................................................................... 21 2.2. Colorspaces ........................................................................................................................ 22 2.3. RGB Formats ..................................................................................................................... 25 2.4. YUV Formats ..................................................................................................................... 27 V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY (GREY) ............................................................................... 27 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV (YUYV).............................................................................. 28 V4L2_PIX_FMT_UYVY (UYVY).............................................................................. 29 V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P (Y41P)................................................................................... 30 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420 (YV12), V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV420 (YU12).............. 31 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410 (YVU9), V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV410 (YUV9)............ 32 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P (422P)............................................................................ 33 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411P (411P)............................................................................ 34 V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV12 (NV12), V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV21 (NV21) ....................... 35 2.5. Compressed Formats.......................................................................................................... 36 2.6. Reserved Format Identiers ............................................................................................... 36 3. Input/Output ................................................................................................................................. 37 3.1. Read/Write ......................................................................................................................... 37 3.2. Streaming I/O (Memory Mapping) .................................................................................... 37 3.3. Streaming I/O (User Pointers)............................................................................................ 40 3.4. Asynchronous I/O .............................................................................................................. 41 3.5. Buffers................................................................................................................................ 41 3.5.1. Timecodes.............................................................................................................. 45 3.6. Field Order ......................................................................................................................... 46

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4. Device Types .................................................................................................................................. 51 4.1. Video Capture Interface ..................................................................................................... 51 4.1.1. Querying Capabilities............................................................................................ 51 4.1.2. Supplemental Functions ........................................................................................ 51 4.1.3. Image Format Negotiation..................................................................................... 51 4.1.4. Reading Images ..................................................................................................... 52 4.2. Video Overlay Interface ..................................................................................................... 52 4.2.1. Querying Capabilities............................................................................................ 52 4.2.2. Supplemental Functions ........................................................................................ 52 4.2.3. Setup ...................................................................................................................... 52 4.2.4. Overlay Window.................................................................................................... 53 4.2.5. Enabling Overlay................................................................................................... 55 4.3. Video Output Interface....................................................................................................... 55 4.3.1. Querying Capabilities............................................................................................ 55 4.3.2. Supplemental Functions ........................................................................................ 55 4.3.3. Image Format Negotiation..................................................................................... 56 4.3.4. Writing Images ...................................................................................................... 56 4.4. Codec Interface .................................................................................................................. 56 4.5. Effect Devices Interface ..................................................................................................... 56 4.6. Raw VBI Data Interface..................................................................................................... 57 4.6.1. Querying Capabilities............................................................................................ 57 4.6.2. Supplemental Functions ........................................................................................ 57 4.6.3. Raw VBI Format Negotiation................................................................................ 57 4.6.4. Reading and writing VBI images .......................................................................... 64 4.7. Sliced VBI Data Interface .................................................................................................. 64 4.7.1. Querying Capabilities............................................................................................ 64 4.7.2. Supplemental Functions ........................................................................................ 65 4.7.3. Sliced VBI Format Negotiation............................................................................. 65 4.7.4. Reading and writing sliced VBI data..................................................................... 66 4.8. Teletext Interface................................................................................................................ 67 4.9. Radio Interface ................................................................................................................... 68 4.9.1. Querying Capabilities............................................................................................ 68 4.9.2. Supplemental Functions ........................................................................................ 68 4.9.3. Programming ......................................................................................................... 68 4.10. RDS Interface................................................................................................................... 68 I. Function Reference ....................................................................................................................... 70 V4L2 close() ............................................................................................................................. 72 V4L2 ioctl()............................................................................................................................... 73 ioctl VIDIOC_CROPCAP......................................................................................................... 75 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO .................................................................................................. 77 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT .............................................................................................. 78 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT..................................................................................................... 79 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT ................................................................................................... 81 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT ............................................................................................... 84 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMSTD ....................................................................................................... 86 ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO ...................................................................... 90 ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT .............................................................. 92 ioctl VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP ................................................... 94 ioctl VIDIOC_G_CROP, VIDIOC_S_CROP ........................................................................... 95 ioctl VIDIOC_G_CTRL, VIDIOC_S_CTRL ........................................................................... 97 ioctl VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF............................................................................ 99

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ioctl VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT.......................................... 102 ioctl VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY .............................................. 105 ioctl VIDIOC_G_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_INPUT ...................................................................... 107 ioctl VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP ..................................................... 109 ioctl VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR ........................................... 111 ioctl VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT .............................................................. 114 ioctl VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM........................................................................ 116 ioctl VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY, VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY ......................................................... 120 ioctl VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP ................................................................................... 122 ioctl VIDIOC_G_STD, VIDIOC_S_STD .............................................................................. 124 ioctl VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER................................................................... 125 ioctl VIDIOC_LOG_STATUS ................................................................................................ 129 ioctl VIDIOC_OVERLAY ...................................................................................................... 130 ioctl VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF............................................................................... 131 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ................................................................................................... 133 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ................................................................................................... 135 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU...................................................... 138 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYSTD.................................................................................................... 141 ioctl VIDIOC_REQBUFS....................................................................................................... 143 ioctl VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ......................................................... 145 V4L2 mmap().......................................................................................................................... 147 V4L2 munmap()...................................................................................................................... 149 V4L2 open() ............................................................................................................................ 150 V4L2 poll() ............................................................................................................................. 152 V4L2 read()............................................................................................................................. 153 V4L2 select()........................................................................................................................... 155 V4L2 write() ........................................................................................................................... 156 5. V4L2 Driver Programming........................................................................................................ 158 6. History ......................................................................................................................................... 159 6.1. Differences between V4L and V4L2 ............................................................................... 159 6.1.1. Opening and Closing Devices ............................................................................. 159 6.1.2. Querying Capabilities.......................................................................................... 159 6.1.3. Video Sources ...................................................................................................... 161 6.1.4. Tuning.................................................................................................................. 161 6.1.5. Image Properties.................................................................................................. 162 6.1.6. Audio ................................................................................................................... 163 6.1.7. Frame Buffer Overlay.......................................................................................... 164 6.1.8. Cropping .............................................................................................................. 164 6.1.9. Reading Images, Memory Mapping .................................................................... 165 6.1.9.1. Capturing using the read method ............................................................ 165 6.1.9.2. Capturing using memory mapping.......................................................... 165 6.1.10. Reading Raw VBI Data ..................................................................................... 166 6.1.11. Miscellaneous .................................................................................................... 167 6.2. History of the V4L2 API.................................................................................................. 167 6.2.1. Early Versions...................................................................................................... 167 6.2.2. V4L2 Version 0.16 1999-01-31........................................................................... 168 6.2.3. V4L2 Version 0.18 1999-03-16........................................................................... 168 6.2.4. V4L2 Version 0.19 1999-06-05........................................................................... 168 6.2.5. V4L2 Version 0.20 1999-09-10........................................................................... 168 6.2.6. V4L2 Version 0.20 incremental changes............................................................. 170 6.2.7. V4L2 Version 0.20 2000-11-23........................................................................... 171

6.2.8. V4L2 Version 0.20 2002-07-25........................................................................... 171 6.2.9. V4L2 in Linux 2.5.46, 2002-10........................................................................... 171 6.2.10. V4L2 2003-06-19 .............................................................................................. 175 6.2.11. V4L2 2003-11-05 .............................................................................................. 175 6.2.12. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.6, 2004-05-09 ..................................................................... 176 6.2.13. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.8 .......................................................................................... 176 6.2.14. V4L2 spec erratum 2004-08-01......................................................................... 176 6.2.15. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.14 ........................................................................................ 176 6.2.16. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.15 ........................................................................................ 177 6.2.17. V4L2 spec erratum 2005-11-27......................................................................... 177 6.2.18. V4L2 spec erratum 2006-01-10......................................................................... 177 6.2.19. V4L2 spec erratum 2006-02-03......................................................................... 177 6.3. Relation of V4L2 to other Linux multimedia APIs ......................................................... 177 6.3.1. X Video Extension............................................................................................... 178 6.3.2. Digital Video ....................................................................................................... 178 6.3.3. Audio Interfaces .................................................................................................. 178 A. Video For Linux Two Header File............................................................................................ 179 B. Video Capture Example............................................................................................................. 200 C. GNU Free Documentation License........................................................................................... 212 C.1. 0. PREAMBLE................................................................................................................ 212 C.2. 1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS.................................................................... 212 C.3. 2. VERBATIM COPYING .............................................................................................. 213 C.4. 3. COPYING IN QUANTITY......................................................................................... 213 C.5. 4. MODIFICATIONS ...................................................................................................... 214 C.6. 5. COMBINING DOCUMENTS .................................................................................... 215 C.7. 6. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS.......................................................................... 215 C.8. 7. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS ................................................. 216 C.9. 8. TRANSLATION ......................................................................................................... 216 C.10. 9. TERMINATION........................................................................................................ 216 C.11. 10. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE .......................................................... 216 C.12. Addendum ..................................................................................................................... 217 Bibliography .................................................................................................................................... 218

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List of Tables
1-1. Control IDs .................................................................................................................................. 10 2-1. struct v4l2_pix_format ................................................................................................................ 21 2-2. enum v4l2_colorspace................................................................................................................. 24 2-3. Packed RGB Image Formats ....................................................................................................... 25 2-4. Reserved Image Formats ............................................................................................................. 36 3-1. struct v4l2_buffer ........................................................................................................................ 42 3-2. enum v4l2_buf_type.................................................................................................................... 44 3-3. Buffer Flags ................................................................................................................................. 44 3-4. enum v4l2_memory..................................................................................................................... 45 3-5. struct v4l2_timecode ................................................................................................................... 45 3-6. Timecode Types........................................................................................................................... 46 3-7. Timecode Flags ........................................................................................................................... 46 3-8. enum v4l2_eld........................................................................................................................... 47 4-1. struct v4l2_window ..................................................................................................................... 54 4-2. struct v4l2_clip2 ........................................................................................................................... 54 4-3. struct v4l2_rect ............................................................................................................................ 55 4-4. struct v4l2_vbi_format ................................................................................................................ 58 4-5. Raw VBI Format Flags................................................................................................................ 59 4-6. struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_format..................................................................................................... 65 4-7. Sliced VBI services ..................................................................................................................... 66 4-8. struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_data......................................................................................................... 66 1. struct v4l2_cropcap......................................................................................................................... 75 2. struct v4l2_rect ............................................................................................................................... 76 1. struct v4l2_fmtdesc......................................................................................................................... 79 2. Image Format Description Flags .................................................................................................... 80 1. struct v4l2_input ............................................................................................................................. 81 2. Input Types ..................................................................................................................................... 82 3. Input Status Flags ........................................................................................................................... 82 1. struct v4l2_output ........................................................................................................................... 84 2. Output Type .................................................................................................................................... 85 1. struct v4l2_standard........................................................................................................................ 86 2. struct v4l2_fract .............................................................................................................................. 87 3. typedef v4l2_std_id ........................................................................................................................ 87 4. Video Standards (based on [ITU470>]).......................................................................................... 88 1. struct v4l2_audio ............................................................................................................................ 90 2. Audio Capability Flags ................................................................................................................... 91 3. Audio Modes .................................................................................................................................. 91 1. struct v4l2_audioout ....................................................................................................................... 92 1. struct v4l2_mpeg_compression ...................................................................................................... 94 1. struct v4l2_crop .............................................................................................................................. 96 1. struct v4l2_control .......................................................................................................................... 97 1. struct v4l2_framebuffer .................................................................................................................. 99 2. Frame Buffer Capability Flags ..................................................................................................... 100 3. Frame Buffer Flags ....................................................................................................................... 101 1. struct v4l2_format......................................................................................................................... 103 1. struct v4l2_frequency ................................................................................................................... 105 1. struct v4l2_jpegcompression ........................................................................................................ 109 2. JPEG Markers Flags ..................................................................................................................... 110 1. struct v4l2_modulator................................................................................................................... 111

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2. Modulator Audio Transmission Flags .......................................................................................... 112 1. struct v4l2_streamparm ................................................................................................................ 116 2. struct v4l2_captureparm ............................................................................................................... 117 3. struct v4l2_outputparm................................................................................................................. 117 4. Streaming Parameters Capabilites ................................................................................................ 118 5. Capture Parameters Flags ............................................................................................................. 118 1. enum v4l2_priority ....................................................................................................................... 120 1. struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_cap ........................................................................................................... 122 2. Sliced VBI services....................................................................................................................... 123 1. struct v4l2_tuner ........................................................................................................................... 125 2. enum v4l2_tuner_type .................................................................................................................. 126 3. Tuner and Modulator Capability Flags ......................................................................................... 126 4. Tuner Audio Reception Flags ....................................................................................................... 127 5. Tuner Audio Modes ...................................................................................................................... 127 6. Tuner Audio Matrix ...................................................................................................................... 128 1. struct v4l2_capability.................................................................................................................... 135 2. Device Capabilities Flags ............................................................................................................. 136 1. struct v4l2_queryctrl..................................................................................................................... 138 2. struct v4l2_querymenu ................................................................................................................. 139 3. enum v4l2_ctrl_type ..................................................................................................................... 139 4. Control Flags ................................................................................................................................ 140 1. struct v4l2_requestbuffers............................................................................................................. 143 6-1. V4L Device Types, Names and Numbers ................................................................................. 159

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Introduction
[to do] If you have questions or ideas regarding the API, please try the Video4Linux mailing list: https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/video4linux-list For documentation related requests contact the maintainer at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]). The latest version of this document and the DocBook SGML sources is currently hosted at http://v4l2spec.bytesex.org, and http://linuxtv.org/downloads/video4linux/API/V4L2_API.

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Chapter 1. Common API Elements

Programming a V4L2 device consists of these steps:

Opening the device Changing device properties, selecting a video and audio input, video standard, picture brightness a. o. Negotiating a data format Negotiating an input/output method The actual input/output loop Closing the device

In practice most steps are optional and can be executed out of order. It depends on the V4L2 device type, you can read about the details in Chapter 4>. In this chapter we will discuss the basic concepts applicable to all devices.

1.1. Opening and Closing Devices

1.1.1. Device Naming
V4L2 drivers are implemented as kernel modules, loaded manually by the system administrator or automatically when a device is rst opened. The driver modules plug into the "videodev" kernel module. It provides helper functions and a common application interface specied in this document. Each driver thus loaded registers one or more device nodes with major number 81 and a minor number between 0 and 255. Assigning minor numbers to V4L2 devices is entirely up to the system administrator, this is primarily intended to solve conicts between devices.1 The module options to select minor numbers are named after the device special le with a "_nr" sufx. For example "video_nr" for /dev/video video capture devices. The number is an offset to the base minor number associated with the device type. 2 When the driver supports multiple devices of the same type more than one minor number can be assigned, separated by commas:
> insmod mydriver.o video_nr=0,1 radio_nr=0,1

In /etc/modules.conf this may be written as:

alias char-major-81-0 mydriver alias char-major-81-1 mydriver alias char-major-81-64 mydriver options mydriver video_nr=0,1 radio_nr=0,1

> >

When an application attempts to open a device special le with major number 81 and minor number 0, 1, or 64, load "mydriver" (and the "videodev" module it depends upon). Register the rst two video capture devices with minor number 0 and 1 (base number is 0), the rst two radio device with minor number 64 and 65 (base 64).

Chapter 1. Common API Elements When no minor number is given as module option the driver supplies a default. Chapter 4> recommends the base minor numbers to be used for the various device types. Obviously minor numbers must be unique. When the number is already in use the offending device will not be registered.

By convention system administrators create various character device special les with these major and minor numbers in the /dev directory. The names recomended for the different V4L2 device types are listed in Chapter 4>. The creation of character special les (with mknod) is a privileged operation and devices cannot be opened by major and minor number. That means applications cannot reliable scan for loaded or installed drivers. The user must enter a device name, or the application can try the conventional device names. Under the device lesystem (devfs) the minor number options are ignored. V4L2 drivers (or by proxy the "videodev" module) automatically create the required device les in the /dev/v4l directory using the conventional device names above.

1.1.2. Related Devices

Devices can support several related functions. For example video capturing, video overlay and VBI capturing are related because these functions share, amongst other, the same video input and tuner frequency. V4L and earlier versions of V4L2 used the same device name and minor number for video capturing and overlay, but different ones for VBI. Experience showed this approach has several problems3, and to make things worse the V4L videodev module used to prohibit multiple opens of a device. As a remedy the present version of the V4L2 API relaxed the concept of device types with specic names and minor numbers. For compatibility with old applications drivers must still register different minor numbers to assign a default function to the device. But if related functions are supported by the driver they must be available under all registered minor numbers. The desired function can be selected after opening the device as described in Chapter 4>. Imagine a driver supporting video capturing, video overlay, raw VBI capturing, and FM radio reception. It registers three devices with minor number 0, 64 and 224 (this numbering scheme is inherited from the V4L API). Regardless if /dev/video (81, 0) or /dev/vbi (81, 224) is opened the application can select any one of the video capturing, overlay or VBI capturing functions. Without programming (e. g. reading from the device with dd or cat) /dev/video captures video images, while /dev/vbi captures raw VBI data. /dev/radio (81, 64) is invariable a radio device, unrelated to the video functions. Being unrelated does not imply the devices can be used at the same time, however. The open() function may very well return an EBUSY error code. Besides video input or output the hardware may also support audio sampling or playback. If so, these functions are implemented as OSS or ALSA PCM devices and eventually OSS or ALSA audio mixer. The V4L2 API makes no provisions yet to nd these related devices. If you have an idea please write to the Video4Linux mailing list: https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/video4linux-list.

1.1.3. Multiple Opens

In general, V4L2 devices can be opened more than once. When this is supported by the driver, users can for example start a "panel" application to change controls like brightness or audio volume, while

Chapter 1. Common API Elements another application captures video and audio. In other words, panel applications are comparable to an OSS or ALSA audio mixer application. When a device supports multiple functions like capturing and overlay simultaneously, multiple opens allow concurrent use of the device by forked processes or specialized applications. Multiple opens are optional, although drivers should permit at least concurrent accesses without data exchange, i. e. panel applications. This implies open() can return an EBUSY error code when the device is already in use, as well as ioctl() functions initiating data exchange (namely the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl), and the read() and write() functions. Mere opening a V4L2 device does not grant exclusive access.4 Initiating data exchange however assigns the right to read or write the requested type of data, and to change related properties, to this le descriptor. Applications can request additional access privileges using the priority mechanism described in Section 1.3>.

1.1.4. Shared Data Streams

V4L2 drivers should not support multiple applications reading or writing the same data stream on a device by copying buffers, time multiplexing or similar means. This is better handled by a proxy application in user space. When the driver supports stream sharing anyway it must be implemented transparently. The V4L2 API does not specify how conicts are solved.

1.1.5. Functions
To open and close V4L2 devices applications use the open() and close() function, respectively. Devices are programmed using the ioctl() function as explained in the following sections.

1.2. Querying Capabilities

Because V4L2 covers a wide variety of devices not all aspects of the API are equally applicable to all types of devices. Furthermore devices of the same type have different capabilities and this specication permits the omission of a few complicated and less important parts of the API. The VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl is available to check if the kernel device is compatible with this specication, and to query the functions and I/O methods supported by the device. Other features can be queried by calling the respective ioctl, for example VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT to learn about the number, types and names of video connectors on the device. Although abstraction is a major objective of this API, the ioctl also allows driver specic applications to reliable identify the driver. All V4L2 drivers must support VIDIOC_QUERYCAP. Applications should always call this ioctl after opening the device.

1.3. Application Priority

When multiple applications share a device it may be desirable to assign them different priorities. Contrary to the traditional "rm -rf /" school of thought a video recording application could for example block other applications from changing video controls or switching the current TV channel. Another objective is to permit low priority applications working in background, which can be

Chapter 1. Common API Elements preempted by user controlled applications and automatically regain control of the device at a later time. Since these features cannot be implemented entirely in user space V4L2 denes the VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY and VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY ioctls to request and query the access priority associate with a le descriptor. Opening a device assigns a medium priority, compatible with earlier versions of V4L2 and drivers not supporting these ioctls. Applications requiring a different priority will usually call VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY after verifying the device with the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. Ioctls changing driver properties, such as VIDIOC_S_INPUT, return an EBUSY error code after another application obtained higher priority. An event mechanism to notify applications about asynchronous property changes has been proposed but not added yet.

1.4. Video Inputs and Outputs

Video inputs and outputs are physical connectors of a device. These can be for example RF connectors (antenna/cable), CVBS a.k.a. Composite Video, S-Video or RGB connectors. Only video and VBI capture devices have inputs, output devices have outputs, at least one each. Radio devices have no video inputs or outputs. To learn about the number and attributes of the available inputs and outputs applications can enumerate them with the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT and VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT ioctl, respectively. The struct v4l2_input returned by the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT ioctl also contains signal status information applicable when the current video input is queried. The VIDIOC_G_INPUT and VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT ioctl return the index of the current video input or output. To select a different input or output applications call the VIDIOC_S_INPUT and VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT ioctl. Drivers must implement all the input ioctls when the device has one or more inputs, all the output ioctls when the device has one or more outputs. Example 1-1. Information about the current video input
struct v4l2_input input; int index; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_INPUT, &index)) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_INPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } memset (&input, 0, sizeof (input)); input.index = index; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT, &input)) { perror ("VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } printf ("Current input: %s\n", input.name);

Chapter 1. Common API Elements Example 1-2. Switching to the rst video input
int index; index = 0; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_INPUT, &index)) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_INPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

1.5. Audio Inputs and Outputs

Audio inputs and outputs are physical connectors of a device. Video capture devices have inputs, output devices have outputs, zero or more each. Radio devices have no audio inputs or outputs. They have exactly one tuner which in fact is an audio source, but this API associates tuners with video inputs or outputs only, and radio devices have none of these.5 A connector on a TV card to loop back the received audio signal to a sound card is not considered an audio output. Audio and video inputs and outputs are associated. Selecting a video source also selects an audio source. This is most evident when the video and audio source is a tuner. Further audio connectors can combine with more than one video input or output. Assumed two composite video inputs and two audio inputs exist, there may be up to four valid combinations. The relation of video and audio connectors is dened in the audioset eld of the respective struct v4l2_input or struct v4l2_output, where each bit represents the index number, starting at zero, of one audio input or output. To learn about the number and attributes of the available inputs and outputs applications can enumerate them with the VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO and VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT ioctl, respectively. The struct v4l2_audio returned by the VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO ioctl also contains signal status information applicable when the current audio input is queried. The VIDIOC_G_AUDIO and VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT ioctl report the current audio input and output, respectively. Note that, unlike VIDIOC_G_INPUT and VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT these ioctls return a structure as VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO and VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT do, not just an index. To select an audio input and change its properties applications call the VIDIOC_S_AUDIO ioctl. To select an audio output (which presently has no changeable properties) applications call the VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT ioctl. Drivers must implement all input ioctls when the device has one or more inputs, all output ioctls when the device has one or more outputs. When the device has any audio inputs or outputs the driver must set the V4L2_CAP_AUDIO ag in the struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. Example 1-3. Information about the current audio input
struct v4l2_audio audio; memset (&audio, 0, sizeof (audio)); if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, &audio)) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_AUDIO"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Chapter 1. Common API Elements

printf ("Current input: %s\n", audio.name);

Example 1-4. Switching to the rst audio input

struct v4l2_audio audio; memset (&audio, 0, sizeof (audio)); /* clear audio.mode, audio.reserved */ audio.index = 0; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO, &audio)) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_AUDIO"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

1.6. Tuners and Modulators

1.6.1. Tuners
Video input devices can have one or more tuners demodulating a RF signal. Each tuner is associated with one or more video inputs, depending on the number of RF connectors on the tuner. The type eld of the respective struct v4l2_input returned by the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT ioctl is set to V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_TUNER and its tuner eld contains the index number of the tuner. Radio devices have exactly one tuner with index zero, no video inputs. To query and change tuner properties applications use the VIDIOC_G_TUNER and VIDIOC_S_TUNER ioctl, respectively. The struct v4l2_tuner returned by VIDIOC_G_TUNER also contains signal status information applicable when the tuner of the current video input, or a radio tuner is queried. Note that VIDIOC_S_TUNER does not switch the current tuner, when there is more than one at all. The tuner is solely determined by the current video input. Drivers must support both ioctls and set the V4L2_CAP_TUNER ag in the struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl when the device has one or more tuners.

1.6.2. Modulators
Video output devices can have one or more modulators, uh, modulating a video signal for radiation or connection to the antenna input of a TV set or video recorder. Each modulator is associated with one or more video outputs, depending on the number of RF connectors on the modulator. The type eld of the respective struct v4l2_output returned by the VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT is set to V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_MODULATOR and its modulator eld contains the index number of the modulator. This specication does not dene radio output devices. To query and change modulator properties applications use the VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR and VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR ioctl. Note that VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR does not switch the current modulator, when there is more than one at all. The modulator is solely determined by the current video output. Drivers must support both ioctls and set the V4L2_CAP_TUNER (sic) ag in the

Chapter 1. Common API Elements struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl when the device has one or more modulators.

1.6.3. Radio Frequency

To get and set the tuner or modulator radio frequency applications use the VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY and VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY ioctl which both take a pointer to a struct v4l2_frequency. These ioctls are used for TV and radio devices alike. Drivers must support both ioctls when the tuner or modulator ioctls are supported, or when the device is a radio device.

1.6.4. Satellite Receivers

To be discussed. See also proposals by Peter Schlaf, [email protected] on 23 Oct 2002, subject: "Re: [V4L] Re: v4l2 api".

1.7. Video Standards

Video devices typically support one or more different video standards or variations of standards. Each video input and output may support another set of standards. This set is reported by the std eld of struct v4l2_input and struct v4l2_output returned by the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT and VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT ioctl, respectively. V4L2 denes one bit for each analog video standard currently in use worldwide, and sets aside bits for driver dened standards, e. g. hybrid standards to watch NTSC video tapes on PAL TVs and vice versa. Applications can use the predened bits to select a particular standard, although presenting the user a menu of supported standards is preferred. To enumerate and query the attributes of the supported standards applications use the VIDIOC_ENUMSTD ioctl. Many of the dened standards are actually just variations of a few major standards. The hardware may in fact not distinguish between them, or do so internal and switch automatically. Therefore enumerated standards also contain sets of one or more standard bits. Assume a hypothetic tuner capable of demodulating B/PAL, G/PAL and I/PAL signals. The rst enumerated standard is a set of B and G/PAL, switched automatically depending on the selected radio frequency in UHF or VHF band. Enumeration gives a "PAL-B/G" or "PAL-I" choice. Similar a Composite input may collapse standards, enumerating "PAL-B/G/H/I", "NTSC-M" and "SECAM-D/K".6 To query and select the standard used by the current video input or output applications call the VIDIOC_G_STD and VIDIOC_S_STD ioctl, respectively. The received standard can be sensed with the VIDIOC_QUERYSTD ioctl. Note parameter of all these ioctls is a pointer to a v4l2_std_id type (a standard set), not an index into the standard enumeration.7 Drivers must implement all video standard ioctls when the device has one or more video inputs or outputs. Special rules apply to USB cameras where the notion of video standards makes little sense. More generally any capture device, output devices accordingly, which is

incapable of capturing elds or frames at the nominal rate of the video standard, or where timestamps refer to the instant the eld or frame was received by the driver, not the capture time, or

Chapter 1. Common API Elements

where sequence numbers refer to the frames received by the driver, not the captured frames.

Here the driver shall set the std eld of struct v4l2_input and struct v4l2_output to zero, the VIDIOC_G_STD, VIDIOC_S_STD, VIDIOC_QUERYSTD and VIDIOC_ENUMSTD ioctls shall return the EINVAL error code.8 Example 1-5. Information about the current video standard
v4l2_std_id std_id; struct v4l2_standard standard; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_STD, &std_id)) { /* Note when VIDIOC_ENUMSTD always returns EINVAL this is no video device or it falls under the USB exception, and VIDIOC_G_STD returning EINVAL is no error. */ perror ("VIDIOC_G_STD"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } memset (&standard, 0, sizeof (standard)); standard.index = 0; while (0 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_ENUMSTD, &standard)) { if (standard.id & std_id) { printf ("Current video standard: %s\n", standard.name); exit (EXIT_SUCCESS); } standard.index++; } /* EINVAL indicates the end of the enumeration, which cannot be empty unless this device falls under the USB exception. */ if (errno == EINVAL || standard.index == 0) { perror ("VIDIOC_ENUMSTD"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Example 1-6. Listing the video standards supported by the current input
struct v4l2_input input; struct v4l2_standard standard; memset (&input, 0, sizeof (input)); if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_INPUT, &input.index)) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_INPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT, &input)) { perror ("VIDIOC_ENUM_INPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Chapter 1. Common API Elements

printf ("Current input %s supports:\n", input.name); memset (&standard, 0, sizeof (standard)); standard.index = 0; while (0 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_ENUMSTD, &standard)) { if (standard.id & input.std) printf ("%s\n", standard.name); standard.index++; } /* EINVAL indicates the end of the enumeration, which cannot be empty unless this device falls under the USB exception. */ if (errno != EINVAL || standard.index == 0) { perror ("VIDIOC_ENUMSTD"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Example 1-7. Selecting a new video standard

struct v4l2_input input; v4l2_std_id std_id; memset (&input, 0, sizeof (input)); if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_INPUT, &input.index)) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_INPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT, &input)) { perror ("VIDIOC_ENUM_INPUT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } if (0 == (input.std & V4L2_STD_PAL_BG)) { fprintf (stderr, "Oops. B/G PAL is not supported.\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } /* Note this is also supposed to work when only B or G/PAL is supported. */ std_id = V4L2_STD_PAL_BG; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_STD, &std_id)) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_STD"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Chapter 1. Common API Elements

1.8. Controls
Devices typically have a number of user-settable controls such as brightness, saturation and so on, which would be presented to the user on a graphical user interface. But, different devices will have different controls available, and furthermore, the range of possible values, and the default value will vary from device to device. The control ioctls provide the information and a mechanism to create a nice user interface for these controls that will work correctly with any device. All controls are accessed using an ID value. V4L2 denes several IDs for specic purposes. Drivers can also implement their own custom controls using V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE and higher values. The pre-dened control IDs have the prex V4L2_CID_, and are listed in Table 1-1>. The ID is used when querying the attributes of a control, and when getting or setting the current value. Generally applications should present controls to the user without assumptions about their purpose. Each control comes with a name string the user is supposed to understand. When the purpose is non-intuitive the driver writer should provide a user manual, a user interface plug-in or a driver specic panel application. Predened IDs were introduced to change a few controls programmatically, for example to mute a device during a channel switch. Drivers may enumerate different controls after switching the current video input or output, tuner or modulator, or audio input or output. Different in the sense of other bounds, another default and current value, step size or other menu items. A control with a certain custom ID can also change name and type.9 Control values are stored globally, they do not change when switching except to stay within the reported bounds. They also do not change e. g. when the device is opened or closed, when the tuner radio frequency is changed or generally never without application request. Since V4L2 species no event mechanism, panel applications intended to cooperate with other panel applications (be they built into a larger application, as a TV viewer) may need to regularly poll control values to update their user interface.10 Table 1-1. Control IDs ID
V4L2_CID_BASE V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS

Type

Description First predened ID, equal to V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS.

integer

Picture brightness, or more precisely, the black level. Will not turn up the intelligence of the program youre watching. Picture contrast or luma gain. Picture color saturation or chroma gain. Hue or color balance. Overall audio volume. Note some drivers also provide an OSS or ALSA mixer interface. Audio stereo balance. Minimum corresponds to all the way left, maximum to right. Audio bass adjustment. Audio treble adjustment. Mute audio, i. e. set the volume to zero, however without affecting V4L2_CID_AUDIO_VOLUME. Like ALSA drivers, V4L2 drivers must mute at load time to avoid excessive noise. Actually the entire device should be reset to a low power consumption state.

V4L2_CID_CONTRAST V4L2_CID_SATURATION V4L2_CID_HUE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_VOLUME V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BALANCE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BASS V4L2_CID_AUDIO_TREBLE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_MUTE

integer integer integer integer integer integer integer boolean

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Chapter 1. Common API Elements ID

V4L2_CID_AUDIO_LOUDNESS V4L2_CID_BLACK_LEVEL

Type boolean integer

Description Loudness mode (bass boost). Another name for brightness (not a synonym of
V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS). [?]

V4L2_CID_AUTO_WHITE_BALANCE boolean V4L2_CID_DO_WHITE_BALANCE

Automatic white balance (cameras). This is an action control. When set (the value is ignored), the device will do a white balance and then hold the current setting. Contrast this with the boolean V4L2_CID_AUTO_WHITE_BALANCE, which, when activated, keeps adjusting the white balance. Red chroma balance. Blue chroma balance. Gamma adjust. Whiteness for grey-scale devices. This is a synonym for V4L2_CID_GAMMA. Exposure (cameras). [Unit?] Automatic gain/exposure control. Gain control. Mirror the picture horizontally. Mirror the picture vertically. Horizontal image centering. Vertical image centering. Centering is intended to physically adjust cameras. For image cropping see Section 1.10>, for clipping Section 4.2>. End of the predened control IDs (currently V4L2_CID_VCENTER + 1). ID of the rst custom (driver specic) control. Applications depending on particular custom controls should check the driver name and version, see Section 1.2>.

button

V4L2_CID_RED_BALANCE V4L2_CID_BLUE_BALANCE V4L2_CID_GAMMA V4L2_CID_WHITENESS V4L2_CID_EXPOSURE V4L2_CID_AUTOGAIN V4L2_CID_GAIN V4L2_CID_HFLIP V4L2_CID_VFLIP V4L2_CID_HCENTER V4L2_CID_VCENTER

integer integer integer integer integer boolean integer boolean boolean integer integer

V4L2_CID_LASTP1 V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE

Applications can enumerate the available controls with the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL and VIDIOC_QUERYMENU ioctls, get and set a control value with the VIDIOC_G_CTRL and VIDIOC_S_CTRL ioctls. Drivers must implement VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_G_CTRL and VIDIOC_S_CTRL when the device has one or more controls, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU when it has one or more menu type controls. Example 1-8. Enumerating all controls
struct v4l2_queryctrl queryctrl; struct v4l2_querymenu querymenu; static void enumerate_menu (void) { printf (" Menu items:\n"); memset (&querymenu, 0, sizeof (querymenu)); querymenu.id = queryctrl.id;

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for (querymenu.index = queryctrl.minimum; querymenu.index <= queryctrl.maximum; querymenu.index++) { if (0 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU, &querymenu)) { printf (" %s\n", querymenu.name); } else { perror ("VIDIOC_QUERYMENU"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } } memset (&queryctrl, 0, sizeof (queryctrl)); for (queryctrl.id = V4L2_CID_BASE; queryctrl.id < V4L2_CID_LASTP1; queryctrl.id++) { if (0 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, &queryctrl)) { if (queryctrl.flags & V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED) continue; printf ("Control %s\n", queryctrl.name); if (queryctrl.type == V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_MENU) enumerate_menu (); } else { if (errno == EINVAL) continue; perror ("VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } for (queryctrl.id = V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE;; queryctrl.id++) { if (0 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, &queryctrl)) { if (queryctrl.flags & V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED) continue; printf ("Control %s\n", queryctrl.name); if (queryctrl.type == V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_MENU) enumerate_menu (); } else { if (errno == EINVAL) break; perror ("VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } }

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Chapter 1. Common API Elements Example 1-9. Changing controls

struct v4l2_queryctrl queryctrl; struct v4l2_control control; memset (&queryctrl, 0, sizeof (queryctrl)); queryctrl.id = V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, &queryctrl)) { if (errno != EINVAL) { perror ("VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } else { printf ("V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS is not supported\n"); } } else if (queryctrl.flags & V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED) { printf ("V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS is not supported\n"); } else { memset (&control, 0, sizeof (control)); control.id = V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS; control.value = queryctrl.default_value; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_CTRL, &control)) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_CTRL"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } memset (&control, 0, sizeof (control)); control.id = V4L2_CID_CONTRAST; if (0 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_CTRL, &control)) { control.value += 1; /* The driver may clamp the value or return ERANGE, ignored here */ if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_CTRL, &control) && errno != ERANGE) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_CTRL"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } /* Ignore if V4L2_CID_CONTRAST is unsupported */ } else if (errno != EINVAL) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_CTRL"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } control.id = V4L2_CID_AUDIO_MUTE; control.value = TRUE; /* silence */ /* Errors ignored */ ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_CTRL, &control);

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1.9. Data Formats

1.9.1. Data Format Negotiation
Different devices exchange different kinds of data with applications, for example video images, raw or sliced VBI data, RDS datagrams. Even within one kind many different formats are possible, in particular an abundance of image formats. Although drivers must provide a default and the selection persists across closing and reopening a device, applications should always negotiate a data format before engaging in data exchange. Negotiation means the application asks for a particular format and the driver selects and reports the best the hardware can do to satisfy the request. Of course applications can also just query the current selection. A single mechanism exists to negotiate all data formats using the aggregate struct v4l2_format and the VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctls. Additionally the VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl can be used to examine what the hardware could do, without actually selecting a new data format. The data formats supported by the V4L2 API are covered in the respective device section in Chapter 4>. For a closer look at image formats see Chapter 2>. The VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl is a major turning-point in the initialization sequence. Prior to this point multiple panel applications can access the same device concurrently to select the current input, change controls or modify other properties. The rst VIDIOC_S_FMT assigns a logical stream (video data, VBI data etc.) exclusively to one le descriptor. Exclusive means no other application, more precisely no other le descriptor, can grab this stream or change device properties inconsistent with the negotiated parameters. A video standard change for example, when the new standard uses a different number of scan lines, can invalidate the selected image format. Therefore only the le descriptor owning the stream can make invalidating changes. Accordingly multiple le descriptors which grabbed different logical streams prevent each other from interfering with their settings. When for example video overlay is about to start or already in progress, simultaneous video capturing may be restricted to the same cropping and image size. When applications omit the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl its locking side effects are implied by the next step, the selection of an I/O method with the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl or implicit with the rst read() or write() call. Generally only one logical stream can be assigned to a le descriptor, the exception being drivers permitting simultaneous video capturing and overlay using the same le descriptor for compatibility with V4L and earlier versions of V4L2. Switching the logical stream or returning into "panel mode" is possible by closing and reopening the device. Drivers may support a switch using VIDIOC_S_FMT. All drivers exchanging data with applications must support the VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. Implementation of the VIDIOC_TRY_FMT is highly recommended but optional.

1.9.2. Image Format Enumeration

Apart of the generic format negotiation functions a special ioctl to enumerate all image formats supported by video capture, overlay or output devices is available.11 The VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT ioctl must be supported by all drivers exchanging image data with applications.
Important: Drivers are not supposed to convert image formats in kernel space. They must enumerate only formats directly supported by the hardware. If necessary driver writers should publish an example conversion routine or library for integration into applications.

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1.10. Cropping and Scaling

Some video capture devices can take a subsection of the complete picture and shrink or enlarge to an image of arbitrary size. We call these abilities cropping and scaling. Not quite correct "cropping" shall also refer to the inverse process, output devices showing an image in only a region of the picture, and/or scaled from a source image of different size. To crop and scale this API denes a source and target rectangle. On a video capture and overlay device the source is the received video picture, the target is the captured or overlaid image. On a video output device the source is the image passed by the application and the target is the generated video picture. The remainder of this section refers only to video capture drivers, the denitions apply to output drivers accordingly. Figure 1-1. Cropping and Scaling

v4l2_cropcap.defrect v4l2_crop.c

v4l2_format v4l2_cropcap.bounds

It is assumed the driver can capture a subsection of the picture within an arbitrary capture window. Its bounds are dened by struct v4l2_cropcap, giving the coordinates of the top, left corner and width and height of the window in pixels. Origin and units of the coordinate system in the analog domain are arbitrarily chosen by the driver writer.12 The source rectangle is dened by struct v4l2_crop, giving the coordinates of its top, left corner, width and height using the same coordinate system as struct v4l2_cropcap. The source rectangle must lie completely within the capture window. Further each driver denes a default source rectangle. The center of this rectangle shall align with the center of the active picture area of the video signal, and cover what the driver writer considers the complete picture. The source rectangle is set to the default when the driver is rst loaded, but not later. The target rectangle is given either by the width and height elds of struct v4l2_pix_format or the width and height elds of the struct v4l2_rect w substructure of struct v4l2_window. In principle cropping and scaling always happens. When the device supports scaling but not cropping, applications will be unable to change the cropping rectangle. It remains at the defaults all the time. When the device supports cropping but not scaling, changing the image size will also affect

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Chapter 1. Common API Elements the cropping size in order to maintain a constant scaling factor. The position of the cropping rectangle is only adjusted to move the rectangle completely inside the capture window. When cropping and scaling is supported applications can change both the source and target rectangle. Various hardware limitations must be expected, for example discrete scaling factors, different scaling abilities in horizontal and vertical direction, limitations of the image size or the cropping alignment. Therefore as usual drivers adjust the requested parameters against hardware capabilities and return the actual values selected. An important difference, because two rectangles are dened, is that the last rectangle changed shall take priority, and the driver may also adjust the opposite rectangle. Suppose scaling is restricted to a factor 1:1 or 2:1 in either direction and the image size must be a multiple of 16 16 pixels. The cropping rectangle be set to the upper limit, 640 400 pixels at offset 0, 0. Let a video capture application request an image size of 300 225 pixels, assuming video will be scaled down from the "full picture" accordingly. The driver will set the image size to the closest possible values 304 224, then choose the cropping rectangle closest to the requested size, that is 608 224 (224 2:1 would exceed the limit 400). The offset 0, 0 is still valid, thus unmodied. Given the default cropping rectangle reported by VIDIOC_CROPCAP the application can easily propose another offset to center the cropping rectangle. Now the application may insist on covering an area using an aspect closer to the original request. Sheepish it asks for a cropping rectangle of 608 456 pixels. The present scaling factors limit cropping to 640 384, so the driver returns the cropping size 608 384 and accordingly adjusts the image size to 304 192. Eventually some crop or scale parameters are locked, for example when the driver supports simultaneous video capturing and overlay, another application already started overlay and the cropping parameters cannot be changed anymore. Also VIDIOC_TRY_FMT cannot change the cropping rectangle. In these cases the driver has to approach the closest values possible without adjusting the opposite rectangle. The struct v4l2_cropcap, which also reports the pixel aspect ratio, can be obtained with the VIDIOC_CROPCAP ioctl. To get or set the current cropping rectangle applications call the VIDIOC_G_CROP or VIDIOC_S_CROP ioctl, respectively. All video capture and output devices must support the VIDIOC_CROPCAP ioctl. The VIDIOC_G_CROP and VIDIOC_S_CROP ioctls only when the cropping rectangle can be changed. Note as usual the cropping parameters remain unchanged across closing and reopening a device. Applications should ensure the parameters are suitable before starting I/O. Example 1-10. Resetting the cropping parameters (A video capture device is assumed.)
struct v4l2_cropcap cropcap; struct v4l2_crop crop; memset (&cropcap, 0, sizeof (cropcap)); cropcap.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_CROPCAP, &cropcap)) { perror ("VIDIOC_CROPCAP"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } memset (&crop, 0, sizeof (crop)); crop.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; crop.c = cropcap.defrect; /* Ignore if cropping is not supported (EINVAL) */

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if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_CROP, &crop) && errno != EINVAL) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_CROP"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Example 1-11. Simple downscaling (A video capture device is assumed.)

struct v4l2_cropcap cropcap; struct v4l2_format format; reset_cropping_parameters (); /* Scale down to 1/4 size of full picture */ memset (&format, 0, sizeof (format)); /* defaults */ format.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; format.fmt.pix.width = cropcap.defrect.width >> 1; format.fmt.pix.height = cropcap.defrect.height >> 1; format.fmt.pix.pixelformat = V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_FMT, &format)) { perror ("VIDIOC_S_FORMAT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } /* We could check now what we got, the exact scaling factor or if the driver can scale at all. At mere 2:1 the cropping rectangle was probably not changed. */

Example 1-12. Current scaling factor and pixel aspect (A video capture device is assumed.)
struct v4l2_cropcap cropcap; struct v4l2_crop crop; struct v4l2_format format; double hscale, vscale; double aspect; int dwidth, dheight; memset (&cropcap, 0, sizeof (cropcap)); cropcap.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_CROPCAP, &cropcap)) { perror ("VIDIOC_CROPCAP"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } memset (&crop, 0, sizeof (crop));

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Chapter 1. Common API Elements

crop.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_CROP, &crop)) { if (errno != EINVAL) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_CROP"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } /* Cropping not supported */ crop.c = cropcap.defrect; } memset (&format, 0, sizeof (format)); format.fmt.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_G_FMT, &format)) { perror ("VIDIOC_G_FMT"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } hscale = format.fmt.pix.width / (double) crop.c.width; vscale = format.fmt.pix.height / (double) crop.c.height; aspect = cropcap.pixelaspect.numerator / (double) cropcap.pixelaspect.denominator; aspect = aspect * hscale / vscale; /* Aspect corrected display size */ dwidth = format.fmt.pix.width / aspect; dheight = format.fmt.pix.height;

1.11. Streaming Parameters

Streaming parameters are intended to optimize the video capture process as well as I/O. Presently applications can request a high quality capture mode with the VIDIOC_S_PARM ioctl. The current video standard determines a nominal number of frames per second. If less than this number of frames is to be captured or output, applications can request frame skipping or duplicating on the driver side. This is especially useful when using the read() or write(), which are not augmented by timestamps or sequence counters, and to avoid unneccessary data copying. Finally these ioctls can be used to determine the number of buffers used internally by a driver in read/write mode. For implications see the section discussing the read() function. To get and set the streaming parameters applications call the VIDIOC_G_PARM and VIDIOC_S_PARM ioctl, respectively. They take a pointer to a struct v4l2_streamparm, which contains a union holding separate parameters for input and output devices. These ioctls are optional, drivers need not implement them. If so, they return the EINVAL error code.

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Chapter 1. Common API Elements

Notes
1. Access permissions are associated with character device special les, we must ensure device numbers cannot change with load order. To this end minor numbers are no longer automatically assigned by the "videodev" module as in V4L but requested by the driver. The defaults will sufce for most people, unless two drivers are used which compete for the same minor numbers. 2. In earlier versions of the V4L2 API the module options where named after the device special le with a "unit_" prex, expressing the minor number itself, not an offset. Rationale for this change is unknown. Lastly the naming and semantics are just a convention among driver writers, the point to note is that minor numbers are not supposed to be hardcoded into drivers. 3. Given a device le name one cannot reliable nd related devices. For once names are arbitrary, they can be chosen freely by the system administrator. Also when there are multiple devices and only some support VBI capturing, say, /dev/video2 is not necessarily related to /dev/vbi2. We already noted nding devices by name or minor number is unreliable, accordingly useful is the ioctl offered by V4L to query the minor numbers of related devices. 4. Drivers could recognize the O_EXCL open ag. Presently this is not required, so application cannot know if it really works. 5. Actually struct v4l2_audio ought to have a tuner eld like struct v4l2_input, not only making the API more consistent but also permitting radio devices with multiple tuners. 6. Some users are already confused by technical terms PAL, NTSC and SECAM. There is no point asking them to distinguish between B, G, D, or K when the software or hardware can do that automatically. 7. An alternative to the current scheme is to use pointers to indices as arguments of VIDIOC_G_STD and VIDIOC_S_STD, the struct v4l2_input and struct v4l2_output std eld would be a set of indices like audioset.
Indices are consistent with the rest of the API and identify the standard unambiguously. In the present scheme of things an enumerated standard is looked up by v4l2_std_id. Now the standards supported by the inputs of a device can overlap. Just assume the tuner and composite input in the example above both exist on a device. An enumeration of "PAL-B/G", "PAL-H/I" suggests a choice which does not exist. We cannot merge or omit sets, because applications would be unable to nd the standards reported by VIDIOC_G_STD. That leaves separate enumerations for each input. Also selecting a standard by v4l2_std_id can be ambiguous. Advantage of this method is that applications need not identify the standard indirectly, after enumerating. So in summary, the lookup itself is unavoidable. The difference is only whether the lookup is necessary to nd an enumerated standard or to switch to a standard by v4l2_std_id.

8. See Section 3.5> for a rationale. Probably even USB cameras follow some well known video standard. It might have been better to explicitly indicate elsewhere if a device cannot live up to normal expectations, instead of this exception. 9. It will be more convenient for applications if drivers make use of the V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED ag, but that was never required. 10. Applications could call an ioctl to request events. After another process called VIDIOC_S_CTRL or another ioctl changing shared properties the select() function would indicate readability until any ioctl (querying the properties) is called. 11. Enumerating formats an application has no a-priori knowledge of (otherwise it could explicitely ask for them and need not enumerate) seems useless, but there are applications serving as proxy between drivers and the actual video applications for which this is useful.

19

Chapter 1. Common API Elements 12. It may be desirable to refer to the cropping area in terms of sampling frequency and scanning system lines, but in order to support a wide range of hardware we better make as few assumptions as possible.

20

Chapter 2. Image Formats

The V4L2 API was primarily designed for devices exchanging image data with applications. The v4l2_pix_format structure denes the format and layout of an image in memory. Image formats are negotiated with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. (The explanations here focus on video capturing and output, for overlay frame buffer formats see also VIDIOC_G_FBUF.) Table 2-1. struct v4l2_pix_format __u32 __u32 __u32
width height

Image width in pixels. Image height in pixels. The pixel format or type of compression, set by the application. This is a little endian four character code. V4L2 denes standard RGB formats in Table 2-3>, YUV formats in Section 2.4>, and reserved codes in Table 2-4> Video images are typically interlaced. Applications can request to capture or output only the top or bottom eld, or both elds interlaced or sequentially stored in one buffer or alternating in separate buffers. Drivers return the actual eld order selected. For details see Section 3.6>. Distance in bytes between the leftmost pixels in two adjacent lines. Size in bytes of the buffer to hold a complete image, set by the driver. Usually this is bytesperline times height. When the image consists of variable length compressed data this is the maximum number of bytes required to hold an image. This information supplements the pixelformat and must be set by the driver, see Section 2.2>. Reserved for custom (driver dened) additional information about formats. When not used drivers and applications must set this eld to zero.

Applications set these elds to request an image size, drivers return the closest possible values. In case of planar format
pixelformat

enum v4l2_eld

field

__u32

bytesperline

Both applications and drivers can set this eld to request padding bytes at the end of each line. Drivers however may ig __u32
sizeimage

enum v4l2_colorspace __u32

colorspace priv

2.1. Standard Image Formats

In order to exchange images between drivers and applications, it is necessary to have standard image data formats which both sides will interpret the same way. V4L2 includes several such formats, and this section is intended to be an unambiguous specication of the standard image data formats in V4L2. V4L2 drivers are not limited to these formats, however. Driver-specic formats are possible. In that case the application may depend on a codec to convert images to one of the standard formats when needed. But the data can still be stored and retrieved in the proprietary format. For example, a device may support a proprietary compressed format. Applications can still capture and save the data in the

21

Chapter 2. Image Formats compressed format, saving much disk space, and later use a codec to convert the images to the X Windows screen format when the video is to be displayed. Even so, ultimately, some standard formats are needed, so the V4L2 specication would not be complete without well-dened standard formats. The V4L2 standard formats are mainly uncompressed formats. The pixels are always arranged in memory from left to right, and from top to bottom. The rst byte of data in the image buffer is always for the leftmost pixel of the topmost row. Following that is the pixel immediately to its right, and so on until the end of the top row of pixels. Following the rightmost pixel of the row there may be zero or more bytes of padding to guarantee that each row of pixel data has a certain alignment. Following the pad bytes, if any, is data for the leftmost pixel of the second row from the top, and so on. The last row has just as many pad bytes after it as the other rows. In V4L2 each format has an identier which looks like PIX_FMT_XXX, dened in the videodev.h header le. These identiers represent four character codes which are also listed below, however they are not the same as those used in the Windows world.

2.2. Colorspaces
[intro] Gamma Correction [to do] ER = f(R) EG = f(G) EB = f(B) Construction of luminance and color-difference signals [to do] EY = CoeffR ER + CoeffG EG + CoeffB EB (ER - EY) = ER - CoeffR ER - CoeffG EG - CoeffB EB (EB - EY) = EB - CoeffR ER - CoeffG EG - CoeffB EB Re-normalized color-difference signals The color-difference signals are scaled back to unity range [-0.5;+0.5]: KB = 0.5 / (1 - CoeffB) KR = 0.5 / (1 - CoeffR) PB = KB (EB - EY) = 0.5 (CoeffR / CoeffB) ER + 0.5 (CoeffG / CoeffB) EG + 0.5 EB PR = KR (ER - EY) = 0.5 ER + 0.5 (CoeffG / CoeffR) EG + 0.5 (CoeffB / CoeffR) EB Quantization [to do] Y = (Lum. Levels - 1) EY + Lum. Offset CB = (Chrom. Levels - 1) PB + Chrom. Offset

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Chapter 2. Image Formats CR = (Chrom. Levels - 1) PR + Chrom. Offset Rounding to the nearest integer and clamping to the range [0;255] nally yields the digital color components YCbCr stored in YUV images.

Example 2-1. ITU-R Rec. BT.601 color conversion Forward Transformation

int ER, EG, EB; int Y1, Cb, Cr; double r, g, b; double y1, pb, pr; int clamp (double x) { int r = x; /* gamma corrected RGB input [0;255] */ /* output [0;255] */ /* temporaries */

/* round to nearest */ return 0; return 255; return r;

if (r < 0) else if (r > 255) else } r = ER / 255.0; g = EG / 255.0; b = EB / 255.0; y1 pb pr = 0.299 = -0.169 = 0.5

* r + 0.587 * g + 0.114 * r - 0.331 * g + 0.5 * r - 0.419 * g - 0.081

* b; * b; * b;

Y1 = clamp (219 * y1 + 16); Cb = clamp (224 * pb + 128); Cr = clamp (224 * pr + 128); /* or shorter */ y1 = 0.299 * ER + 0.587 * EG + 0.114 * EB; Y1 = clamp ( (219 / 255.0) y1 + 16); * Cb = clamp (((224 / 255.0) / (2 - 2 * 0.114)) * (EB - y1) + 128); Cr = clamp (((224 / 255.0) / (2 - 2 * 0.299)) * (ER - y1) + 128);

Inverse Transformation
int Y1, Cb, Cr; int ER, EG, EB; double r, g, b; double y1, pb, pr; int clamp (double x) { /* gamma pre-corrected input [0;255] */ /* output [0;255] */ /* temporaries */

23

Chapter 2. Image Formats

int r = x; /* round to nearest */ return 0; return 255; return r;

if (r < 0) else if (r > 255) else }

y1 = (255 / 219.0) * (Y1 - 16); pb = (255 / 224.0) * (Cb - 128); pr = (255 / 224.0) * (Cr - 128); r = 1.0 * y1 + 0 * pb + 1.402 * pr; g = 1.0 * y1 - 0.344 * pb - 0.714 * pr; b = 1.0 * y1 + 1.772 * pb + 0 * pr; ER = clamp (r * 255); /* [ok? one should prob. limit y1,pb,pr] */ EG = clamp (g * 255); EB = clamp (b * 255);

Table 2-2. enum v4l2_colorspace IdentierValue DescriptionChromaticitiesa Red Green Blue Y Cb, Cr White Gamma LumiPoint Correc- nance tion EY

V4L2_COLORSPACE_SMPTE170M 1 NTSC/PAL

E = accord- x = 0.630, = 0.310, = 0.155, = 0.3127, I for I 0.299 ER219 EY +224 PB,R + 128 4.5 0.018, x x x 16 ing to y = 0.340y = 0.595y = 0.070y = 0.3290, 1.099 I0.45+ 0.587 EG Illumi- 0.099 for + 0.114 EB 0.018 < I SMPTE170M>, nant D65 ITU601>

V4L2_COLORSPACE_SMPTE240M 2 1125-

E = Line x = 0.630, = 0.310, = 0.155, = 0.3127,I for I 0.0228, R219 EY +224 PB,R + 128 x x x 4 0.212 E 16 (US) y = 0.340y = 0.595y = 0.070y = 0.3290, 1.1115 I0.45 0.701 EG +HDTV, Illumi- 0.1115 for 0.0228EBI + 0.087 < see nant D65 SMPTE240M> E = and x = 0.640, = 0.300, = 0.150, = 0.3127, I for I 0.2125 E219 EY +224 PB,R + 128 x x x 4.5 0.018, R 16 modern y = 0.330y = 0.600y = 0.060y = 0.3290, 1.099 I0.45+ 0.7154 EG devices, Illumi- 0.099 for + 0.0721IEB 0.018 < see nant D65 ITU709> ? ? ? ? ? 0.299 ER237 EY +224 PB,R + 128 16 + 0.587 EG (proba+ 0.114 EB bly)

V4L2_COLORSPACE_REC709 3 HDTV

V4L2_COLORSPACE_BT878 4 Broken

Bt878 extentsb, ITU601>

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Chapter 2. Image Formats IdentierValue DescriptionChromaticitiesa Red Green Blue Y Cb, Cr White Gamma LumiPoint Correc- nance tion EY ? x = 0.310, y = 0.316, Illuminant C ? x = 0.313, y = 0.329, Illuminant D65 0.299 ER219 EY +224 PB,R + 128 16 + 0.587 EG + 0.114 EB 0.299 ER219 EY +224 PB,R + 128 16 + 0.587 EG + 0.114 EB

V4L2_COLORSPACE_470_SYSTEM_M = 0.21, x = 0.14, 5 M/NTSCcx = 0.67, x

accord- y = 0.33 y = 0.71 y = 0.08 ing to ITU470>, ITU601>

V4L2_COLORSPACE_470_SYSTEM_BG= 0.29, x = 0.15, 6 625-line x = 0.64, x

PAL and y = 0.33 y = 0.60 y = 0.06 SECAM systems according to ITU470>, ITU601>
V4L2_COLORSPACE_JPEG 7 JPEG

? 0.299 ER256 EY +256d PB,R + 128 16 + 0.587 EG + 0.114 EB

YCbCr, see JFIF>, ITU601>

V4L2_COLORSPACE_SRGB 8 [?]

E = 4.5 x = 0.640, = 0.300, = 0.150, = 0.3127, I for I 0.018, x x x 1.099 I0.45 y = 0.330y = 0.600y = 0.060y = 0.3290, Illumi- 0.099 for 0.018 < I nant D65

Notes: a. The coordinates of the color primaries are given in the CIE system (1931) b. The ubiquitous Bt878 video c

2.3. RGB Formats

These formats are designed to match the pixel formats of typical PC graphics frame buffers. They occupy 8, 16, 24 or 32 bits per pixel. These are all packed-pixel formats, meaning all the data for a pixel lie next to each other in memory. When one of these formats is used, drivers shall report the colorspace V4L2_COLORSPACE_SRGB. Table 2-3. Packed RGB Image Formats Identier Code Byte 0 Byte 1 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Byte 2 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Byte 3 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Bit

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Chapter 2. Image Formats Identier Code Byte 0 Byte 1 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Byte 2 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Byte 3 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Bit

V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB3321 r0 b1 b0 g2 g1 g0 r2 r

RGB1
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB5551 r0 g2 g1 g0 r4 r3 r2 r

? b4 b3 b2 b1 b0 g4 g3

RGBO
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB5651 r0 g2 g1 g0 r4 r3 r2 r

b4 b3 b2 b1 b0 g5 g4 g3

RGBP
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB555X g3 ? b4 b3 b2 b1 b0 g4

g2 g1 g0 r4 r3 r2 r1 r0

RGBQ
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB565X g3 b4 b3 b2 b1 b0 g5 g4

g2 g1 g0 r4 r3 r2 r1 r0

RGBR
V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24 b1 b0 b7 b6 b5 b4 b3 b2

g7 g6 g5 g4 g3 g2 g1 g0

r7 r6 r5 r4 r3 r2 r1 r0

BGR3
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB24 r1 r0 r7 r6 r5 r4 r3 r2

g7 g6 g5 g4 g3 g2 g1 g0

b7 b6 b5 b4 b3 b2 b1 b0

RGB3
V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR32 b1 b0 b7 b6 b5 b4 b3 b2

g7 g6 g5 g4 g3 g2 g1 g0

r7 r6 r5 r4 r3 r2 r1 r0

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

BGR4
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB32 r1 r0 r7 r6 r5 r4 r3 r2

g7 g6 g5 g4 g3 g2 g1 g0

b7 b6 b5 b4 b3 b2 b1 b0

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

RGB4 Bit 7 is the most signicant bit. ? = undened bit, ignored on output, random value on input. Example 2-2. V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 12: start + 24: start + 36: B00 B10 B20 B30 G00 G10 G20 G30 R00 R10 R20 R30 B01 B11 B21 B31 G01 G11 G21 G31 R01 R11 R21 R31 B02 B12 B22 B32 G02 G12 G22 G32 R02 R12 R22 R32 B03 B13 B23 B33 G03 G13 G23 G33 R03 R13 R23 R33

Important: Drivers may interpret these formats differently. The V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB555, V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB565, V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB555X and V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB565X formats are uncommon. Video and display hardware typically supports

26

variants with reversed order of color components, i. e. blue towards the least, red towards the most signicant bit. Although presumably the original authors had the common formats in mind, the denitions were always very clear and cannot be simply regarded as erroneous. If V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB332 has been chosen in accordance with the 15 and 16 bit formats, this format might as well be interpreted differently, as "rrrgggbb" rather than "bbgggrrr". Finally some drivers, most prominently the BTTV driver, might interpret V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB32 as the big-endian variant of V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR32, consisting of bytes "?RGB" in memory. V4L2 never dened such a format, lack of a X sufx to the symbol suggests it was intended this way, and a new symbol and four character code should have been used instead. Until these issues are solved, application writers are advised that drivers might interpret these formats either way.

2.4. YUV Formats

YUV is the format native to TV broadcast and composite video signals. It separates the brightness information (Y) from the color information (U and V or Cb and Cr). The color information consists of red and blue color difference signals, this way the green component can be reconstructed by subtracting from the brightness component. See Section 2.2> for conversion examples. YUV was chosen because early television would only transmit brightness information. To add color in a way compatible with existing receivers a new signal carrier was added to transmit the color difference signals. Secondary in the YUV format the U and V components usually have lower resolution than the Y component. This is an analog video compression technique taking advantage of a property of the human visual system, being more sensitive to brightness information.

V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY (GREY)
Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY Grey-scale image.

Description
This is a grey-scale image. It is really a degenerate YCbCr format which simply contains no Cb or Cr data. Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 4: start + 8: start + 12: Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33

27

V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV (YUYV)
Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV Packed format with horizontal chroma resolution, also known as YUV

4:2:2.

Description
In this format each four bytes is two pixels. Each four bytes is two Ys, a Cb and a Cr. Each Y goes to one of the pixels, and the Cb and Cr belong to both pixels. As you can see, the Cr and Cb components have half the horizontal resolution of the Y component. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV is known in the Windows environment as YUY2. Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 8: start + 16: start + 24: Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cb00 Cb10 Cb20 Cb30 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Cr00 Cr10 Cr20 Cr30 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Cb01 Cb11 Cb21 Cb31 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33 Cr01 Cr11 Cr21 Cr31

Color Sample Location. 0 Y Y Y Y 1 Y Y Y Y 2 Y Y Y Y 3 Y Y Y Y

0 1 2 3

C C C C

C C C C

28

V4L2_PIX_FMT_UYVY (UYVY)
Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_UYVY Variation of V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV with different order of samples in

memory.

Description
In this format each four bytes is two pixels. Each four bytes is two Ys, a Cb and a Cr. Each Y goes to one of the pixels, and the Cb and Cr belong to both pixels. As you can see, the Cr and Cb components have half the horizontal resolution of the Y component. Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_UYVY 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 8: start + 16: start + 24: Cb00 Cb10 Cb20 Cb30 Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cr00 Cr10 Cr20 Cr30 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Cb01 Cb11 Cb21 Cb31 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Cr01 Cr11 Cr21 Cr31 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33

Color Sample Location. 0 0 1 2 3 Y Y Y Y C C C C 1 Y Y Y Y 2 Y Y Y Y C C C C 3 Y Y Y Y

29

V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P (Y41P)
Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P Packed format with horizontal chroma resolution, also known as YUV

4:1:1.

Description
In this format each 12 bytes is eight pixels. In the twelve bytes are two CbCr pairs and eight Ys. The rst CbCr pair goes with the rst four Ys, and the second CbCr pair goes with the other four Ys. The Cb and Cr components have one fourth the horizontal resolution of the Y component. Do not confuse this format with V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411P. Y41P is derived from "YUV 4:1:1 packed", possibly in reference to a Windows FOURCC, while YUV411P stands for "YUV 4:1:1 planar". Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P 8 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 12: start + 24: start + 36: Cb00 Cb10 Cb20 Cb30 Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cr00 Cr10 Cr20 Cr30 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Cb01 Cb11 Cb21 Cb31 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Cr01 Cr11 Cr21 Cr31 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33 Y04 Y14 Y24 Y34 Y05 Y15 Y25 Y35 Y06 Y16 Y26 Y36 Y07 Y17 Y27 Y37

Color Sample Location. 0 Y Y Y Y 1 Y Y Y Y 2 Y Y Y Y 3 Y Y Y Y 4 Y Y Y Y 5 Y Y Y Y 6 Y Y Y Y 7 Y Y Y Y

0 1 2 3

C C C C

C C C C

30

V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420 (YV12), V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV420 (YU12)

Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420, V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV420 Planar formats with horizontal and

vertical chroma resolution, also known as YUV 4:2:0.

Description
These are planar formats, as opposed to a packed format. The three components are separated into three sub- images or planes. The Y plane is rst. The Y plane has one byte per pixel. For V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420, the Cr plane immediately follows the Y plane in memory. The Cr plane is half the width and half the height of the Y plane (and of the image). Each Cr belongs to four pixels, a two-by-two square of the image. For example, Cr0 belongs to Y00, Y01, Y10, and Y11. Following the Cr plane is the Cb plane, just like the Cr plane. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV420 is the same except the Cb plane comes rst, then the Cr plane. If the Y plane has pad bytes after each row, then the Cr and Cb planes have half as many pad bytes after their rows. In other words, two Cx rows (including padding) is exactly as long as one Y row (including padding). Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 4: start + 8: start + 12: start + 16: start + 18: start + 20: start + 22: Color Sample Location. 0 Y C 1 2 3 Y Y C Y Y Y Y Y Y Y C Y 1 Y 2 Y C Y Y 3 Y Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cr00 Cr10 Cb00 Cb10 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Cr01 Cr11 Cb01 Cb11 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33

31

V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410 (YVU9), V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV410 (YUV9)

Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410, V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV410 Planar formats with horizontal and

vertical chroma resolution, also known as YUV 4:1:0.

Description
These are planar formats, as opposed to a packed format. The three components are separated into three sub-images or planes. The Y plane is rst. The Y plane has one byte per pixel. For V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410, the Cr plane immediately follows the Y plane in memory. The Cr plane is the width and the height of the Y plane (and of the image). Each Cr belongs to 16 pixels, a four-by-four square of the image. Following the Cr plane is the Cb plane, just like the Cr plane. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV410 is the same, except the Cb plane comes rst, then the Cr plane. If the Y plane has pad bytes after each row, then the Cr and Cb planes have as many pad bytes after their rows. In other words, four Cx rows (including padding) are exactly as long as one Y row (including padding). Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 4: start + 8: start + 12: start + 16: start + 17: Color Sample Location. 0 Y Y Y Y 1 Y Y C 2 3 Y Y Y Y Y Y 2 Y Y 3 Y Y Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cr00 Cb00 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33

0 1

32

V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P (422P)
Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P Format with horizontal chroma resolution, also known as YUV 4:2:2. Planar layout as opposed to V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV.

Description
This format is not commonly used. This is a planar version of the YUYV format. The three components are separated into three sub-images or planes. The Y plane is rst. The Y plane has one byte per pixel. The Cb plane immediately follows the Y plane in memory. The Cb plane is half the width of the Y plane (and of the image). Each Cb belongs to two pixels. For example, Cb0 belongs to Y00, Y01. Following the Cb plane is the Cr plane, just like the Cb plane. If the Y plane has pad bytes after each row, then the Cr and Cb planes have half as many pad bytes after their rows. In other words, two Cx rows (including padding) is exactly as long as one Y row (including padding). Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 4: start + 8: start + 12: start + 16: start + 18: start + 20: start + 22: start + 24: start + 26: start + 28: start + 30: Color Sample Location. 0 0 1 2 3 Y Y Y Y C C C C 1 Y Y Y Y 2 Y Y Y Y C C C C 3 Y Y Y Y Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cb00 Cb10 Cb20 Cb30 Cr00 Cr10 Cr20 Cr30 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Cb01 Cb11 Cb21 Cb31 Cr01 Cr11 Cr21 Cr31 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33

33

V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411P (411P)
Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411P Format with horizontal chroma resolution, also known as YUV 4:1:1. Planar layout as opposed to V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P.

Description
This format is not commonly used. This is a planar format similar to the 4:2:2 planar format except with half as many chroma. The three components are separated into three sub-images or planes. The Y plane is rst. The Y plane has one byte per pixel. The Cb plane immediately follows the Y plane in memory. The Cb plane is the width of the Y plane (and of the image). Each Cb belongs to 4 pixels all on the same row. For example, Cb0 belongs to Y00, Y01, Y02 and Y03. Following the Cb plane is the Cr plane, just like the Cb plane. If the Y plane has pad bytes after each row, then the Cr and Cb planes have as many pad bytes after their rows. In other words, four C x rows (including padding) is exactly as long as one Y row (including padding). Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411P 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 4: start + 8: start + 12: start + 16: start + 17: start + 18: start + 19: start + 20: start + 21: start + 22: start + 23: Color Sample Location. 0 Y Y Y Y 1 Y Y Y Y 2 Y Y Y Y 3 Y Y Y Y Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cb00 Cb10 Cb20 Cb30 Cr00 Cr10 Cr20 Cr30 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33

0 1 2 3

C C C C

34

V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV12 (NV12), V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV21 (NV21)

Name
V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV12, V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV21 Formats with horizontal and vertical chroma

resolution, also known as YUV 4:2:0. One luminance and one chrominance plane with alternating chroma samples as opposed to V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420.

Description
These are two-plane versions of the YUV 4:2:0 format. The three components are separated into two sub-images or planes. The Y plane is rst. The Y plane has one byte per pixel. For V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV12, a combined CbCr plane immediately follows the Y plane in memory. The CbCr plane is the same width, in bytes, as the Y plane (and of the image), but is half as tall in pixels. Each CbCr pair belongs to four pixels. For example, Cb0/Cr0 belongs to Y00, Y01, Y10, Y11. V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV21 is the same except the Cb and Cr bytes are swapped, the CrCb plane starts with a Cr byte. If the Y plane has pad bytes after each row, then the CbCr plane has as many pad bytes after its rows. Example 2-1. V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV12 4 4 pixel image Byte Order. Each cell is one byte. start + 0: start + 4: start + 8: start + 12: start + 16: start + 20: Color Sample Location. 0 Y C 1 2 3 Y Y C Y Y Y Y Y Y Y C Y 1 Y 2 Y C Y Y 3 Y Y00 Y10 Y20 Y30 Cb00 Cb10 Y01 Y11 Y21 Y31 Cr00 Cr10 Y02 Y12 Y22 Y32 Cb01 Cb11 Y03 Y13 Y23 Y33 Cr01 Cr11

35

Chapter 2. Image Formats

2.5. Compressed Formats

[to do, see also VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP. The only compressed standard format should be [M]JPEG.]

2.6. Reserved Format Identiers

These formats are not dened by this specication, they are just listed for reference and to avoid naming conicts. If you want to register your own format, send an e-mail to the V4L mailing list https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/video4linux-list for inclusion in the videodev.h le. If you want to share your format with other developers add a link to your documentation and send a copy to the maintainer of this document, Michael Schimek <[email protected]>, for inclusion in this section. If you think your format should be listed in a standard format section please make a proposal on the V4L mailing list. Table 2-4. Reserved Image Formats Identier
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YYUV V4L2_PIX_FMT_HI240 V4L2_PIX_FMT_MJPEG V4L2_PIX_FMT_JPEG V4L2_PIX_FMT_DV V4L2_PIX_FMT_MPEG V4L2_PIX_FMT_WNVA

Code YYUV HI24 MJPG JPEG dvsd MPEG WNVA

Details unknown Used by the BTTV driver, http://bytesex.org/bttv/ Used by the Zoran driver unknown [?] unknown unknown Used by the Winnov Videum driver, http://www.thedirks.org/winnov/

36

Chapter 3. Input/Output
The V4L2 API denes several different methods to read from or write to a device. All drivers exchanging data with applications must support at least one of them. The classic I/O method using the read() and write() function is automatically selected after opening a V4L2 device. When the driver does not support this method attempts to read or write will fail at any time. Other methods must be negotiated. To select the streaming I/O method with memory mapped or user buffers applications call the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl. The asynchronous I/O method is not dened yet. Video overlay can be considered another I/O method, although the application does not directly receive the image data. It is selected by initiating video overlay with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. For more information see Section 4.2>. Generally exactly one I/O method, including overlay, is associated with each le descriptor. The only exceptions are applications not exchanging data with a driver ("panel applications", see Section 1.1>) and drivers permitting simultaneous video capturing and overlay using the same le descriptor, for compatibility with V4L and earlier versions of V4L2.
VIDIOC_S_FMT and VIDIOC_REQBUFS would permit this to some degree, but for simplicity drivers need not support switching the I/O method (after rst switching away from read/write) other than by closing and reopening the device.

The following sections describe the various I/O methods in more detail.

3.1. Read/Write
Input and output devices support the read() and write() function, respectively, when the V4L2_CAP_READWRITE ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl is set. Drivers may need the CPU to copy the data, but they may also support DMA to or from user memory, so this I/O method is not necessarily less efcient than other methods merely exchanging buffer pointers. It is considered inferior though because no meta-information like frame counters or timestamps are passed. This information is necessary to recognize frame dropping and to synchronize with other data streams. However this is also the simplest I/O method, requiring little or no setup to exchange data. It permits command line stunts like this (the vidctrl tool is ctitious):
> vidctrl /dev/video --input=0 --format=YUYV --size=352x288 > dd if=/dev/video of=myimage.422 bs=202752 count=1

To read from the device applications use the read() function, to write the write() function. Drivers must implement one I/O method if they exchange data with applications, but it need not be this.1 When reading or writing is supported, the driver must also support the select() and poll() function.2

3.2. Streaming I/O (Memory Mapping)

Input and output devices support this I/O method when the V4L2_CAP_STREAMING ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl is set. There

37

Chapter 3. Input/Output are two streaming methods, to determine if the memory mapping avor is supported applications must call the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl. Streaming is an I/O method where only pointers to buffers are exchanged between application and driver, the data itself is not copied. Memory mapping is primarily intended to map buffers in device memory into the applications address space. Device memory can be for example the video memory on a graphics card with a video capture add-on. However, being the most efcient I/O method available for a long time, many other drivers support streaming as well, allocating buffers in DMA-able main memory. A driver can support many sets of buffers. Each set is identied by a unique buffer type value. The sets are independent and each set can hold a different type of data. To access different sets at the same time different le descriptors must be used.3 To allocate device buffers applications call the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl with the desired number of buffers and buffer type, for example V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE. This ioctl can also be used to change the number of buffers or to free the allocated memory, provided none of the buffers are still mapped. Before applications can access the buffers they must map them into their address space with the mmap() function. The location of the buffers in device memory can be determined with the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl. The m.offset and length returned in a struct v4l2_buffer are passed as sixth and second parameter to the mmap() function. The offset and length values must not be modied. Remember the buffers are allocated in physical memory, as opposed to virtual memory which can be swapped out to disk. Applications should free the buffers as soon as possible with the munmap() function. Example 3-1. Mapping buffers
struct v4l2_requestbuffers reqbuf; struct { void *start; size_t length; } *buffers; unsigned int i; memset (&reqbuf, 0, sizeof (reqbuf)); reqbuf.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; reqbuf.memory = V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP; reqbuf.count = 20; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_REQBUFS, &reqbuf)) { if (errno == EINVAL) printf ("Video capturing or mmap-streaming is not supported\n"); else perror ("VIDIOC_REQBUFS"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } /* We want at least five buffers. */ if (reqbuf.count < 5) { /* You may need to free the buffers here. */ printf ("Not enough buffer memory\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

38

Chapter 3. Input/Output

buffers = calloc (reqbuf.count, sizeof (*buffers)); assert (buffers != NULL); for (i = 0; i < reqbuf.count; i++) { struct v4l2_buffer buffer; memset (&buffer, 0, sizeof (buffer)); buffer.type = reqbuf.type; buffer.memory = V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP; buffer.index = i; if (-1 == ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYBUF, &buffer)) { perror ("VIDIOC_QUERYBUF"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } buffers[i].length = buffer.length; /* remember for munmap() */ buffers[i].start = mmap (NULL, buffer.length, PROT_READ | PROT_WRITE, /* required */ MAP_SHARED, /* recommended */ fd, buffer.m.offset); if (buffers[i].start == MAP_FAILED) { /* You may need to unmap and free the so far mapped buffers here. */ perror ("mmap"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } /* Cleanup. */ for (i = 0; i < reqbuf.count; i++) munmap (buffers[i].start, buffers[i].length);

Streaming drivers maintain two buffer queues, an incoming and an outgoing queue. They separate the synchronous capture or output operation locked to a video clock from the application which is subject to random disk or network delays and preemption by other processes, thereby reducing the probability of data loss. The queues are organized as FIFOs, buffers will be output in the order enqueued in the incoming FIFO, and were captured in the order dequeued from the outgoing FIFO. The driver may require a minimum number of buffers enqueued at all times to function, apart of this no limit exists on the number of buffers applications can enqueue in advance, or dequeue and process. They can also enqueue in a different order than buffers have been dequeued, and the driver can ll enqueued empty buffers in any order. 4 The index number of a buffer (struct v4l2_buffer index ) plays no role here, it only identies the buffer. Initially all mapped buffers are in dequeued state, inaccessible by the driver. For capturing applications it is customary to rst enqueue all mapped buffers, then to start capturing and enter the read loop. Here the application waits until a lled buffer can be dequeued, and re-enqueues the buffer when the data is no longer needed. Output applications ll and enqueue buffers, when enough buffers are stacked up the output is started with VIDIOC_STREAMON. In the write loop, when the application runs out of free buffers, it must wait until an empty buffer can be dequeued and reused.

39

Chapter 3. Input/Output To enqueue and dequeue a buffer applications use the VIDIOC_QBUF and VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl. The status of a buffer being mapped, enqueued, full or empty can be determined at any time using the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl. Two methods exist to suspend execution of the application until one or more buffers can be dequeued. By default VIDIOC_DQBUF blocks when no buffer is in the outgoing queue. When the O_NONBLOCK ag was given to the open() function, VIDIOC_DQBUF returns immediately with an EAGAIN error code when no buffer is available. The select() or poll() function are always available. To start and stop capturing or output applications call the VIDIOC_STREAMON and VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ioctl. Note VIDIOC_STREAMOFF removes all buffers from both queues as a side effect. Since there is no notion of doing anything "now" on a multitasking system, if an application needs to synchronize with another event it should examine the struct v4l2_buffer timestamp of captured buffers, or set the eld before enqueuing buffers for output. Drivers implementing memory mapping I/O must support the VIDIOC_REQBUFS, VIDIOC_QUERYBUF, VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF, VIDIOC_STREAMON and VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ioctl, the mmap(), munmap(), select() and poll() function.5 [capture example]

3.3. Streaming I/O (User Pointers)

Input and output devices support this I/O method when the V4L2_CAP_STREAMING ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl is set. If the particular user pointer method (not only memory mapping) is supported must be determined by calling the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl. This I/O method combines advantages of the read/write and memory mapping methods. Buffers are allocated by the application itself, and can reside for example in virtual or shared memory. Only pointers to data are exchanged, these pointers and meta-information are passed in struct v4l2_buffer. The driver must be switched into user pointer I/O mode by calling the VIDIOC_REQBUFS with the desired buffer type. No buffers are allocated beforehands, consequently they are not indexed and cannot be queried like mapped buffers with the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl. Example 3-2. Initiating streaming I/O with user pointers
struct v4l2_requestbuffers reqbuf; memset (&reqbuf, 0, sizeof (reqbuf)); reqbuf.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; reqbuf.memory = V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR; if (ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_REQBUFS, &reqbuf) == -1) { if (errno == EINVAL) printf ("Video capturing or user pointer streaming is not supported\n"); else perror ("VIDIOC_REQBUFS"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); }

Buffer addresses and sizes are passed on the y with the VIDIOC_QBUF ioctl. Although buffers are commonly cycled, applications can pass different addresses and sizes at each VIDIOC_QBUF call. If

40

Chapter 3. Input/Output required by the hardware the driver swaps memory pages within physical memory to create a continuous area of memory. This happens transparently to the application in the virtual memory subsystem of the kernel. When buffer pages have been swapped out to disk they are brought back and nally locked in physical memory for DMA.6 Filled or displayed buffers are dequeued with the VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl. The driver can unlock the memory pages at any time between the completion of the DMA and this ioctl. The memory is also unlocked when VIDIOC_STREAMOFF is called, VIDIOC_REQBUFS, or when the device is closed. Applications must take care not to free buffers without dequeuing. For once, the buffers remain locked until further, wasting physical memory. Second the driver will not be notied when the memory is returned to the applications free list and subsequently reused for other purposes, possibly completing the requested DMA and overwriting valuable data. For capturing applications it is customary to enqueue a number of empty buffers, to start capturing and enter the read loop. Here the application waits until a lled buffer can be dequeued, and re-enqueues the buffer when the data is no longer needed. Output applications ll and enqueue buffers, when enough buffers are stacked up output is started. In the write loop, when the application runs out of free buffers it must wait until an empty buffer can be dequeued and reused. Two methods exist to suspend execution of the application until one or more buffers can be dequeued. By default VIDIOC_DQBUF blocks when no buffer is in the outgoing queue. When the O_NONBLOCK ag was given to the open() function, VIDIOC_DQBUF returns immediately with an EAGAIN error code when no buffer is available. The select() or poll() function are always available. To start and stop capturing or output applications call the VIDIOC_STREAMON and VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ioctl. Note VIDIOC_STREAMOFF removes all buffers from both queues and unlocks all buffers as a side effect. Since there is no notion of doing anything "now" on a multitasking system, if an application needs to synchronize with another event it should examine the struct v4l2_buffer timestamp of captured buffers, or set the eld before enqueuing buffers for output. Drivers implementing user pointer I/O must support the VIDIOC_REQBUFS, VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF, VIDIOC_STREAMON and VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ioctl, the select() and poll() function.7

3.4. Asynchronous I/O

This method is not dened yet.

3.5. Buffers
A buffer contains data exchanged by application and driver using one of the Streaming I/O methods. Only pointers to buffers are exchanged, the data itself is not copied. These pointers, together with meta-information like timestamps or eld parity, are stored in a struct v4l2_buffer, argument to the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF, VIDIOC_QBUF and VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl. Nominally timestamps refer to the rst data byte transmitted. In practice however the wide range of hardware covered by the V4L2 API limits timestamp accuracy. Often an interrupt routine will sample the system clock shortly after the eld or frame was stored completely in memory. So applications must expect a constant difference up to one eld or frame period plus a small (few scan lines) random error. The delay and error can be much larger due to compression or transmission over an external bus when the frames are not properly stamped by the sender. This is frequently the case with

41

Chapter 3. Input/Output USB cameras. Here timestamps refer to the instant the eld or frame was received by the driver, not the capture time. These devices identify by not enumerating any video standards, see Section 1.7>. Similar limitations apply to output timestamps. Typically the video hardware locks to a clock controlling the video timing, the horizontal and vertical synchronization pulses. At some point in the line sequence, possibly the vertical blanking, an interrupt routine samples the system clock, compares against the timestamp and programs the hardware to repeat the previous eld or frame, or to display the buffer contents. Apart of limitations of the video device and natural inaccuracies of all clocks, it should be noted system time itself is not perfectly stable. It can be affected by power saving cycles, warped to insert leap seconds, or even turned back or forth by the system administrator affecting long term measurements. 8 Table 3-1. struct v4l2_buffer __u32
index

Number of the buffer, set by the application. This eld is only used for memory mapping I/O and can range from zero to the number of buffers allocated with the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl (struct v4l2_requestbuffers count) minus one. Type of the buffer, same as struct v4l2_format type or struct v4l2_requestbuffers type, set by the application. The number of bytes occupied by the data in the buffer. It depends on the negotiated data format and may change with each buffer for compressed variable size data like JPEG images. Drivers must set this eld when type refers to an input stream, applications when an output stream. Flags set by the application or driver, see Table 3-3>. Indicates the eld order of the image in the buffer, see Table 3-8>. This eld is not used when the buffer contains VBI data. Drivers must set it when type refers to an input stream, applications when an output stream.

enum v4l2_buf_typetype

__u32

bytesused

__u32 enum v4l2_eld

flags field

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Chapter 3. Input/Output

struct timeval

timestamp

For input streams this is the system time (as returned by the gettimeofday() function) when the rst data byte was captured. For output streams the data will not be displayed before this time, secondary to the nominal frame rate determined by the current video standard in enqueued order. Applications can for example zero this eld to display frames as soon as possible. The driver stores the time at which the rst data byte was actually sent out in the timestamp eld. This permits applications to monitor the drift between the video and system clock. When type is
V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE and the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMECODE ag is set in flags, this structure

timecode struct v4l2_timecode

contains a frame timecode. In V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE mode the top and bottom eld contain the same timecode. Timecodes are intended to help video editing and are typically recorded on video tapes, but also embedded in compressed formats like MPEG. This eld is independent of the timestamp and sequence elds. __u32
sequence

Set by the driver, counting the frames in the sequence. This eld must be set by applications and/or drivers in accordance with the selected I/O method.
offset

In V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE mode the top and bottom eld have the same sequence number. The count starts at zer enum v4l2_memorymemory

union

__u32

When memory is V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP this is the offset of the buffer from the start of the device memory. The value is returned by the driver and apart of serving as parameter to the mmap() function not useful for applications. See Section 3.2> for details. When memory is
V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR this is a pointer to the buffer (casted to unsigned long type) in virtual memory, set by the application. See Section 3.3> for details.

unsigned long

userptr

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Chapter 3. Input/Output

__u32 __u32

length input

Size of the buffer (not the payload) in bytes. Some video capture drivers support rapid and synchronous video input changes, a function useful for example in video surveillance applications. For this purpose applications set the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_INPUT ag, and this eld to the number of a video input as in struct v4l2_input eld index . A place holder for future extensions and custom (driver dened) buffer types V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE and higher.

__u32

reserved

Table 3-2. enum v4l2_buf_type

V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE 1 V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT

Buffer of a video capture stream, see Section 4.1>. Buffer of a video output stream, see Section 4.3>. Buffer for video overlay, see Section 4.2>. Buffer of a raw VBI capture stream, see Section 4.6>. Buffer of a raw VBI output stream, see Section 4.6>. This and higher values are reserved for custom (driver dened) buffer types.

2 4 5 0x80

V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY 3 V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_CAPTURE V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE

Table 3-3. Buffer Flags

V4L2_BUF_FLAG_MAPPED

0x0001

The buffer resides in device memory and has been mapped into the applications address space, see Section 3.2> for details. Drivers set or clear this ag when the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF, VIDIOC_QBUF or VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl is called. Set by the driver. Internally drivers maintain two buffer queues, an incoming and outgoing queue. When this ag is set, the buffer is currently on the incoming queue. It automatically moves to the outgoing queue after the buffer has been lled (capture devices) or displayed (output devices). Drivers set or clear this ag when the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl is called. After (successful) calling the VIDIOC_QBUF ioctl it is always set and after VIDIOC_DQBUF always cleared.

V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED

0x0002

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Chapter 3. Input/Output

V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE

0x0004

When this ag is set, the buffer is currently on the outgoing queue, ready to be dequeued from the driver. Drivers set or clear this ag when the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl is called. After calling the VIDIOC_QBUF or VIDIOC_DQBUF it is always cleared. Of course a buffer cannot be on both queues at the same time, the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED and V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE ag are mutually exclusive. They can be both cleared however, then the buffer is in "dequeued" state, in the application domain to say so. Drivers set or clear this ag when calling the
VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl. It may be set by video

V4L2_BUF_FLAG_KEYFRAME

0x0008

capture devices when the buffer contains a compressed image which is a key frame (or eld), i.e. can be decompressed on its own.
V4L2_BUF_FLAG_PFRAME

0x0010

Similar to V4L2_BUF_FLAG_KEYFRAME this ags predicted frames or elds which contain only differences to a previous key frame. Similar to V4L2_BUF_FLAG_PFRAME this is a bidirectional predicted frame or eld. [ooc tbd] The timecode eld is valid. Drivers set or clear this ag when the VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl is called. The input eld is valid. Applications set or clear this ag before calling the VIDIOC_QBUF ioctl.

V4L2_BUF_FLAG_BFRAME V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMECODE V4L2_BUF_FLAG_INPUT

0x0020 0x0100 0x0200

Table 3-4. enum v4l2_memory

V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR V4L2_MEMORY_OVERLAY

1 2 3

The buffer is used for memory mapping I/O. The buffer is used for user pointer I/O. [to do]

3.5.1. Timecodes
The v4l2_timecode structure is designed to hold a SMPTE12M> or similar timecode. (struct timeval timestamps are stored in struct v4l2_buffer eld timestamp.) Table 3-5. struct v4l2_timecode __u32 __u32 __u8 __u8
type flags frames seconds

Frame rate the timecodes are based on, see Table 3-6>. Timecode ags, see Table 3-7>. Frame count, 0 ... 23/24/29/49/59, depending on the type of timecode. Seconds count, 0 ... 59. This is a binary, not BCD number.

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Chapter 3. Input/Output

__u8 __u8 __u8

minutes hours userbits[4]

Minutes count, 0 ... 59. This is a binary, not BCD number. Hours count, 0 ... 29. This is a binary, not BCD number. The "user group" bits from the timecode.

Table 3-6. Timecode Types

V4L2_TC_TYPE_24FPS V4L2_TC_TYPE_25FPS V4L2_TC_TYPE_30FPS V4L2_TC_TYPE_50FPS V4L2_TC_TYPE_60FPS

1 2 3 4 5

24 frames per second, i. e. lm. 25 frames per second, i.e. PAL or SECAM video. 30 frames per second, i.e. NTSC video.

Table 3-7. Timecode Flags

V4L2_TC_FLAG_DROPFRAME

0x0001

Indicates "drop frame" semantics for counting frames in 29.97 fps material. When set, frame numbers 0 and 1 at the start of each minute, except minutes 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 are omitted from the count. The "color frame" ag. Field mask for the "binary group ags". Unspecied format. 8-bit ISO characters.

V4L2_TC_FLAG_COLORFRAME V4L2_TC_USERBITS_field

0x0002 0x000C

V4L2_TC_USERBITS_USERDEFINED0x0000 V4L2_TC_USERBITS_8BITCHARS

0x0008

3.6. Field Order

We have to distinguish between progressive and interlaced video. Progressive video transmits all lines of a video image sequentially. Interlaced video divides an image into two elds, containing only the odd and even lines of the image, respectively. Alternating the so called odd and even eld are transmitted, and due to a small delay between elds a cathode ray TV displays the lines interleaved, yielding the original frame. This curious technique was invented because at refresh rates similar to lm the image would fade out too quickly. Transmitting elds reduces the icker without the necessity of doubling the frame rate and with it the bandwidth required for each channel. It is important to understand a video camera does not expose one frame at a time, merely transmitting the frames separated into elds. The elds are in fact captured at two different instances in time. An object on screen may well move between one eld and the next. For applications analysing motion it is of paramount importance to recognize which eld of a frame is older, the temporal order. When the driver provides or accepts images eld by eld rather than interleaved, it is also important applications understand how the elds combine to frames. We distinguish between top and bottom elds, the spatial order: The rst line of the top eld is the rst line of an interlaced frame, the rst line of the bottom eld is the second line of that frame.

46

Chapter 3. Input/Output However because elds were captured one after the other, arguing whether a frame commences with the top or bottom eld is pointless. Any two successive top and bottom, or bottom and top elds yield a valid frame. Only when the source was progressive to begin with, e. g. when transferring lm to video, two elds may come from the same frame, creating a natural order. Counter to intuition the top eld is not necessarily the older eld. Whether the older eld contains the top or bottom lines is a convention determined by the video standard. Hence the distinction between temporal and spatial order of elds. The diagrams below should make this clearer. All video capture and output devices must report the current eld order. Some drivers may permit the selection of a different order, to this end applications initialize the field eld of struct v4l2_pix_format before calling the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. If this is not desired it should have the value V4L2_FIELD_ANY (0). Table 3-8. enum v4l2_eld
V4L2_FIELD_ANY

Applications request this eld order when any one of the V4L2_FIELD_NONE, V4L2_FIELD_TOP, V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM, or V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED formats is acceptable. Drivers choose depending on hardware capabilities or e. g. the requested image size, and return the actual eld order. struct v4l2_buffer field can never be V4L2_FIELD_ANY. Images are in progressive format, not interlaced. The driver may also indicate this order when it cannot distinguish between V4L2_FIELD_TOP and V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM. Images consist of the top eld only. Images consist of the bottom eld only. Applications may wish to prevent a device from capturing interlaced images because they will have "comb" or "feathering" artefacts around moving objects. Images contain both elds, interleaved line by line. The temporal order of the elds (whether the top or bottom eld is rst transmitted) depends on the current video standard. M/NTSC transmits the bottom eld rst, all other standards the top eld rst. Images contain both elds, the top eld lines are stored rst in memory, immediately followed by the bottom eld lines. Fields are always stored in temporal order, the older one rst in memory. Image sizes refer to the frame, not elds. Images contain both elds, the bottom eld lines are stored rst in memory, immediately followed by the top eld lines. Fields are always stored in temporal order, the older one rst in memory. Image sizes refer to the frame, not elds.

V4L2_FIELD_NONE

V4L2_FIELD_TOP V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

2 3

V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED

V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB

V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT

47

Chapter 3. Input/Output

V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE

The two elds of a frame are passed in separate buffers, in temporal order, i. e. the older one rst. To indicate the eld parity (whether the current eld is a top or bottom eld) the driver or application, depending on data direction, must set struct v4l2_buffer field to V4L2_FIELD_TOP or V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM. Any two successive elds pair to build a frame. If elds are successive, without any dropped elds between them (elds can drop individually), can be determined from the struct v4l2_buffer sequence eld. Image sizes refer to the frame, not elds. This format cannot be selected when using the read/write I/O method.

Figure 3-1. Field Order, Top Field First Transmitted

Temporal order, top field first transmitted

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE

v4l2_buffer.field: V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED

V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB

48

Chapter 3. Input/Output Figure 3-2. Field Order, Bottom Field First Transmitted
Temporal order, bottom field first transmitted

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE

v4l2_buffer.field: V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM

V4L2_FIELD_TOP

V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED

V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT

Notes
1. It would be desirable if applications could depend on drivers supporting all I/O interfaces, but as much as the complex memory mapping I/O can be inadequate for some devices we have no reason to require this interface, which is most useful for simple applications capturing still images. 2. At the driver level select() and poll() are the same, and select() is too important to be optional. 3. One could use one le descriptor and set the buffer type eld accordingly when calling VIDIOC_QBUF etc., but it makes the select() function ambiguous. We also like the clean approach of one le descriptor per logical stream. Video overlay for example is also a logical stream, although the CPU is not needed for continuous operation. 4. Random enqueue order permits applications processing images out of order (such as video codecs) to return buffers earlier, reducing the probability of data loss. Random ll order allows drivers to reuse buffers on a LIFO-basis, taking advantage of caches holding scatter-gather lists and the like. 5. At the driver level select() and poll() are the same, and select() is too important to be optional. The rest should be evident.

49

Chapter 3. Input/Output 6. We expect that frequently used buffers are typically not swapped out. Anyway, the process of swapping, locking or generating scatter-gather lists may be time consuming. The delay can be masked by the depth of the incoming buffer queue, and perhaps by maintaining caches assuming a buffer will be soon enqueued again. On the other hand, to optimize memory usage drivers can limit the number of buffers locked in advance and recycle the most recently used buffers rst. Of course, the pages of empty buffers in the incoming queue need not be saved to disk. Output buffers must be saved on the incoming and outgoing queue because an application may share them with other processes. 7. At the driver level select() and poll() are the same, and select() is too important to be optional. The rest should be evident. 8. Since no other Linux multimedia API supports unadjusted time it would be foolish to introduce here. We must use a universally supported clock to synchronize different media, hence time of day.

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Chapter 4. Device Types

4.1. Video Capture Interface
Video capture devices sample an analog video signal and store the digitized images in memory. Today nearly all devices can capture at full 25 or 30 frames/second. With this interface applications can control the capture process and move images from the driver into user space. Conventionally V4L2 video capture devices are accessed through character device special les named /dev/video and /dev/video0 to /dev/video63 with major number 81 and minor numbers 0 to 63. /dev/video is typically a symbolic link to the preferred video capture device.

4.1.1. Querying Capabilities

Devices supporting the video capture interface set the V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_CAPTURE ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP. As secondary device functions they may also support the video overlay (V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OVERLAY) and the raw VBI capture (V4L2_CAP_VBI_CAPTURE) interface. At least one of the read/write or streaming I/O methods must be supported. Tuners and audio inputs are optional.

4.1.2. Supplemental Functions

Video capture devices shall support audio input, tuner, controls, cropping and scaling and streaming parameter ioctls as needed. The video input and video standard ioctls must be supported by all video capture devices.

4.1.3. Image Format Negotiation

The result of a capture operation is determined by cropping and image format parameters. The former select an area of the video picture to capture, the latter how images are stored in memory, i. e. in RGB or YUV format, the number of bits per pixel or width and height. Together they also dene how images are scaled in the process. As usual these parameters are not reset at open() time to permit Unix tool chains, programming a device and then reading from it as if it was a plain le. Well written V4L2 applications ensure they really get what they want, including cropping and scaling. Cropping initialization at minimum requires to reset the parameters to defaults. An example is given in Section 1.10>. To query the current image format applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format to V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE and call the VIDIOC_G_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the struct v4l2_pix_format pix member of the fmt union. To request different parameters applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format as above and initialize all elds of the struct v4l2_pix_format vbi member of the fmt union, or better just modify the results of VIDIOC_G_FMT, and call the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers may adjust the parameters and nally return the actual parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. Like VIDIOC_S_FMT the VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl can be used to learn about hardware limitations without disabling I/O or possibly time consuming hardware preparations.

51

Chapter 4. Device Types The contents of struct v4l2_pix_format are discussed in Chapter 2>. See also the specication of the
VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT and VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctls for details. Video capture devices must implement both the VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl, even if VIDIOC_S_FMT ignores all requests and always returns default parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. VIDIOC_TRY_FMT is

optional.

4.1.4. Reading Images

A video capture device may support the read() function and/or streaming (memory mapping or user pointer) I/O. See Chapter 3> for details.

4.2. Video Overlay Interface

Video overlay devices have the ability to genlock (TV-)video into the (VGA-)video signal of a graphics card, or to store captured images directly in video memory of a graphics card, typically with clipping. This can be considerable more efcient than capturing images and displaying them by other means. In the old days when only nuclear power plants needed cooling towers this used to be the only way to put live video into a window. Video overlay devices are accessed through the same character special les as video capture devices. Note the default function of a /dev/video device is video capturing. The overlay function is only available after calling the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. The driver may support simultaneous overlay and capturing using the read/write and streaming I/O methods. If so, operation at the nominal frame rate of the video standard is not guaranteed. Frames may be directed away from overlay to capture, or one eld may be used for overlay and the other for capture if the capture parameters permit this. Applications should use different le descriptors for capturing and overlay. This must be supported by all drivers capable of simultaneous capturing and overlay. Optionally these drivers may also permit capturing and overlay with a single le descriptor for compatibility with V4L and earlier versions of V4L2.1

4.2.1. Querying Capabilities

Devices supporting the video overlay interface set the V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OVERLAY ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP. The overlay I/O method specied below must be supported. Tuners and audio inputs are optional.

4.2.2. Supplemental Functions

Video overlay devices shall support audio input, tuner, controls, cropping and scaling and streaming parameter ioctls as needed. The video input and video standard ioctls must be supported by all video overlay devices.

52

Chapter 4. Device Types

4.2.3. Setup
Before overlay can commence applications must program the driver with frame buffer parameters, namely the address and size of the frame buffer and the image format, for example RGB 5:6:5. The VIDIOC_G_FBUF and VIDIOC_S_FBUF ioctls are available to get and set these parameters, respectively. The VIDIOC_S_FBUF ioctl is privileged because it allows to set up DMA into physical memory, bypassing the memory protection mechanisms of the kernel. Only the superuser can change the frame buffer address and size. Users are not supposed to run TV applications as root or with SUID bit set. A small helper application with suitable privileges should query the graphics system and program the V4L2 driver at the appropriate time. Some devices add the video overlay to the output signal of the graphics card. In this case the frame buffer is not modied by the video device, and the frame buffer address and pixel format are not needed by the driver. The VIDIOC_S_FBUF ioctl is not privileged. An application can check for this type of device by calling the VIDIOC_G_FBUF ioctl. A driver may support any (or none) of three clipping methods: 1. Chroma-keying displays the overlaid image only where pixels in the primary graphics surface assume a certain color. 2. A bitmap can be specied where each bit corresponds to a pixel in the overlaid image. When the bit is set, the corresponding video pixel is displayed, otherwise a pixel of the graphics surface. 3. A list of clipping rectangles can be specied. In these regions no video is displayed, so the graphics surface can be seen here.

When simultaneous capturing and overlay is supported and the hardware prohibits different image and frame buffer formats, the format requested rst takes precedence. The attempt to capture (VIDIOC_S_FMT) or overlay (VIDIOC_S_FBUF) may fail with an EBUSY error code or return accordingly modied parameters..

4.2.4. Overlay Window

The overlaid image is determined by cropping and overlay window parameters. The former select an area of the video picture to capture, the latter how images are overlaid and clipped. Cropping initialization at minimum requires to reset the parameters to defaults. An example is given in Section 1.10>. The overlay window is described by a struct v4l2_window. It denes the size of the image, its position over the graphics surface and the clipping to be applied. To get the current parameters applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format to V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY and call the VIDIOC_G_FMT ioctl. The driver lls the v4l2_window substructure named win. Retrieving a previously programmed clipping list or bitmap is not possible. To program the overlay window applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format to V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY, initialize the win substructure and call the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. The driver adjusts the parameters against hardware limits and returns the actual parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. Like VIDIOC_S_FMT, the VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl can be used to learn about driver capabilities without actually changing driver state. Unlike VIDIOC_S_FMT this also works after the overlay has been enabled. The scaling factor of the overlaid image is implied by the width and height given in struct v4l2_window and the size of the cropping rectangle. For more information see Section 1.10>.

53

Chapter 4. Device Types When simultaneous capturing and overlay is supported and the hardware prohibits different image and window sizes, the size requested rst takes precedence. The attempt to capture or overlay as well (VIDIOC_S_FMT) may fail with an EBUSY error code or return accordingly modied parameters. Table 4-1. struct v4l2_window struct v4l2_rect
w

Size and position of the window relative to the top, left corner of the frame buffer dened with VIDIOC_S_FBUF. The window can extend the frame buffer width and height, the x and y coordinates can be negative, and it can lie completely outside the frame buffer. The driver clips the window accordingly, or if that is not possible, modies its size and/or position. Applications set this eld to determine which video eld shall be overlaid, typically one of V4L2_FIELD_ANY (0), V4L2_FIELD_TOP, V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM or V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED. Drivers may have to choose a different eld order and return the actual setting here. When chroma-keying has been negotiated with VIDIOC_S_FBUF applications set this eld to the desired host order RGB32 value for the chroma key. [host order? alpha channel?] When chroma-keying has not been negotiated and
VIDIOC_G_FBUF indicated this capability,

enum v4l2_eld

field

__u32

chromakey

struct v4l2_clip *

clips

applications can set this eld to point to the rst in a list of clipping rectangles. __u32
clipcount

Like the window coordinates w , clipping rectangles are dened relative to the top, left corner of the frame buffer. Howe When the application set the clips eld, this eld must contain the number of clipping rectangles in the list. When clip lists are not supported the driver ignores this eld, its contents after calling VIDIOC_S_FMT are undened. When clip lists are supported but no clipping is desired this eld must be set to zero. When chroma-keying has not been negotiated and VIDIOC_G_FBUF indicated this capability, applications can set this eld to point to a clipping bit mask.

void *

bitmap

It must be of the same size as the window, w.width and w.height. Each bit corresponds to a pixel in the overlaid ima Notes:

Table 4-2. struct v4l2_clip2

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Chapter 4. Device Types

struct v4l2_rect

Coordinates of the clipping rectangle, relative to the top, left corner of the frame buffer. Only window pixels outside all clipping rectangles are displayed. Pointer to the next clipping rectangle in the list, NULL when this is the last rectangle.

struct v4l2_clip *

next

Table 4-3. struct v4l2_rect __s32 __s32

left top

Horizontal offset of the top, left corner of the rectangle, in pixels. Vertical offset of the top, left corner of the rectangle, in pixels. Offsets increase to the right and down. Width of the rectangle, in pixels. Height of the rectangle, in pixels. Width and height cannot be negative, the elds are signed for hysterical reasons.

__s32 __s32

width height

4.2.5. Enabling Overlay

To start or stop the frame buffer overlay applications call the VIDIOC_OVERLAY ioctl.

4.3. Video Output Interface

Video output devices encode stills or image sequences as analog video signal. With this interface applications can control the encoding process and move images from user space to the driver. Conventionally V4L2 video output devices are accessed through character device special les named /dev/vout and /dev/vout0 to /dev/voutN. No minor numbers were recommended yet. /dev/vout is typically a symbolic link to the preferred video output device.

4.3.1. Querying Capabilities

Devices supporting the video output interface set the V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OUTPUT ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP. As secondary device functions they may also support the raw VBI output (V4L2_CAP_VBI_OUTPUT) interface. At least one of the read/write or streaming I/O methods must be supported. Modulators and audio outputs are optional.

4.3.2. Supplemental Functions

Video output devices shall support audio output, modulator, controls, cropping and scaling and streaming parameter ioctls as needed. The video output and video standard ioctls must be supported by all video output devices.

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Chapter 4. Device Types

4.3.3. Image Format Negotiation

The output is determined by cropping and image format parameters. The former select an area of the video picture where the image will appear, the latter how images are stored in memory, i. e. in RGB or YUV format, the number of bits per pixel or width and height. Together they also dene how images are scaled in the process. As usual these parameters are not reset at open() time to permit Unix tool chains, programming a device and then writing to it as if it was a plain le. Well written V4L2 applications ensure they really get what they want, including cropping and scaling. Cropping initialization at minimum requires to reset the parameters to defaults. An example is given in Section 1.10>. To query the current image format applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format to V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT and call the VIDIOC_G_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the struct v4l2_pix_format pix member of the fmt union. To request different parameters applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format as above and initialize all elds of the struct v4l2_pix_format vbi member of the fmt union, or better just modify the results of VIDIOC_G_FMT, and call the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers may adjust the parameters and nally return the actual parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. Like VIDIOC_S_FMT the VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl can be used to learn about hardware limitations without disabling I/O or possibly time consuming hardware preparations. The contents of struct v4l2_pix_format are discussed in Chapter 2>. See also the specication of the VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT and VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctls for details. Video output devices must implement both the VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl, even if VIDIOC_S_FMT ignores all requests and always returns default parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. VIDIOC_TRY_FMT is optional.

4.3.4. Writing Images

A video output device may support the write() function and/or streaming (memory mapping or user pointer) I/O. See Chapter 3> for details.

4.4. Codec Interface

Suspended: This interface has been be suspended from the V4L2 API implemented in Linux 2.6 until we have more experience with codec device interfaces.

A V4L2 codec can compress, decompress, transform, or otherwise convert video data from one format into another format, in memory. Applications send data to be converted to the driver through the write() call, and receive the converted data through the read() call. For efciency, a driver may also support streaming I/O. [to do]

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Chapter 4. Device Types

4.5. Effect Devices Interface

Suspended: This interface has been be suspended from the V4L2 API implemented in Linux 2.6 until we have more experience with effect device interfaces.

A V4L2 video effect device can do image effects, ltering, or combine two or more images or image streams. For example video transitions or wipes. Applications send data to be processed and receive the result data either with read() and write() functions, or through the streaming I/O mechanism. [to do]

4.6. Raw VBI Data Interface

VBI is an abbreviation of Vertical Blanking Interval, a gap in the sequence of lines of an analog video signal. During VBI no picture information is transmitted, allowing some time while the electron beam of a cathode ray tube TV returns to the top of the screen. Using an oscilloscope you will nd here the vertical synchronization pulses and short data packages ASK modulated3 onto the video signal. These are transmissions of services such as Teletext or Closed Caption. Subject of this interface type is raw VBI data, as sampled off a video signal, or to be added to a signal for output. The data format is similar to uncompressed video images, a number of lines times a number of samples per line, we call this a VBI image. Conventionally V4L2 VBI devices are accessed through character device special les named /dev/vbi and /dev/vbi0 to /dev/vbi15 with major number 81 and minor numbers 224 to 239. /dev/vbi is typically a symbolic link to the preferred VBI device. This convention applies to both input and output devices. To address the problems of nding related video and VBI devices VBI capturing is also available as device function under /dev/video, VBI output under /dev/vout. To capture raw VBI data from these devices applications must call the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. Accessed as /dev/vbi, raw VBI capturing or output is the default device function.

4.6.1. Querying Capabilities

Devices supporting the raw VBI capturing or output API set the V4L2_CAP_VBI_CAPTURE or V4L2_CAP_VBI_OUTPUT ags, respectively, in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP. At least one of the read/write, streaming or asynchronous I/O methods must be supported. VBI devices may or may not have a tuner or modulator.

4.6.2. Supplemental Functions

VBI devices shall support video input or output, tuner or modulator, and controls ioctls as needed. The video standard ioctls provide information vital to program a VBI device, therefore must be supported.

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Chapter 4. Device Types

4.6.3. Raw VBI Format Negotiation

Raw VBI sampling abilities can vary, in particular the sampling frequency. To properly interpret the data V4L2 species an ioctl to query the sampling parameters. Moreover, to allow for some exibility applications can also suggest different parameters. As usual these parameters are not reset at open() time to permit Unix tool chains, programming a device and then reading from it as if it was a plain le. Well written V4L2 applications should always ensure they really get what they want, requesting reasonable parameters and then checking if the actual parameters are suitable. To query the current raw VBI capture parameters applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format to V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_CAPTURE or V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT, and call the VIDIOC_G_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the struct v4l2_vbi_format vbi member of the fmt union. To request different parameters applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format as above and initialize all elds of the struct v4l2_vbi_format vbi member of the fmt union, or better just modify the results of VIDIOC-G-FMT, and call the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers return an EINVAL error code only when the given parameters are ambiguous, otherwise they modify the parameters according to the hardware capabilites and return the actual parameters. When the driver allocates resources at this point, it may return an EBUSY error code to indicate the returned parameters are valid but the required resources are currently not available. That may happen for instance when the video and VBI areas to capture would overlap, or when the driver supports multiple opens and another process already requested VBI capturing or output. Anyway, applications must expect other resource allocation points which may return EBUSY, at the VIDIOC_STREAMON ioctl and the rst read(), write() and select() call. VBI devices must implement both the VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl, even if VIDIOC_S_FMT ignores all requests and always returns default parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. VIDIOC_TRY_FMT is optional. Table 4-4. struct v4l2_vbi_format __u32 __u32
sampling_rate offset

Samples per second, i. e. unit 1 Hz. Horizontal offset of the VBI image, relative to the leading edge of the line synchronization pulse and counted in samples: The rst sample in the VBI image will be located offset / sampling_rate seconds following the leading edge. See also Figure 4-1>. Denes the sample format as in Chapter 2>, a four-character-code.a Usually this is V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY, i. e. each sample consists of 8 bits with lower values oriented towards the black level. Do not assume any other correlation of values with the signal level. For example, the MSB does not necessarily indicate if the signal is high or low because 128 may not be the mean value of the signal. Drivers shall not convert the sample format by software.

__u32 __u32

samples_per_line sample_format

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Chapter 4. Device Types

__u32

start[2]

This is the scanning system line number associated with the rst line of the VBI image, of the rst and the second eld respectively. See Figure 4-2> and Figure 4-3> for valid values. VBI input drivers can return start values 0 if the hardware cannot reliable identify scanning lines, VBI acquisition may not require this information. The number of lines in the rst and second eld image, respectively. See Table 4-5> below. Currently only drivers set ags, applications must set this eld to zero. This array is reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set it to zero.

__u32

count[2]

Drivers should be as exibility as possible. For example, it may be possible to extend or move the VBI capture window __u32 __u32 Notes:
flags reserved [2]

Table 4-5. Raw VBI Format Flags

V4L2_VBI_UNSYNC

0x0001

This ag indicates hardware which does not properly distinguish between elds. Normally the VBI image stores the rst eld (lower scanning line numbers) rst in memory. This may be a top or bottom eld depending on the video standard. When this ag is set the rst or second eld may be stored rst, however the elds are still in correct temporal order with the older eld rst in memory.a By default the two eld images will be passed sequentially; all lines of the rst eld followed by all lines of the second eld (compare Section 3.6> V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB and V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT, whether the top or bottom eld is rst in memory depends on the video standard). When this ag is set, the two elds are interlaced (cf. V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED). The rst line of the rst eld followed by the rst line of the second eld, then the two second lines, and so on. Such a layout may be necessary when the hardware has been programmed to capture or output interlaced video images and is unable to separate the elds for VBI capturing at the same time. For simplicity setting this ag implies that both count values are equal and non-zero.

V4L2_VBI_INTERLACED

0x0002

Notes: a. Most VBI services transmit on both elds, but some have different semantics depending on the eld number

59

Chapter 4. Device Types Figure 4-1. Line synchronization

White Level

offset

Black Level

Sync Level Line synchr. pulse Line blanking

60

Chapter 4. Device Types Figure 4-2. ITU-R 525 line numbering (M/NTSC and M/PAL)

524 261

525 262

1 1

2 2

3 3

4 4

5 5

6 6

7 7

8 8

9 9

10 10

11 11

12 12

1st field 262 262 263 263 264 1

(1)

265 2

266 3

267 4

268 5

269 6

270 7

271 8

272 9

273 10

274 11

275 12

2nd field

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Chapter 4. Device Types (1) For the purpose of this specication eld 2 starts in line 264 and not 263.5 because half line capturing is not supported.

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Chapter 4. Device Types Figure 4-3. ITU-R 625 line numbering

621 308

622 309

623 310

624 311

625 312

1 1

2 2

3 3

4 4

5 5

6 6

7 7

8 8

22 22

1st field 309 309 310 310 311 311 312 312 313 313 314 1
(1)

315 2

316 3

317 4

318 5

319 6

320 7

321 8

335 22

2nd field

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Chapter 4. Device Types (1) For the purpose of this specication eld 2 starts in line 314 and not 313.5 because half line capturing is not supported. Remember the VBI image format depends on the selected video standard, therefore the application must choose a new standard or query the current standard rst. Attempts to read or write data ahead of format negotiation, or after switching the video standard which may invalidate the negotiated VBI parameters, should be refused by the driver. A format change during active I/O is not permitted.

4.6.4. Reading and writing VBI images

To assure synchronization with the eld number and easier implementation, the smallest unit of data passed at a time is one frame, consisting of two elds of VBI images immediately following in memory. The total size of a frame computes as follows:
(count[0] + count[1]) * samples_per_line * sample size in bytes

The sample size is most likely always one byte, applications must check the sample_format eld though, to function properly with other drivers. A VBI device may support read/write and/or streaming (memory mapping or user pointer) I/O. The latter bears the possibility of synchronizing video and VBI data by using buffer timestamps. Remember the VIDIOC_STREAMON ioctl and the rst read(), write() and select() call can be resource allocation points returning an EBUSY error code if the required hardware resources are temporarily unavailable, for example the device is already in use by another process.

4.7. Sliced VBI Data Interface

VBI stands for Vertical Blanking Interval, a gap in the sequence of lines of an analog video signal. During VBI no picture information is transmitted, allowing some time while the electron beam of a cathode ray tube TV returns to the top of the screen. Sliced VBI devices use hardware to demodulate data transmitted in the VBI. V4L2 drivers shall not do this by software, see also the raw VBI interface. The data is passed as short packets of xed size, covering one scan line each. The number of packets per video frame is variable. Sliced VBI capture and output devices are accessed through the same character special les as raw VBI devices. When a driver supports both interfaces, the default function of a /dev/vbi device is raw VBI capturing or output, and the sliced VBI function is only available after calling the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl as dened below. Different le descriptors must be used to pass raw and sliced VBI data simultaneously, if this is supported by the driver.

4.7.1. Querying Capabilities

Devices supporting the sliced VBI capturing or output API set the V4L2_CAP_SLICED_VBI_CAPTURE or V4L2_CAP_SLICED_VBI_OUTPUT ag respectively, in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. At least

64

Chapter 4. Device Types one of the read/write, streaming or asynchronous I/O methods must be supported. Sliced VBI devices may have a tuner or modulator.

4.7.2. Supplemental Functions

Sliced VBI devices shall support video input or output and tuner or modulator ioctls if they have these capabilities, and they may support control ioctls. The video standard ioctls provide information vital to program a sliced VBI device, therefore must be supported.

4.7.3. Sliced VBI Format Negotiation

To nd out which data services are supported by the hardware applications can call the VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP ioctl. All drivers implementing the sliced VBI interface must support this ioctl. The results may differ from those of the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl when the number of VBI lines the hardware can capture or output per frame, or the number of services it can identify on a given line are limited. For example on PAL line 16 the hardware may be able to look for a VPS or Teletext signal, but not both at the same time. To determine the currently selected services applications set the type eld of struct v4l2_format to V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_CAPTURE or V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_OUTPUT, and the VIDIOC_G_FMT ioctl lls the fmt.sliced member, a struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_format. Applications can request different parameters by initializing or modifying the fmt.sliced member and calling the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl with a pointer to the v4l2_format structure. The sliced VBI API is more complicated than the raw VBI API because the hardware must be told which VBI service to expect on each scan line. Not all services may be supported by the hardware on all lines (this is especially true for VBI output where Teletext is often unsupported and other services can only be inserted in one specic line). In many cases, however, it is sufcient to just set the service_set eld to the required services and let the driver ll the service_lines array according to hardware capabilities. Only if more precise control is needed should the programmer set the service_lines array explicitly. The VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl returns an EINVAL error code only when the given parameters are ambiguous, otherwise it modies the parameters according to hardware capabilities. When the driver allocates resources at this point, it may return an EBUSY error code if the required resources are temporarily unavailable. Other resource allocation points which may return EBUSY can be the VIDIOC_STREAMON ioctl and the rst read(), write() and select() call. Table 4-6. struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_format __u32 __u16
service_set

If service_set is non-zero when passed with VIDIOC_S_FMT or V Element 525 line systems625 line systems 1 23 314

service_lines[2][24] Applications initialize this array with sets of data services the driver

service_lines[0][1] 1 service_lines[0][23] 3 2 service_lines[1][1]264

65

Chapter 4. Device Types

service_lines[1][23] 286

336

Drivers must set service_lines[0][0] and service_lines[1][0] __u32 __u32 Notes:

io_size reserved [2]

Maximum number of bytes passed by one read() or write() call,

This array is reserved for future extensions. Applications and drivers

Table 4-7. Sliced VBI services Symbol Value Reference Lines, usually Payload

V4L2_SLICED_TELETEXT_B 0x0001

(Teletext System B)

TELETEXT>AL/SECAM line 7-22, Last 42 of the 45 byte P 320-335 (second eld Teletext packet, that is 7-22) without clock run-in and framing code, lsb rst transmitted. VPS> PAL line 16 Byte number 3 to 15 according to Figure 9 of ETS 300 231, lsb rst transmitted. Two bytes in transmission order, including parity bit, lsb rst transmitted.
Byte Bit

V4L2_SLICED_VPS

0x0400

V4L2_SLICED_CAPTION_525 0x1000

EIA608>

NTSC line 21, 284 (second eld 21)

V4L2_SLICED_WSS_6250x4000

WSS>

PAL/SECAM line 23

0 1 msb lsb msb 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 x x 13 12

V4L2_SLICED_VBI_5250x1000 V4L2_SLICED_VBI_6250x4401

Set of services applicable to 525 line systems. Set of services applicable to 625 line systems.

Drivers may return an EINVAL error code when applications attempt to read or write data without prior format negotiation, after switching the video standard (which may invalidate the negotiated VBI parameters) and after switching the video input (which may change the video standard as a side effect). The VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl may return an EBUSY error code when applications attempt to change the format while i/o is in progress (between a VIDIOC_STREAMON and VIDIOC_STREAMOFF call, and after the rst read() or write() call).

4.7.4. Reading and writing sliced VBI data

A single read() or write() call must pass all data belonging to one video frame. That is an array of v4l2_sliced_vbi_data structures with one or more elements and a total size not exceeding io_size bytes. Likewise in streaming I/O mode one buffer of io_size bytes must contain data of one video frame. The id of unused v4l2_sliced_vbi_data elements must be zero.

66

Chapter 4. Device Types Table 4-8. struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_data __u32

id

A ag from Table 2> identifying the type of data in this packet. Only a single bit must be set. When the id of a captured packet is zero, the packet is empty and the contents of other elds are undened. Applications shall ignore empty packets. When the id of a packet for output is zero the contents of the data eld are undened and the driver must no longer insert data on the requested field and line. The video eld number this data has been captured from, or shall be inserted at. 0 for the rst eld, 1 for the second eld. The eld (as opposed to frame) line number this data has been captured from, or shall be inserted at. See Figure 4-2> and Figure 4-3> for valid values. Sliced VBI capture devices can set the line number of all packets to 0 if the hardware cannot reliably identify scan lines. The eld number must always be valid. Applications and drivers must set it to zero.

__u32

field

__u32

line

__u32 __u8

reserved This eld is reserved for future extensions. data[48]

The packet payload. See Table 2> for the contents and number of bytes passed for each data type. The contents of padding bytes at the end of this array are undened, drivers and applications shall ignore them.

Packets are always passed in ascending line number order, without duplicate line numbers. The
write() function and the VIDIOC_QBUF ioctl must return an EINVAL error code when applications

violate this rule. They must also return an EINVAL error code when applications pass an incorrect eld or line number, or a combination of field , line and id which has not been negotiated with the VIDIOC_G_FMT or VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. When the line numbers are unknown the driver must pass the packets in transmitted order. The driver can insert empty packets with id set to zero anywhere in the packet array. To assure synchronization and to distinguish from frame dropping, when a captured frame does not carry any of the requested data services drivers must pass one or more empty packets. When an application fails to pass VBI data in time for output, the driver must output the last VPS and WSS packet again, and disable the output of Closed Caption and Teletext data, or output data which is ignored by Closed Caption and Teletext decoders. A sliced VBI device may support read/write and/or streaming (memory mapping and/or user pointer) I/O. The latter bears the possibility of synchronizing video and VBI data by using buffer timestamps.

4.8. Teletext Interface

This interface aims at devices receiving and demodulating Teletext data [TELETEXT>], evaluating the Teletext packages and storing formatted pages in cache memory. Such devices are usually

67

Chapter 4. Device Types implemented as microcontrollers with serial interface (I2C) and can be found on older TV cards, dedicated Teletext decoding cards and home-brew devices connected to the PC parallel port. The Teletext API was designed by Martin Buck. It is dened in the kernel header le linux/videotext.h, the specication is available from http://home.pages.de/~videotext/. (Videotext is the name of the German public television Teletext service.) Conventional character device le names are /dev/vtx and /dev/vttuner, with device number 83, 0 and 83, 16 respectively. A similar interface exists for the Philips SAA5249 Teletext decoder [specication?] with character device le names /dev/tlkN, device number 102, N. Eventually the Teletext API was integrated into the V4L API with character device le names /dev/vtx0 to /dev/vtx31, device major number 81, minor numbers 192 to 223. For reference the V4L Teletext API specication is reproduced here in full: "Teletext interfaces talk the existing VTX API." Teletext devices with major number 83 and 102 will be removed in Linux 2.6. There are no plans to replace the Teletext API or to integrate it into V4L2. Please write to the Video4Linux mailing list: https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/video4linux-list when the need arises.

4.9. Radio Interface

This interface is intended for AM and FM (analog) radio receivers. Conventionally V4L2 radio devices are accessed through character device special les named /dev/radio and /dev/radio0 to /dev/radio63 with major number 81 and minor numbers 64 to 127.

4.9.1. Querying Capabilities

Devices supporting the radio interface set the V4L2_CAP_RADIO and V4L2_CAP_TUNER ag in the capabilities eld of struct v4l2_capability returned by the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. Other combinations of capability ags are reserved for future extensions.

4.9.2. Supplemental Functions

Radio devices can support controls, and must support the tuner ioctls. They do not support the video input or output, audio input or output, video standard, cropping and scaling, compression and streaming parameter, or overlay ioctls. All other ioctls and I/O methods are reserved for future extensions.

4.9.3. Programming
Radio devices may have a couple audio controls (as discussed in Section 1.8>) such as a volume control, possibly custom controls. Further all radio devices have one tuner (these are discussed in Section 1.6>) with index number zero to select the radio frequency and to determine if a monaural or FM stereo program is received. Drivers switch automatically between AM and FM depending on the selected frequency. The VIDIOC_G_TUNER ioctl reports the supported frequency range.

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Chapter 4. Device Types

4.10. RDS Interface

The Radio Data System transmits supplementary information in binary format, for example the station name or travel information, on a inaudible audio subcarrier of a radio program. This interface aims at devices capable of receiving and decoding RDS information. The V4L API denes its RDS API as follows. From radio devices supporting it, RDS data can be read with the read() function. The data is packed in groups of three, as follows: 1. First Octet Least Signicant Byte of RDS Block 2. Second Octet Most Signicant Byte of RDS Block 3. Third Octet Bit 7: Error bit. Indicates that an uncorrectable error occurred during reception of this block. Bit 6: Corrected bit. Indicates that an error was corrected for this data block. Bits 5-3: Received Offset. Indicates the offset received by the sync system. Bits 2-0: Offset Name. Indicates the offset applied to this data.

It was argued the RDS API should be extended before integration into V4L2, no new API has been devised yet. Please write to the Video4Linux mailing list for discussion: https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/video4linux-list. Meanwhile no V4L2 driver should set the V4L2_CAP_RDS_CAPTURE capability ag.

Notes
1. A common application of two le descriptors is the XFree86 Xv/V4L interface driver and a V4L2 application. While the X server controls video overlay, the application can take advantage of memory mapping and DMA.
In the opinion of the designers of this API, no driver writer taking the efforts to support simultaneous capturing and overlay will restrict this ability by requiring a single le descriptor, as in V4L and earlier versions of V4L2. Making this optional means applications depending on two le descriptors need backup routines to be compatible with all drivers, which is considerable more work than using two fds in applications which do not. Also two fds t the general concept of one le descriptor for each logical stream. Hence as a complexity trade-off drivers must support two le descriptors and may support single fd operation.

2. The X Window system denes "regions" which are vectors of struct BoxRec { short x1, y1, x2, y2; } with width = x2 - x1 and height = y2 - y1, so one cannot pass X11 clip lists directly. 3. ASK: Amplitude-Shift Keying. A high signal level represents a 1 bit, a low level a 0 bit.

69

I. Function Reference
Table of Contents
V4L2 close()....................................................................................................................................... 72 V4L2 ioctl()........................................................................................................................................ 73 ioctl VIDIOC_CROPCAP................................................................................................................ 75 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO.......................................................................................................... 77 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT...................................................................................................... 78 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT ............................................................................................................ 79 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT .......................................................................................................... 81 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT ...................................................................................................... 84 ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMSTD ............................................................................................................... 86 ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO............................................................................. 90 ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT..................................................................... 92 ioctl VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP....................................................... 94 ioctl VIDIOC_G_CROP, VIDIOC_S_CROP................................................................................. 95 ioctl VIDIOC_G_CTRL, VIDIOC_S_CTRL................................................................................. 97 ioctl VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF .................................................................................. 99 ioctl VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT.............................................. 102 ioctl VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY................................................... 105 ioctl VIDIOC_G_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_INPUT ............................................................................ 107 ioctl VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP ........................................................ 109 ioctl VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR ................................................ 111 ioctl VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT.................................................................... 114 ioctl VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM ............................................................................. 116 ioctl VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY, VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY ............................................................. 120 ioctl VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP.......................................................................................... 122 ioctl VIDIOC_G_STD, VIDIOC_S_STD ..................................................................................... 124 ioctl VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER......................................................................... 125 ioctl VIDIOC_LOG_STATUS ....................................................................................................... 129 ioctl VIDIOC_OVERLAY.............................................................................................................. 130 ioctl VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF...................................................................................... 131 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYBUF........................................................................................................... 133 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCAP........................................................................................................... 135 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU .......................................................... 138 ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYSTD ........................................................................................................... 141 ioctl VIDIOC_REQBUFS .............................................................................................................. 143 ioctl VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF .............................................................. 145 V4L2 mmap() .................................................................................................................................. 147 V4L2 munmap().............................................................................................................................. 149 V4L2 open()..................................................................................................................................... 150 V4L2 poll()....................................................................................................................................... 152 V4L2 read() ..................................................................................................................................... 153 V4L2 select().................................................................................................................................... 155 V4L2 write() .................................................................................................................................... 156

V4L2 close()
Name
v4l2-close Close a V4L2 device

Synopsis
#include <unistd.h> int close(int fd);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

Description
Closes the device. Any I/O in progress is terminated and resources associated with the le descriptor are freed. However data format parameters, current input or output, control values or other properties remain unchanged.

Return Value
The function returns 0 on success, -1 on failure and the errno is set appropriately. Possible error codes: EBADF
fd is not a valid open le descriptor.

72

V4L2 ioctl()
Name
v4l2-ioctl Program a V4L2 device

Synopsis
#include <sys/ioctl.h> int ioctl(int fd, int request, void *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

V4L2 ioctl request code as dened in the videodev.h header le, for example VIDIOC_QUERYCAP.
argp

Pointer to a function parameter, usually a structure.

Description
The ioctl() function is used to program V4L2 devices. The argument fd must be an open le descriptor. An ioctl request has encoded in it whether the argument is an input, output or read/write parameter, and the size of the argument argp in bytes. Macros and denes specifying V4L2 ioctl requests are located in the videodev.h header le. Applications should use their own copy, not include the version in the kernel sources on the system they compile on. All V4L2 ioctl requests, their respective function and parameters are specied in Reference I, Function Reference>.

Return Value
On success the ioctl() function returns 0 and does not reset the errno variable. On failure -1 is returned, when the ioctl takes an output or read/write parameter it remains unmodied, and the errno variable is set appropriately. See below for possible error codes. Generic errors like EBADF or EFAULT are not listed in the sections discussing individual ioctl requests. Note ioctls may return undened error codes. Since errors may have side effects such as a driver reset applications should abort on unexpected errors.

73

V4L2 ioctl() EBADF

fd is not a valid open le descriptor.

EBUSY The property cannot be changed right now. Typically this error code is returned when I/O is in progress or the driver supports multiple opens and another process locked the property. EFAULT
argp references an inaccessible memory area.

ENOTTY
fd is not associated with a character special device.

EINVAL The request or the data pointed to by argp is not valid. This is a very common error code, see the individual ioctl requests listed in Reference I, Function Reference> for actual causes. ENOMEM Insufcient memory to complete the request. ERANGE The application attempted to set a control with the VIDIOC_S_CTRL ioctl to a value which is out of bounds.

74

ioctl VIDIOC_CROPCAP
Name
VIDIOC_CROPCAP Information about the video cropping and scaling abilities.

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_cropcap *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_CROPCAP
argp

Description
Applications use this function to query the cropping limits, the pixel aspect of images and to calculate scale factors. They set the type eld of a v4l2_cropcap structure to the respective buffer (stream) type and call the VIDIOC_CROPCAP ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure. The results are constant except when switching the video standard. Remember this switch can occur implicit when switching the video input or output. Table 1. struct v4l2_cropcap enum v4l2_buf_type
type

Type of the data stream, set by the application. Only these types are valid here: V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE, V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT, V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY, and custom (driver dened) types with code V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE and higher.

75

ioctl VIDIOC_CROPCAP

struct v4l2_rect

bounds

Denes the window within capturing or output is possible, this may exclude for example the horizontal and vertical blanking areas. The cropping rectangle cannot exceed these limits. Width and height are dened in pixels, the driver writer is free to choose origin and units of the coordinate system in the analog domain. Default cropping rectangle, it shall cover the "whole picture". Assuming pixel aspect 1/1 this could be for example a 640 480 rectangle for NTSC, a 768 576 rectangle for PAL and SECAM centered over the active picture area. The same co-ordinate system as for bounds is used. This is the pixel aspect (y / x) when no scaling is applied, the ratio of the actual sampling frequency and the frequency required to get square pixels. When cropping coordinates refer to square pixels, the driver sets pixelaspect to 1/1. Other common values are 54/59 for PAL and SECAM, 11/10 for NTSC sampled according to [ITU601>].

struct v4l2_rect

defrect

struct v4l2_fract

pixelaspect

Table 2. struct v4l2_rect __s32 __s32 __s32 __s32

left top width height

Horizontal offset of the top, left corner of the rectangle, in pixels. Vertical offset of the top, left corner of the rectangle, in pixels. Width of the rectangle, in pixels. Height of the rectangle, in pixels. Width and height cannot be negative, the elds are signed for hysterical reasons.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_cropcap type is invalid or the ioctl is not supported. This is not permitted for video capture, output and overlay devices, which must support VIDIOC_CROPCAP.

76

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO
Name
VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO Enumerate audio inputs

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_audio *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO
argp

Description
To query the attributes of an audio input applications initialize the index eld and zero out the reserved array of a struct v4l2_audio and call the VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all audio inputs applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. See ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO(2)> for a description of struct v4l2_audio.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The number of the audio input is out of bounds, or there are no audio inputs at all and this ioctl is not supported.

77

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT
Name
VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT Enumerate audio outputs

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_audioout *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT
argp

Description
To query the attributes of an audio output applications initialize the index eld and zero out the reserved array of a struct v4l2_audioout and call the VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all audio outputs applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. Note connectors on a TV card to loop back the received audio signal to a sound card are not audio outputs in this sense. See ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT(2)> for a description of struct v4l2_audioout.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The number of the audio output is out of bounds, or there are no audio outputs at all and this ioctl is not supported.

78

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT
Name
VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT Enumerate image formats

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_fmtdesc *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT
argp

Description
To enumerate image formats applications initialize the type and index eld of struct v4l2_fmtdesc and call the VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code. All formats are enumerable by beginning at index zero and incrementing by one until EINVAL is returned. Table 1. struct v4l2_fmtdesc __u32
index

Number of the format in the enumeration, set by the application. This is in no way related to the pixelformat eld. Type of the data stream, set by the application. Only these types are valid here: V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE, V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT, V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY, and custom (driver dened) types with code V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE and higher. See Table 2> Description of the format, a NUL-terminated ASCII string. This information is intended for the user, for example: "YUV 4:2:2".

enum v4l2_buf_type

type

__u32 __u8

flags description[32]

79

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT

__u32

pixelformat

The image format identier. This is a four character code as computed by the v4l2_fourcc() macro: Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set the array to zero.

#define v4l2_fourcc(a,b,c,d) (((__u32)(a)<<0)|((__u32)(b)<<8)|((__u32)(c)<<16)|((__u32)

__u32

reserved [4]

Table 2. Image Format Description Flags

V4L2_FMT_FLAG_COMPRESSED

0x0001

This is a compressed format.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_fmtdesc type is not supported or the index is out of bounds.

80

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT
Name
VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT Enumerate video inputs

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_input *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT
argp

Description
To query the attributes of a video input applications initialize the index eld of struct v4l2_input and call the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all inputs applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. Table 1. struct v4l2_input __u32 __u8
index name[32]

Identies the input, set by the application. Name of the video input, a NUL-terminated ASCII string, for example: "Vin (Composite 2)". This information is intended for the user, preferably the connector label on the device itself. Type of the input, see Table 2>.

__u32

type

81

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT

__u32

audioset

Video inputs combine with zero or more audio inputs. For example one composite video connectors may exist, but two audio connectors. On the other hand, video from a tuner will likely combine only with audio from the same tuner. Devices with N audio inputs number them 0 . . . N-1 with N 32. Each bit position of audioset represents one audio input. For details on audio inputs and how to switch see Section 1.5>. Capture devices can have zero or more tuners (RF demodulators). When the type is set to V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_TUNER this is an RF connector and this eld identies the tuner. It corresponds to struct v4l2_tuner eld index . For details on tuners see Section 1.6>. Every video input supports one or more different video standards. This eld is a set of all supported standards. For details on video standards and how to switch see Section 1.7>. This eld provides status information about the input. See Table 3> for ags. status is only valid when this is the current input. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set the array to zero.

__u32

tuner

v4l2_std_id

std

__u32

status

__u32

reserved [4]

Table 2. Input Types

V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_TUNER V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_CAMERA

1 2

This input uses a tuner (RF demodulator). Analog baseband input, for example CVBS / Composite Video, S-Video, RGB.

Table 3. Input Status Flags General

V4L2_IN_ST_NO_POWER V4L2_IN_ST_NO_SIGNAL V4L2_IN_ST_NO_COLOR

0x00000001 0x00000002 0x00000004

Attached device is off. The hardware supports color decoding, but does not detect color modulation in the signal. No horizontal sync lock. A color killer circuit automatically disables color decoding when it detects no color modulation. When this ag is set the color killer is enabled and has shut off color decoding.

Analog Video
V4L2_IN_ST_NO_H_LOCK V4L2_IN_ST_COLOR_KILL

0x00000100 0x00000200

82

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT

Digital Video
V4L2_IN_ST_NO_SYNC V4L2_IN_ST_NO_EQU V4L2_IN_ST_NO_CARRIER

0x00010000 0x00020000 0x00040000 0x01000000

No synchronization lock. No equalizer lock. Carrier recovery failed. Macrovision is an analog copy prevention system mangling the video signal to confuse video recorders. When this ag is set Macrovision has been detected. Conditional access denied. VTR time constant. [?]

VCR and Set-Top Box

V4L2_IN_ST_MACROVISION

V4L2_IN_ST_NO_ACCESS V4L2_IN_ST_VTR

0x02000000 0x04000000

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_input index is out of bounds.

83

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT
Name
VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT Enumerate video outputs

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_output *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT
argp

Description
To query the attributes of a video outputs applications initialize the index eld of struct v4l2_output and call the VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all outputs applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. Table 1. struct v4l2_output __u32 __u8
index name[32]

Identies the output, set by the application. Name of the video output, a NUL-terminated ASCII string, for example: "Vout". This information is intended for the user, preferably the connector label on the device itself. Type of the output, see Table 2>.

__u32

type

84

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT

__u32

audioset

Video outputs combine with zero or more audio outputs. For example one composite video connectors may exist, but two audio connectors. On the other hand, video to a modulator will likely combine only with audio to the same modulator. Devices with N audio outputs number them 0 . . . N-1 with N 32. Each bit position of audioset represents one audio output. For details on audio outputs and how to switch see Section 1.5>. Output devices can have zero or more RF modulators. When the type is V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_MODULATOR this is an RF connector and this eld identies the modulator. It corresponds to struct v4l2_modulator eld index . For details on modulators see Section 1.6>. Every video output supports one or more different video standards. This eld is a set of all supported standards. For details on video standards and how to switch see Section 1.7>. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set the array to zero.

__u32

modulator

v4l2_std_id

std

__u32

reserved [4]

Table 2. Output Type

V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_MODULATOR V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_ANALOG

1 2

This output is an analog TV modulator. Analog baseband output, for example Composite / CVBS, S-Video, RGB. [?]

V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_ANALOGVGAOVERLAY 3

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_output index is out of bounds.

85

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMSTD
Name
VIDIOC_ENUMSTD Enumerate supported video standards

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_standard *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_ENUMSTD
argp

Description
To query the attributes of a video standard, especially a custom (driver dened) one, applications initialize the index eld of struct v4l2_standard and call the VIDIOC_ENUMSTD ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all standards applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. Drivers may enumerate a different set of standards after switching the video input or output.1 Table 1. struct v4l2_standard __u32 v4l2_std_id
index id

Number of the video standard, set by the application. The bits in this eld identify the standard as one of the common standards listed in Table 3>, or if bits 32 to 63 are set as custom standards. Multiple bits can be set if the hardware does not distinguish between these standards, however separate indices do not indicate the opposite. The id must be unique. No other enumerated v4l2_standard structure, for this input or output anyway, can contain the same set of bits.

86

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMSTD

__u8

name[24]

Name of the standard, a NUL-terminated ASCII string, for example: "PAL-B/G", "NTSC Japan". This information is intended for the user. The frame period (not eld period) is numerator / denominator. For example M/NTSC has a frame period of 1001 / 30000 seconds. Total lines per frame including blanking, e. g. 625 for B/PAL. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set the array to zero.

struct v4l2_fract

frameperiod

__u32 __u32

framelines reserved [4]

Table 2. struct v4l2_fract __u32 __u32

numerator denominator

Table 3. typedef v4l2_std_id __u64

v4l2_std_id

This type is a set, each bit representing another video standard as listed below and in Table 4>. The 32 most signicant bits are reserved for custom (driver dened) video standards.

#define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define

V4L2_STD_PAL_B V4L2_STD_PAL_B1 V4L2_STD_PAL_G V4L2_STD_PAL_H V4L2_STD_PAL_I V4L2_STD_PAL_D V4L2_STD_PAL_D1 V4L2_STD_PAL_K V4L2_STD_PAL_M V4L2_STD_PAL_N V4L2_STD_PAL_Nc V4L2_STD_PAL_60

((v4l2_std_id)0x00000001) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000002) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000004) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000008) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000010) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000020) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000040) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000080) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000100) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000200) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000400) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000800)

V4L2_STD_PAL_60 is a hybrid standard with 525 lines, 60 Hz refresh rate, and PAL color

modulation with a 4.43 MHz color subcarrier. Some PAL video recorders can play back NTSC tapes in this mode for display on a 50/60 Hz agnostic PAL TV.
#define V4L2_STD_NTSC_M #define V4L2_STD_NTSC_M_JP #define V4L2_STD_NTSC_443 ((v4l2_std_id)0x00001000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00002000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00004000)

V4L2_STD_NTSC_443 is a hybrid standard with 525 lines, 60 Hz refresh rate, and NTSC color

modulation with a 4.43 MHz color subcarrier.

87

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMSTD
#define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define V4L2_STD_SECAM_B V4L2_STD_SECAM_D V4L2_STD_SECAM_G V4L2_STD_SECAM_H V4L2_STD_SECAM_K V4L2_STD_SECAM_K1 V4L2_STD_SECAM_L V4L2_STD_SECAM_LC ((v4l2_std_id)0x00010000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00020000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00040000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00080000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00100000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00200000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00400000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00800000)

/* ATSC/HDTV */ #define V4L2_STD_ATSC_8_VSB #define V4L2_STD_ATSC_16_VSB

((v4l2_std_id)0x01000000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x02000000)

V4L2_STD_ATSC_8_VSB and V4L2_STD_ATSC_16_VSB are U.S. terrestrial digital TV standards.

Presently the V4L2 API does not support digital TV. See also the Linux DVB API at http://linuxtv.org.
#define V4L2_STD_PAL_BG (V4L2_STD_PAL_B V4L2_STD_PAL_B1 V4L2_STD_PAL_G) (V4L2_STD_PAL_D V4L2_STD_PAL_D1 V4L2_STD_PAL_K) (V4L2_STD_PAL_BG V4L2_STD_PAL_DK V4L2_STD_PAL_H V4L2_STD_PAL_I) (V4L2_STD_NTSC_M V4L2_STD_NTSC_M_JP) (V4L2_STD_SECAM_D V4L2_STD_SECAM_K V4L2_STD_SECAM_K1) (V4L2_STD_SECAM_B V4L2_STD_SECAM_G V4L2_STD_SECAM_H V4L2_STD_SECAM_DK V4L2_STD_SECAM_L) (V4L2_STD_PAL_M V4L2_STD_PAL_60 V4L2_STD_NTSC V4L2_STD_NTSC_443) (V4L2_STD_PAL V4L2_STD_PAL_N V4L2_STD_PAL_Nc V4L2_STD_SECAM) 0 (V4L2_STD_525_60 V4L2_STD_625_50) |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\

#define V4L2_STD_PAL_DK

#define V4L2_STD_PAL

#define V4L2_STD_NTSC #define V4L2_STD_SECAM_DK

#define V4L2_STD_SECAM

#define V4L2_STD_525_60

|\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\

#define V4L2_STD_625_50

#define V4L2_STD_UNKNOWN #define V4L2_STD_ALL

|\

Table 4. Video Standards (based on [ITU470>])

88

ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMSTD Characteristics M/PAL N/PALb B, B1, D, D1, H/PAL I/PAL B, D, M/NTSCa G/PAL K/PAL G/SECAM K/SECAM K1/SECAM L/SECAM Frame lines Frame period (s) 525 1001/30000

Chrominance 4433618.75 5 sub35795453579611.49 4433618.75 carrier 10 10 5 fre(3582056.25 quency 5) (Hz) Nominal 6 radiofrequency channel bandwidth (MHz) Sound + 4.5 carrier relative to vision carrier (MHz) 6 6 B: 7; B1, G: 8 8 8

4433618.75 1

+ 4.5

+ 4.5

+ 5.5 + 6.5 + 5.5 + 5.5 + 6.5 + 6.5 + 6.5 g 0.001 0.001 + 5.9996 0.001 0.001 c d e f 0.0005

Notes: a. Japan uses a standard similar to M/NTSC (V4L2_STD_NTSC_M_JP). b. The values in brackets apply to t

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_standard index is out of bounds.

89

Notes
1. The supported standards may overlap and we need an unambiguous set to nd the current standard returned by VIDIOC_G_STD.

ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO

Name
VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO Query or select the current audio input and its attributes

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_audio *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_audio *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO
argp

Description
To query the current audio input applications zero out the reserved array of a struct v4l2_audio and call the VIDIOC_G_AUDIO ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the device has no audio inputs, or none which combine with the current video input. Audio inputs have one writable property, the audio mode. To select the current audio input and change the audio mode, applications initialize the index and mode elds, and the reserved array of a v4l2_audio structure and call the VIDIOC_S_AUDIO ioctl. Drivers may switch to a different audio mode if the request cannot be satised. However, this is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the actual new audio mode.

90

ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDIO, VIDIOC_S_AUDIO Table 1. struct v4l2_audio __u32 __u8

index name[32]

Identies the audio input, set by the driver or application. Name of the audio input, a NUL-terminated ASCII string, for example: "Line In". This information is intended for the user, preferably the connector label on the device itself. Audio capability ags, see Table 2>. Audio mode set by drivers and applications (on VIDIOC_S_AUDIO ioctl), see Table 3>. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.

__u32 __u32 __u32

capability mode reserved [2]

Table 2. Audio Capability Flags

V4L2_AUDCAP_STEREO

0x00001

This is a stereo input. The ag is intended to automatically disable stereo recording etc. when the signal is always monaural. The API provides no means to detect if stereo is received, unless the audio input belongs to a tuner. Automatic Volume Level mode is supported.

V4L2_AUDCAP_AVL

0x00002

Table 3. Audio Modes

V4L2_AUDMODE_AVL

0x00001

AVL mode is on.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL No audio inputs combine with the current video input, or the number of the selected audio input is out of bounds or it does not combine, or there are no audio inputs at all and the ioctl is not supported. EBUSY I/O is in progress, the input cannot be switched.

91

ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT

Name
VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT Query or select the current audio output

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_audioout *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_audioout *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT
argp

Description
To query the current audio output applications zero out the reserved array of a struct v4l2_audioout and call the VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the device has no audio inputs, or none which combine with the current video output. Audio outputs have no writable properties. Nevertheless, to select the current audio output applications can initialize the index eld and reserved array (which in the future may contain writable properties) of a v4l2_audioout structure and call the VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT ioctl. Drivers switch to the requested output or return the EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. This is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the current audio output attributes as VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT does. Note connectors on a TV card to loop back the received audio signal to a sound card are not audio outputs in this sense. Table 1. struct v4l2_audioout __u32
index

Identies the audio output, set by the driver or application.

92

ioctl VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT, VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT

__u8

name[32]

Name of the audio output, a NUL-terminated ASCII string, for example: "Line Out". This information is intended for the user, preferably the connector label on the device itself. Audio capability ags, none dened yet. Drivers must set this eld to zero. Audio mode, none dened yet. Drivers and applications (on VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT) must set this eld to zero. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.

__u32 __u32

capability mode

__u32

reserved [2]

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL No audio outputs combine with the current video output, or the number of the selected audio output is out of bounds or it does not combine, or there are no audio outputs at all and the ioctl is not supported. EBUSY I/O is in progress, the output cannot be switched.

93

ioctl VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP

Name
VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP Get or set compression parameters

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, v4l2_mpeg_compression *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP
argp

Description
[to do] Table 1. struct v4l2_mpeg_compression [to do]

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL This ioctl is not supported

94

ioctl VIDIOC_G_CROP, VIDIOC_S_CROP

Name
VIDIOC_G_CROP, VIDIOC_S_CROP Get or set the current cropping rectangle

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_crop *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_crop *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_CROP, VIDIOC_S_CROP
argp

Description
To query the cropping rectangle size and position applications set the type eld of a v4l2_crop structure to the respective buffer (stream) type and call the VIDIOC_G_CROP ioctl with a pointer to this structure. The driver lls the rest of the structure or returns the EINVAL error code if cropping is not supported. To change the cropping rectangle applications initialize the type and struct v4l2_rect substructure named c of a v4l2_crop structure and call the VIDIOC_S_CROP ioctl with a pointer to this structure. The driver rst adjusts the requested dimensions against hardware limits, i. e. the bounds given by the capture/output window, and it rounds to the closest possible values of horizontal and vertical offset, width and height. In particular the driver must round the vertical offset of the cropping rectangle to frame lines modulo two, such that the eld order cannot be confused. Second the driver adjusts the image size (the opposite rectangle of the scaling process, source or target depending on the data direction) to the closest size possible while maintaining the current horizontal and vertical scaling factor. Finally the driver programs the hardware with the actual cropping and image parameters. VIDIOC_S_CROP is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the actual parameters. To query them applications must call VIDIOC_G_CROP and VIDIOC_G_FMT. When the parameters are unsuitable

95

ioctl VIDIOC_G_CROP, VIDIOC_S_CROP the application may modify the cropping or image parameters and repeat the cycle until satisfactory parameters have been negotiated. When cropping is not supported then no parameters are changed and VIDIOC_S_CROP returns the EINVAL error code. Table 1. struct v4l2_crop enum v4l2_buf_type
type

Type of the data stream, set by the application. Only these types are valid here: V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE, V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT, V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY, and custom (driver dened) types with code V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE and higher. Cropping rectangle. The same co-ordinate system as for struct v4l2_cropcap bounds is used.

struct v4l2_rect

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL Cropping is not supported.

96

ioctl VIDIOC_G_CTRL, VIDIOC_S_CTRL

Name
VIDIOC_G_CTRL, VIDIOC_S_CTRL Get or set the value of a control

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_control *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_CTRL, VIDIOC_S_CTRL
argp

Description
To get the current value of a control applications initialize the id eld of a struct v4l2_control and call the VIDIOC_G_CTRL ioctl with a pointer to this structure. To change the value of a control applications initialize the id and value elds of a struct v4l2_control and call the VIDIOC_S_CTRL ioctl. When the id is invalid drivers return an EINVAL error code. When the value is out of bounds drivers can choose to take the closest valid value or return an ERANGE error code, whatever seems more appropriate. However, VIDIOC_S_CTRL is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the actual new value. Table 1. struct v4l2_control __u32 __s32
id value

Identies the control, set by the application. New value or current value.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately:

97

ioctl VIDIOC_G_CTRL, VIDIOC_S_CTRL EINVAL The struct v4l2_control id is invalid. ERANGE The struct v4l2_control value is out of bounds. EBUSY The control is temporarily not changeable, possibly because another applications took over control of the device function this control belongs to.

98

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF

Name
VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF Get or set frame buffer overlay parameters.

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_framebuffer *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_framebuffer *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF
argp

Description
The VIDIOC_G_FBUF and VIDIOC_S_FBUF ioctl are used to get and set the frame buffer parameters for video overlay. To get the current parameters applications call the VIDIOC_G_FBUF ioctl with a pointer to a v4l2_framebuffer structure, the driver lls all elds of the structure or returns the EINVAL error code when overlay is not supported. To set the parameters applications initialize the flags eld, base unless the overlay is of V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY type, and the struct v4l2_pix_format fmt substructure. The driver accordingly prepares for overlay or returns an error code. When the driver does not support V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY, i. e. it will write into video memory, the VIDIOC_S_FBUF ioctl is a privileged function and only the superuser can change the frame buffer parameters. Table 1. struct v4l2_framebuffer __u32 __u32
capability flags

Overlay capability ags set by the driver, see Table 2>. Overlay control ags set by application and driver, see Table 3>

99

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF

void *

base

Physical base address of the frame buffer, the address of the pixel at coordinates (0; 0) in the frame buffer. This eld is not used when VIDIOC_G_FBUF sets the
V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY ag in the capability eld.a

fmt struct v4l2_pix_format

Physical layout of the frame buffer. The v4l2_pix_format structure is dened in Chapter 2>, for clarication the elds and expected values are listed below.
width height

__u32 __u32

Width of the frame buffer in pixels. Height of the frame buffer in pixels. When the driver clears
V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY,

the visible portion of the frame buffer can be smaller than width and height. __u32
pixelformat

The pixel format of the graphics surface, set by the application. Usually this is an RGB format (for example RGB 5:6:5) but YUV formats are also permitted. The behavior of the driver when requesting a compressed format is undened. See Chapter 2> for information on pixel formats. This eld is not used when the driver sets V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY. Ignored. The eld order is selected with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl using struct v4l2_window. Distance in bytes between the leftmost pixels in two adjacent lines. Applications must initialize this eld. Together with base it denes the frame buffer memory accessible by the driver. The eld is not used when the driver sets V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY. This information supplements the pixelformat and must be set by the driver, see Section 2.2>. Reserved for additional information about custom (driver dened) formats. When not used drivers and applications must set this eld to zero.

enum v4l2_eld

field

__u32

bytesperline

Both applications and drivers can set this eld to request padding bytes at the end of each line. Drivers however may ig __u32
sizeimage

enum v4l2_colorspace colorspace

__u32

priv

Notes:

100

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FBUF, VIDIOC_S_FBUF Table 2. Frame Buffer Capability Flags

V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY 0x0001 V4L2_FBUF_CAP_CHROMAKEY

The video is overlaid externally onto the video signal of the graphics card. The device supports clipping by chroma-keying the image into the display. The device supports clipping using a list of clip rectangles. The device supports clipping using a bit mask.

0x0002

V4L2_FBUF_CAP_LIST_CLIPPING 0x0004 V4L2_FBUF_CAP_BITMAP_CLIPPINGx0008 0

Table 3. Frame Buffer Flags

V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_PRIMARY

0x0001

The frame buffer is the primary graphics surface. In other words, the overlay is destructive, the video hardware will write the image into visible graphics memory as opposed to merely displaying the image in place of the original display contents. The frame buffer is an overlay surface the same size as the capture. [?] Use chromakey (when
V4L2_FBUF_CAP_CHROMAKEY indicates this

V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_OVERLAY V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_CHROMAKEY

0x0002 0x0004

capability). The other clipping methods are negotiated with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl, see also Section 4.2>.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EACCES
VIDIOC_S_FBUF can only be called by a privileged user.

EBUSY The frame buffer parameters cannot be changed at this time because overlay is already enabled, or capturing is enabled and the hardware cannot capture and overlay simultaneously. EINVAL The ioctl is not supported or the VIDIOC_S_FBUF parameters are unsuitable.

101

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT

Name
VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT Get or set the data format, try a format.

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_format *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT

argp

Description
These ioctls are used to negotiate the format of data (typically image format) exchanged between driver and application. To query the current parameters applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_format to the respective buffer (stream) type. For example video capture devices use V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE. When the application calls the VIDIOC_G_FMT ioctl with a pointer to this structure the driver lls the respective member of the fmt union. In case of video capture devices that is the struct v4l2_pix_format pix member. When the requested buffer type is not supported drivers return an EINVAL error code. To change the current format parameters applications initialize the type eld and all elds of the respective fmt union member. For details see the documentation of the various devices types in Chapter 4>. Good practice is to query the current parameters rst, and to modify only those parameters not suitable for the application. When the application calls the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl with a pointer to a v4l2_format structure the driver checks and adjusts the parameters against hardware abilities. Drivers should not return an error code unless the input is ambiguous, this is a mechanism to fathom device capabilities and to approach parameters acceptable for both the application and driver. On success the driver may program the hardware, allocate resources and generally prepare for data exchange. Finally the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl returns the current format parameters as VIDIOC_G_FMT does. Very simple, inexible devices may even ignore all input and always return

102

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT the default parameters. However all V4L2 devices exchanging data with the application must implement the VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. When the requested buffer type is not supported drivers return an EINVAL error code on a VIDIOC_S_FMT attempt. When I/O is already in progress or the resource is not available for other reasons drivers return the EBUSY error code. The VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl is equivalent to VIDIOC_S_FMT with one exception: it does not change driver state. It can also be called at any time, never returning EBUSY. This function is provided to negotiate parameters, to learn about hardware limitations, without disabling I/O or possibly time consuming hardware preparations. Although strongly recommended drivers are not required to implement this ioctl. Table 1. struct v4l2_format enum v4l2_buf_type union
type fmt

Type of the data stream, see Table 3-2>. Denition of an image format, see Chapter 2>, used by video capture and output devices. Denition of an overlaid image, see Section 4.2>, used by video overlay devices. Raw VBI capture or output parameters. This is discussed in more detail in Section 4.6>. Used by raw VBI capture and output devices. Sliced VBI capture or output parameters. See Section 4.7> for details. Used by sliced VBI capture and output devices. Place holder for future extensions and custom (driver dened) formats with type
V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE

struct v4l2_pix_format pix

struct v4l2_window

win

struct v4l2_vbi_format vbi

struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_format sliced

__u8

raw_data[200]

and higher.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately:

103

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT, VIDIOC_TRY_FMT EBUSY The data format cannot be changed at this time, for example because I/O is already in progress. EINVAL The struct v4l2_format type eld is invalid, the requested buffer type not supported, or VIDIOC_TRY_FMT was called and is not supported with this buffer type.

104

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY

Name
VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY Get or set tuner or modulator radio frequency

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_frequency *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_frequency *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY
argp

Description
To get the current tuner or modulator radio frequency applications set the tuner eld of a struct v4l2_frequency to the respective tuner or modulator number (only input devices have tuners, only output devices have modulators), zero out the reserved array and call the VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY ioctl with a pointer to this structure. The driver stores the current frequency in the frequency eld. To change the current tuner or modulator radio frequency applications initialize the tuner and frequency elds, and the reserved array of a struct v4l2_frequency and call the VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY ioctl with a pointer to this structure. When the requested frequency is not possible the driver assumes the closest possible value. However, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the actual new frequency. Table 1. struct v4l2_frequency

105

ioctl VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY, VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY

__u32

tuner

The tuner or modulator index number. This is the same value as in the struct v4l2_input tuner eld and the struct v4l2_tuner index eld, or the struct v4l2_output modulator eld and the struct v4l2_modulator index eld. The tuner type. This is the same value as in the struct v4l2_tuner type eld. The eld is not applicable to modulators, i. e. ignored by drivers. Tuning frequency in units of 62.5 kHz, or if the struct v4l2_tuner or struct v4l2_modulator capabilities ag V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LOW is set, in units of 62.5 Hz. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.

enum v4l2_tuner_type

type

__u32

frequency

__u32

reserved [8];

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The tuner eld is out of bounds.

106

ioctl VIDIOC_G_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_INPUT

Name
VIDIOC_G_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_INPUT Query or select the current video input

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, int *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_INPUT
argp

Description
To query the current video input applications call the VIDIOC_G_INPUT ioctl with a pointer to an integer where the driver stores the number of the input, as in the struct v4l2_input index eld. This ioctl will fail only when there are no video inputs, returning EINVAL. To select a video input applications store the number of the desired input in an integer and call the VIDIOC_S_INPUT ioctl with a pointer to this integer. Side effects are possible. For example inputs may support different video standards, so the driver may implicitly switch the current standard. It is good practice to select an input before querying or negotiating any other parameters. Information about video inputs is available using the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT ioctl.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The number of the video input is out of bounds, or there are no video inputs at all and this ioctl is not supported.

107

ioctl VIDIOC_G_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_INPUT EBUSY I/O is in progress, the input cannot be switched.

108

ioctl VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP

Name
VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, v4l2_jpegcompression *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const v4l2_jpegcompression *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP
argp

Description
[to do] Ronald Bultje elaborates: APP is some application-specic information. The application can set it itself, and itll be stored in the JPEG-encoded elds (e.g. interlacing information for in an AVI or so). COM is the same, but its comments, like encoded by me or so. jpeg_markers describes whether the huffman tables, quantization tables and the restart interval information (all JPEG-specic stuff) should be stored in the JPEG-encoded elds. These dene how the JPEG eld is encoded. If you omit them, applications assume youve used standard encoding. You usually do want to add them. Table 1. struct v4l2_jpegcompression int int int char
quality APPn APP_len APP_data[60]

109

ioctl VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP, VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP

int char __u32

COM_len COM_data[60] jpeg_markers

See Table 2>.

Table 2. JPEG Markers Flags

V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_DHT V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_DQT V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_DRI V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_COM V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_APP

(1<<3) (1<<4) (1<<5) (1<<6) (1<<7)

Dene Huffman Tables Dene Quantization Tables Dene Restart Interval Comment segment App segment, driver will always use APP0

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL This ioctl is not supported.

110

ioctl VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR

Name
VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR Get or set modulator attributes

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_modulator *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_modulator *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR
argp

Description
To query the attributes of a modulator applications initialize the index eld and zero out the reserved array of a struct v4l2_modulator and call the VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all modulators applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. Modulators have two writable properties, an audio modulation set and the radio frequency. To change the modulated audio subprograms, applications initialize the index and txsubchans elds and the reserved array and call the VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR ioctl. Drivers may choose a different audio modulation if the request cannot be satised. However this is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the actual audio modulation selected. To change the radio frequency the VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY ioctl is available.

111

ioctl VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR

Table 1. struct v4l2_modulator __u32 __u8 __u32

index name[32] capability

Identies the modulator, set by the application. Name of the modulator, a NUL-terminated ASCII string. This information is intended for the user. Modulator capability ags. No ags are dened for this eld, the tuner ags in struct v4l2_tuner are used accordingly. The audio ags indicate the ability to encode audio subprograms. They will not change for example with the current video standard. The lowest tunable frequency in units of 62.5 KHz, or if the capability ag V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LOW is set, in units of 62.5 Hz. The highest tunable frequency in units of 62.5 KHz, or if the capability ag V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LOW is set, in units of 62.5 Hz. With this eld applications can determine how audio sub-carriers shall be modulated. It contains a set of ags as dened in Table 2>. Note the tuner rxsubchans ags are reused, but the semantics are different. Video output devices are assumed to have an analog or PCM audio input with 1-3 channels. The txsubchans ags select one or more channels for modulation, together with some audio subprogram indicator, for example a stereo pilot tone. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.

__u32

rangelow

__u32

rangehigh

__u32

txsubchans

__u32

reserved [4]

Table 2. Modulator Audio Transmission Flags

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO

0x0001

Modulate channel 1 as mono audio, when the input has more channels, a down-mix of channel 1 and 2. This ag does not combine with V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO or V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1. Modulate channel 1 and 2 as left and right channel of a stereo audio signal. When the input has only one channel or two channels and V4L2_TUNER_SUB_SAP is also set, channel 1 is encoded as left and right channel. This ag does not combine with V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO or V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1. When the driver does not support stereo audio it shall fall back to mono.

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO

0x0002

112

ioctl VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR, VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1

0x0008

Modulate channel 1 and 2 as primary and secondary language of a bilingual audio signal. When the input has only one channel it is used for both languages. It is not possible to encode the primary or secondary language only. This ag does not combine with V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO or V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO. If the hardware does not support the respective audio matrix, or the current video standard does not permit bilingual audio the VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR ioctl shall return an EINVAL error code and the driver shall fall back to mono or stereo mode. Same effect as V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1. When combined with V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO the rst channel is encoded as mono audio, the last channel as Second Audio Program. When the input has only one channel it is used for both audio tracks. When the input has three channels the mono track is a down-mix of channel 1 and 2. When combined with V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO channel 1 and 2 are encoded as left and right stereo audio, channel 3 as Second Audio Program. When the input has only two channels, the rst is encoded as left and right channel and the second as SAP. When the input has only one channel it is used for all audio tracks. It is not possible to encode a Second Audio Program only. This ag must combine with V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO or V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO. If the hardware does not support the respective audio matrix, or the current video standard does not permit SAP the VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR ioctl shall return an EINVAL error code and driver shall fall back to mono or stereo mode.

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG2 V4L2_TUNER_SUB_SAP

0x0004 0x0004

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_modulator index is out of bounds.

113

ioctl VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT

Name
VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT Query or select the current video output

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, int *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT
argp

Description
To query the current video output applications call the VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT ioctl with a pointer to an integer where the driver stores the number of the output, as in the struct v4l2_output index eld. This ioctl will fail only when there are no video outputs, returning the EINVAL error code. To select a video output applications store the number of the desired output in an integer and call the VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT ioctl with a pointer to this integer. Side effects are possible. For example outputs may support different video standards, so the driver may implicitly switch the current standard. It is good practice to select an output before querying or negotiating any other parameters. Information about video outputs is available using the VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT ioctl.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The number of the video output is out of bounds, or there are no video outputs at all and this ioctl is not supported.

114

ioctl VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT EBUSY I/O is in progress, the output cannot be switched.

115

ioctl VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM

Name
VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM Get or set streaming parameters

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, v4l2_streamparm *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM
argp

Description
The current video standard determines a nominal number of frames per second. If less than this number of frames is to be captured or output, applications can request frame skipping or duplicating on the driver side. This is especially useful when using the read() or write(), which are not augmented by timestamps or sequence counters, and to avoid unneccessary data copying. Further these ioctls can be used to determine the number of buffers used internally by a driver in read/write mode. For implications see the section discussing the read() function. To get and set the streaming parameters applications call the VIDIOC_G_PARM and VIDIOC_S_PARM ioctl, respectively. They take a pointer to a struct v4l2_streamparm which contains a union holding separate parameters for input and output devices. Table 1. struct v4l2_streamparm enum v4l2_buf_typetype The buffer (stream) type, same as struct v4l2_format type, set by the application. Parameters for capture devices, used when type is V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE.

union

parm

struct v4l2_captureparm capture

116

ioctl VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM

struct v4l2_outputparm output

Parameters for output devices, used when type is V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT. A place holder for future extensions and custom (driver dened) buffer types V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE and higher.

__u8

raw_data[200]

Table 2. struct v4l2_captureparm __u32 __u32 struct v4l2_fract

capability capturemode timeperframe

See Table 4>. Set by drivers and applications, see Table 5>. This is is the desired period between successive frames captured by the driver, in seconds. The eld is intended to skip frames on the driver side, saving I/O bandwidth. Applications store here the desired frame period, drivers return the actual frame period, which must be greater or equal to the nominal frame period determined by the current video standard (struct v4l2_standard frameperiod eld). Changing the video standard (also implicitly by switching the video input) may reset this parameter to the nominal frame period. To reset manually applications can just set this eld to zero. Drivers support this function only when they set the V4L2_CAP_TIMEPERFRAME ag in the capability eld.

__u32

extendedmode

Custom (driver specic) streaming parameters. When unused, applications and drivers must set this eld to zero. Applications using this eld should check the driver name and version, see Section 1.2>. Applications set this eld to the desired number of buffers used internally by the driver in read() mode. Drivers return the actual number of buffers. When an application requests zero buffers, drivers should just return the current setting rather than the minimum or an error code. For details see Section 3.1>. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.

__u32

readbuffers

__u32

reserved [4]

Table 3. struct v4l2_outputparm

117

ioctl VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM

__u32 __u32 struct v4l2_fract

capability outputmode timeperframe

See Table 4>. Set by drivers and applications, see Table 5>. This is is the desired period between successive frames output by the driver, in seconds. Custom (driver specic) streaming parameters. When unused, applications and drivers must set this eld to zero. Applications using this eld should check the driver name and version, see Section 1.2>. Applications set this eld to the desired number of buffers used internally by the driver in write() mode. Drivers return the actual number of buffers. When an application requests zero buffers, drivers should just return the current setting rather than the minimum or an error code. For details see Section 3.1>. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.

The eld is intended to repeat frames on the driver side in write() mode (in streaming mode timestamps can be used __u32
extendedmode

__u32

writebuffers

__u32

reserved [4]

Table 4. Streaming Parameters Capabilites

V4L2_CAP_TIMEPERFRAME

0x1000

The frame skipping/repeating controlled by the timeperframe eld is supported.

Table 5. Capture Parameters Flags

118

ioctl VIDIOC_G_PARM, VIDIOC_S_PARM

V4L2_MODE_HIGHQUALITY

0x0001

High quality imaging mode. High quality mode is intended for still imaging applications. The idea is to get the best possible image quality that the hardware can deliver. It is not dened how the driver writer may achieve that; it will depend on the hardware and the ingenuity of the driver writer. High quality mode is a different mode from the the regular motion video capture modes. In high quality mode: The driver may be able to capture higher resolutions than for motion capture. The driver may support fewer pixel formats than motion capture (e.g. true color).

The driver may capture and arithmetically combine multiple successive elds or frames to remove color edge artifacts and reduce the noise in the video data. The driver may capture images in slices like a scanner in order to handle larger format images than would otherwise be possible. An image capture operation may be signicantly slower than motion capture. Moving objects in the image might have excessive motion blur. Capture might only work through the

read() call.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL This ioctl is not supported.

119

ioctl VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY, VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY

Name
VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY, VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY Query or request the access priority associated with a le descriptor

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, enum v4l2_priority *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const enum v4l2_priority *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY, VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY
argp

Pointer to an enum v4l2_priority type.

Description
To query the current access priority applications call the VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY ioctl with a pointer to an enum v4l2_priority variable where the driver stores the current priority. To request an access priority applications store the desired priority in an enum v4l2_priority variable and call VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY ioctl with a pointer to this variable. Table 1. enum v4l2_priority
V4L2_PRIORITY_UNSET V4L2_PRIORITY_BACKGROUND

0 1 Lowest priority, usually applications running in background, for example monitoring VBI transmissions. A proxy application running in user space will be necessary if multiple applications want to read from a device at this priority.

V4L2_PRIORITY_INTERACTIVE

120

ioctl VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY, VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY

V4L2_PRIORITY_DEFAULT

Medium priority, usually applications started and interactively controlled by the user. For example TV viewers, Teletext browsers, or just "panel" applications to change the channel or video controls. This is the default priority unless an application requests another. Highest priority. Only one le descriptor can have this priority, it blocks any other fd from changing device properties. Usually applications which must not be interrupted, like video recording.

V4L2_PRIORITY_RECORD

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The requested priority value is invalid, or the driver does not support access priorities. EBUSY Another application already requested higher priority.

121

ioctl VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP
Name
VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP Query sliced VBI capabilities

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_cap *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP
argp

Description
To nd out which data services are supported by a sliced VBI capture or output device, applications can call the VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP ioctl. It takes a pointer to a struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_cap which is lled by the driver. Table 1. struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_cap __u16 __u16
service_set

A set of all data services supported by the driver. Equal to the union Element 525 line systems625 line systems 1 23 314 336

service_lines[2][24] Each element of this array contains a set of data services the hardwar

service_lines[0][1] 1 service_lines[0][23] 3 2 service_lines[1][1]264 service_lines[1][23] 286

The number of VBI lines the hardware can capture or output per fram

122

ioctl VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP

Drivers must set service_lines[0][0] and service_lines[1][0] __u32

reserved [4]

This array is reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set it to zer

Table 2. Sliced VBI services Symbol Value Reference Lines, usually Payload

V4L2_SLICED_TELETEXT_B 0x0001

(Teletext System B)

TELETEXT>AL/SECAM line 7-22, Last 42 of the 45 byte P 320-335 (second eld Teletext packet, that is 7-22) without clock run-in and framing code, lsb rst transmitted. VPS> PAL line 16 Byte number 3 to 15 according to Figure 9 of ETS 300 231, lsb rst transmitted. Two bytes in transmission order, including parity bit, lsb rst transmitted.
Byte Bit

V4L2_SLICED_VPS

0x0400

V4L2_SLICED_CAPTION_525 0x1000

EIA608>

NTSC line 21, 284 (second eld 21)

V4L2_SLICED_WSS_6250x4000

WSS>

PAL/SECAM line 23

0 1 msb lsb msb 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 x x 13 12 1

V4L2_SLICED_VBI_5250x1000 V4L2_SLICED_VBI_6250x4401

Set of services applicable to 525 line systems. Set of services applicable to 625 line systems.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The device does not support sliced VBI capturing or output.

123

ioctl VIDIOC_G_STD, VIDIOC_S_STD

Name
VIDIOC_G_STD, VIDIOC_S_STD Query or select the video standard of the current input

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, v4l2_std_id *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const v4l2_std_id *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_STD, VIDIOC_S_STD
argp

Description
To query and select the current video standard applications use the VIDIOC_G_STD and VIDIOC_S_STD ioctls which take a pointer to a v4l2_std_id type as argument. VIDIOC_G_STD can return a single ag or a set of ags as in struct v4l2_standard eld id . The ags must be unambiguous such that they appear in only one enumerated v4l2_standard structure.
VIDIOC_S_STD accepts one or more ags, being a write-only ioctl it does not return the actual new standard as VIDIOC_G_STD does. When no ags are given or the current input does not support the requested standard the driver returns an EINVAL error code. When the standard set is ambiguous drivers may return EINVAL or choose any of the requested standards.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL This ioctl is not supported, or the VIDIOC_S_STD parameter was unsuitable.

124

ioctl VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER

Name
VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER Get or set tuner attributes

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_tuner *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, const struct v4l2_tuner *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER
argp

Description
To query the attributes of a tuner applications initialize the index eld and zero out the reserved array of a struct v4l2_tuner and call the VIDIOC_G_TUNER ioctl with a pointer to this structure. Drivers ll the rest of the structure or return an EINVAL error code when the index is out of bounds. To enumerate all tuners applications shall begin at index zero, incrementing by one until the driver returns EINVAL. Tuners have two writable properties, the audio mode and the radio frequency. To change the audio mode, applications initialize the index , audmode and reserved elds and call the VIDIOC_S_TUNER ioctl. This will not change the current tuner, which is determined by the current video input. Drivers may choose a different audio mode if the requested mode is invalid or unsupported. Since this is a write-only ioctl, it does not return the actually selected audio mode. To change the radio frequency the VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY ioctl is available. Table 1. struct v4l2_tuner __u32 __u8 enum v4l2_tuner_type
index name[32] type

Identies the tuner, set by the application. Type of the tuner, see Table 2>.

Name of the tuner, a NUL-terminated ASCII string.

125

ioctl VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER

__u32 __u32 __u32 __u32

capability rangelow rangehigh rxsubchans

Tuner capability ags, see Table 3>. Audio ags ind The highest tunable frequency in units of 62.5 kHz,
V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO STEREO | SAP MONO | STEREO LANG1 | LANG2 MONO | STEREO | LANG1 | LANG2

The lowest tunable frequency in units of 62.5 kHz, o

Some tuners or audio decoders can determine the re

receiving mono au

receiving stereo au

receiving mono or

receiving bilingua

receiving mono, st

When the V4L2_TUNER_CAP_STEREO, _LANG1, _L __u32 __u32 __s32 __u32

audmode signal afc reserved [4]

The selected audio mode, see Table 5> for valid valu

The signal strength if known, ranging from 0 to 655

Automatic frequency control: When the afc value i

Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applicat

Table 2. enum v4l2_tuner_type

V4L2_TUNER_RADIO V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV

1 2

Table 3. Tuner and Modulator Capability Flags

V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LOW V4L2_TUNER_CAP_NORM

0x0001 0x0002

When set, tuning frequencies are expressed in units of 62.5 Hz, otherwise in units of 62.5 kHz. This is a multi-standard tuner; the video standard can or must be switched. (B/G PAL tuners for example are typically not considered multi-standard because the video standard is automatically determined from the frequency band.) The set of supported video standards is available from the struct v4l2_input pointing to this tuner, see the description of ioctl VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT for details. Only V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners can have this capability. Stereo audio reception is supported. Reception of the primary language of a bilingual audio program is supported. Bilingual audio is a feature of two-channel systems, transmitting the primary language monaural on the main audio carrier and a secondary language monaural on a second carrier. Only V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners can have this capability.

V4L2_TUNER_CAP_STEREO V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LANG1

0x0010 0x0040

126

ioctl VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER

V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LANG2

0x0020

Reception of the secondary language of a bilingual audio program is supported. Only V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners can have this capability. Reception of a secondary audio program is supported. This is a feature of the BTSC system which accompanies the NTSC video standard. Two audio carriers are available for mono or stereo transmissions of a primary language, and an independent third carrier for a monaural secondary language. Only V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners can have this capability. Note the V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LANG2 and V4L2_TUNER_CAP_SAP ags are synonyms. V4L2_TUNER_CAP_SAP applies when the tuner supports the V4L2_STD_NTSC_M video standard.

V4L2_TUNER_CAP_SAP

0x0020

Table 4. Tuner Audio Reception Flags

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1

0x0001 0x0002 0x0008

The tuner receives a mono audio signal. The tuner receives a stereo audio signal. The tuner receives the primary language of a bilingual audio signal. Drivers must clear this ag when the current video standard is V4L2_STD_NTSC_M. The tuner receives the secondary language of a bilingual audio signal (or a second audio program). The tuner receives a Second Audio Program. Note the V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG2 and V4L2_TUNER_SUB_SAP ags are synonyms. The V4L2_TUNER_SUB_SAP ag applies when the current video standard is V4L2_STD_NTSC_M.

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG2

0x0004

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_SAP

0x0004

Table 5. Tuner Audio Modes

V4L2_TUNER_MODE_MONO

Play mono audio. When the tuner receives a stereo signal this a down-mix of the left and right channel. When the tuner receives a bilingual or SAP signal this mode selects the primary language. Play stereo audio. When the tuner receives bilingual audio it may play different languages on the left and right channel or the primary language on both channels. When it receives no stereo signal or does not support stereo reception the driver shall behave as in mono mode.

V4L2_TUNER_MODE_STEREO

127

ioctl VIDIOC_G_TUNER, VIDIOC_S_TUNER

V4L2_TUNER_MODE_LANG1

Play the primary language, mono or stereo. Only

V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners support this

mode.
V4L2_TUNER_MODE_LANG2

Play the secondary language, mono. When the tuner receives no bilingual audio or SAP, or their reception is not supported the driver shall fall back to mono or stereo mode. Only V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners support this mode. Play the Second Audio Program. When the tuner receives no bilingual audio or SAP, or their reception is not supported the driver shall fall back to mono or stereo mode. Only V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV tuners support this mode. Note the V4L2_TUNER_MODE_LANG2 and V4L2_TUNER_MODE_SAP are synonyms.

V4L2_TUNER_MODE_SAP

Table 6. Tuner Audio Matrix Selected V4L2_TUNER_MODE_ Received

V4L2_TUNER_SUB_ MONO MONO | SAP STEREO MONO STEREO LANG1 LANG2 / SAP

Mono Mono L+R

Mono/Mono Mono/Mono L/R

Mono Mono

Mono SAP

Stereo L/R Stereo L/R (preferred) or Mono (preferred) or Mono L+R L+R Stereo L/R (preferred) or Mono L+R Language 1 SAP

STEREO | SAP

L+R

L/R

LANG1 | LANG2

Language 1

Lang1/Lang2 (preferred) or Lang1/Lang1

Language 2

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_tuner index is out of bounds.

128

ioctl VIDIOC_LOG_STATUS
Name
VIDIOC_LOG_STATUS Log driver status information

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request);

Description
As the video/audio devices become more complicated it becomes harder to debug problems. When this ioctl is called the driver will output the current device status to the kernel log. This is particular useful when dealing with problems like no sound, no video and incorrectly tuned channels. Also many modern devices autodetect video and audio standards and this ioctl will report what the device thinks what the standard is. Mismatches may give an indication where the problem is. This ioctl is optional and not all drivers support it. It was introduced in Linux 2.6.15.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The driver does not support this ioctl.

129

ioctl VIDIOC_OVERLAY
Name
VIDIOC_OVERLAY Start or stop video overlay

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, const int *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_OVERLAY
argp

Description
This ioctl is part of the video overlay I/O method. Applications call VIDIOC_OVERLAY to start or stop the overlay. It takes a pointer to an integer which must be set to zero by the application to stop overlay, to one to start. Drivers do not support VIDIOC_STREAMON or VIDIOC_STREAMOFF with V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL Video overlay is not supported, or the parameters have not been set up. See Section 4.2> for the necessary steps.

130

ioctl VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF

Name
VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF Exchange a buffer with the driver

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_buffer *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF
argp

Description
Applications call the VIDIOC_QBUF ioctl to enqueue an empty (capturing) or lled (output) buffer in the drivers incoming queue. The semantics depend on the selected I/O method. To enqueue a memory mapped buffer applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_buffer to the same buffer type as previously struct v4l2_format type and struct v4l2_requestbuffers type, the memory eld to V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP and the index eld. Valid index numbers range from zero to the number of buffers allocated with VIDIOC_REQBUFS (struct v4l2_requestbuffers count) minus one. The contents of the struct v4l2_buffer returned by a VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl will do as well. When the buffer is intended for output (type is V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT or V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT) applications must also initialize the bytesused , field and timestamp elds. See Section 3.5> for details. When VIDIOC_QBUF is called with a pointer to this structure the driver sets the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_MAPPED and V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED ags and clears the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE ag in the flags eld, or it returns an EINVAL error code. To enqueue a user pointer buffer applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_buffer to the same buffer type as previously struct v4l2_format type and struct v4l2_requestbuffers type, the memory eld to V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR and the m.userptr eld to the address of the buffer and length to its size. When the buffer is intended for output additional elds must be set as above. When VIDIOC_QBUF is called with a pointer to this structure the driver sets the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED ag and clears the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_MAPPED and V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE ags in the flags eld, or it returns an error code. This ioctl locks the memory pages of the buffer in physical memory, they

131

ioctl VIDIOC_QBUF, VIDIOC_DQBUF cannot be swapped out to disk. Buffers remain locked until dequeued, until the VIDIOC_STREAMOFF or VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl are called, or until the device is closed. Applications call the VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl to dequeue a lled (capturing) or displayed (output) buffer from the drivers outgoing queue. They just set the type and memory elds of a struct v4l2_buffer as above, when VIDIOC_DQBUF is called with a pointer to this structure the driver lls the remaining elds or returns an error code. By default VIDIOC_DQBUF blocks when no buffer is in the outgoing queue. When the O_NONBLOCK ag was given to the open() function, VIDIOC_DQBUF returns immediately with an EAGAIN error code when no buffer is available. The v4l2_buffer structure is specied in Section 3.5>.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EAGAIN Non-blocking I/O has been selected using O_NONBLOCK and no buffer was in the outgoing queue. EINVAL The buffer type is not supported, or the index is out of bounds, or no buffers have been allocated yet, or the userptr or length are invalid. ENOMEM Insufcient memory to enqueue a user pointer buffer. EIO
VIDIOC_DQBUF failed due to an internal error. Can also indicate temporary problems like signal loss. Note the driver might dequeue an (empty) buffer despite returning an error, or even stop capturing.

132

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYBUF
Name
VIDIOC_QUERYBUF Query the status of a buffer

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_buffer *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_QUERYBUF
argp

Description
This ioctl is part of the memory mapping I/O method. It can be used to query the status of a buffer at any time after buffers have been allocated with the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl. Applications set the type eld of a struct v4l2_buffer to the same buffer type as previously struct v4l2_format type and struct v4l2_requestbuffers type, and the index eld. Valid index numbers range from zero to the number of buffers allocated with VIDIOC_REQBUFS (struct v4l2_requestbuffers count) minus one. After calling VIDIOC_QUERYBUF with a pointer to this structure drivers return an error code or ll the rest of the structure. In the flags eld the V4L2_BUF_FLAG_MAPPED, V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED and V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE ags will be valid. The memory eld will be set to V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP, the m.offset contains the offset of the buffer from the start of the device memory, the length eld its size. The driver may or may not set the remaining elds and ags, they are meaningless in this context. The v4l2_buffer structure is specied in Section 3.5>.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately:

133

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYBUF EINVAL The buffer type is not supported, or the index is out of bounds.

134

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCAP
Name
VIDIOC_QUERYCAP Query device capabilities

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_capability *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_QUERYCAP
argp

Description
All V4L2 devices support the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. It is used to identify kernel devices compatible with this specication and to obtain information about individual hardware capabilities. The ioctl takes a pointer to a struct v4l2_capability which is lled by the driver. When the driver is not compatible with this specication the ioctl returns the EINVAL error code. Table 1. struct v4l2_capability __u8
driver [16]

Name of the driver, a unique NUL-terminated ASCII string. For example: "bttv". Driver specic applications shall use this information to verify the driver identity. It is also useful to work around known bugs, or to print the driver name and version in an error report to aid debugging. The driver version is stored in the version eld. Storing strings in xed sized arrays is bad practice but unavoidable here. Drivers and applications should take precautions to never read or write beyond the end of the array and to properly terminate the strings.

135

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCAP

__u8

card [32]

Name of the device, a NUL-terminated ASCII string. For example: "Yoyodyne TV/FM". Remember that one driver may support different brands or models of video hardware. This information can be used to build a menu of available devices for a device-select user interface. Since drivers may support multiple installed devices this name should be combined with the bus_info string to avoid ambiguities. Location of the device in the system, a NUL-terminated ASCII string. For example: "PCI Slot 4". This information is intended for the user, to distinguish multiple identical devices. If no such information is available the eld may simply count the devices controlled by the driver, or contain the empty string (bus_info[0] = 0). [pci_dev->slot_name example]. Version number of the driver. Together with the driver eld this identies a particular driver. The version number is formatted using the KERNEL_VERSION() macro: Device capabilities, see Table 2>. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set this array to zero.

__u8

bus_info[32]

__u32

version

#define KERNEL_VERSION(a,b,c) (((a) << 16) + ((b) << 8) + (c)) __u32 version = KERNEL_V

__u32 __u32

capabilities reserved [4]

Table 2. Device Capabilities Flags

V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_CAPTURE V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OUTPUT V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OVERLAY

0x00000001The device supports the video capture interface. 0x00000002The device supports the video output interface. 0x00000004The device supports the video overlay interface. Overlay typically stores captured images directly in the video memory of a graphics card, with support for clipping. 0x00000010The device supports the VBI capture interface, see Section 4.6>, Section 4.7>. 0x00000020The device supports the VBI output interface, see Section 4.6>, Section 4.7>. 0x00000100[to be dened] 0x00010000The device has some sort of tuner or modulator to receive or emit RF-modulated video signals. For more information see Section 1.6>.

V4L2_CAP_VBI_CAPTURE V4L2_CAP_VBI_OUTPUT V4L2_CAP_RDS_CAPTURE V4L2_CAP_TUNER

136

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCAP

V4L2_CAP_AUDIO

0x00020000The device has audio inputs or outputs. For more information see Section 1.5>. It may or may not support PCM sampling or output, this function must be implemented as ALSA or OSS PCM interface. 0x01000000The device supports the read() and/or write() I/O methods. 0x02000000The device supports the asynchronous I/O methods. 0x04000000The device supports the streaming I/O method.

V4L2_CAP_READWRITE V4L2_CAP_ASYNCIO V4L2_CAP_STREAMING

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The kernel device is not compatible with this specication.

137

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU

Name
VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU Enumerate controls and menu control items

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_queryctrl *argp);

int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_querymenu *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU
argp

Description
To query the attributes of a control applications set the id eld of a struct v4l2_queryctrl and call the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL ioctl with a pointer to this structure. The driver lls the rest of the structure or returns an EINVAL error code when the id is invalid. It is possible to enumerate controls by calling VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL with successive id values starting from V4L2_CID_BASE up to and exclusive V4L2_CID_BASE_LASTP1, or starting from V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE until the driver returns EINVAL. When the V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED ag is set in the flags eld, this control is permanently disabled and should be ignored by the application.1 Additional information is required for menu controls, the name of menu items. To query them applications set the id and index elds of struct v4l2_querymenu and call the VIDIOC_QUERYMENU ioctl with a pointer to this structure. The driver lls the rest of the structure or returns an EINVAL error code when the id or index is invalid. Menu items are enumerated by calling VIDIOC_QUERYMENU with successive index values from struct v4l2_queryctrl minimum (0) to maximum, inclusive. Table 1. struct v4l2_queryctrl

138

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU

__u32 enum v4l2_ctrl_type __u8 __s32

id type name[32] minimum

Identies the control, set by the application. See Table 1-1> for predened IDs. Type of control, see Table 3>. Name of the control, a NUL-terminated ASCII string. This information is intended for the user. Minimum value, inclusive. This eld is mostly useful to dene a lower bound for integer controls. Note the value is signed. Maximum value, inclusive. Note the value is signed. Generally drivers should not scale hardware control values. It may be necessary for example when the name or id imply a particular unit and the hardware actually accepts only multiples of said unit. If so, drivers must take care values are properly rounded when scaling, such that errors will not accumulate on repeated read-write cycles. This eld reports the smallest change of an integer control actually affecting hardware. Often the information is needed when the user can change controls by keyboard or GUI buttons, rather than a slider. When for example a hardware register accepts values 0-511 and the driver reports 0-65535, step should be 128. Note although signed, the step value is supposed to be always positive.

__s32 __s32

maximum step

__s32

default_value

The default value of the control. Drivers reset controls only when the driver is loaded, not later, in particular not when the open() is called. Control ags, see Table 4>. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set the array to zero.

__u32 __u32

flags reserved [2]

Table 2. struct v4l2_querymenu __u32 __u32 __u8 __u32

id index name[32] reserved

Identies the control, set by the application from the respective struct v4l2_queryctrl id . Index of the menu item, starting at zero, set by the application. Name of the menu item, a NUL-terminated ASCII string. This information is intended for the user. Reserved for future extensions. Drivers must set the array to zero.

139

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_QUERYMENU Table 3. enum v4l2_ctrl_type Type Description

minimum stepmaximum V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_INTEGER low

in- highAn integer-valued control ranging from minimum to valuecre- valuemaximum inclusive. The step value indicates the ment increment between values which are actually different (poson the hardware. itive) [__u32?] 1 1 A boolean-valued control. Zero corresponds to "disabled", and one means "enabled".

V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_BOOLEAN 0 V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_MENU

1 N-1 The control has a menu of N choices. The names of the menu items can be enumerated with the VIDIOC_QUERYMENU ioctl. 0 0 A control which performs an action when set. Drivers must ignore the value passed with VIDIOC_S_CTRL and return an EINVAL error code on a VIDIOC_G_CTRL attempt.

V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_BUTTON

Table 4. Control Flags

V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED

0x0001

This control is permanently disabled and should be ignored by the application. An attempt to change this control results in an EINVAL error code. This control is temporarily unchangeable, for example because another application took over control of the respective resource. Such controls may be displayed specially in a user interface. An attempt to change a "grabbed" control results in an EBUSY error code.

V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_GRABBED

0x0002

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The struct v4l2_queryctrl id is invalid. The struct v4l2_querymenu id or index is invalid.

140

Notes
1. V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED was intended for two purposes: Drivers can skip
predefined controls not supported by the hardware (although returning EINVAL would do as well), or disable predefined and custom controls after hardware detection without the trouble of reordering control arrays and indices.

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYSTD
Name
VIDIOC_QUERYSTD Sense the video standard received by the current input

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, v4l2_std_id *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_QUERYSTD
argp

Description
The hardware may be able to detect the current video standard automatically. To do so, applications call VIDIOC_QUERYSTD with a pointer to a v4l2_std_id type. The driver stores here a set of candidates, this can be a single ag or a set of supported standards if for example the hardware can only distinguish between 50 and 60 Hz systems. When detection is not possible or fails, the set must contain all standards supported by the current video input or output.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately:

141

ioctl VIDIOC_QUERYSTD EINVAL This ioctl is not supported.

142

ioctl VIDIOC_REQBUFS
Name
VIDIOC_REQBUFS Initiate Memory Mapping or User Pointer I/O

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, struct v4l2_requestbuffers *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_REQBUFS
argp

Description
This ioctl is used to initiate memory mapped or user pointer I/O. Memory mapped buffers are located in device memory and must be allocated with this ioctl before they can be mapped into the applications address space. User buffers are allocated by applications themselves, and this ioctl is merely used to switch the driver into user pointer I/O mode. To allocate device buffers applications initialize three elds of a v4l2_requestbuffers structure. They set the type eld to the respective stream or buffer type, the count eld to the desired number of buffers, and memory must be set to V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP. When the ioctl is called with a pointer to this structure the driver attempts to allocate the requested number of buffers and stores the actual number allocated in the count eld. It can be smaller than the number requested, even zero, when the driver runs out of free memory. A larger number is possible when the driver requires more buffers to function correctly.1 When memory mapping I/O is not supported the ioctl returns an EINVAL error code. Applications can call VIDIOC_REQBUFS again to change the number of buffers, however this cannot succeed when any buffers are still mapped. A count value of zero frees all buffers, after aborting or nishing any DMA in progress, an implicit VIDIOC_STREAMOFF. To negotiate user pointer I/O, applications initialize only the type eld and set memory to V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR. When the ioctl is called with a pointer to this structure the driver prepares for user pointer I/O, when this I/O method is not supported the ioctl returns an EINVAL error code.

143

ioctl VIDIOC_REQBUFS Table 1. struct v4l2_requestbuffers __u32

count

The number of buffers requested or granted. This eld is only used when memory is set to V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP. Type of the stream or buffers, this is the same as the struct v4l2_format type eld. See Table 3-2> for valid values. Applications set this eld to V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP or V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR. A place holder for future extensions and custom (driver dened) buffer types V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE and higher.

enum v4l2_buf_type

type

enum v4l2_memory __u32

memory reserved [32]

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EBUSY The driver supports multiple opens and I/O is already in progress, or reallocation of buffers was attempted although one or more are still mapped. EINVAL The buffer type (type eld) or the requested I/O method (memory ) is not supported.

144

Notes
1. For example video output requires at least two buffers, one displayed and one lled by the application.

ioctl VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF

Name
VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF Start or stop streaming I/O

Synopsis
int ioctl(int fd, int request, const int *argp);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

request

VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF
argp

Description
The VIDIOC_STREAMON and VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ioctl start and stop the capture or output process during streaming (memory mapping or user pointer) I/O. Specically the capture hardware is disabled and no input buffers are lled (if there are any empty buffers in the incoming queue) until VIDIOC_STREAMON has been called. Accordingly the output hardware is disabled, no video signal is produced until VIDIOC_STREAMON has been called. The ioctl will succeed only when at least one output buffer is in the incoming queue. The VIDIOC_STREAMOFF ioctl, apart of aborting or nishing any DMA in progress, unlocks any user pointer buffers locked in physical memory, and it removes all buffers from the incoming and outgoing queues. That means all images captured but not dequeued yet will be lost, likewise all images enqueued for output but not transmitted yet. I/O returns to the same state as after calling VIDIOC_REQBUFS and can be restarted accordingly. Both ioctls take a pointer to an integer, the desired buffer or stream type. This is the same as struct v4l2_requestbuffers type.

145

ioctl VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF Note applications can be preempted for unknown periods right before or after the VIDIOC_STREAMON or VIDIOC_STREAMOFF calls, there is no notion of starting or stopping "now". Buffer timestamps can be used to synchronize with other events.

Return Value
On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL Streaming I/O is not supported, the buffer type is not supported, or no buffers have been allocated (memory mapping) or enqueued (output) yet.

146

V4L2 mmap()
Name
v4l2-mmap Map device memory into application address space

Synopsis
#include <unistd.h> #include <sys/mman.h> void *mmap(void *start, size_t length, int prot, int flags, int fd, off_t offset);

Arguments
start

Map the buffer to this address in the applications address space. When the MAP_FIXED ag is specied, start must be a multiple of the pagesize and mmap will fail when the specied address cannot be used. Use of this option is discouraged; applications should just specify a NULL pointer here.
length

Length of the memory area to map. This must be the same value as returned by the driver in the struct v4l2_buffer length eld.
prot

The prot argument describes the desired memory protection. It must be set to PROT_READ | PROT_WRITE, indicating pages may be read and written. This is a technicality independent of the device type and direction of data exchange. Note device memory accesses may incur a performance penalty. It can happen when writing to capture buffers, when reading from output buffers, or always. When the application intends to modify buffers, other I/O methods may be more efcient.
flags

The flags parameter species the type of the mapped object, mapping options and whether modications made to the mapped copy of the page are private to the process or are to be shared with other references.
MAP_FIXED requests that the driver selects no other address than the one specied. If the specied address cannot be used, mmap will fail. If MAP_FIXED is specied, start must be a

multiple of the pagesize. Use of this option is discouraged. One of the MAP_SHARED or MAP_PRIVATE ags must be set. MAP_SHARED allows to share this mapping with all other processes that map this object. MAP_PRIVATE requests copy-on-write semantics. We recommend to set MAP_SHARED. The MAP_PRIVATE, MAP_DENYWRITE, MAP_EXECUTABLE and MAP_ANON ags should not be set.

147

V4L2 mmap()
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

offset

Offset of the buffer in device memory. This must be the same value as returned by the driver in the struct v4l2_buffer m union offset eld.

Description
The mmap() function asks to map length bytes starting at offset in the memory of the device specied by fd into the application address space, preferably at address start. This latter address is a hint only, and is usually specied as 0. Suitable length and offset parameters are queried with the VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl. Buffers must be allocated with the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl before they can be queried. To unmap buffers the munmap() function is used.

Return Value
On success mmap() returns a pointer to the mapped buffer. On error MAP_FAILED (-1) is returned, and the errno variable is set appropriately. Possible error codes are: EBADF
fd is not a valid le descriptor.

EACCESS
fd is not open for reading and writing.

EINVAL The start or length or offset are not suitable. (E.g., they are too large, or not aligned on a PAGESIZE boundary.) Or no buffers have been allocated with the VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl. ENOMEM No memory is available.

148

V4L2 munmap()
Name
v4l2-munmap Unmap device memory

Synopsis
#include <unistd.h> #include <sys/mman.h> int munmap(void *start, size_t length);

Arguments
start

Address of the mapped buffer as returned by the mmap() function.

length

Length of the mapped buffer. This must be the same value as given to mmap() and returned by the driver in the struct v4l2_buffer length eld.

Description
Unmaps a previously with the mmap() function mapped buffer and frees it, if possible.

Return Value
On success munmap() returns 0, on failure -1 and the errno variable is set appropriately: EINVAL The start or length is incorrect, or no buffers have been mapped yet.

149

V4L2 open()
Name
v4l2-open Open a V4L2 device

Synopsis
#include <fcntl.h> int open(const char *device_name, int flags);

Arguments
device_name

Device to be opened.
flags

Open ags. Access mode must be O_RDWR. This is just a technicality, input devices still support only reading and output devices only writing. When the O_NONBLOCK ag is given, the read() function and the VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl will return the EAGAIN error code when no data is available or no buffer is in the driver outgoing queue, otherwise these functions block until data becomes available. All V4L2 drivers exchanging data with applications must support the O_NONBLOCK ag. Other ags have no effect.

Description
To open a V4L2 device applications call open() with the desired device name. This function has no side effects; all data format parameters, current input or output, control values or other properties remain unchanged. At the rst open() call after loading the driver they will be reset to default values, drivers are never in an undened state.

Return Value
On success open returns the new le descriptor. On error -1 is returned, and the errno variable is set appropriately. Possible error codes are: EACCES The caller has no permission to access the device. EBUSY The driver does not support multiple opens and the device is already in use.

150

V4L2 open() ENXIO No device corresponding to this device special le exists. ENOMEM Insufcient kernel memory was available. EMFILE The process already has the maximum number of les open. ENFILE The limit on the total number of les open on the system has been reached.

151

V4L2 poll()
Name
v4l2-poll Wait for some event on a le descriptor

Synopsis
#include <sys/poll.h> int poll(struct pollfd *ufds, unsigned int nfds, int timeout);

Description
All drivers implementing the read() or write() function or streaming I/O must also support the poll() function. See the poll() manual page for details.

152

V4L2 read()
Name
v4l2-read Read from a V4L2 device

Synopsis
#include <unistd.h> ssize_t read(int fd, void *buf, size_t count);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

buf

count

Description
read() attempts to read up to count bytes from le descriptor fd into the buffer starting at buf . The layout of the data in the buffer is discussed in the respective device interface section, see ##. If count is zero, read() returns zero and has no other results. If count is greater than SSIZE_MAX, the result is unspecied. Regardless of the count value each read() call will provide at most one frame (two elds) worth of data.

By default read() blocks until data becomes available. When the O_NONBLOCK ag was given to the open() function it returns immediately with an EAGAIN error code when no data is available. The select() or poll() functions can always be used to suspend execution until data becomes available. All drivers supporting the read() function must also support select() and poll(). Drivers can implement read functionality in different ways, using a single or multiple buffers and discarding the oldest or newest frames once the internal buffers are lled.
read() never returns a "snapshot" of a buffer being lled. Using a single buffer the driver will stop

capturing when the application starts reading the buffer until the read is nished. Thus only the period of the vertical blanking interval is available for reading, or the capture rate must fall below the nominal frame rate of the video standard. The behavior of read() when called during the active picture period or the vertical blanking separating the top and bottom eld depends on the discarding policy. A driver discarding the oldest frames keeps capturing into an internal buffer, continuously overwriting the previously, not read frame, and returns the frame being received at the time of the read() call as soon as it is complete.

153

V4L2 read() A driver discarding the newest frames stops capturing until the next read() call. The frame being received at read() time is discarded, returning the following frame instead. Again this implies a reduction of the capture rate to one half or less of the nominal frame rate. An example of this model is the video read mode of the "bttv" driver, initiating a DMA to user memory when read() is called and returning when the DMA nished. In the multiple buffer model drivers maintain a ring of internal buffers, automatically advancing to the next free buffer. This allows continuous capturing when the application can empty the buffers fast enough. Again, the behavior when the driver runs out of free buffers depends on the discarding policy. Applications can get and set the number of buffers used internally by the driver with the streaming parameter ioctls, see ##streaming-par. They are optional, however. The discarding policy is not reported and cannot be changed. For minimum requirements see the respective device interface section in ##.

Return Value
On success, the number of bytes read is returned. It is not an error if this number is smaller than the number of bytes requested, or the amount of data required for one frame. This may happen for example because read() was interrupted by a signal. On error, -1 is returned, and the errno variable is set appropriately. In this case the next read will start at the beginning of a new frame. Possible error codes are: EAGAIN Non-blocking I/O has been selected using O_NONBLOCK and no data was immediately available for reading. EBADF
fd is not a valid le descriptor or is not open for reading, or the process already has the

maximum number of les open. EBUSY The driver does not support multiple read streams and the device is already in use. EFAULT
buf is outside your accessible address space.

EINTR The call was interrupted by a signal before any data was read. EIO I/O error. This indicates some hardware problem or a failure to communicate with a remote device (USB camera etc.). EINVAL The read() function is not supported by this driver, not on this device, or generally not on this type of device.

154

V4L2 select()
Name
v4l2-select Synchronous I/O multiplexing

Synopsis
#include <sys/time.h> #include <sys/types.h> #include <unistd.h> int select(int n, fd_set *readfds, fd_set *writefds, fd_set *exceptfds, struct timeval *timeout);

Description
All drivers implementing the read() or write() function or streaming I/O must also support the select() function. See the select() manual page for details.

155

V4L2 write()
Name
v4l2-write Write to a V4L2 device

Synopsis
#include <unistd.h> ssize_t write(int fd, void *buf, size_t count);

Arguments
fd

File descriptor returned by open().

buf

count

Description
write() writes up to count bytes to the device referenced by the le descriptor fd from the buffer starting at buf . If count is zero, 0 will be returned without causing any other effect. [implementation tbd]

When the application does not provide more data in time, the previous frame is displayed again.

Return Value
On success, the number of bytes written are returned. Zero indicates nothing was written. [tbd] On error, -1 is returned, and the errno variable is set appropriately. In this case the next write will start at the beginning of a new frame. Possible error codes are: EAGAIN Non-blocking I/O has been selected using O_NONBLOCK and no buffer space was available to write the data immediately. [tbd] EBADF
fd is not a valid le descriptor or is not open for writing.

156

V4L2 write() EBUSY The driver does not support multiple write streams and the device is already in use. EFAULT
buf is outside your accessible address space.

EINTR The call was interrupted by a signal before any data was written. EIO I/O error. This indicates some hardware problem. EINVAL The write() function is not supported by this driver, not on this device, or generally not on this type of device.

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Chapter 5. V4L2 Driver Programming

to do

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Chapter 6. History
The following chapters document the evolution of the V4L2 API, errata or extensions. They shall also aid application and driver writers porting their software to later versions of V4L2.

6.1. Differences between V4L and V4L2

The Video For Linux API was rst introduced in Linux 2.1 to unify and replace various TV and radio device related interfaces, developped independently by driver writers in prior years. Starting with Linux 2.5 the much improved V4L2 API replaces the V4L API, although existing drivers will continue to support V4L in the future, either directly or through the V4L2 compatibility layer. For a transition period not all drivers will support the V4L2 API.

6.1.1. Opening and Closing Devices

For compatibility reasons the character device le names recommended for V4L2 video capture, overlay, radio, teletext and raw vbi capture devices did not change from those used by V4L. They are listed in Chapter 4> and below in Table 6-1>. The V4L "videodev" module automatically assigns minor numbers to drivers in load order, depending on the registered device type. We recommend V4L2 drivers by default register devices with the same numbers, but in principle the system administrator can assign arbitrary minor numbers using driver module options. The major device number remains 81. Table 6-1. V4L Device Types, Names and Numbers Device Type Video capture and overlay File Name Minor Numbers

/dev/video and /dev/bttv0a, 0-63 /dev/video0 to /dev/video63 /dev/radiob, /dev/radio0 to 64-127 /dev/radio63 /dev/vtx, /dev/vtx0 to /dev/vtx31 /dev/vbi, /dev/vbi0 to /dev/vbi15

Radio receiver Teletext decoder Raw VBI capture

192-223 224-239c

Notes: a. According to Documentation/devices.txt these should be symbolic links to /dev/video0. Note the original V4L prohibits (or used to) multiple opens. V4L2 drivers may support multiple opens, see Section 1.1> for details and consequences. V4L drivers respond to V4L2 ioctls with the EINVAL error code. The V4L2 "videodev" module backward compatibility layer can translate V4L ioctl requests to their V4L2 counterpart, however a V4L2 driver usually needs more preparation to become fully V4L compatible. This is covered in more detail in Chapter 5>.

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Chapter 6. History

6.1.2. Querying Capabilities

The V4L VIDIOCGCAP ioctl is equivalent to V4L2s VIDIOC_QUERYCAP. The name eld in struct video_capability became card in struct v4l2_capability, type was replaced by capabilities. Note V4L2 does not distinguish between device types like this, better think of basic video input, video output and radio devices supporting a set of related functions like video capturing, video overlay and VBI capturing. See Section 1.1> for an introduction. struct video_capability type struct v4l2_capability capabilities ags
VID_TYPE_CAPTURE VID_TYPE_TUNER VID_TYPE_TELETEXT VID_TYPE_OVERLAY VID_TYPE_CHROMAKEY V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_CAPTURE V4L2_CAP_TUNER V4L2_CAP_VBI_CAPTURE V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OVERLAY

Purpose The video capture interface is supported. The device has a tuner or modulator. The raw VBI capture interface is supported. The video overlay interface is supported.

V4L2_FBUF_CAP_CHROMAKEY in Whether chromakey overlay is eld capability of supported. For more information

struct v4l2_framebuffer
VID_TYPE_CLIPPING

on overlay see Section 4.2>.

V4L2_FBUF_CAP_LIST_CLIPPING Whether clipping the overlaid

and

image is supported, see Section V4L2_FBUF_CAP_BITMAP_CLIPPING 4.2>. in eld capability of struct v4l2_framebuffer
VID_TYPE_FRAMERAM V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY Whether overlay overwrites not set in eld capability of frame buffer memory, see

struct v4l2_framebuffer
VID_TYPE_SCALES -

Section 4.2>. This ag indicates if the hardware can scale images. The V4L2 API implies the scale factor by setting the cropping dimensions and image size with the VIDIOC_S_CROP and VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl, respectively. The driver returns the closest sizes possible. For more information on cropping and scaling see Section 1.10>. Applications can enumerate the supported image formats with the VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT ioctl to determine if the device supports grey scale capturing only. For more information on image formats see Chapter 2>.

VID_TYPE_MONOCHROME

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Chapter 6. History struct video_capability type struct v4l2_capability capabilities ags

VID_TYPE_SUBCAPTURE -

Purpose Applications can call the VIDIOC_G_CROP ioctl to determine if the device supports capturing a subsection of the full picture ("cropping" in V4L2). If not, the ioctl returns the EINVAL error code. For more information on cropping and scaling see Section 1.10>.

The audios eld was replaced by capabilities ag V4L2_CAP_AUDIO, indicating if the device has any audio inputs or outputs. To determine their number applications can enumerate audio inputs with the VIDIOC_G_AUDIO ioctl. The audio ioctls are described in Section 1.5>. The maxwidth, maxheight, minwidth and minheight elds were removed. Calling the VIDIOC_S_FMT or VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl with the desired dimensions returns the closest size possible, taking into account the current video standard, cropping and scaling.

6.1.3. Video Sources

V4L provides the VIDIOCGCHAN and VIDIOCSCHAN ioctl using struct video_channel to enumerate the video inputs of a V4L device. The equivalent V4L2 ioctls are VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT, VIDIOC_G_INPUT and VIDIOC_S_INPUT using struct v4l2_input as discussed in Section 1.4>. The channel eld counting inputs was renamed to index , the video input types were renamed: struct video_channel type
VIDEO_TYPE_TV VIDEO_TYPE_CAMERA

struct v4l2_input type

V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_TUNER V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_CAMERA

Unlike the tuners eld expressing the number of tuners of this input, V4L2 assumes each video input is associated with at most one tuner. On the contrary a tuner can have more than one input, i.e. RF connectors, and a device can have multiple tuners. The index of the tuner associated with the input, if any, is stored in eld tuner of struct v4l2_input. Enumeration of tuners is discussed in Section 1.6>. The redundant VIDEO_VC_TUNER ag was dropped. Video inputs associated with a tuner are of type V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_TUNER. The VIDEO_VC_AUDIO ag was replaced by the audioset eld. V4L2 considers devices with up to 32 audio inputs. Each set bit in the audioset eld represents one audio input this video input combines with. For information about audio inputs and how to switch see Section 1.5>. The norm eld describing the supported video standards was replaced by std . The V4L specication mentions a ag VIDEO_VC_NORM indicating whether the standard can be changed. This ag was a later addition together with the norm eld and has been removed in the meantime. V4L2 has a similar, albeit more comprehensive approach to video standards, see Section 1.7> for more information.

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Chapter 6. History

6.1.4. Tuning
The V4L VIDIOCGTUNER and VIDIOCSTUNER ioctl and struct video_tuner can be used to enumerate the tuners of a V4L TV or radio device. The equivalent V4L2 ioctls are VIDIOC_G_TUNER and VIDIOC_S_TUNER using struct v4l2_tuner. Tuners are covered in Section 1.6>. The tuner eld counting tuners was renamed to index . The elds name, rangelow and rangehigh remained unchanged. The VIDEO_TUNER_PAL, VIDEO_TUNER_NTSC and VIDEO_TUNER_SECAM ags indicating the supported video standards were dropped. This information is now contained in the associated struct v4l2_input. No replacement exists for the VIDEO_TUNER_NORM ag indicating whether the video standard can be switched. The mode eld to select a different video standard was replaced by a whole new set of ioctls and structures described in Section 1.7>. Due to its ubiquity it should be mentioned the BTTV driver supports several standards in addition to the regular VIDEO_MODE_PAL (0), VIDEO_MODE_NTSC, VIDEO_MODE_SECAM and VIDEO_MODE_AUTO (3). Namely N/PAL Argentina, M/PAL, N/PAL, and NTSC Japan with numbers 3-6 (sic). The VIDEO_TUNER_STEREO_ON ag indicating stereo reception became V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO in eld rxsubchans. This eld also permits the detection of monaural and bilingual audio, see the denition of struct v4l2_tuner for details. Presently no replacement exists for the VIDEO_TUNER_RDS_ON and VIDEO_TUNER_MBS_ON ags. The VIDEO_TUNER_LOW ag was renamed to V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LOW in the struct v4l2_tuner capability eld. The VIDIOCGFREQ and VIDIOCSFREQ ioctl to change the tuner frequency where renamed to VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY and VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY. They take a pointer to a struct v4l2_frequency instead of an unsigned long integer.

6.1.5. Image Properties

V4L2 has no equivalent of the VIDIOCGPICT and VIDIOCSPICT ioctl and struct video_picture. The following elds where replaced by V4L2 controls accessible with the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_G_CTRL and VIDIOC_S_CTRL ioctls: struct video_picture
brightness hue colour contrast whiteness

V4L2 Control ID
V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS V4L2_CID_HUE V4L2_CID_SATURATION V4L2_CID_CONTRAST V4L2_CID_WHITENESS

The V4L picture controls are assumed to range from 0 to 65535 with no particular reset value. The V4L2 API permits arbitrary limits and defaults which can be queried with the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL ioctl. For general information about controls see Section 1.8>. The depth (average number of bits per pixel) of a video image is implied by the selected image format. V4L2 does not explicitely provide such information assuming applications recognizing the format are aware of the image depth and others need not know. The palette eld moved into the struct v4l2_pix_format:

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Chapter 6. History struct video_picture palette

VIDEO_PALETTE_GREY VIDEO_PALETTE_HI240 VIDEO_PALETTE_RGB565 VIDEO_PALETTE_RGB555 VIDEO_PALETTE_RGB24 VIDEO_PALETTE_RGB32 VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV422 VIDEO_PALETTE_YUYVc VIDEO_PALETTE_UYVY VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV420 VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV411 VIDEO_PALETTE_RAW VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV422P VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV411P VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV420P VIDEO_PALETTE_YUV410P

struct v4l2_pix_format pixfmt

V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY V4L2_PIX_FMT_HI240a V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB565 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB555 V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24 V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR32b V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV V4L2_PIX_FMT_UYVY

None
V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41Pd

Nonee
V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411Pf V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410

Notes: a. This is a custom format used by the BTTV driver, not one of the V4L2 standard formats. b. Presumably all

V4L2 image formats are dened in Chapter 2>. The image format can be selected with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl.

6.1.6. Audio
The VIDIOCGAUDIO and VIDIOCSAUDIO ioctl and struct video_audio are used to enumerate the audio inputs of a V4L device. The equivalent V4L2 ioctls are VIDIOC_G_AUDIO and VIDIOC_S_AUDIO using struct v4l2_audio as discussed in Section 1.5>. The audio "channel number" eld counting audio inputs was renamed to index . On VIDIOCSAUDIO the mode eld selects one of the VIDEO_SOUND_MONO, VIDEO_SOUND_STEREO, VIDEO_SOUND_LANG1 or VIDEO_SOUND_LANG2 audio demodulation modes. When the current audio standard is BTSC VIDEO_SOUND_LANG2 refers to SAP and VIDEO_SOUND_LANG1 is meaningless. Also undocumented in the V4L specication, there is no way to query the selected mode. On VIDIOCGAUDIO the driver returns the actually received audio programmes in this eld. In the V4L2 API this information is stored in the struct v4l2_tuner rxsubchans and audmode elds, respectively. See Section 1.6> for more information on tuners. Related to audio modes struct v4l2_audio also reports if this is a mono or stereo input, regardless if the source is a tuner. The following elds where replaced by V4L2 controls accessible with the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL, VIDIOC_G_CTRL and VIDIOC_S_CTRL ioctls: struct video_audio
volume bass treble balance

V4L2 Control ID
V4L2_CID_AUDIO_VOLUME V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BASS V4L2_CID_AUDIO_TREBLE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BALANCE

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Chapter 6. History

To determine which of these controls are supported by a driver V4L provides the flags VIDEO_AUDIO_VOLUME, VIDEO_AUDIO_BASS, VIDEO_AUDIO_TREBLE and VIDEO_AUDIO_BALANCE. In the V4L2 API the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL ioctl reports if the respective control is supported. Accordingly the VIDEO_AUDIO_MUTABLE and VIDEO_AUDIO_MUTE ags where replaced by the boolean V4L2_CID_AUDIO_MUTE control. All V4L2 controls have a step attribute replacing the struct video_audio step eld. The V4L audio controls are assumed to range from 0 to 65535 with no particular reset value. The V4L2 API permits arbitrary limits and defaults which can be queried with the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL ioctl. For general information about controls see Section 1.8>.

6.1.7. Frame Buffer Overlay

The V4L2 ioctls equivalent to VIDIOCGFBUF and VIDIOCSFBUF are VIDIOC_G_FBUF and VIDIOC_S_FBUF. The base eld of struct video_buffer remained unchanged, except V4L2 using a ag to indicate non-destructive overlay instead of a NULL pointer. All other elds moved into the struct v4l2_pix_format substructure fmt of struct v4l2_framebuffer. The depth eld was replaced by pixelformat. A conversion table is available in the Section 2.3>. Instead of the special ioctls VIDIOCGWIN and VIDIOCSWIN V4L2 uses the general-purpose data format negotiation ioctls VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT. They take a pointer to a struct v4l2_format as argument, here the struct v4l2_window named win of its fmt union is used. The x , y , width and height elds of struct video_window moved into struct v4l2_rect substructure w of struct v4l2_window. The chromakey , clips, and clipcount elds remained unchanged. Struct video_clip was renamed to struct v4l2_clip, also containing a struct v4l2_rect, but the semantics are still the same. The VIDEO_WINDOW_INTERLACE ag was dropped, instead applications must set the field eld to V4L2_FIELD_ANY or V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED. The VIDEO_WINDOW_CHROMAKEY ag moved into struct v4l2_framebuffer, renamed to V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_CHROMAKEY. In V4L, storing a bitmap pointer in clips and setting clipcount to VIDEO_CLIP_BITMAP (-1) requests bitmap clipping, using a xed size bitmap of 1024 625 bits. Struct v4l2_window has a separate bitmap pointer eld for this purpose and the bitmap size is determined by w.width and w.height. The VIDIOCCAPTURE ioctl to enable or disable overlay was renamed to VIDIOC_OVERLAY.

6.1.8. Cropping
To capture only a subsection of the full picture V4L provides the VIDIOCGCAPTURE and VIDIOCSCAPTURE ioctl using struct video_capture. The equivalent V4L2 ioctls are VIDIOC_G_CROP and VIDIOC_S_CROP using struct v4l2_crop, and the related VIDIOC_CROPCAP ioctl. This is a rather complex matter, see Section 1.10> for details. The x , y , width and height elds moved into struct v4l2_rect substructure c of struct v4l2_crop. The decimation eld was dropped. The scaling factor is implied by the size of the cropping rectangle and the size of the captured or overlaid image. The VIDEO_CAPTURE_ODD and VIDEO_CAPTURE_EVEN ags to capture only the odd or even eld, respectively, were replaced by V4L2_FIELD_TOP and V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM in the eld named

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Chapter 6. History
field of struct v4l2_pix_format and struct v4l2_window. These structures are used to determine the capture or overlay format with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl.

6.1.9. Reading Images, Memory Mapping

6.1.9.1. Capturing using the read method
There is no essential difference between reading images from a V4L or V4L2 device using the read() function. Supporting this method is optional for V4L2 devices. Whether the function is available can be determined with the VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. All V4L2 devices exchanging data with applications must support the select() and poll() function. To select an image format and size, V4L provides the VIDIOCSPICT and VIDIOCSWIN ioctls. V4L2 uses the general-purpose data format negotiation ioctls VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT. They take a pointer to a struct v4l2_format as argument, here the struct v4l2_pix_format named pix of its fmt union is used. For more information about the V4L2 read interface see Section 3.1>.

6.1.9.2. Capturing using memory mapping

Applications can read from V4L devices by mapping buffers in device memory, or more often just buffers allocated in DMA-able system memory, into their address space. This avoids the data copy overhead of the read method. V4L2 supports memory mapping as well, with a few differences. V4L V4L2 The image format must be selected before buffers are allocated, with the VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. When no format is selected the driver may use the last, possibly by another application requested format. Applications cannot change the number of buffers The VIDIOC_REQBUFS ioctl allocates the desired allocated. The number is built into the driver, number of buffers, this is a required step in the unless it has a module option to change the initialization sequence. number when the driver module is loaded. Drivers map all buffers as one contiguous range of Buffers are individually mapped. The offset and memory. The VIDIOCGMBUF ioctl is available to size of each buffer can be determined with the query the number of buffers, the offset of each VIDIOC_QUERYBUF ioctl. buffer from the start of the virtual le, and the overall amount of memory used, which can be used as arguments to the mmap() function.

165

Chapter 6. History V4L V4L2 The VIDIOCMCAPTURE ioctl prepares a buffer for Drivers maintain an incoming and outgoing capturing. It also determines the image format queue. VIDIOC_QBUF enqueues any empty buffer for this buffer. The ioctl returns immediately, into the incoming queue. Filled buffers are eventually with an EAGAIN error code if no dequeued from the outgoing queue with the video signal had been detected. When the driver VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl. To wait until lled buffers supports more than one buffer applications can become available this function, select() or poll() can be used. The VIDIOC_STREAMON call the ioctl multiple times and thus have ioctl must be called once after enqueuing one or multiple outstanding capture requests. The VIDIOCSYNC ioctl suspends execution until more buffers to start capturing. Its counterpart VIDIOC_STREAMOFF stops capturing and a particular buffer has been lled. dequeues all buffers from both queues. Applications can query the signal status, if known, with the VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT ioctl. For a more in-depth discussion of memory mapping and examples, see Section 3.2>.

6.1.10. Reading Raw VBI Data

Originally the V4L API did not specify a raw VBI capture interface, merely the device le /dev/vbi was reserved for this purpose. The only driver supporting this interface was the BTTV driver, de-facto dening the V4L VBI interface. Reading from the device yields a raw VBI image with the following parameters: struct v4l2_vbi_format sampling_rate V4L, BTTV driver 28636363 Hz NTSC (precisely all 525-line standards); 35468950 Hz PAL and SECAM (625-line) ? 2048 V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY. The last four bytes (machine endianess integer) contain a frame counter. 10, 273 NTSC; 22, 335 PAL and SECAM 16, 16a 0

offset samples_per_line sample_format

start[] count[] ags

Notes: a. Old driver versions used different values, eventually the custom BTTV_VBISIZE ioctl was added to query th

Undocumented in the V4L specication, in Linux 2.3 the VIDIOCGVBIFMT and VIDIOCSVBIFMT ioctls using struct vbi_format were added to determine the VBI image parameters. These ioctls are only partially compatible with the V4L2 VBI interface specied in Section 4.6>. An offset eld does not exist, sample_format is supposed to be VIDEO_PALETTE_RAW, here equivalent to V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY. The remaining elds are probably equivalent to struct v4l2_vbi_format. Apparently only the Zoran (ZR 36120) driver implements these ioctls. The semantics differ from those specied for V4L2 in two ways. The parameters are reset on open() and VIDIOCSVBIFMT

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Chapter 6. History always returns the EINVAL error code if the parameters are invalid.

6.1.11. Miscellaneous
V4L2 has no equivalent of the VIDIOCGUNIT ioctl. Applications can nd the VBI device associated with a video capture device (or vice versa) by reopening the device and requesting VBI data. For details see Section 1.1>. Presently no replacement exists for VIDIOCKEY, the V4L functions regarding MPEG compression and decompression, and microcode programming. Drivers may implement the respective V4L ioctls for these purposes.

6.2. History of the V4L2 API

Soon after the V4L API was added to the kernel it was criticised as too inexible. In August 1998 Bill Dirks proposed a number of improvements and began work on documentation, example drivers and applications. With the help of other volunteers this eventually became the V4L2 API, not just an extension but a replacement for the V4L API. However it took another four years and two stable kernel releases until the new API was nally accepted for inclusion into the kernel in its present form.

6.2.1. Early Versions

1998-08-20: First version. 1998-08-27: select() function was introduced. 1998-09-10: New video standard interface. 1998-09-18: The VIDIOC_NONCAP ioctl was replaced by the O_TRUNC open() ag (with synonym O_NONCAP/O_NOIO) to indicate a non-capturing open. The VIDEO_STD_XXX identiers are now ordinals rather than bits, and video_std_construct helper function takes id and transmission as arguments. 1998-09-28: Revamped video standard. Made video controls individually enumerable. 1998-10-02: Removed id from video_standard, renamed color subcarrier elds. Renamed VIDIOC_QUERYSTD to VIDIOC_ENUMSTD and VIDIOC_G_INPUT to VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT. Added preliminary /proc/videodev le. First draft of CODEC driver API spec. 1998-11-08: Updating for many minor changes to the V4L2 spec. Most symbols have been renamed. Some material changes to v4l2_capability. 1998-11-12 bugx: some of the VIDIOC_* symbols were not constructed with the right macros, which could lead to errors on what should have been valid ioctl() calls. 1998-11-14: V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB24 changed to V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24. Same for RGB32. Audio UI controls moved to VIDIOC_S_CTRL system and assigned V4L2_CID_AUDIO_* symbols. Removed V4L2_MAJOR from videodev.h since it is only used at one place in videodev. Added YUV422 and YUV411 planar formats. 1998-11-28: Changed a few ioctl symbols. Added stuff for codec and video output devices.

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Chapter 6. History 1999-01-14: Added raw VBI interface. 1999-01-19: Removed VIDIOC_NEXTBUF ioctl.

6.2.2. V4L2 Version 0.16 1999-01-31

1999-01-27: There is now one QBUF ioctl, VIDIOC_QWBUF and VIDIOC_QRBUF are gone. VIDIOC_QBUF takes a v4l2_buffer as a parameter. Added digital zoom (cropping) controls.

6.2.3. V4L2 Version 0.18 1999-03-16

Added a v4l to V4L2 ioctl compatibility layer to videodev.c. Driver writers, this changes how you implement your ioctl handler. See the Driver Writers Guide. Added some more control id codes.

6.2.4. V4L2 Version 0.19 1999-06-05

1999-03-18: Fill in the category and catname elds of v4l2_queryctrl objects before passing them to the driver. Required a minor change to the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL handlers in the sample drivers. 1999-03-31: Better compatibility for v4l memory capture ioctls. Requires changes to drivers to fully support new compatibility features, see Driver Writers Guide and v4l2cap.c. Added new control IDs: V4L2_CID_HFLIP, _VFLIP. Changed V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P to _YUV422P, and _YUV411P to _YUV411P. 1999-04-04: Added a few more control IDs. 1999-04-07: Added the button control type. 1999-05-02: Fixed a typo in videodev.h, and added the V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_GRAYED (later V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_GRABBED) ag. 1999-05-20: Denition of VIDIOC_G_CTRL was wrong causing a malfunction of this ioctl. 1999-06-05: Changed the value of V4L2_CID_WHITENESS.

6.2.5. V4L2 Version 0.20 1999-09-10

Version 0.20 introduced a number of changes not backward compatible with 0.19 and earlier. The purpose was to simplify the API, while at the same time make it more extensible, and follow common Linux driver API conventions. 1. Fixed typos in some V4L2_FMT_FLAG symbols. Changed struct v4l2_clip to be compatible with v4l. (1999-08-30) 2. Added V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1. (1999-09-05) 3. All ioctl() commands that took an integer argument before, will now take a pointer to an integer. Where it makes sense, the driver will return the actual value used in the integer pointed to by the argument. This is a common convention, and also makes certain things easier in libv4l2 and other system code when the parameter to ioctl() is always a pointer. The ioctl commands affected are: VIDIOC_PREVIEW, VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF, VIDIOC_S_FREQ, VIDIOC_S_INPUT, VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT, VIDIOC_S_EFFECT. For example, where before you might have had code like:

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Chapter 6. History
err = ioctl (fd, VIDIOC_XXX, V4L2_XXX);

that becomes
int a = V4L2_XXX; err = ioctl(fd, VIDIOC_XXX, &a);

4. All the different set-format ioctl() commands are swept into a single set-format command whose parameter consists of an integer value indicating the type of format, followed by the format data. The same for the get-format commands, of course. This will simplify the API by eliminating several ioctl codes and also make it possible to add additional kinds of data streams, or driver-private kinds of streams without having to add more set-format ioctls. The parameter to VIDIOC_S_FMT is as follows. The rst eld is a V4L2_BUF_TYPE_XXX value that indicates which stream the set-format is for, and implicitly, what type of format data. After that is a union of the different format structures. More can be added later without breaking backward compatibility. Nonstandard driver-private formats can be used by casting raw_data.
struct v4l2_format { __u32 type; union { struct v4l2_pix_format struct v4l2_vbi_format ... and so on ... __u8 } fmt; };

pix; vbi; raw_data[200];

For a get-format, the application lls in the type eld, and the driver lls in the rest. What was before the image format structure, struct v4l2_format, becomes struct v4l2_pix_format. These ioctls become obsolete: VIDIOC_S_INFMT, VIDIOC_G_INFMT, VIDIOC_S_OUTFMT, VIDIOC_G_OUTFMT, VIDIOC_S_VBIFMT VIDIOC_G_VBIFMT. 5. Similar to item 2, VIDIOC_G/S_PARM and VIDIOC_G/S_OUTPARM are merged, along with the corresponding get functions. A type eld will indicate which stream the parameters are for, set to a V4L2_BUF_TYPE_* value.
struct v4l2_streamparm { __u32 type; union { struct v4l2_captureparm struct v4l2_outputparm __u8 } parm; };

capture; output; raw_data[200];

These ioctls become obsolete: VIDIOC_G_OUTPARM, VIDIOC_S_OUTPARM. 6. The way controls are enumerated is simplied. Simultaneously, two new control ags are introduced and the existing ag is dropped. Also, the catname eld is dropped in favor of a group name. To enumerate controls call VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL with successive ids starting from V4L2_CID_BASE or V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE and stop when the driver returns the EINVAL error code. Controls that are not supported on the hardware are marked with the V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED ag. Additionally, controls that are temporarily unavailable, or that can only be controlled from another le descriptor are marked with the V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_GRABBED ag. Usually, a control that is GRABBED, but not DISABLED can be read, but changed. The group name indicates a possibly narrower classication than the category. In other words, there may be

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Chapter 6. History multiple groups within a category. Controls within a group would typically be drawn within a group box. Controls in different categories might have a greater separation, or even be in separate windows. 7. The v4l2_buffer timestamp eld is changed to a 64-bit integer, and holds the time of the frame based on the system time, in 1 nanosecond units. Additionally, timestamps will be in absolute system time, not starting from zero at the beginning of a stream as it is now. The data type name for timestamps is stamp_t, dened as a signed 64-bit integer. Output devices should not send a buffer out until the time in the timestamp eld has arrived. I would like to follow SGIs lead, and adopt a multimedia timestamping system like their UST (Unadjusted System Time). See http://reality.sgi.com/cpirazzi_engr/lg/time/intro.html. [This link is no longer valid.] UST uses timestamps that are 64-bit signed integers (not struct timevals) and given in nanosecond units. The UST clock starts at zero when the system is booted and runs continuously and uniformly. It takes a little over 292 years for UST to overow. There is no way to set the UST clock. The regular Linux time-of-day clock can be changed periodically, which would cause errors if it were being used for timestamping a multimedia stream. A real UST style clock will require some support in the kernel that is not there yet. But in anticipation, I will change the timestamp eld to a 64-bit integer, and I will change the v4l2_masterclock_gettime() function (used only by drivers) to return a 64-bit integer. 8. The sequence eld is added to the struct v4l2_buffer. The sequence eld indicates which frame this is in the sequence-- 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. Set by capturing devices. Ignored by output devices. If a capture driver drops a frame, the sequence number of that frame is skipped. A break in the sequence will indicate to the application which frame was dropped.

6.2.6. V4L2 Version 0.20 incremental changes

1999-12-23: In struct v4l2_vbi_format eld reserved1 became offset. Previously reserved1 was required to always read zero. 2000-01-13: Added V4L2_FMT_FLAG_NOT_INTERLACED. 2000-07-31: Included linux/poll.h in videodev.h for compatibility with the original videodev.h. 2000-11-20: Added V4L2_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT. Added V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P. 2000-11-25: Added V4L2_TYPE_VBI_INPUT. 2000-12-04: Fixed a couple typos in symbol names. 2001-01-18: Fixed a namespace conict (the fourcc macro changed to v4l2_fourcc). 2001-01-25: Fixed a possible driver-level compatibility problem between the original 2.4.0 videodev.h and the videodev.h that comes with videodevX. If you were using an earlier version of videodevX on 2.4.0, then you should recompile your v4l and V4L2 drivers to be safe. 2001-01-26: videodevX: Fixed a possible kernel-level incompatibility between the videodevX videodev.h and the 2.2.x videodev.h that had the devfs patches applied. videodev: Changed fourcc to v4l2_fourcc to avoid namespace pollution. Some other cleanup. 2001-03-02: Certain v4l ioctls that really pass data both ways, but whose types are read-only, did not work correctly through the backward compatibility layer. [Solution?] 2001-04-13: Added big endian 16-bit RGB formats. 2001-09-17: Added new YUV formats. Added VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY and VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY. (The VIDIOC_G/S_FREQ ioctls did not take multiple tuners into account.)

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Chapter 6. History 2000-09-18: Added V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI. Raw VBI VIDIOC_G_FMT and VIDIOC_S_FMT may fail if eld type is not V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI. Changed the ambiguous phrase "rising edge" to "leading edge" in the denition of struct v4l2_vbi_format eld offset.

6.2.7. V4L2 Version 0.20 2000-11-23

A number of changes were made to the raw VBI interface. 1. Added gures clarifying the line numbering scheme. The description of start[0] and start[1] as base 0 offset has been dropped. Rationale: a) The previous denition was unclear. b) The start[] values are not an offset into anything, as a means of identifying scanning lines it can only be counterproductive to deviate from common numbering conventions. Compatibility: Add one to the start values. Applications depending on the previous semantics of start values may not function correctly. 2. The restriction "count[0] > 0 and count[1] > 0" has been relaxed to "(count[0] + count[1]) > 0". Rationale: Drivers allocating resources at scanning line granularity and rst eld only data services. The comment that both count values will usually be equal is misleading and pointless and has been removed. Compatibility: Drivers may return EINVAL, applications depending on the previous restriction may not function correctly. 3. Restored description of the driver option to return negative start values. Existed in the initial revision of this document, not traceable why it disappeared in later versions. Compatibility: Applications depending on the returned start values being positive may not function correctly. Clarication on the use of EBUSY and EINVAL in VIDIOC_S_FMT ioctl. Added EBUSY paragraph to section. Added description of reserved2, previously mentioned only in videodev.h. 4. Added V4L2_TYPE_VBI_INPUT and V4L2_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT here and in videodev.h. The rst is an alias for the older V4L2_TYPE_VBI, the latter was missing in videodev.h.

6.2.8. V4L2 Version 0.20 2002-07-25

Added sliced VBI interface proposal.

6.2.9. V4L2 in Linux 2.5.46, 2002-10

Around October-November 2002, prior to an announced feature freeze of Linux 2.5, the API was revised, drawing from experience with V4L2 0.20. This unnamed version was nally merged into Linux 2.5.46. 1. As specied in Section 1.1.2> drivers must make related device functions available under all minor device numbers. 2. The open() function requires access mode O_RDWR regardless of device type. All V4L2 drivers exchanging data with applications must support the O_NONBLOCK ag. The O_NOIO ag (alias of meaningless O_TRUNC) to indicate accesses without data exchange (panel applications) was dropped. Drivers must assume panel mode until the application attempts to initiate data exchange, see Section 1.1>.

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Chapter 6. History 3. The struct v4l2_capability changed dramatically. Note that also the size of the structure changed, which is encoded in the ioctl request code, thus older V4L2 devices will respond with an EINVAL error code to the new VIDIOC_QUERYCAP ioctl. There are new elds to identify the driver, a new (as of yet unspecied) device function V4L2_CAP_RDS_CAPTURE, the V4L2_CAP_AUDIO ag indicates if the device has any audio connectors, another I/O capability V4L2_CAP_ASYNCIO can be agged. Field type became a set in response to the change above and was merged with flags. V4L2_FLAG_TUNER was renamed to V4L2_CAP_TUNER, V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OVERLAY replaced V4L2_FLAG_PREVIEW and V4L2_CAP_VBI_CAPTURE and V4L2_CAP_VBI_OUTPUT replaced V4L2_FLAG_DATA_SERVICE. V4L2_FLAG_READ and V4L2_FLAG_WRITE merged to V4L2_CAP_READWRITE. Redundant elds inputs, outputs, audios were removed, these can be determined as described in Section 1.4> and Section 1.5>. The somewhat volatile and therefore barely useful elds maxwidth, maxheight, minwidth, minheight, maxframerate were removed, this information is available as described in Section 1.9> and Section 1.7>.
V4L2_FLAG_SELECT was removed, this function is considered important enough that all V4L2 drivers exchanging data with applications must support select(). The redundant ag V4L2_FLAG_MONOCHROME was removed, this information is available as described in Section

1.9>. 4. In struct v4l2_input the assoc_audio eld and the capability eld and its only ag V4L2_INPUT_CAP_AUDIO was replaced by the new audioset eld. Instead of linking one video input to one audio input this eld reports all audio inputs this video input combines with. New elds are tuner (reversing the former link from tuners to video inputs), std and status. Accordingly struct v4l2_output lost its capability and assoc_audio elds, audioset, modulator and std where added. 5. The struct v4l2_audio eld audio was renamed to index , consistent with other structures. Capability ag V4L2_AUDCAP_STEREO was added to indicated if this is a stereo input. V4L2_AUDCAP_EFFECTS and the corresponding V4L2_AUDMODE ags where removed, this can be easily implemented using controls. (However the same applies to AVL which is still there.) The struct v4l2_audioout eld audio was renamed to index . 6. The struct v4l2_tuner input eld was replaced by an index eld, permitting devices with multiple tuners. The link between video inputs and tuners is now reversed, inputs point to the tuner they are on. The std substructure became a simple set (more about this below) and moved into struct v4l2_input. A type eld was added. Accordingly in struct v4l2_modulator the output was replaced by an index eld. In struct v4l2_frequency the port eld was replaced by a tuner eld containing the respective tuner or modulator index number. A tuner type eld was added and the reserved eld became larger for future extensions (satellite tuners in particular). 7. The idea of completely transparent video standards was dropped. Experience showed that applications must be able to work with video standards beyond presenting the user a menu. To this end V4L2 returned to dened standards as v4l2_std_id, replacing references to standards throughout the API. For details see Section 1.7>. VIDIOC_G_STD and VIDIOC_S_STD now take a pointer to this type as argument. VIDIOC_QUERYSTD was added to autodetect the received standard. In struct v4l2_standard an index eld was added for VIDIOC_ENUMSTD. A v4l2_std_id eld named id was added as machine readable identier, also replacing the transmission eld. framerate, which is misleading, was renamed to frameperiod . The

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Chapter 6. History now obsolete colorstandard information, originally needed to distguish between variations of standards, were removed. Struct v4l2_enumstd ceased to be. VIDIOC_ENUMSTD now takes a pointer to a struct v4l2_standard directly. The information which standards are supported by a particular video input or output moved into struct v4l2_input and struct v4l2_output elds named std , respectively. 8. The struct v4l2_queryctrl elds category and group did not catch on and/or were not implemented as expected and therefore removed. 9. The VIDIOC_TRY_FMT ioctl was added to negotiate data formats as with VIDIOC_S_FMT, but without the overhead of programming the hardware and regardless of I/O in progress. In struct v4l2_format the fmt union was extended to contain struct v4l2_window. As a result all data format negotiation is now possible with VIDIOC_G_FMT, VIDIOC_S_FMT and VIDIOC_TRY_FMT; the VIDIOC_G_WIN, VIDIOC_S_WIN and ioctl to prepare for overlay were removed. The type eld changed to type enum v4l2_buf_type and the buffer type names changed as follows. Old denes
V4L2_BUF_TYPE_CAPTURE V4L2_BUF_TYPE_CODECIN V4L2_BUF_TYPE_CODECOUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_EFFECTSIN V4L2_BUF_TYPE_EFFECTSIN2 V4L2_BUF_TYPE_EFFECTSOUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEOOUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE_BASE

enum v4l2_buf_type
V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE Preliminary omitted Preliminary omitted Preliminary omitted Preliminary omitted Preliminary omitted V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_CAPTURE V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE

10. In struct v4l2_fmtdesc a enum v4l2_buf_type eld named type was added as in struct v4l2_format. As a result the VIDIOC_ENUM_FBUFFMT ioctl is no longer needed and was removed. These calls can be replaced by VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT with type V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY. 11. In struct v4l2_pix_format the depth was removed, assuming applications recognizing the format are aware of the image depth and others need not know. The same rationale lead to the removal of the V4L2_FMT_FLAG_COMPRESSED ag. The V4L2_FMT_FLAG_SWCONVECOMPRESSED ag was removed because drivers are not supposed to convert image formats in kernel space. The V4L2_FMT_FLAG_BYTESPERLINE ag was redundant, applications can set the bytesperline eld to zero to get a reasonable default. Since also the remaining ags were replaced, the flags eld itself was removed. The interlace ags were replaced by a enum v4l2_eld value in a newly added field eld. Old ag
V4L2_FMT_FLAG_NOT_INTERLACED V4L2_FMT_FLAG_INTERLACED = V4L2_FMT_FLAG_COMBINED

enum v4l2_eld
? V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED

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Chapter 6. History Old ag

V4L2_FMT_FLAG_TOPFIELD = V4L2_FMT_FLAG_ODDFIELD V4L2_FMT_FLAG_BOTFIELD = V4L2_FMT_FLAG_EVENFIELD -

enum v4l2_eld
V4L2_FIELD_TOP V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE

The color space ags were replaced by a enum v4l2_colorspace value in a newly added colorspace eld, where one of V4L2_COLORSPACE_SMPTE170M, V4L2_COLORSPACE_BT878, V4L2_COLORSPACE_470_SYSTEM_M or V4L2_COLORSPACE_470_SYSTEM_BG replaces V4L2_FMT_CS_601YUV. 12. In struct v4l2_requestbuffers the type eld was properly typed as enum v4l2_buf_type. Buffer types changed as mentioned above. A new memory eld of type enum v4l2_memory was added to distinguish between mapping methods using buffers allocated by the driver or the application. See Chapter 3> for details. 13. In struct v4l2_buffer the type eld was properly typed as enum v4l2_buf_type. Buffer types changed as mentioned above. A field eld of type enum v4l2_eld was added to indicate if a buffer contains a top or bottom eld, the eld ags were removed. Realizing the efforts to introduce an unadjusted system time clock failed, the timestamp eld changed back from type stamp_t, an unsigned 64 bit integer expressing time in nanoseconds, to struct timeval. With the addition of a second memory mapping method the offset eld moved into union m, and a new memory eld of type enum v4l2_memory was added to distinguish between mapping methods. See Chapter 3> for details. The V4L2_BUF_REQ_CONTIG ag was used by the V4L compatibility layer, after changes to this code it was no longer needed. The V4L2_BUF_ATTR_DEVICEMEM ag would indicate if the buffer was indeed allocated in device memory rather than DMA-able system memory. It was barely useful and so has been removed. 14. In struct v4l2_framebuffer the base[3] array anticipating double- and triple-buffering in off-screen video memory, however without dening a synchronization mechanism, was replaced by a single pointer. The V4L2_FBUF_CAP_SCALEUP and V4L2_FBUF_CAP_SCALEDOWN ags were removed. Applications can determine this capability more accurately using the new cropping and scaling interface. The V4L2_FBUF_CAP_CLIPPING ag was replaced by V4L2_FBUF_CAP_LIST_CLIPPING and V4L2_FBUF_CAP_BITMAP_CLIPPING. 15. In struct v4l2_clip the x , y , width and height eld moved into a c substructure of type struct v4l2_rect. The x and y eld were renamed to left and top, i. e. offsets to a context dependent origin. 16. In struct v4l2_window the x , y , width and height eld moved into a w substructure as above. A field eld of type %v4l2-eld; was added to distinguish between eld and frame (interlaced) overlay. 17. The digital zoom interface, including struct v4l2_zoomcap, struct v4l2_zoom, V4L2_ZOOM_NONCAP and V4L2_ZOOM_WHILESTREAMING was replaced by a new cropping and scaling interface. The previously unused struct v4l2_cropcap and v4l2_crop where redened for this purpose. See Section 1.10> for details.

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Chapter 6. History 18. In struct v4l2_vbi_format the SAMPLE_FORMAT eld now contains a four-character-code as used to identify video image formats. V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY replaces the V4L2_VBI_SF_UBYTE dene. The reserved eld was extended. 19. In struct v4l2_captureparm the type of the timeperframe eld changed from unsigned long to struct v4l2_fract. A new eld readbuffers was added to control the driver behaviour in read I/O mode. According changes were made to struct v4l2_outputparm. 20. The struct v4l2_performance and VIDIOC_G_PERF ioctl were dropped. Except when using the read/write I/O method, which is limited anyway, this information is already available to the application. 21. The example transformation from RGB to YCbCr color space in the old V4L2 documentation was inaccurate, this has been corrected in Chapter 2>.

6.2.10. V4L2 2003-06-19

1. A new capability ag V4L2_CAP_RADIO was added for radio devices. Prior to this change radio devices would identify soley by having exactly one tuner whose type eld reads V4L2_TUNER_RADIO. 2. An optional priority mechanism was added, see Section 1.3> for details. 3. The audio input and output interface was found to be incomplete. Previously the VIDIOC_G_AUDIO ioctl would enumerate the available audio inputs. An ioctl to determine the current audio input, if more than one combines with the current video input, did not exist. So VIDIOC_G_AUDIO was renamed to VIDIOC_G_AUDIO_OLD, this ioctl will be removed in the future. The VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO ioctl was added to enumerate audio inputs, while VIDIOC_G_AUDIO now reports the current audio input. The same changes were made to VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT and VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT. Until further the "videodev" module will automatically translate to the new versions, drivers and applications must be updated when they are recompiled. 4. The VIDIOC_OVERLAY ioctl was incorrectly dened with read-write parameter. It was changed to write-only, while the read-write version was renamed to VIDIOC_OVERLAY_OLD. This function will be removed in the future. Until further the "videodev" module will automatically translate to the new version, so drivers must be recompiled, but not applications. 5. Section 4.2> incorrectly stated that clipping rectangles dene regions where the video can be seen. Correct is that clipping rectangles dene regions where no video shall be displayed and so the graphics surface can be seen. 6. The VIDIOC_S_PARM and VIDIOC_S_CTRL were dened with write-only parameter, inconsistent with other ioctls modifying their argument. They were changed to read-write, while a _OLD sufx was added to the write-only version. These functions will be removed in the future. Drivers, and applications assuming a constant parameter, need an update.

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6.2.11. V4L2 2003-11-05

1. In Section 2.3> the following pixel formats were incorrectly transferred from Bill Dirks V4L2 specication. Descriptions refer to bytes in memory, in ascending address order. Symbol
V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB24 V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB32 V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR32

In this document prior to revision 0.5 B, G, R R, G, B B, G, R, X R, G, B, X

Correct R, G, B B, G, R R, G, B, X B, G, R, X

The V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24 example was always correct. In Section 6.1.5> the mapping of VIDEO_PALETTE_RGB24 and VIDEO_PALETTE_RGB32 to V4L2 pixel formats was accordingly corrected. 2. Unrelated to the xes above, drivers may still interpret some V4L2 RGB pixel formats differently. These issues have yet to be addressed, for details see Section 2.3>.

6.2.12. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.6, 2004-05-09

1. The VIDIOC_CROPCAP ioctl was incorrectly dened with read-only parameter. It was changed to read-write, while the read-only version was renamed to VIDIOC_CROPCAP_OLD. This function will be removed in the future.

6.2.13. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.8

1. A new eld input (former reserved[0]) was added to the struct v4l2_buffer structure. It must be enabled with the new V4L2_BUF_FLAG_INPUT ag. The flags eld is no longer read-only.

6.2.14. V4L2 spec erratum 2004-08-01

1. The return value of the V4L2 open()(2)> function was incorrect. 2. Audio output ioctls end in -AUDOUT, not -AUDIOOUT. 3. In the current audio input example the VIDIOC_G_AUDIO ioctl took the wrong argument. 4. The VIDIOC_QBUF and VIDIOC_DQBUF ioctl did not mention the struct v4l2_buffer memory eld, it was also missing from examples. Added description of the VIDIOC_DQBUF EIO error.

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6.2.15. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.14

1. A new sliced VBI interface (see Section 4.7>) was added. It replaces the interface proposed in V4L2 specication 0.8.

6.2.16. V4L2 in Linux 2.6.15

1. The VIDIOC_LOG_STATUS ioctl was added. 2. New video standards V4L2_STD_NTSC_443, V4L2_STD_SECAM_LC, V4L2_STD_SECAM_DK (a set of SECAM D, K and K1), and V4L2_STD_ATSC (a set of V4L2_STD_ATSC_8_VSB and V4L2_STD_ATSC_16_VSB) were dened. Note the V4L2_STD_525_60 set now includes V4L2_STD_NTSC_443. See also Table 3>. 3. The VIDIOC_G_COMP and VIDIOC_S_COMP ioctl were renamed to VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP and VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP respectively. Their argument was replaced by a struct v4l2_mpeg_compression pointer.

6.2.17. V4L2 spec erratum 2005-11-27

The capture example in Appendix B> called VIDIOC_S_CROP without checking if cropping (VIDIOC_CROPCAP) is supported. In the video standard selection example in Section 1.7> the VIDIOC_S_STD call used the wrong argument type.

6.2.18. V4L2 spec erratum 2006-01-10

1. The V4L2_IN_ST_COLOR_KILL ag in struct v4l2_input does not only indicate if the color killer is enabled, but also if it is active (disabling color decoding because it detects no color modulation). 2. VIDIOC_S_PARM is a read/write ioctl, not write-only as stated on the respective function reference page. The ioctl changed in 2003 as noted above.

6.2.19. V4L2 spec erratum 2006-02-03

1. In struct v4l2_captureparm and struct v4l2_outputparm the timeperframe eld gives the time in seconds, not microseconds.

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6.3. Relation of V4L2 to other Linux multimedia APIs

6.3.1. X Video Extension
The X Video Extension (abbreviated XVideo or just Xv) is an extension of the X Window system, implemented for example by the XFree86 project. Its scope is similar to V4L2, an API to video capture and output devices for X clients. Xv allows applications to display live video in a window, send window contents to a TV output, and capture or output still images in XPixmaps1. With their implementation XFree86 makes the extension available across many operating systems and architectures. Because the driver is embedded into the X server Xv has a number of advantages over the V4L2 video overlay interface. The driver can easily determine the overlay target, i. e. visible graphics memory or off-screen buffers for non-destructive overlay. It can program the RAMDAC for overlay, scaling or color-keying, or the clipping functions of the video capture hardware, always in sync with drawing operations or windows moving or changing their stacking order. To combine the advantages of Xv and V4L a special Xv driver exists in XFree86, just programming any overlay capable Video4Linux device it nds. To enable it /etc/X11/XF86Config must contain these lines:
Section "Module" Load "v4l" EndSection

As of XFree86 4.2 this driver still supports only V4L ioctls, however it should work just ne with all V4L2 devices through the V4L2 backward-compatibility layer. Since V4L2 permits multiple opens it is possible (if supported by the V4L2 driver) to capture video while an X client requested video overlay. Restrictions of simultaneous capturing and overlay mentioned in Section 4.2> apply. Only marginally related to V4L2, XFree86 extended Xv to support hardware YUV to RGB conversion and scaling for faster video playback, and added an interface to MPEG-2 decoding hardware. This can be used to improve displaying captured images.

6.3.2. Digital Video

V4L2 does not, at this time and possibly never, support digital terrestrial, cable or satellite broadcast. A separate project aiming at digital receivers exists. You can nd its homepage at http://linuxtv.org. This group found the requirements sufciently different from analog television to choose independent development of their interfaces.

6.3.3. Audio Interfaces

[to do - OSS/ALSA]

Notes
1. This is not implemented in XFree86.

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#ifndef __LINUX_VIDEODEV2_H #define __LINUX_VIDEODEV2_H /* Video for Linux Two * * Header file for v4l or V4L2 drivers and applications, for * Linux kernels 2.2.x or 2.4.x. * * See http://bytesex.org/v4l/ for API specs and other * v4l2 documentation. * * Author: Bill Dirks <[email protected]> * Justin Schoeman * et al. * */ #ifdef __KERNEL__ #include <linux/time.h> /* need struct timeval */ #include <linux/poll.h> #if LINUX_VERSION_CODE < KERNEL_VERSION(2,5,69) #include <linux/devfs_fs_kernel.h> #endif #if LINUX_VERSION_CODE > KERNEL_VERSION(2,5,0) #include <linux/device.h> #endif #endif #include <linux/compiler.h> /* need __user */

#define OBSOLETE_OWNER 1 /* It will be removed for 2.6.15 */ #define HAVE_V4L2 1 /* * Common stuff for both V4L1 and V4L2 * Moved from videodev.h */ #define VIDEO_MAX_FRAME #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define VID_TYPE_CAPTURE VID_TYPE_TUNER VID_TYPE_TELETEXT VID_TYPE_OVERLAY VID_TYPE_CHROMAKEY VID_TYPE_CLIPPING VID_TYPE_FRAMERAM VID_TYPE_SCALES VID_TYPE_MONOCHROME VID_TYPE_SUBCAPTURE VID_TYPE_MPEG_DECODER VID_TYPE_MPEG_ENCODER VID_TYPE_MJPEG_DECODER VID_TYPE_MJPEG_ENCODER 1 2 4 8 16 32 64 128 256 512 1024 2048 4096 8192 32 /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* /* Can capture */ Can tune */ Does teletext */ Overlay onto frame buffer */ Overlay by chromakey */ Can clip */ Uses the frame buffer memory */ Scalable */ Monochrome only */ Can capture subareas of the image */ Can decode MPEG streams */ Can encode MPEG streams */ Can decode MJPEG streams */ Can encode MJPEG streams */

#ifdef __KERNEL__

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#define #define #define #define

VFL_TYPE_GRABBER VFL_TYPE_VBI VFL_TYPE_RADIO VFL_TYPE_VTX

0 1 2 3

struct video_device { /* device info */ #if LINUX_VERSION_CODE >= KERNEL_VERSION(2,6,0) struct device *dev; #endif char name[32]; int type; /* v4l1 */ int type2; /* v4l2 */ int hardware; int minor; /* device ops + callbacks */ struct file_operations *fops; void (*release)(struct video_device *vfd); #if LINUX_VERSION_CODE < KERNEL_VERSION(2,5,0) /* old, obsolete interface -- dropped in 2.5.x, dont use it */ int (*open)(struct video_device *, int mode); void (*close)(struct video_device *); long (*read)(struct video_device *, char *, unsigned long, int noblock); long (*write)(struct video_device *, const char *, unsigned long, int noblock); unsigned int (*poll)(struct video_device *, struct file *, poll_table *); int (*ioctl)(struct video_device *, unsigned int , void *); int (*mmap)(struct video_device *, const char *, unsigned long); int (*initialize)(struct video_device *); #endif #if OBSOLETE_OWNER /* to be removed in 2.6.15 */ /* obsolete -- fops->owner is used instead */ struct module *owner; /* dev->driver_data will be used instead some day. * Use the video_{get|set}_drvdata() helper functions, * so the switch over will be transparent for you. * Or use {pci|usb}_{get|set}_drvdata() directly. */ void *priv; #endif /* for videodev.c intenal usage -- please dont touch */ int users; /* video_exclusive_{open|close} ... */ struct semaphore lock; /* ... helper function uses these */ #if LINUX_VERSION_CODE < KERNEL_VERSION(2,5,69) devfs_handle_t devfs_handle; /* devfs */ #else char devfs_name[64]; /* devfs */ #endif #if LINUX_VERSION_CODE >= KERNEL_VERSION(2,6,0) struct class_device class_dev; /* sysfs */ #endif };

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#define VIDEO_MAJOR 81

extern int video_register_device(struct video_device *, int type, int nr); extern void video_unregister_device(struct video_device *); extern int video_usercopy(struct inode *inode, struct file *file, unsigned int cmd, unsigned long arg, int (*func)(struct inode *inode, struct file *file, unsigned int cmd, void *arg)); /* helper functions to alloc / release struct video_device, the later can be used for video_device->release() */ struct video_device *video_device_alloc(void); void video_device_release(struct video_device *vfd); #endif /* * */

M I S C E L L A N E O U S

/* Four-character-code (FOURCC) */ #define v4l2_fourcc(a,b,c,d)\ (((__u32)(a)<<0)|((__u32)(b)<<8)|((__u32)(c)<<16)|((__u32)(d)<<24)) /* E N U M S * */ enum v4l2_field { V4L2_FIELD_ANY

= 0, /* driver can choose from none, top, bottom, interlaced depending on whatever it thinks is approximate ... */ V4L2_FIELD_NONE = 1, /* this device has no fields ... */ V4L2_FIELD_TOP = 2, /* top field only */ V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM = 3, /* bottom field only */ V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED = 4, /* both fields interlaced */ V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB = 5, /* both fields sequential into one buffer, top-bottom order */ V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT = 6, /* same as above + bottom-top order */ V4L2_FIELD_ALTERNATE = 7, /* both fields alternating into separate buffers */

}; #define V4L2_FIELD_HAS_TOP(field) \ ((field) == V4L2_FIELD_TOP ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT) #define V4L2_FIELD_HAS_BOTTOM(field) \ ((field) == V4L2_FIELD_BOTTOM ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT) #define V4L2_FIELD_HAS_BOTH(field) \ ((field) == V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_TB ||\ (field) == V4L2_FIELD_SEQ_BT)

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enum v4l2_buf_type { V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_CAPTURE V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_OUTPUT #if 1 /*KEEP*/ /* Experimental Sliced VBI */ V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_CAPTURE V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_OUTPUT #endif V4L2_BUF_TYPE_PRIVATE }; enum v4l2_ctrl_type { V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_INTEGER V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_BOOLEAN V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_MENU V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_BUTTON }; enum v4l2_tuner_type { V4L2_TUNER_RADIO V4L2_TUNER_ANALOG_TV V4L2_TUNER_DIGITAL_TV }; enum v4l2_memory { V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR V4L2_MEMORY_OVERLAY };

= = = = =

1, 2, 3, 4, 5,

= 6, = 7, = 0x80,

= = = =

1, 2, 3, 4,

= 1, = 2, = 3,

= 1, = 2, = 3,

/* see also http://vektor.theorem.ca/graphics/ycbcr/ */ enum v4l2_colorspace { /* ITU-R 601 -- broadcast NTSC/PAL */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_SMPTE170M = 1, /* 1125-Line (US) HDTV */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_SMPTE240M

= 2,

/* HD and modern captures. */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_REC709 = 3, /* broken BT878 extents (601, luma range 16-253 instead of 16-235) */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_BT878 = 4, /* These should be useful. Assume 601 extents. */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_470_SYSTEM_M = 5, V4L2_COLORSPACE_470_SYSTEM_BG = 6, /* I know there will be cameras that send this. So, this is * unspecified chromaticities and full 0-255 on each of the * YCbCr components */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_JPEG = 7,

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/* For RGB colourspaces, this is probably a good start. */ V4L2_COLORSPACE_SRGB = 8, }; enum v4l2_priority { V4L2_PRIORITY_UNSET V4L2_PRIORITY_BACKGROUND V4L2_PRIORITY_INTERACTIVE V4L2_PRIORITY_RECORD V4L2_PRIORITY_DEFAULT }; struct v4l2_rect { __s32 left; __s32 top; __s32 width; __s32 height; }; struct v4l2_fract { __u32 numerator; __u32 denominator; }; /* D R I V E R C A P A B I L I T I E S * */ struct v4l2_capability { __u8 driver[16]; /* i.e. "bttv" */ __u8 card[32]; /* i.e. "Hauppauge WinTV" */ __u8 bus_info[32]; /* "PCI:" + pci_name(pci_dev) */ __u32 version; /* should use KERNEL_VERSION() */ __u32 capabilities; /* Device capabilities */ __u32 reserved[4]; }; /* Values for capabilities field */ #define V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_CAPTURE #define V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OUTPUT #define V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_OVERLAY #define V4L2_CAP_VBI_CAPTURE #define V4L2_CAP_VBI_OUTPUT #if 1 /*KEEP*/ #define V4L2_CAP_SLICED_VBI_CAPTURE #define V4L2_CAP_SLICED_VBI_OUTPUT #endif #define V4L2_CAP_RDS_CAPTURE #define V4L2_CAP_TUNER #define V4L2_CAP_AUDIO #define V4L2_CAP_RADIO #define V4L2_CAP_READWRITE #define V4L2_CAP_ASYNCIO #define V4L2_CAP_STREAMING

= = = = =

0, /* not initialized */ 1, 2, 3, V4L2_PRIORITY_INTERACTIVE,

0x00000001 0x00000002 0x00000004 0x00000010 0x00000020 0x00000040 0x00000080 0x00000100 0x00010000 0x00020000 0x00040000 0x01000000 0x02000000 0x04000000

/* /* /* /* /*

Is a video capture device */ Is a video output device */ Can do video overlay */ Is a raw VBI capture device */ Is a raw VBI output device */

/* Is a sliced VBI capture device */ /* Is a sliced VBI output device */ /* RDS data capture */ /* has a tuner */ /* has audio support */ /* is a radio device */ /* read/write systemcalls */ /* async I/O */ /* streaming I/O ioctls */

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/* * */

V I D E O

I M A G E

F O R M A T

struct v4l2_pix_format { __u32 __u32 __u32 enum v4l2_field __u32 __u32 enum v4l2_colorspace __u32 }; /* #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define Pixel format V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB332 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB555 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB565 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB555X V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB565X V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR24 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB24 V4L2_PIX_FMT_BGR32 V4L2_PIX_FMT_RGB32 V4L2_PIX_FMT_GREY V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU410 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YVU420 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV V4L2_PIX_FMT_UYVY V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV422P V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV411P V4L2_PIX_FMT_Y41P

width; height; pixelformat; field; bytesperline; sizeimage; colorspace; priv;

/* for padding, zero if unused */

/* private data, depends on pixelformat *

FOURCC depth Description */ v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,1) /* 8 RGB-3-3-2 v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,O) /* 16 RGB-5-5-5 v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,P) /* 16 RGB-5-6-5 v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,Q) /* 16 RGB-5-5-5 BE v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,R) /* 16 RGB-5-6-5 BE v4l2_fourcc(B,G,R,3) /* 24 BGR-8-8-8 v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,3) /* 24 RGB-8-8-8 v4l2_fourcc(B,G,R,4) /* 32 BGR-8-8-8-8 v4l2_fourcc(R,G,B,4) /* 32 RGB-8-8-8-8 v4l2_fourcc(G,R,E,Y) /* 8 Greyscale v4l2_fourcc(Y,V,U,9) /* 9 YVU 4:1:0 v4l2_fourcc(Y,V,1,2) /* 12 YVU 4:2:0 v4l2_fourcc(Y,U,Y,V) /* 16 YUV 4:2:2 v4l2_fourcc(U,Y,V,Y) /* 16 YUV 4:2:2 v4l2_fourcc(4,2,2,P) /* 16 YVU422 planar v4l2_fourcc(4,1,1,P) /* 16 YVU411 planar v4l2_fourcc(Y,4,1,P) /* 12 YUV 4:1:1

*/ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */ */

/* two planes -- one Y, one Cr + Cb interleaved */ #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV12 v4l2_fourcc(N,V,1,2) /* 12 #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_NV21 v4l2_fourcc(N,V,2,1) /* 12 /* The #define #define #define #define

Y/CbCr 4:2:0 Y/CrCb 4:2:0

*/ */

following formats are not defined in the V4L2 specification */ V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV410 v4l2_fourcc(Y,U,V,9) /* 9 YUV 4:1:0 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUV420 v4l2_fourcc(Y,U,1,2) /* 12 YUV 4:2:0 V4L2_PIX_FMT_YYUV v4l2_fourcc(Y,Y,U,V) /* 16 YUV 4:2:2 V4L2_PIX_FMT_HI240 v4l2_fourcc(H,I,2,4) /* 8 8-bit color

*/ */ */ */

/* see http://www.siliconimaging.com/RGB%20Bayer.htm */ #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_SBGGR8 v4l2_fourcc(B,A,8,1) /* /* compressed formats */ #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_MJPEG #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_JPEG #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_DV #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_MPEG /* Vendor-specific formats #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_WNVA #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_SN9C10X

BGBG.. GRGR.. */

v4l2_fourcc(M,J,P,G) v4l2_fourcc(J,P,E,G) v4l2_fourcc(d,v,s,d) v4l2_fourcc(M,P,E,G)

/* /* /* /*

Motion-JPEG JFIF JPEG 1394 MPEG

*/ */ */ */

*/ v4l2_fourcc(W,N,V,A) /* Winnov hw compress */ v4l2_fourcc(S,9,1,0) /* SN9C10x compression */

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#define V4L2_PIX_FMT_PWC1 #define V4L2_PIX_FMT_PWC2 /* F O R M A T E N U * / * struct v4l2_fmtdesc { __u32 enum v4l2_buf_type __u32 __u8 __u32 __u32 }; v4l2_fourcc(P,W,C,1) /* pwc older webcam */ v4l2_fourcc(P,W,C,2) /* pwc newer webcam */

M E R A T I O N

index; type; flags; description[32]; pixelformat; reserved[4];

/* Format number /* buffer type

*/ */

/* Description string */ /* Format fourcc */

#define V4L2_FMT_FLAG_COMPRESSED 0x0001

/* T I M E C O D E * */ struct v4l2_timecode { __u32 type; __u32 flags; __u8 frames; __u8 seconds; __u8 minutes; __u8 hours; __u8 userbits[4]; }; /* Type */ #define V4L2_TC_TYPE_24FPS #define V4L2_TC_TYPE_25FPS #define V4L2_TC_TYPE_30FPS #define V4L2_TC_TYPE_50FPS #define V4L2_TC_TYPE_60FPS

1 2 3 4 5

/* Flags */ #define V4L2_TC_FLAG_DROPFRAME 0x0001 /* "drop-frame" mode */ #define V4L2_TC_FLAG_COLORFRAME 0x0002 #define V4L2_TC_USERBITS_field 0x000C #define V4L2_TC_USERBITS_USERDEFINED 0x0000 #define V4L2_TC_USERBITS_8BITCHARS 0x0008 /* The above is based on SMPTE timecodes */

#if 1 /* M P E G C O M P R E S S I O N P A R A M E T E R S * * * ### WARNING: this is still work-in-progress right now, most likely there will be some incompatible changes. * ### * */

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enum

v4l2_bitrate_mode { V4L2_BITRATE_NONE = 0, V4L2_BITRATE_CBR, V4L2_BITRATE_VBR,

/* not specified */ /* constant bitrate */ /* variable bitrate */

}; struct v4l2_bitrate { /* rates are specified in kbit/sec */ enum v4l2_bitrate_mode mode; __u32 min; __u32 target; /* use this one for CBR */ __u32 max; }; enum v4l2_mpeg_streamtype { V4L2_MPEG_SS_1, V4L2_MPEG_PS_2, V4L2_MPEG_TS_2, V4L2_MPEG_PS_DVD, }; enum v4l2_mpeg_audiotype { V4L2_MPEG_AU_2_I, V4L2_MPEG_AU_2_II, V4L2_MPEG_AU_2_III, V4L2_MPEG_AC3, V4L2_MPEG_LPCM, }; enum v4l2_mpeg_videotype { V4L2_MPEG_VI_1, V4L2_MPEG_VI_2, }; enum v4l2_mpeg_aspectratio { V4L2_MPEG_ASPECT_SQUARE V4L2_MPEG_ASPECT_4_3 V4L2_MPEG_ASPECT_16_9 V4L2_MPEG_ASPECT_1_221 };

/* /* /* /*

MPEG-1 MPEG-2 MPEG-2 MPEG-2

system stream */ program stream */ transport stream */ program stream with DVD header fixups */

/* /* /* /* /*

MPEG-2 layer 1 */ MPEG-2 layer 2 */ MPEG-2 layer 3 */ AC3 */ LPCM */

/* MPEG-1 */ /* MPEG-2 */

= = = =

1, 2, 3, 4,

/* square pixel /* 4 : 3 /* 16 : 9 /* 1 : 2,21

*/ */ */ */

struct v4l2_mpeg_compression { /* general */ enum v4l2_mpeg_streamtype struct v4l2_bitrate /* transport streams */ __u16 __u16 __u16 __u16 /* program stream */ __u16 __u16 /* audio */ enum v4l2_mpeg_audiotype struct v4l2_bitrate

st_type; st_bitrate;

ts_pid_pmt; ts_pid_audio; ts_pid_video; ts_pid_pcr;

ps_size; reserved_1;

/* align */

au_type; au_bitrate;

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__u32 __u8 __u8 /* video */ enum v4l2_mpeg_videotype enum v4l2_mpeg_aspectratio struct v4l2_bitrate __u32 __u16 __u16 __u8 __u8 /* misc flags */ __u32 __u32 __u32 au_sample_rate; au_pesid; reserved_2[3]; /* align */

vi_type; vi_aspect_ratio; vi_bitrate; vi_frame_rate; vi_frames_per_gop; vi_bframes_count; vi_pesid; reserved_3[3]; /* align */

closed_gops:1; pulldown:1; reserved_4:30; /* align */

/* I dont expect the above being perfect yet ;) */ __u32 reserved_5[8]; }; #endif struct v4l2_jpegcompression { int quality; int APPn; /* * /* /* Number of APP segment to be written, must be 0..15 */ Length of data in JPEG APPn segment */ Data in the JPEG APPn segment. */

int APP_len; char APP_data[60]; int COM_len; char COM_data[60]; __u32 jpeg_markers;

/* Length of data in JPEG COM segment */ /* Data in JPEG COM segment */ /* * * * * * * * * Which markers should go into the JPEG output. Unless you exactly know what you do, leave them untouched. Inluding less markers will make the resulting code smaller, but there will be fewer aplications which can read it. The presence of the APP and COM marker is influenced by APP_len and COM_len ONLY, not by this property! */ /* Define Huffman Tables */ /* Define Quantization Tables */ /* Define Restart Interval */ /* Comment segment */ /* App segment, driver will * allways use APP0 */

#define #define #define #define #define };

V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_DHT V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_DQT V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_DRI V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_COM V4L2_JPEG_MARKER_APP

(1<<3) (1<<4) (1<<5) (1<<6) (1<<7)

/* *

M E M O R Y - M A P P I N G

B U F F E R S

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*/ struct v4l2_requestbuffers { __u32 enum v4l2_buf_type enum v4l2_memory __u32 }; struct v4l2_buffer { __u32 enum v4l2_buf_type __u32 __u32 enum v4l2_field struct timeval struct v4l2_timecode __u32 /* memory location */ enum v4l2_memory union { __u32 unsigned long } m; __u32 __u32 __u32 }; /* Flags for flags field */ #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_MAPPED #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_QUEUED #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_DONE #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_KEYFRAME #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_PFRAME #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_BFRAME #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_TIMECODE #define V4L2_BUF_FLAG_INPUT

count; type; memory; reserved[2];

index; type; bytesused; flags; field; timestamp; timecode; sequence;

memory; offset; userptr; length; input; reserved;

0x0001 0x0002 0x0004 0x0008 0x0010 0x0020 0x0100 0x0200

/* /* /* /* /* /* /* /*

Buffer is mapped (flag) */ Buffer is queued for processing */ Buffer is ready */ Image is a keyframe (I-frame) */ Image is a P-frame */ Image is a B-frame */ timecode field is valid */ input field is valid */

/* O V E R L A Y P R E V I E W * */ struct v4l2_framebuffer { __u32 capability; __u32 flags; /* FIXME: in theory we should pass something like PCI device + memory * region + offset instead of some physical address */ void* base; struct v4l2_pix_format fmt; }; /* Flags for the capability field. Read only */ #define V4L2_FBUF_CAP_EXTERNOVERLAY 0x0001 #define V4L2_FBUF_CAP_CHROMAKEY 0x0002 #define V4L2_FBUF_CAP_LIST_CLIPPING 0x0004

188

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

#define V4L2_FBUF_CAP_BITMAP_CLIPPING /* Flags for the flags field. */ #define V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_PRIMARY #define V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_OVERLAY #define V4L2_FBUF_FLAG_CHROMAKEY struct v4l2_clip { struct v4l2_rect struct v4l2_clip }; struct v4l2_window { struct v4l2_rect enum v4l2_field __u32 struct v4l2_clip __u32 void }; 0x0008 0x0001 0x0002 0x0004

c; *next;

w; field; chromakey; __user *clips; clipcount; __user *bitmap;

/* C A P T U R E P A R A M E T E R S * */ struct v4l2_captureparm { __u32 capability; /* Supported modes */ __u32 capturemode; /* Current mode */ struct v4l2_fract timeperframe; /* Time per frame in .1us units */ __u32 extendedmode; /* Driver-specific extensions */ __u32 readbuffers; /* # of buffers for read */ __u32 reserved[4]; }; /* Flags for capability and capturemode fields */ #define V4L2_MODE_HIGHQUALITY 0x0001 /* High quality imaging mode */ #define V4L2_CAP_TIMEPERFRAME 0x1000 /* timeperframe field is supported */ struct v4l2_outputparm { __u32 __u32 struct v4l2_fract __u32 __u32 __u32 }; /* * */

capability; outputmode; timeperframe; extendedmode; writebuffers; reserved[4];

/* /* /* /* /*

Supported modes */ Current mode */ Time per frame in seconds */ Driver-specific extensions */ # of buffers for write */

I N P U T

I M A G E

C R O P P I N G

struct v4l2_cropcap { enum v4l2_buf_type struct v4l2_rect struct v4l2_rect

type; bounds; defrect;

189

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

struct v4l2_fract }; struct v4l2_crop { enum v4l2_buf_type struct v4l2_rect }; /* * */ pixelaspect;

type; c;

A N A L O G

V I D E O

S T A N D A R D

typedef __u64 v4l2_std_id; /* one bit for each */ #define V4L2_STD_PAL_B #define V4L2_STD_PAL_B1 #define V4L2_STD_PAL_G #define V4L2_STD_PAL_H #define V4L2_STD_PAL_I #define V4L2_STD_PAL_D #define V4L2_STD_PAL_D1 #define V4L2_STD_PAL_K #define #define #define #define V4L2_STD_PAL_M V4L2_STD_PAL_N V4L2_STD_PAL_Nc V4L2_STD_PAL_60

((v4l2_std_id)0x00000001) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000002) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000004) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000008) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000010) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000020) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000040) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000080) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000100) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000200) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000400) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00000800) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00001000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00002000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00004000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00010000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00020000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00040000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00080000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00100000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00200000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00400000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x00800000)

#define V4L2_STD_NTSC_M #define V4L2_STD_NTSC_M_JP #define V4L2_STD_NTSC_443 #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define V4L2_STD_SECAM_B V4L2_STD_SECAM_D V4L2_STD_SECAM_G V4L2_STD_SECAM_H V4L2_STD_SECAM_K V4L2_STD_SECAM_K1 V4L2_STD_SECAM_L V4L2_STD_SECAM_LC

/* ATSC/HDTV */ #define V4L2_STD_ATSC_8_VSB #define V4L2_STD_ATSC_16_VSB /* some common needed stuff */ #define V4L2_STD_PAL_BG

((v4l2_std_id)0x01000000) ((v4l2_std_id)0x02000000)

#define V4L2_STD_PAL_DK

#define V4L2_STD_PAL

(V4L2_STD_PAL_B V4L2_STD_PAL_B1 V4L2_STD_PAL_G) (V4L2_STD_PAL_D V4L2_STD_PAL_D1 V4L2_STD_PAL_K) (V4L2_STD_PAL_BG V4L2_STD_PAL_DK V4L2_STD_PAL_H V4L2_STD_PAL_I)

|\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\

190

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

#define V4L2_STD_NTSC #define V4L2_STD_SECAM_DK (V4L2_STD_NTSC_M V4L2_STD_NTSC_M_JP) (V4L2_STD_SECAM_D V4L2_STD_SECAM_K V4L2_STD_SECAM_K1) (V4L2_STD_SECAM_B V4L2_STD_SECAM_G V4L2_STD_SECAM_H V4L2_STD_SECAM_DK V4L2_STD_SECAM_L) (V4L2_STD_PAL_M V4L2_STD_PAL_60 V4L2_STD_NTSC V4L2_STD_NTSC_443) (V4L2_STD_PAL V4L2_STD_PAL_N V4L2_STD_PAL_Nc V4L2_STD_SECAM) (V4L2_STD_ATSC_8_VSB V4L2_STD_ATSC_16_VSB) 0 (V4L2_STD_525_60 V4L2_STD_625_50) |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\

#define V4L2_STD_SECAM

#define V4L2_STD_525_60

|\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\

#define V4L2_STD_625_50

#define V4L2_STD_ATSC

#define V4L2_STD_UNKNOWN #define V4L2_STD_ALL

|\

struct v4l2_standard { __u32 v4l2_std_id __u8 struct v4l2_fract __u32 __u32 };

index; id; name[24]; frameperiod; /* Frames, not fields */ framelines; reserved[4];

/* V I D E O I N P U T S * / * struct v4l2_input { __u32 index; __u8 name[32]; __u32 type; __u32 audioset; __u32 tuner; v4l2_std_id std; __u32 status; __u32 reserved[4]; }; /* Values for the type field */ #define V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_TUNER #define V4L2_INPUT_TYPE_CAMERA

/* /* /* /* /*

Which input */ Label */ Type of input */ Associated audios (bitfield) */ Associated tuner */

1 2

/* field status - general */ #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_POWER 0x00000001

/* Attached device is off */

191

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

#define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_SIGNAL #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_COLOR /* field status - analog */ #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_H_LOCK #define V4L2_IN_ST_COLOR_KILL 0x00000002 0x00000004

0x00000100 0x00000200

/* No horizontal sync lock */ /* Color killer is active */

/* field status - digital */ #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_SYNC 0x00010000 #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_EQU 0x00020000 #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_CARRIER 0x00040000

/* No synchronization lock */ /* No equalizer lock */ /* Carrier recovery failed */

/* field status - VCR and set-top box */ #define V4L2_IN_ST_MACROVISION 0x01000000 /* Macrovision detected */ #define V4L2_IN_ST_NO_ACCESS 0x02000000 /* Conditional access denied */ #define V4L2_IN_ST_VTR 0x04000000 /* VTR time constant */ /* V I D E O O U T P U T S * */ struct v4l2_output { __u32 index; /* __u8 name[32]; /* __u32 type; /* __u32 audioset; /* __u32 modulator; /* v4l2_std_id std; __u32 reserved[4]; }; /* Values for the type field */ #define V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_MODULATOR #define V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_ANALOG #define V4L2_OUTPUT_TYPE_ANALOGVGAOVERLAY /* C O N T R O L S * */ struct v4l2_control { __u32 __s32 };

Which output */ Label */ Type of output */ Associated audios (bitfield) */ Associated modulator */

1 2 3

id; value;

/* Used in the VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL ioctl for querying controls */ struct v4l2_queryctrl { __u32 id; enum v4l2_ctrl_type type; __u8 name[32]; /* Whatever */ __s32 minimum; /* Note signedness */ __s32 maximum; __s32 step; __s32 default_value; __u32 flags; __u32 reserved[2]; };

192

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

/* Used in the VIDIOC_QUERYMENU ioctl for querying menu items */ struct v4l2_querymenu { __u32 id; __u32 index; __u8 name[32]; /* Whatever */ __u32 reserved; }; /* Control flags */ #define V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED #define V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_GRABBED

0x0001 0x0002

/* Control IDs defined by V4L2 */ #define V4L2_CID_BASE 0x00980900 /* IDs reserved for driver specific controls */ #define V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE 0x08000000 #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define #define V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS V4L2_CID_CONTRAST V4L2_CID_SATURATION V4L2_CID_HUE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_VOLUME V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BALANCE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BASS V4L2_CID_AUDIO_TREBLE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_MUTE V4L2_CID_AUDIO_LOUDNESS V4L2_CID_BLACK_LEVEL V4L2_CID_AUTO_WHITE_BALANCE V4L2_CID_DO_WHITE_BALANCE V4L2_CID_RED_BALANCE V4L2_CID_BLUE_BALANCE V4L2_CID_GAMMA V4L2_CID_WHITENESS V4L2_CID_EXPOSURE V4L2_CID_AUTOGAIN V4L2_CID_GAIN V4L2_CID_HFLIP V4L2_CID_VFLIP V4L2_CID_HCENTER V4L2_CID_VCENTER V4L2_CID_LASTP1 (V4L2_CID_BASE+0) (V4L2_CID_BASE+1) (V4L2_CID_BASE+2) (V4L2_CID_BASE+3) (V4L2_CID_BASE+5) (V4L2_CID_BASE+6) (V4L2_CID_BASE+7) (V4L2_CID_BASE+8) (V4L2_CID_BASE+9) (V4L2_CID_BASE+10) (V4L2_CID_BASE+11) (V4L2_CID_BASE+12) (V4L2_CID_BASE+13) (V4L2_CID_BASE+14) (V4L2_CID_BASE+15) (V4L2_CID_BASE+16) (V4L2_CID_GAMMA) /* ? Not sure */ (V4L2_CID_BASE+17) (V4L2_CID_BASE+18) (V4L2_CID_BASE+19) (V4L2_CID_BASE+20) (V4L2_CID_BASE+21) (V4L2_CID_BASE+22) (V4L2_CID_BASE+23) (V4L2_CID_BASE+24) /* last CID + 1 */

/* T U N I N G * */ struct v4l2_tuner { __u32 __u8 enum v4l2_tuner_type __u32 __u32 __u32 __u32

index; name[32]; type; capability; rangelow; rangehigh; rxsubchans;

193

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

__u32 __s32 __s32 __u32 }; struct v4l2_modulator { __u32 __u8 __u32 __u32 __u32 __u32 __u32 }; audmode; signal; afc; reserved[4];

index; name[32]; capability; rangelow; rangehigh; txsubchans; reserved[4];

/* Flags for the capability field */ #define V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LOW #define V4L2_TUNER_CAP_NORM #define V4L2_TUNER_CAP_STEREO #define V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LANG2 #define V4L2_TUNER_CAP_SAP #define V4L2_TUNER_CAP_LANG1 /* Flags for the rxsubchans field */ #define V4L2_TUNER_SUB_MONO #define V4L2_TUNER_SUB_STEREO #define V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG2 #define V4L2_TUNER_SUB_SAP #define V4L2_TUNER_SUB_LANG1 /* Values for the audmode field */ #define V4L2_TUNER_MODE_MONO #define V4L2_TUNER_MODE_STEREO #define V4L2_TUNER_MODE_LANG2 #define V4L2_TUNER_MODE_SAP #define V4L2_TUNER_MODE_LANG1 struct v4l2_frequency { __u32 enum v4l2_tuner_type __u32 __u32 }; /* A U D I O * */ struct v4l2_audio { __u32 index; __u8 name[32]; __u32 capability; __u32 mode; __u32 reserved[2];

0x0001 0x0002 0x0010 0x0020 0x0020 0x0040

0x0001 0x0002 0x0004 0x0004 0x0008

0x0000 0x0001 0x0002 0x0002 0x0003

tuner; type; frequency; reserved[8];

194

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

}; /* Flags for the capability field */ #define V4L2_AUDCAP_STEREO 0x00001 #define V4L2_AUDCAP_AVL 0x00002 /* Flags for the mode field */ #define V4L2_AUDMODE_AVL #define V4L2_AUDMODE_32BITS struct v4l2_audioout { __u32 index; __u8 name[32]; __u32 capability; __u32 mode; __u32 reserved[2]; }; /* * * * */

0x00001 0x00002

D A T A

S E R V I C E S

( V B I )

Data services API by Michael Schimek

/* Raw VBI */ struct v4l2_vbi_format { __u32 sampling_rate; __u32 offset; __u32 samples_per_line; __u32 sample_format; __s32 start[2]; __u32 count[2]; __u32 flags; __u32 reserved[2]; }; /* VBI flags */ #define V4L2_VBI_UNSYNC #define V4L2_VBI_INTERLACED

/* in 1 Hz */

/* V4L2_PIX_FMT_* */

/* V4L2_VBI_* */ /* must be zero */

(1<< 0) (1<< 1)

#if 1 /*KEEP*/ /* Sliced VBI * This implements is a proposal V4L2 API to allow SLICED VBI * * required for some hardware encoders. It should change without * notice in the definitive implementation. */ struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_format { __u16 service_set; /* service_lines[0][...] specifies lines 0-23 (1-23 used) of the first field service_lines[1][...] specifies lines 0-23 (1-23 used) of the second field (equals frame lines 313-336 for 625 line video standards, 263-286 for 525 line standards) */

195

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

__u16 __u32 __u32 }; #define #define #define #define V4L2_SLICED_TELETEXT_B V4L2_SLICED_VPS V4L2_SLICED_CAPTION_525 V4L2_SLICED_WSS_625 (0x0001) (0x0400) (0x1000) (0x4000) service_lines[2][24]; io_size; reserved[2];

/* must be zero */

#define V4L2_SLICED_VBI_525 #define V4L2_SLICED_VBI_625

(V4L2_SLICED_CAPTION_525) (V4L2_SLICED_TELETEXT_B | V4L2_SLICED_VPS | V4L2_

struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_cap { __u16 service_set; /* service_lines[0][...] specifies lines 0-23 (1-23 used) of the first field service_lines[1][...] specifies lines 0-23 (1-23 used) of the second field (equals frame lines 313-336 for 625 line video standards, 263-286 for 525 line standards) */ __u16 service_lines[2][24]; __u32 reserved[4]; /* must be 0 */ }; struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_data { __u32 id; __u32 field; __u32 line; __u32 reserved; __u8 data[48]; }; #endif /* * */

/* 0: first field, 1: second field */ /* 1-23 */ /* must be 0 */

A G G R E G A T E

S T R U C T U R E S

/* Stream data format / * struct v4l2_format { enum v4l2_buf_type type; union { struct v4l2_pix_format struct v4l2_window struct v4l2_vbi_format #if 1 /*KEEP*/ struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_format #endif __u8 raw_data[200]; } fmt; };

pix; win; vbi; sliced;

// V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE // V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OVERLAY // V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VBI_CAPTURE

// V4L2_BUF_TYPE_SLICED_VBI_CAPT // user-defined

/*

Stream type-dependent parameters

196

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

*/ struct v4l2_streamparm { enum v4l2_buf_type type; union { struct v4l2_captureparm capture; struct v4l2_outputparm output; __u8 raw_data[200]; /* user-defined */ } parm; };

/* I O C T L C O D E S * * */ #define VIDIOC_QUERYCAP #define VIDIOC_RESERVED #define VIDIOC_ENUM_FMT #define VIDIOC_G_FMT #define VIDIOC_S_FMT #if 1 /* experimental */ #define VIDIOC_G_MPEGCOMP #define VIDIOC_S_MPEGCOMP #endif #define VIDIOC_REQBUFS #define VIDIOC_QUERYBUF #define VIDIOC_G_FBUF #define VIDIOC_S_FBUF #define VIDIOC_OVERLAY #define VIDIOC_QBUF #define VIDIOC_DQBUF #define VIDIOC_STREAMON #define VIDIOC_STREAMOFF #define VIDIOC_G_PARM #define VIDIOC_S_PARM #define VIDIOC_G_STD #define VIDIOC_S_STD #define VIDIOC_ENUMSTD #define VIDIOC_ENUMINPUT #define VIDIOC_G_CTRL #define VIDIOC_S_CTRL #define VIDIOC_G_TUNER #define VIDIOC_S_TUNER #define VIDIOC_G_AUDIO #define VIDIOC_S_AUDIO #define VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL #define VIDIOC_QUERYMENU #define VIDIOC_G_INPUT #define VIDIOC_S_INPUT #define VIDIOC_G_OUTPUT #define VIDIOC_S_OUTPUT #define VIDIOC_ENUMOUTPUT #define VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT #define VIDIOC_S_AUDOUT

F O R

V I D E O

D E V I C E S

_IOR _IO _IOWR _IOWR _IOWR _IOR _IOW _IOWR _IOWR _IOR _IOW _IOW _IOWR _IOWR _IOW _IOW _IOWR _IOWR _IOR _IOW _IOWR _IOWR _IOWR _IOWR _IOWR _IOW _IOR _IOW _IOWR _IOWR _IOR _IOWR _IOR _IOWR _IOWR _IOR _IOW

(V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V,

0, 1) 2, 4, 5,

struct v4l2_capability) struct v4l2_fmtdesc) struct v4l2_format) struct v4l2_format)

6, struct v4l2_mpeg_compression) 7, struct v4l2_mpeg_compression) 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, struct v4l2_requestbuffers) struct v4l2_buffer) struct v4l2_framebuffer) struct v4l2_framebuffer) int) struct v4l2_buffer) struct v4l2_buffer) int) int) struct v4l2_streamparm) struct v4l2_streamparm) v4l2_std_id) v4l2_std_id) struct v4l2_standard) struct v4l2_input) struct v4l2_control) struct v4l2_control) struct v4l2_tuner) struct v4l2_tuner) struct v4l2_audio) struct v4l2_audio) struct v4l2_queryctrl) struct v4l2_querymenu) int) int) int) int) struct v4l2_output) struct v4l2_audioout) struct v4l2_audioout)

197

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

#define VIDIOC_G_MODULATOR #define VIDIOC_S_MODULATOR #define VIDIOC_G_FREQUENCY #define VIDIOC_S_FREQUENCY #define VIDIOC_CROPCAP #define VIDIOC_G_CROP #define VIDIOC_S_CROP #define VIDIOC_G_JPEGCOMP #define VIDIOC_S_JPEGCOMP #define VIDIOC_QUERYSTD #define VIDIOC_TRY_FMT #define VIDIOC_ENUMAUDIO #define VIDIOC_ENUMAUDOUT #define VIDIOC_G_PRIORITY #define VIDIOC_S_PRIORITY #if 1 /*KEEP*/ #define VIDIOC_G_SLICED_VBI_CAP #endif #define VIDIOC_LOG_STATUS _IOWR _IOW _IOWR _IOW _IOWR _IOWR _IOW _IOR _IOW _IOR _IOWR _IOWR _IOWR _IOR _IOW _IOR _IO (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, (V, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, struct v4l2_modulator) struct v4l2_modulator) struct v4l2_frequency) struct v4l2_frequency) struct v4l2_cropcap) struct v4l2_crop) struct v4l2_crop) struct v4l2_jpegcompression) struct v4l2_jpegcompression) v4l2_std_id) struct v4l2_format) struct v4l2_audio) struct v4l2_audioout) enum v4l2_priority) enum v4l2_priority)

(V, 69, struct v4l2_sliced_vbi_cap) (V, 70) */ 14, 22, 28, 33, 49, 58,

/* for compatibility, will go away some day #define VIDIOC_OVERLAY_OLD _IOWR (V, #define VIDIOC_S_PARM_OLD _IOW (V, #define VIDIOC_S_CTRL_OLD _IOW (V, #define VIDIOC_G_AUDIO_OLD _IOWR (V, #define VIDIOC_G_AUDOUT_OLD _IOWR (V, #define VIDIOC_CROPCAP_OLD _IOR (V, #define BASE_VIDIOC_PRIVATE 192

int) struct struct struct struct struct

v4l2_streamparm) v4l2_control) v4l2_audio) v4l2_audioout) v4l2_cropcap)

/* 192-255 are private */

#ifdef __KERNEL__ /* * V 4 L 2 D R I V E R H E L P E R A P I * * Some commonly needed functions for drivers (v4l2-common.o module) * */ #include <linux/fs.h> /* Video standard functions */ extern unsigned int v4l2_video_std_fps(struct v4l2_standard *vs); extern int v4l2_video_std_construct(struct v4l2_standard *vs, int id, char *name); /* prority handling */ struct v4l2_prio_state { atomic_t prios[4]; }; int v4l2_prio_init(struct v4l2_prio_state *global); int v4l2_prio_change(struct v4l2_prio_state *global, enum v4l2_priority *local, enum v4l2_priority new); int v4l2_prio_open(struct v4l2_prio_state *global, enum v4l2_priority *local); int v4l2_prio_close(struct v4l2_prio_state *global, enum v4l2_priority *local); enum v4l2_priority v4l2_prio_max(struct v4l2_prio_state *global); int v4l2_prio_check(struct v4l2_prio_state *global, enum v4l2_priority *local);

198

Appendix A. Video For Linux Two Header File

/* names for fancy debug output */ extern char *v4l2_field_names[]; extern char *v4l2_type_names[]; extern char *v4l2_ioctl_names[]; /* Compatibility layer interface -- v4l1-compat module */ typedef int (*v4l2_kioctl)(struct inode *inode, struct file *file, unsigned int cmd, void *arg); int v4l_compat_translate_ioctl(struct inode *inode, struct file *file, int cmd, void *arg, v4l2_kioctl driver_ioctl); #endif /* __KERNEL__ */ #endif /* __LINUX_VIDEODEV2_H */ /* * Local variables: * c-basic-offset: 8 * End: */

199

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

/* * V4L2 video capture example * * This program can be used and distributed without restrictions. */ #include #include #include #include <stdio.h> <stdlib.h> <string.h> <assert.h> /* getopt_long() */ /* low-level i/o */

#include <getopt.h> #include #include #include #include #include #include #include #include <fcntl.h> <unistd.h> <errno.h> <sys/stat.h> <sys/types.h> <sys/time.h> <sys/mman.h> <sys/ioctl.h>

#include <asm/types.h> #include <linux/videodev2.h>

/* for videodev2.h */

#define CLEAR(x) memset (&(x), 0, sizeof (x)) typedef enum { IO_METHOD_READ, IO_METHOD_MMAP, IO_METHOD_USERPTR, } io_method; struct buffer { void * size_t }; static static static struct static char * io_method int buffer * unsigned int

start; length;

dev_name io fd buffers n_buffers

= = = = =

NULL; IO_METHOD_MMAP; -1; NULL; 0;

static void errno_exit (const char * { fprintf (stderr, "%s error %d, %s\n", s, errno, strerror (errno));

s)

200

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } static int xioctl

(int int void *

fd, request, arg)

{ int r; do r = ioctl (fd, request, arg); while (-1 == r && EINTR == errno); return r; } static void process_image { fputc (., stdout); fflush (stdout); }

(const void *

p)

static int read_frame (void) { struct v4l2_buffer buf; unsigned int i; switch (io) { case IO_METHOD_READ: if (-1 == read (fd, buffers[0].start, buffers[0].length)) { switch (errno) { case EAGAIN: return 0; case EIO: /* Could ignore EIO, see spec. */ /* fall through */ default: errno_exit ("read"); } } process_image (buffers[0].start); break; case IO_METHOD_MMAP: CLEAR (buf); buf.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; buf.memory = V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP; if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_DQBUF, &buf)) {

201

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

switch (errno) { case EAGAIN: return 0; case EIO: /* Could ignore EIO, see spec. */ /* fall through */ default: errno_exit ("VIDIOC_DQBUF"); } } assert (buf.index < n_buffers); process_image (buffers[buf.index].start); if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QBUF, &buf)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_QBUF"); break; case IO_METHOD_USERPTR: CLEAR (buf); buf.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; buf.memory = V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR; if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_DQBUF, &buf)) { switch (errno) { case EAGAIN: return 0; case EIO: /* Could ignore EIO, see spec. */ /* fall through */ default: errno_exit ("VIDIOC_DQBUF"); } } for (i = 0; i < n_buffers; ++i) if (buf.m.userptr == (unsigned long) buffers[i].start && buf.length == buffers[i].length) break; assert (i < n_buffers); process_image ((void *) buf.m.userptr); if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QBUF, &buf)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_QBUF"); break;

202

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

} return 1; } static void mainloop { unsigned int count; count = 100; while (count-- > 0) { for (;;) { fd_set fds; struct timeval tv; int r; FD_ZERO (&fds); FD_SET (fd, &fds); /* Timeout. */ tv.tv_sec = 2; tv.tv_usec = 0; r = select (fd + 1, &fds, NULL, NULL, &tv); if (-1 == r) { if (EINTR == errno) continue; errno_exit ("select"); } if (0 == r) { fprintf (stderr, "select timeout\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } if (read_frame ()) break; /* EAGAIN - continue select loop. */ } } } static void stop_capturing (void) { enum v4l2_buf_type type; switch (io) { case IO_METHOD_READ: /* Nothing to do. */ break;

(void)

203

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

case IO_METHOD_MMAP: case IO_METHOD_USERPTR: type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF, &type)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_STREAMOFF"); break; } } static void start_capturing (void) { unsigned int i; enum v4l2_buf_type type; switch (io) { case IO_METHOD_READ: /* Nothing to do. */ break; case IO_METHOD_MMAP: for (i = 0; i < n_buffers; ++i) { struct v4l2_buffer buf; CLEAR (buf); buf.type buf.memory buf.index = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; = V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP; = i;

if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QBUF, &buf)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_QBUF"); } type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_STREAMON, &type)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_STREAMON"); break; case IO_METHOD_USERPTR: for (i = 0; i < n_buffers; ++i) { struct v4l2_buffer buf; CLEAR (buf); buf.type buf.memory buf.m.userptr buf.length = = = = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR; (unsigned long) buffers[i].start; buffers[i].length;

if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QBUF, &buf)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_QBUF"); }

204

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_STREAMON, &type)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_STREAMON"); break; } } static void uninit_device { unsigned int i;

(void)

switch (io) { case IO_METHOD_READ: free (buffers[0].start); break; case IO_METHOD_MMAP: for (i = 0; i < n_buffers; ++i) if (-1 == munmap (buffers[i].start, buffers[i].length)) errno_exit ("munmap"); break; case IO_METHOD_USERPTR: for (i = 0; i < n_buffers; ++i) free (buffers[i].start); break; } free (buffers); } static void init_read (unsigned int { buffers = calloc (1, sizeof (*buffers)); if (!buffers) { fprintf (stderr, "Out of memory\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } buffers[0].length = buffer_size; buffers[0].start = malloc (buffer_size); if (!buffers[0].start) { fprintf (stderr, "Out of memory\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } static void init_mmap

buffer_size)

(void)

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Appendix B. Video Capture Example

{ struct v4l2_requestbuffers req; CLEAR (req); req.count req.type req.memory = 4; = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; = V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP;

if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_REQBUFS, &req)) { if (EINVAL == errno) { fprintf (stderr, "%s does not support " "memory mapping\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } else { errno_exit ("VIDIOC_REQBUFS"); } } if (req.count < 2) { fprintf (stderr, "Insufficient buffer memory on %s\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } buffers = calloc (req.count, sizeof (*buffers)); if (!buffers) { fprintf (stderr, "Out of memory\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } for (n_buffers = 0; n_buffers < req.count; ++n_buffers) { struct v4l2_buffer buf; CLEAR (buf); buf.type buf.memory buf.index = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; = V4L2_MEMORY_MMAP; = n_buffers;

if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYBUF, &buf)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_QUERYBUF"); buffers[n_buffers].length = buf.length; buffers[n_buffers].start = mmap (NULL /* start anywhere */, buf.length, PROT_READ | PROT_WRITE /* required */, MAP_SHARED /* recommended */, fd, buf.m.offset); if (MAP_FAILED == buffers[n_buffers].start) errno_exit ("mmap"); } }

206

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

static void init_userp (unsigned int { struct v4l2_requestbuffers req; CLEAR (req); req.count req.type req.memory = 4; = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; = V4L2_MEMORY_USERPTR;

buffer_size)

if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_REQBUFS, &req)) { if (EINVAL == errno) { fprintf (stderr, "%s does not support " "user pointer i/o\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } else { errno_exit ("VIDIOC_REQBUFS"); } } buffers = calloc (4, sizeof (*buffers)); if (!buffers) { fprintf (stderr, "Out of memory\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } for (n_buffers = 0; n_buffers < 4; ++n_buffers) { buffers[n_buffers].length = buffer_size; buffers[n_buffers].start = malloc (buffer_size); if (!buffers[n_buffers].start) { fprintf (stderr, "Out of memory\n"); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } } static void init_device (void) { struct v4l2_capability cap; struct v4l2_cropcap cropcap; struct v4l2_crop crop; struct v4l2_format fmt; unsigned int min; if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_QUERYCAP, &cap)) { if (EINVAL == errno) { fprintf (stderr, "%s is no V4L2 device\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } else { errno_exit ("VIDIOC_QUERYCAP"); } }

207

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

if (!(cap.capabilities & V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_CAPTURE)) { fprintf (stderr, "%s is no video capture device\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } switch (io) { case IO_METHOD_READ: if (!(cap.capabilities & V4L2_CAP_READWRITE)) { fprintf (stderr, "%s does not support read i/o\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } break; case IO_METHOD_MMAP: case IO_METHOD_USERPTR: if (!(cap.capabilities & V4L2_CAP_STREAMING)) { fprintf (stderr, "%s does not support streaming i/o\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } break; }

/* Select video input, video standard and tune here. */

CLEAR (cropcap); cropcap.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; if (0 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_CROPCAP, &cropcap)) { crop.type = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; crop.c = cropcap.defrect; /* reset to default */ if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_CROP, &crop)) { switch (errno) { case EINVAL: /* Cropping not supported. */ break; default: /* Errors ignored. */ break; } } } else { /* Errors ignored. */ }

CLEAR (fmt);

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Appendix B. Video Capture Example

fmt.type fmt.fmt.pix.width fmt.fmt.pix.height fmt.fmt.pix.pixelformat fmt.fmt.pix.field = = = = = V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_CAPTURE; 640; 480; V4L2_PIX_FMT_YUYV; V4L2_FIELD_INTERLACED;

if (-1 == xioctl (fd, VIDIOC_S_FMT, &fmt)) errno_exit ("VIDIOC_S_FMT"); /* Note VIDIOC_S_FMT may change width and height. */ /* Buggy driver paranoia. */ min = fmt.fmt.pix.width * 2; if (fmt.fmt.pix.bytesperline < min) fmt.fmt.pix.bytesperline = min; min = fmt.fmt.pix.bytesperline * fmt.fmt.pix.height; if (fmt.fmt.pix.sizeimage < min) fmt.fmt.pix.sizeimage = min; switch (io) { case IO_METHOD_READ: init_read (fmt.fmt.pix.sizeimage); break; case IO_METHOD_MMAP: init_mmap (); break; case IO_METHOD_USERPTR: init_userp (fmt.fmt.pix.sizeimage); break; } } static void close_device (void) { if (-1 == close (fd)) errno_exit ("close"); fd = -1; } static void open_device { struct stat st;

(void)

if (-1 == stat (dev_name, &st)) { fprintf (stderr, "Cannot identify %s: %d, %s\n", dev_name, errno, strerror (errno)); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } if (!S_ISCHR (st.st_mode)) { fprintf (stderr, "%s is no device\n", dev_name); exit (EXIT_FAILURE);

209

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

} fd = open (dev_name, O_RDWR /* required */ | O_NONBLOCK, 0); if (-1 == fd) { fprintf (stderr, "Cannot open %s: %d, %s\n", dev_name, errno, strerror (errno)); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } static void usage

(FILE * int char **

fp, argc, argv)

{ fprintf (fp, "Usage: %s [options]\n\n" "Options:\n" "-d | --device name Video device name [/dev/video]\n" "-h | --help Print this message\n" "-m | --mmap Use memory mapped buffers\n" "-r | --read Use read() calls\n" "-u | --userp Use application allocated buffers\n" "", argv[0]); } static const char short_options [] = "d:hmru"; static const struct option long_options [] = { { "device", required_argument, { "help", no_argument, { "mmap", no_argument, { "read", no_argument, { "userp", no_argument, { 0, 0, 0, 0 } }; int main { dev_name = "/dev/video"; for (;;) { int index; int c; c = getopt_long (argc, argv, short_options, long_options, &index); if (-1 == c) break;

NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL,

d h m r u

}, }, }, }, },

(int char **

argc, argv)

210

Appendix B. Video Capture Example

switch (c) { case 0: /* getopt_long() flag */ break; case d: dev_name = optarg; break; case h: usage (stdout, argc, argv); exit (EXIT_SUCCESS); case m: io = IO_METHOD_MMAP; break; case r: io = IO_METHOD_READ; break; case u: io = IO_METHOD_USERPTR; break; default: usage (stderr, argc, argv); exit (EXIT_FAILURE); } } open_device (); init_device (); start_capturing (); mainloop (); stop_capturing (); uninit_device (); close_device (); exit (EXIT_SUCCESS); return 0; }

211

Appendix C. GNU Free Documentation License

C.1. 0. PREAMBLE
The purpose of this License is to make a manual, textbook, or other written document free in the sense of freedom: to assure everyone the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it, with or without modifying it, either commercially or noncommercially. Secondarily, this License preserves for the author and publisher a way to get credit for their work, while not being considered responsible for modications made by others. This License is a kind of copyleft, which means that derivative works of the document must themselves be free in the same sense. It complements the GNU General Public License, which is a copyleft license designed for free software. We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for free software, because free software needs free documentation: a free program should come with manuals providing the same freedoms that the software does. But this License is not limited to software manuals; it can be used for any textual work, regardless of subject matter or whether it is published as a printed book. We recommend this License principally for works whose purpose is instruction or reference.

C.2. 1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS

This License applies to any manual or other work that contains a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it can be distributed under the terms of this License. The Document, below, refers to any such manual or work. Any member of the public is a licensee, and is addressed as you. A Modied Version of the Document means any work containing the Document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with modications and/or translated into another language. A Secondary Section is a named appendix or a front-matter section of the Document that deals exclusively with the relationship of the publishers or authors of the Document to the Documents overall subject (or to related matters) and contains nothing that could fall directly within that overall subject. (For example, if the Document is in part a textbook of mathematics, a Secondary Section may not explain any mathematics.) The relationship could be a matter of historical connection with the subject or with related matters, or of legal, commercial, philosophical, ethical or political position regarding them. The Invariant Sections are certain Secondary Sections whose titles are designated, as being those of Invariant Sections, in the notice that says that the Document is released under this License. The Cover Texts are certain short passages of text that are listed, as Front-Cover Texts or Back-Cover Texts, in the notice that says that the Document is released under this License. A Transparent copy of the Document means a machine-readable copy, represented in a format whose specication is available to the general public, whose contents can be viewed and edited directly and straightforwardly with generic text editors or (for images composed of pixels) generic paint programs or (for drawings) some widely available drawing editor, and that is suitable for input

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Appendix C. GNU Free Documentation License to text formatters or for automatic translation to a variety of formats suitable for input to text formatters. A copy made in an otherwise Transparent le format whose markup has been designed to thwart or discourage subsequent modication by readers is not Transparent. A copy that is not Transparent is called Opaque. Examples of suitable formats for Transparent copies include plain ASCII without markup, Texinfo input format, LaTeX input format, SGML or XML using a publicly available DTD, and standard-conforming simple HTML designed for human modication. Opaque formats include PostScript, PDF, proprietary formats that can be read and edited only by proprietary word processors, SGML or XML for which the DTD and/or processing tools are not generally available, and the machine-generated HTML produced by some word processors for output purposes only. The Title Page means, for a printed book, the title page itself, plus such following pages as are needed to hold, legibly, the material this License requires to appear in the title page. For works in formats which do not have any title page as such, Title Page means the text near the most prominent appearance of the works title, preceding the beginning of the body of the text.

C.3. 2. VERBATIM COPYING

You may copy and distribute the Document in any medium, either commercially or noncommercially, provided that this License, the copyright notices, and the license notice saying this License applies to the Document are reproduced in all copies, and that you add no other conditions whatsoever to those of this License. You may not use technical measures to obstruct or control the reading or further copying of the copies you make or distribute. However, you may accept compensation in exchange for copies. If you distribute a large enough number of copies you must also follow the conditions in section 3. You may also lend copies, under the same conditions stated above, and you may publicly display copies.

C.4. 3. COPYING IN QUANTITY

If you publish printed copies of the Document numbering more than 100, and the Documents license notice requires Cover Texts, you must enclose the copies in covers that carry, clearly and legibly, all these Cover Texts: Front-Cover Texts on the front cover, and Back-Cover Texts on the back cover. Both covers must also clearly and legibly identify you as the publisher of these copies. The front cover must present the full title with all words of the title equally prominent and visible. You may add other material on the covers in addition. Copying with changes limited to the covers, as long as they preserve the title of the Document and satisfy these conditions, can be treated as verbatim copying in other respects. If the required texts for either cover are too voluminous to t legibly, you should put the rst ones listed (as many as t reasonably) on the actual cover, and continue the rest onto adjacent pages. If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document numbering more than 100, you must either include a machine-readable Transparent copy along with each Opaque copy, or state in or with each Opaque copy a publicly-accessible computer-network location containing a complete Transparent copy of the Document, free of added material, which the general network-using public has access to download anonymously at no charge using public-standard network protocols. If you use the latter option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you begin distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that this Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated

213

Appendix C. GNU Free Documentation License location until at least one year after the last time you distribute an Opaque copy (directly or through your agents or retailers) of that edition to the public. It is requested, but not required, that you contact the authors of the Document well before redistributing any large number of copies, to give them a chance to provide you with an updated version of the Document.

C.5. 4. MODIFICATIONS
You may copy and distribute a Modied Version of the Document under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release the Modied Version under precisely this License, with the Modied Version lling the role of the Document, thus licensing distribution and modication of the Modied Version to whoever possesses a copy of it. In addition, you must do these things in the Modied Version: A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title distinct from that of the Document, and from those of previous versions (which should, if there were any, be listed in the History section of the Document). You may use the same title as a previous version if the original publisher of that version gives permission. B. List on the Title Page, as authors, one or more persons or entities responsible for authorship of the modications in the Modied Version, together with at least ve of the principal authors of the Document (all of its principal authors, if it has less than ve). C. State on the Title Page the name of the publisher of the Modied Version, as the publisher. D. Preserve all the copyright notices of the Document. E. Add an appropriate copyright notice for your modications adjacent to the other copyright notices. F. Include, immediately after the copyright notices, a license notice giving the public permission to use the Modied Version under the terms of this License, in the form shown in the Addendum below. G. Preserve in that license notice the full lists of Invariant Sections and required Cover Texts given in the Documents license notice. H. Include an unaltered copy of this License. I. Preserve the section entitled History, and its title, and add to it an item stating at least the title, year, new authors, and publisher of the Modied Version as given on the Title Page. If there is no section entitled History in the Document, create one stating the title, year, authors, and publisher of the Document as given on its Title Page, then add an item describing the Modied Version as stated in the previous sentence. J. Preserve the network location, if any, given in the Document for public access to a Transparent copy of the Document, and likewise the network locations given in the Document for previous versions it was based on. These may be placed in the History section. You may omit a network location for a work that was published at least four years before the Document itself, or if the original publisher of the version it refers to gives permission. K. In any section entitled Acknowledgements or Dedications, preserve the sections title, and preserve in the section all the substance and tone of each of the contributor acknowledgements and/or dedications given therein.

214

Appendix C. GNU Free Documentation License L. Preserve all the Invariant Sections of the Document, unaltered in their text and in their titles. Section numbers or the equivalent are not considered part of the section titles. M. Delete any section entitled Endorsements. Such a section may not be included in the Modied Version. N. Do not retitle any existing section as Endorsements or to conict in title with any Invariant Section. If the Modied Version includes new front-matter sections or appendices that qualify as Secondary Sections and contain no material copied from the Document, you may at your option designate some or all of these sections as invariant. To do this, add their titles to the list of Invariant Sections in the Modied Versions license notice. These titles must be distinct from any other section titles. You may add a section entitled Endorsements, provided it contains nothing but endorsements of your Modied Version by various parties--for example, statements of peer review or that the text has been approved by an organization as the authoritative denition of a standard. You may add a passage of up to ve words as a Front-Cover Text, and a passage of up to 25 words as a Back-Cover Text, to the end of the list of Cover Texts in the Modied Version. Only one passage of Front-Cover Text and one of Back-Cover Text may be added by (or through arrangements made by) any one entity. If the Document already includes a cover text for the same cover, previously added by you or by arrangement made by the same entity you are acting on behalf of, you may not add another; but you may replace the old one, on explicit permission from the previous publisher that added the old one. The author(s) and publisher(s) of the Document do not by this License give permission to use their names for publicity for or to assert or imply endorsement of any Modied Version .

C.6. 5. COMBINING DOCUMENTS

You may combine the Document with other documents released under this License, under the terms dened in section 4 above for modied versions, provided that you include in the combination all of the Invariant Sections of all of the original documents, unmodied, and list them all as Invariant Sections of your combined work in its license notice. The combined work need only contain one copy of this License, and multiple identical Invariant Sections may be replaced with a single copy. If there are multiple Invariant Sections with the same name but different contents, make the title of each such section unique by adding at the end of it, in parentheses, the name of the original author or publisher of that section if known, or else a unique number. Make the same adjustment to the section titles in the list of Invariant Sections in the license notice of the combined work. In the combination, you must combine any sections entitled History in the various original documents, forming one section entitled History; likewise combine any sections entitled Acknowledgements, and any sections entitled Dedications. You must delete all sections entitled Endorsements.

C.7. 6. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS

You may make a collection consisting of the Document and other documents released under this License, and replace the individual copies of this License in the various documents with a single

215

Appendix C. GNU Free Documentation License copy that is included in the collection, provided that you follow the rules of this License for verbatim copying of each of the documents in all other respects. You may extract a single document from such a collection, and dispbibute it individually under this License, provided you insert a copy of this License into the extracted document, and follow this License in all other respects regarding verbatim copying of that document.

C.8. 7. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS

A compilation of the Document or its derivatives with other separate and independent documents or works, in or on a volume of a storage or distribution medium, does not as a whole count as a Modied Version of the Document, provided no compilation copyright is claimed for the compilation. Such a compilation is called an aggregate, and this License does not apply to the other self-contained works thus compiled with the Document , on account of their being thus compiled, if they are not themselves derivative works of the Document. If the Cover Text requirement of section 3 is applicable to these copies of the Document, then if the Document is less than one quarter of the entire aggregate, the Documents Cover Texts may be placed on covers that surround only the Document within the aggregate. Otherwise they must appear on covers around the whole aggregate.

C.9. 8. TRANSLATION
Translation is considered a kind of modication, so you may distribute translations of the Document under the terms of section 4. Replacing Invariant Sections with translations requires special permission from their copyright holders, but you may include translations of some or all Invariant Sections in addition to the original versions of these Invariant Sections. You may include a translation of this License provided that you also include the original English version of this License. In case of a disagreement between the translation and the original English version of this License, the original English version will prevail.

C.10. 9. TERMINATION
You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Document except as expressly provided for under this License. Any other attempt to copy, modify, sublicense or distribute the Document is void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this License. However, parties who have received copies, or rights, from you under this License will not have their licenses terminated so long as such parties remain in full compliance.

C.11. 10. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE

The Free Software Foundation (http://www.gnu.org/fsf/fsf.html) may publish new, revised versions of the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time. Such new versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to address new problems or concerns. See http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/ (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft). Each version of the License is given a distinguishing version number. If the Document species that a particular numbered version of this License or any later version applies to it, you have the option of following the terms and conditions either of that specied version or of any later version that has

216

Appendix C. GNU Free Documentation License been published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation. If the Document does not specify a version number of this License, you may choose any version ever published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation.

C.12. Addendum
To use this License in a document you have written, include a copy of the License in the document and put the following copyright and license notices just after the title page:
Copyright YEAR YOUR NAME. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the Invariant Sections being LIST THEIR TITLES, with the Front-Cover Texts being LIST, and with the Back-Cover Texts being LIST. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled GNU Free Documentation License.

If you have no Invariant Sections, write with no Invariant Sections instead of saying which ones are invariant. If you have no Front-Cover Texts, write no Front-Cover Texts instead of Front-Cover Texts being LIST; likewise for Back-Cover Texts. If your document contains nontrivial examples of program code, we recommend releasing these examples in parallel under your choice of free software license, such as the GNU General Public License (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html), to permit their use in free software.

217

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[EIA608] Electronic Industries Alliance (http://www.eia.org), EIA 608 "Recommended Practice for Line 21 Data Service". [ITU470] International Telecommunication Union (http://www.itu.ch), ITU-R Recommendation BT.470-6 "Conventional Television Systems". [ITU601] International Telecommunication Union (http://www.itu.ch), ITU-R Recommendation BT.601-5 "Studio Encoding Parameters of Digital Television for Standard 4:3 and Wide-Screen 16:9 Aspect Ratios". [ITU709] International Telecommunication Union (http://www.itu.ch), ITU-R Recommendation BT.709-5 "Parameter values for the HDTV standards for production and international programme exchange". [JFIF] Independent JPEG Group (http://www.ijg.org), JPEG File Interchange Format: Version 1.02. [SMPTE12M] Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (http://www.smpte.org), SMPTE 12M-1999 "Television, Audio and Film - Time and Control Code". [SMPTE170M] Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (http://www.smpte.org), SMPTE 170M-1999 "Television - Composite Analog Video Signal - NTSC for Studio Applications". [SMPTE240M] Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (http://www.smpte.org), SMPTE 240M-1999 "Television - Signal Parameters - 1125-Line High-Denition Production". [TELETEXT] European Telecommunication Standards Institute (http://www.etsi.org), ETS 300 706 "Enhanced Teletext specication". [V4L] Alan Cox, Video4Linux API Specication. This le is part of the Linux kernel sources under Documentation/video4linux.

[V4LPROG] Alan Cox, Video4Linux Programming (a.k.a. The Video4Linux Book), 2000. About V4L driver programming. This book is part of the Linux kernel DocBook documentation, for example at http://kernelnewbies.org/documents/. SGML sources are included in the kernel sources.

[VPS] European Telecommunication Standards Institute (http://www.etsi.org), ETS 300 231 "Specication of the domestic video Programme Delivery Control system (PDC)". [WSS] International Telecommunication Union (http://www.itu.ch), European Telecommunication Standards Institute (http://www.etsi.org), ITU-R Recommendation BT.1119, EN 300 294 "625-line television Wide Screen Signalling (WSS)".

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