Image Acquisition Toolbox

Acquire images and video from industry-standard hardware

Image Acquisition Toolbox provides functions and blocks for connecting cameras to MATLAB and Simulink. It includes a MATLAB app that lets you interactively detect and configure hardware properties. You can then generate equivalent MATLAB code to automate your acquisition in future sessions. The toolbox enables acquisition modes such as processing in-the-loop, hardware triggering, background acquisition, and synchronizing acquisition across multiple devices.

Image Acquisition Toolbox supports all major standards and hardware vendors, including USB3 Vision, GigE Vision^®, and GenICam™ GenTL. You can connect to machine vision cameras and frame grabbers, as well as high-end scientific and industrial devices.

What Is Image Acquisition Toolbox?

Imaging Standards

Image Acquisition Toolbox supports major vision standards, including GenICam GenTL, GigE Vision, and UVC (USB Video Class/OS Generic Video Interface on Windows, Mac, and Linux) over physical interfaces such as USB2, USB3, CoaXPress, IEEE1394 DCAM/IIDC – FireWire, Camera Link, and PCIe.

Image Acquisition Using GigE Vision Cameras with MATLAB (53:39)

Documentation | Examples

Point Grey camera showcased as an example of hardware supported by Image Acquisition Toolbox.

Imaging Hardware

Connect to a variety of scientific and industrial cameras, area scan cameras, line scan cameras, USB3 Vision cameras, USB webcams, frame grabbers, Kinect, and hardware vendor SDKs. Supports acquisition of various types of images such as high dynamic range (HDR), optical, depth, polarization, thermal infrared, and short-wave infrared (SWIR).

Hardware Support from Image Acquisition Toolbox

Documentation | Examples

Classifying normal and anomalous pills from live images using Image Acquisition Toolbox.

Visual Inspection

Develop, verify, and validate algorithm design for visual inspection applications using live images and videos from real hardware.

Miba AG Develops AI-Powered Quality Inspection System

Documentation | Examples

Screenshot from Image Acquisition Explorer app showing preview of a video stream.

App for Image and Video Acquisition

Connect, preview, configure, and acquire image and video data using the Image Acquisition Explorer app. Create custom apps using App Designer. Deploy custom apps with MATLAB Compiler for execution on systems that do not have MATLAB installed.

Image Acquisition Explorer Overview

Documentation | Examples

Screenshot of 10 images of an hourglass with sand trickling down, averaged over time showcasing the use of callbacks, triggering, and logging features.

Triggering and Customizing Acquisition

Trigger video and image acquisition from internal or external events and sources. Use event callbacks to perform processing in response to events. Integrate callback functions into responsive, custom apps. Continuously acquire and process video and image data in the background with logging capabilities.

Averaging Images over Time

Documentation | Examples

Simulink blocks with live video acquisition for barcode recognition system.

Imaging System Design and Code Generation

Acquire live video and image data into Simulink models to design imaging systems. C and C++ code generation from MATLAB and Simulink is supported for Desktop Hosts to acquire live images and video.

Barcode Recognition Using Live Video Acquisition

Documentation | Examples

GUI analysis tool developed to acquire and process hyperspectral images to measure oxygen saturation.

Medical Imaging

Acquire, analyze, and visualize medical images, and develop imaging algorithms for a wide range of medical devices.

The University of Nottingham and AstraZeneca Research and Development Charnwood Accelerate Clinical Research of Anti-Inflammatory Drugs

Examples

Scientific Imaging

Connect to scientific cameras to acquire images and perform scientific studies in astrophotography, neuroscience, and microscopy such as astronomical phenomena, neuroimaging, and AI-powered microscopy respectively.

Image Processing and AI-Based Lightsheet Microscopy Tool

Blogs

Lawrence Livermore Achieves Fusion Ignition Using MATLAB

Automotive and Industrial Applications

Acquire images and video for use with sensor fusion, lidar, machine learning, and deep learning algorithms. Augment decision making processes and develop vision-based applications such as maintenance systems and Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS).

Albatroz Engineering Develops Automated, Real-Time Power Line Inspection System

Examples

Product Resources:

Documentation Examples Videos Technical articles Functions Blocks Hardware support Requirements Release notes

The University of Nottingham and AstraZeneca Research and Development Charnwood Accelerate Clinical Research of Anti-Inflammatory Drugs

“Image Acquisition Toolbox is about three times faster than previous methods [to capture a hyperspectral image]. Image Acquisition Toolbox also gives us complete control of the camera hardware, so we will see bigger gains by acquiring only the regions and spectra we need.”
Paul Rodmell, University of Nottingham

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