Configuration

The Configuration tab consists of 3 areas, which are described individually below:

Configuration 1:

Filter elements

Configuration 2:

With the help of filter elements, features can be found quickly and easily in the configuration tree and in the Initialization Commands list:

Configuration 7:

Controls

Configuration 8:

The functions of the buttons from left to right are:

Read Camera Parameters

All parameter values are read from the camera and written to the configuration tree. This must first be confirmed by the following dialog:

Configuration 9:

Write Local Changes

All local parameter values that deviate from the camera values (marked in orange in the configuration tree), are written to the camera.

Revert Local Changes

Any local changes in the feature tree that have not yet been written to the camera will be reset.

Configuration tree

The configuration tree contains three main groups:

Configuration 10:

Camera Features Information

Three pieces of information about the Camera Features are displayed above the configuration table:

Configuration 11:

If you click a feature in the configuration tree, the properties of the feature will be displayed underneath the tree.

Setting of parameters

Changeable features can be changed via a text box, a slider, a combo box or a checkbox. Read-only features are grayed out. The following buttons are available for every changeable configuration element:

Configuration 12: Write Value
Writes the local change to the camera.

Configuration 13: Reset Value
Deletes the local change if there is a difference between the local and camera value.

Configuration 14: Load Value
Loads the current value of the parameter from the camera.

If the set parameter value deviates from the actual value on the camera, the parameter and higher-level elements in the configuration tree will be marked in orange. In addition, the lines with changes are marked with an icon and the deviation is displayed in the properties window. An orange "Changes" note above the table generally indicates changes in the list.

Configuration 15:

Offline changes

The parameters in the configuration tree are also changeable if the camera is offline or if the target is in Run mode. In this case the parameters are not written directly to the camera, but only saved in the project. As a result of this, it is possible to make offline parameter changes that can be synchronized with the camera at a later time.

Feature properties

The properties of the individual features are displayed underneath the configuration tree. This includes the size and address of the respective camera register, access rights and a description.

Configuration 16:

Property

Description

Name

Name of the parameter.

Value

Local value of the parameter. If the local value deviates from the camera value, the camera value is additionally displayed in orange.

Address

Hexadecimal address of the parameter on the camera

Length

Size of the parameter in bytes

Endianness

Byte sequence of the parameter. This property must be observed when using the function blocks FB_VN_ReadRegister and FB_VN_WriteRegister.

Sign

  • Signed: Parameter is signed
  • Unsigned: Parameter is unsigned

Cachable

Specifies whether the parameter value is cached when no camera is connected.

  • WriteThrough: The value is written both to the camera and to the project cache and project memory.
  • NoCache: According to the GenAPI description of the camera, the value of this camera parameter should not be saved locally. Therefore, this parameter may be empty if there is no camera connection.

Access

Access rights for reading and writing this parameter on the camera.

RegisterValue

Register value of the parameter. This can deviate from the displayed value if it is a known type. Example:

Name: PixelFormat

Value: BayerRG8

RegisterValue: 13

RegisterType

Data type of the register. This type indicates which of the read / write function blocks is to be used.

Visibility

Visibility level of the parameter. Possible values: Beginner, Expert, Guru and All

The visibility of parameters can be set with the filter elements.

DisplayName

Name of the feature to be displayed.

Description

Meaning of the parameter

These properties are required, for example, if a parameter is to be read or changed from the PLC. Essentially, attention must be paid to Address, Length, Endianness and RegisterValue. The corresponding function blocks can be found in the API reference under Camera Register Access.

Depending on the data type of a register, further properties such as Min/Max/Increment may be added.

Selectors

Selectors are parameters that are used for the grouping and selection of several sub-features. In order to use a sub-feature, the Selector parameter must first be set to suit (both in the configuration assistant and in the PLC).

If a Selector parameter has no address property, it does not point to a camera register. It then serves merely to provide a clearer display in the configuration assistant. In this case the sub-parameters can be changed directly from the PLC.

In order to take into account all sub-parameters of a Selector when creating the Initialization Commands, iteration takes place automatically over all sub-features. A corresponding setting can be found in Actions & settings. An example of a Selector is the Trigger Selector:

Configuration 17: