Stream

The Stream module contains functionality to work with real-time sources of data (so-called streams). Examples include image streams (“Image Stream”) such as webcams or ultrasound devices, and sources of real-time tracking data such as optical or electro-magnetic tracking systems or robots (“Tracking Stream”). This module comes with central capabilities to handle such real-time data in the ImFusion Suite and is needed as foundation in all plugins implementing interfaces to real-time data sources.

In general, the Stream module adds the following functionalities to the ImFusion Suite:

  • Data structures for streams, most notably ImageStream and TrackingStream

  • ImageStreamCache: a component that allows to visualize image streams directly in 2D and 3D views

  • Support for loading both cameras (standard operating system video sources) as well as video files as streams

  • An OpenIGTLink implementation for bi-directional image and tracking stream support

  • A high-level algorithm to record data received from streams into offline data structures for further processing

  • Fake image and tracking streams for testing purposes

On the foundation of this plugin, dedicated plugins are available to be purchased for specific hardware:

Imaging Plugins

  • RGB-D plugin supporting a wide range of RGB-D cameras

  • Cephasonics plugin: full high- and low-level support for Cephasonics Cicada ultrasound devices

  • Clarius plugin: Cast (only receiving) and Solum (receiving and commanding) APIs for Clarius ultrasound devices

  • GE AppAPI plugin: support for receiving images from all GE ultrasound devices with the data streaming option (commercially available currently only recent Vivid scanners)

  • BK plugin: support for receiving image from BK Medical ultrasound scanners

  • Epiphan plugin: support for DVI2USB frame grabbers (note: recent AV.io frame grabbers register as standard video source to the OS)

Tracking Plugins

  • NDI plugin: NDI Aurora (electro-magnetic) and Polaris (optical) as well as Ascension trakSTAR (electro-magnetic) tracking systems

  • Atracsys plugin: fusionTrack and spryTrack tracking systems (both optical)

  • OptiTrack plugin: any OptiTrack optical tracking system (beta stage)