User ControlsDevices 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 defines
several IDs for specific purposes. Drivers can also implement their
own custom controls using V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASE
and higher values. The pre-defined control IDs have the prefix
V4L2_CID_, and are listed in . 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 specific panel application. Predefined
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.It will be more convenient for applications if drivers
make use of the V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_DISABLED flag, but
that was never required. Control values are stored globally, they do not
change when switching except to stay within the reported bounds. They
also do not change ⪚ when the device is opened or closed, when the
tuner radio frequency is changed or generally never without
application request. Since V4L2 specifies 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.Applications could call an ioctl to request events.
After another process called &VIDIOC-S-CTRL; or another ioctl changing
shared properties the &func-select; function would indicate
readability until any ioctl (querying the properties) is
called.
All controls use machine endianness.
Control IDs
&cs-def;
IDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_BASEFirst predefined ID, equal to
V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS.V4L2_CID_USER_BASESynonym of V4L2_CID_BASE.V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESSintegerPicture brightness, or more precisely, the black
level.V4L2_CID_CONTRASTintegerPicture contrast or luma gain.V4L2_CID_SATURATIONintegerPicture color saturation or chroma gain.V4L2_CID_HUEintegerHue or color balance.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_VOLUMEintegerOverall audio volume. Note some drivers also
provide an OSS or ALSA mixer interface.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BALANCEintegerAudio stereo balance. Minimum corresponds to all
the way left, maximum to right.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_BASSintegerAudio bass adjustment.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_TREBLEintegerAudio treble adjustment.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_MUTEbooleanMute audio, &ie; 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_AUDIO_LOUDNESSbooleanLoudness mode (bass boost).V4L2_CID_BLACK_LEVELintegerAnother name for brightness (not a synonym of
V4L2_CID_BRIGHTNESS). This control is deprecated
and should not be used in new drivers and applications.V4L2_CID_AUTO_WHITE_BALANCEbooleanAutomatic white balance (cameras).V4L2_CID_DO_WHITE_BALANCEbuttonThis 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.V4L2_CID_RED_BALANCEintegerRed chroma balance.V4L2_CID_BLUE_BALANCEintegerBlue chroma balance.V4L2_CID_GAMMAintegerGamma adjust.V4L2_CID_WHITENESSintegerWhiteness for grey-scale devices. This is a synonym
for V4L2_CID_GAMMA. This control is deprecated
and should not be used in new drivers and applications.V4L2_CID_EXPOSUREintegerExposure (cameras). [Unit?]V4L2_CID_AUTOGAINbooleanAutomatic gain/exposure control.V4L2_CID_GAINintegerGain control.V4L2_CID_HFLIPbooleanMirror the picture horizontally.V4L2_CID_VFLIPbooleanMirror the picture vertically.V4L2_CID_HCENTER_DEPRECATED (formerly V4L2_CID_HCENTER)integerHorizontal image centering. This control is
deprecated. New drivers and applications should use the Camera class controls
V4L2_CID_PAN_ABSOLUTE,
V4L2_CID_PAN_RELATIVE and
V4L2_CID_PAN_RESET instead.V4L2_CID_VCENTER_DEPRECATED
(formerly V4L2_CID_VCENTER)integerVertical image centering. Centering is intended to
physically adjust cameras. For image cropping see
, for clipping . This
control is deprecated. New drivers and applications should use the
Camera class controls
V4L2_CID_TILT_ABSOLUTE,
V4L2_CID_TILT_RELATIVE and
V4L2_CID_TILT_RESET instead.V4L2_CID_POWER_LINE_FREQUENCYenumEnables a power line frequency filter to avoid
flicker. Possible values for enum v4l2_power_line_frequency are:
V4L2_CID_POWER_LINE_FREQUENCY_DISABLED (0),
V4L2_CID_POWER_LINE_FREQUENCY_50HZ (1) and
V4L2_CID_POWER_LINE_FREQUENCY_60HZ (2).V4L2_CID_HUE_AUTObooleanEnables automatic hue control by the device. The
effect of setting V4L2_CID_HUE while automatic
hue control is enabled is undefined, drivers should ignore such
request.V4L2_CID_WHITE_BALANCE_TEMPERATUREintegerThis control specifies the white balance settings
as a color temperature in Kelvin. A driver should have a minimum of
2800 (incandescent) to 6500 (daylight). For more information about
color temperature see Wikipedia.V4L2_CID_SHARPNESSintegerAdjusts the sharpness filters in a camera. The
minimum value disables the filters, higher values give a sharper
picture.V4L2_CID_BACKLIGHT_COMPENSATIONintegerAdjusts the backlight compensation in a camera. The
minimum value disables backlight compensation.V4L2_CID_CHROMA_AGCbooleanChroma automatic gain control.V4L2_CID_CHROMA_GAINintegerAdjusts the Chroma gain control (for use when chroma AGC
is disabled).V4L2_CID_COLOR_KILLERbooleanEnable the color killer (&ie; force a black & white image in case of a weak video signal).V4L2_CID_COLORFXenumSelects a color effect. Possible values for
enum v4l2_colorfx are:
V4L2_COLORFX_NONE (0),
V4L2_COLORFX_BW (1),
V4L2_COLORFX_SEPIA (2),
V4L2_COLORFX_NEGATIVE (3),
V4L2_COLORFX_EMBOSS (4),
V4L2_COLORFX_SKETCH (5),
V4L2_COLORFX_SKY_BLUE (6),
V4L2_COLORFX_GRASS_GREEN (7),
V4L2_COLORFX_SKIN_WHITEN (8) and
V4L2_COLORFX_VIVID (9).V4L2_CID_ROTATEintegerRotates the image by specified angle. Common angles are 90,
270 and 180. Rotating the image to 90 and 270 will reverse the height
and width of the display window. It is necessary to set the new height and
width of the picture using the &VIDIOC-S-FMT; ioctl according to
the rotation angle selected.V4L2_CID_BG_COLORintegerSets the background color on the current output device.
Background color needs to be specified in the RGB24 format. The
supplied 32 bit value is interpreted as bits 0-7 Red color information,
bits 8-15 Green color information, bits 16-23 Blue color
information and bits 24-31 must be zero.V4L2_CID_ILLUMINATORS_1V4L2_CID_ILLUMINATORS_2booleanSwitch on or off the illuminator 1 or 2 of the device
(usually a microscope).V4L2_CID_LASTP1End of the predefined control IDs (currently
V4L2_CID_ILLUMINATORS_2 + 1).V4L2_CID_MIN_BUFFERS_FOR_CAPTUREintegerThis is a read-only control that can be read by the application
and used as a hint to determine the number of CAPTURE buffers to pass to REQBUFS.
The value is the minimum number of CAPTURE buffers that is necessary for hardware
to work.V4L2_CID_MIN_BUFFERS_FOR_OUTPUTintegerThis is a read-only control that can be read by the application
and used as a hint to determine the number of OUTPUT buffers to pass to REQBUFS.
The value is the minimum number of OUTPUT buffers that is necessary for hardware
to work.V4L2_CID_PRIVATE_BASEID of the first custom (driver specific) control.
Applications depending on particular custom controls should check the
driver name and version, see .
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.Enumerating all controls
&v4l2-queryctrl; queryctrl;
&v4l2-querymenu; querymenu;
static void
enumerate_menu (void)
{
printf (" Menu items:\n");
memset (&querymenu, 0, sizeof (querymenu));
querymenu.id = queryctrl.id;
for (querymenu.index = queryctrl.minimum;
querymenu.index <= queryctrl.maximum;
querymenu.index++) {
if (0 == ioctl (fd, &VIDIOC-QUERYMENU;, &querymenu)) {
printf (" %s\n", querymenu.name);
}
}
}
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);
}
}
Changing controls
&v4l2-queryctrl; queryctrl;
&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);
Extended ControlsIntroductionThe control mechanism as originally designed was meant
to be used for user settings (brightness, saturation, etc). However,
it turned out to be a very useful model for implementing more
complicated driver APIs where each driver implements only a subset of
a larger API.The MPEG encoding API was the driving force behind
designing and implementing this extended control mechanism: the MPEG
standard is quite large and the currently supported hardware MPEG
encoders each only implement a subset of this standard. Further more,
many parameters relating to how the video is encoded into an MPEG
stream are specific to the MPEG encoding chip since the MPEG standard
only defines the format of the resulting MPEG stream, not how the
video is actually encoded into that format.Unfortunately, the original control API lacked some
features needed for these new uses and so it was extended into the
(not terribly originally named) extended control API.Even though the MPEG encoding API was the first effort
to use the Extended Control API, nowadays there are also other classes
of Extended Controls, such as Camera Controls and FM Transmitter Controls.
The Extended Controls API as well as all Extended Controls classes are
described in the following text.The Extended Control APIThree new ioctls are available: &VIDIOC-G-EXT-CTRLS;,
&VIDIOC-S-EXT-CTRLS; and &VIDIOC-TRY-EXT-CTRLS;. These ioctls act on
arrays of controls (as opposed to the &VIDIOC-G-CTRL; and
&VIDIOC-S-CTRL; ioctls that act on a single control). This is needed
since it is often required to atomically change several controls at
once.Each of the new ioctls expects a pointer to a
&v4l2-ext-controls;. This structure contains a pointer to the control
array, a count of the number of controls in that array and a control
class. Control classes are used to group similar controls into a
single class. For example, control class
V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_USER contains all user controls
(&ie; all controls that can also be set using the old
VIDIOC_S_CTRL ioctl). Control class
V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_MPEG contains all controls
relating to MPEG encoding, etc.All controls in the control array must belong to the
specified control class. An error is returned if this is not the
case.It is also possible to use an empty control array (count
== 0) to check whether the specified control class is
supported.The control array is a &v4l2-ext-control; array. The
v4l2_ext_control structure is very similar to
&v4l2-control;, except for the fact that it also allows for 64-bit
values and pointers to be passed.It is important to realize that due to the flexibility of
controls it is necessary to check whether the control you want to set
actually is supported in the driver and what the valid range of values
is. So use the &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL; and &VIDIOC-QUERYMENU; ioctls to
check this. Also note that it is possible that some of the menu
indices in a control of type V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_MENU
may not be supported (VIDIOC_QUERYMENU will
return an error). A good example is the list of supported MPEG audio
bitrates. Some drivers only support one or two bitrates, others
support a wider range.
All controls use machine endianness.
Enumerating Extended ControlsThe recommended way to enumerate over the extended
controls is by using &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL; in combination with the
V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL flag:
&v4l2-queryctrl; qctrl;
qctrl.id = V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL;
while (0 == ioctl (fd, &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL;, &qctrl)) {
/* ... */
qctrl.id |= V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL;
}
The initial control ID is set to 0 ORed with the
V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL flag. The
VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL ioctl will return the first
control with a higher ID than the specified one. When no such controls
are found an error is returned.If you want to get all controls within a specific control
class, then you can set the initial
qctrl.id value to the control class and add
an extra check to break out of the loop when a control of another
control class is found:
qctrl.id = V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_MPEG | V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL;
while (0 == ioctl (fd, &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL;, &qctrl)) {
if (V4L2_CTRL_ID2CLASS (qctrl.id) != V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_MPEG)
break;
/* ... */
qctrl.id |= V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL;
}
The 32-bit qctrl.id value is
subdivided into three bit ranges: the top 4 bits are reserved for
flags (⪚ V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL) and are not
actually part of the ID. The remaining 28 bits form the control ID, of
which the most significant 12 bits define the control class and the
least significant 16 bits identify the control within the control
class. It is guaranteed that these last 16 bits are always non-zero
for controls. The range of 0x1000 and up are reserved for
driver-specific controls. The macro
V4L2_CTRL_ID2CLASS(id) returns the control class
ID based on a control ID.If the driver does not support extended controls, then
VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL will fail when used in
combination with V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_NEXT_CTRL. In
that case the old method of enumerating control should be used (see
1.8). But if it is supported, then it is guaranteed to enumerate over
all controls, including driver-private controls.Creating Control PanelsIt is possible to create control panels for a graphical
user interface where the user can select the various controls.
Basically you will have to iterate over all controls using the method
described above. Each control class starts with a control of type
V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_CTRL_CLASS.
VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL will return the name of this
control class which can be used as the title of a tab page within a
control panel.The flags field of &v4l2-queryctrl; also contains hints on
the behavior of the control. See the &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL; documentation
for more details.MPEG Control ReferenceBelow all controls within the MPEG control class are
described. First the generic controls, then controls specific for
certain hardware.Generic MPEG Controls
MPEG Control IDsIDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_MPEG_CLASSclassThe MPEG class
descriptor. Calling &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL; for this control will return a
description of this control class. This description can be used as the
caption of a Tab page in a GUI, for example.V4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_TYPEenum v4l2_mpeg_stream_typeThe MPEG-1, -2 or -4
output stream type. One cannot assume anything here. Each hardware
MPEG encoder tends to support different subsets of the available MPEG
stream types. This control is specific to multiplexed MPEG streams.
The currently defined stream types are:V4L2_MPEG_STREAM_TYPE_MPEG2_PSMPEG-2 program streamV4L2_MPEG_STREAM_TYPE_MPEG2_TSMPEG-2 transport streamV4L2_MPEG_STREAM_TYPE_MPEG1_SSMPEG-1 system streamV4L2_MPEG_STREAM_TYPE_MPEG2_DVDMPEG-2 DVD-compatible streamV4L2_MPEG_STREAM_TYPE_MPEG1_VCDMPEG-1 VCD-compatible streamV4L2_MPEG_STREAM_TYPE_MPEG2_SVCDMPEG-2 SVCD-compatible streamV4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_PID_PMTintegerProgram Map Table
Packet ID for the MPEG transport stream (default 16)V4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_PID_AUDIOintegerAudio Packet ID for
the MPEG transport stream (default 256)V4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_PID_VIDEOintegerVideo Packet ID for
the MPEG transport stream (default 260)V4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_PID_PCRintegerPacket ID for the
MPEG transport stream carrying PCR fields (default 259)V4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_PES_ID_AUDIOintegerAudio ID for MPEG
PESV4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_PES_ID_VIDEOintegerVideo ID for MPEG
PESV4L2_CID_MPEG_STREAM_VBI_FMTenum v4l2_mpeg_stream_vbi_fmtSome cards can embed
VBI data (⪚ Closed Caption, Teletext) into the MPEG stream. This
control selects whether VBI data should be embedded, and if so, what
embedding method should be used. The list of possible VBI formats
depends on the driver. The currently defined VBI format types
are:V4L2_MPEG_STREAM_VBI_FMT_NONENo VBI in the MPEG streamV4L2_MPEG_STREAM_VBI_FMT_IVTVVBI in private packets, IVTV format (documented
in the kernel sources in the file Documentation/video4linux/cx2341x/README.vbi)V4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_SAMPLING_FREQenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_sampling_freqMPEG Audio sampling
frequency. Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_SAMPLING_FREQ_4410044.1 kHzV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_SAMPLING_FREQ_4800048 kHzV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_SAMPLING_FREQ_3200032 kHzV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_ENCODINGenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_encodingMPEG Audio encoding.
This control is specific to multiplexed MPEG streams.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_ENCODING_LAYER_1MPEG-1/2 Layer I encodingV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_ENCODING_LAYER_2MPEG-1/2 Layer II encodingV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_ENCODING_LAYER_3MPEG-1/2 Layer III encodingV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_ENCODING_AACMPEG-2/4 AAC (Advanced Audio Coding)V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_ENCODING_AC3AC-3 aka ATSC A/52 encodingV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATEenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_l1_bitrateMPEG-1/2 Layer I bitrate.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_32K32 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_64K64 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_96K96 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_128K128 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_160K160 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_192K192 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_224K224 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_256K256 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_288K288 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_320K320 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_352K352 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_384K384 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_416K416 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L1_BITRATE_448K448 kbit/sV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATEenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_l2_bitrateMPEG-1/2 Layer II bitrate.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_32K32 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_48K48 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_56K56 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_64K64 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_80K80 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_96K96 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_112K112 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_128K128 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_160K160 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_192K192 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_224K224 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_256K256 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_320K320 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L2_BITRATE_384K384 kbit/sV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATEenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_l3_bitrateMPEG-1/2 Layer III bitrate.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_32K32 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_40K40 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_48K48 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_56K56 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_64K64 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_80K80 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_96K96 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_112K112 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_128K128 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_160K160 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_192K192 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_224K224 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_256K256 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_L3_BITRATE_320K320 kbit/sV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_AAC_BITRATEintegerAAC bitrate in bits per second.V4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATEenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_ac3_bitrateAC-3 bitrate.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_32K32 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_40K40 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_48K48 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_56K56 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_64K64 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_80K80 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_96K96 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_112K112 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_128K128 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_160K160 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_192K192 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_224K224 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_256K256 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_320K320 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_384K384 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_448K448 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_512K512 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_576K576 kbit/sV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_AC3_BITRATE_640K640 kbit/sV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_modeMPEG Audio mode.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_STEREOStereoV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_JOINT_STEREOJoint StereoV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_DUALBilingualV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_MONOMonoV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_EXTENSIONenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_mode_extensionJoint Stereo
audio mode extension. In Layer I and II they indicate which subbands
are in intensity stereo. All other subbands are coded in stereo. Layer
III is not (yet) supported. Possible values
are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_EXTENSION_BOUND_4Subbands 4-31 in intensity stereoV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_EXTENSION_BOUND_8Subbands 8-31 in intensity stereoV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_EXTENSION_BOUND_12Subbands 12-31 in intensity stereoV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_MODE_EXTENSION_BOUND_16Subbands 16-31 in intensity stereoV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_EMPHASISenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_emphasisAudio Emphasis.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_EMPHASIS_NONENoneV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_EMPHASIS_50_DIV_15_uS50/15 microsecond emphasisV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_EMPHASIS_CCITT_J17CCITT J.17V4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_CRCenum v4l2_mpeg_audio_crcCRC method. Possible
values are:V4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_CRC_NONENoneV4L2_MPEG_AUDIO_CRC_CRC1616 bit parity checkV4L2_CID_MPEG_AUDIO_MUTEbooleanMutes the audio when
capturing. This is not done by muting audio hardware, which can still
produce a slight hiss, but in the encoder itself, guaranteeing a fixed
and reproducible audio bitstream. 0 = unmuted, 1 = muted.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_ENCODINGenum v4l2_mpeg_video_encodingMPEG Video encoding
method. This control is specific to multiplexed MPEG streams.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ENCODING_MPEG_1MPEG-1 Video encodingV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ENCODING_MPEG_2MPEG-2 Video encodingV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ENCODING_MPEG_4_AVCMPEG-4 AVC (H.264) Video encodingV4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_ASPECTenum v4l2_mpeg_video_aspectVideo aspect.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ASPECT_1x1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ASPECT_4x3V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ASPECT_16x9V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_ASPECT_221x100V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_B_FRAMESintegerNumber of B-Frames
(default 2)V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_GOP_SIZEintegerGOP size (default
12)V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_GOP_CLOSUREbooleanGOP closure (default
1)V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_PULLDOWNbooleanEnable 3:2 pulldown
(default 0)V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_BITRATE_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_video_bitrate_modeVideo bitrate mode.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_BITRATE_MODE_VBRVariable bitrateV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_BITRATE_MODE_CBRConstant bitrateV4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_BITRATEintegerVideo bitrate in bits
per second.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_BITRATE_PEAKintegerPeak video bitrate in
bits per second. Must be larger or equal to the average video bitrate.
It is ignored if the video bitrate mode is set to constant
bitrate.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_TEMPORAL_DECIMATIONintegerFor every captured
frame, skip this many subsequent frames (default 0).V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MUTEboolean"Mutes" the video to a
fixed color when capturing. This is useful for testing, to produce a
fixed video bitstream. 0 = unmuted, 1 = muted.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MUTE_YUVintegerSets the "mute" color
of the video. The supplied 32-bit integer is interpreted as follows (bit
0 = least significant bit):Bit 0:7V chrominance informationBit 8:15U chrominance informationBit 16:23Y luminance informationBit 24:31Must be zero.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_DECODER_SLICE_INTERFACEbooleanIf enabled the decoder expects to receive a single slice per buffer, otherwise
the decoder expects a single frame in per buffer. Applicable to the decoder, all codecs.
V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_ENABLEbooleanEnable writing sample aspect ratio in the Video Usability Information.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDCenum v4l2_mpeg_video_h264_vui_sar_idcVUI sample aspect ratio indicator for H.264 encoding. The value
is defined in the table E-1 in the standard. Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_UNSPECIFIEDUnspecifiedV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_1x11x1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_12x1112x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_10x1110x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_16x1116x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_40x3340x33V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_24x1124x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_20x1120x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_32x1132x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_80x3380x33V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_18x1118x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_15x1115x11V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_64x3364x33V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_160x99160x99V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_4x34x3V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_3x23x2V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_2x12x1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_SAR_IDC_EXTENDEDExtended SARV4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_EXT_SAR_WIDTHintegerExtended sample aspect ratio width for H.264 VUI encoding.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_VUI_EXT_SAR_HEIGHTintegerExtended sample aspect ratio height for H.264 VUI encoding.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVELenum v4l2_mpeg_video_h264_levelThe level information for the H264 video elementary stream.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_1_0Level 1.0V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_1BLevel 1BV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_1_1Level 1.1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_1_2Level 1.2V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_1_3Level 1.3V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_2_0Level 2.0V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_2_1Level 2.1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_2_2Level 2.2V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_3_0Level 3.0V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_3_1Level 3.1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_3_2Level 3.2V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_4_0Level 4.0V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_4_1Level 4.1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_4_2Level 4.2V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_5_0Level 5.0V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LEVEL_5_1Level 5.1V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_LEVELenum v4l2_mpeg_video_mpeg4_levelThe level information for the MPEG4 elementary stream.
Applicable to the MPEG4 encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_0Level 0V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_0BLevel 0bV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_1Level 1V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_2Level 2V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_3Level 3V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_3BLevel 3bV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_4Level 4V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_LEVEL_5Level 5V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILEenum v4l2_mpeg_h264_profileThe profile information for H264.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_BASELINEBaseline profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_CONSTRAINED_BASELINEConstrained Baseline profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_MAINMain profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_EXTENDEDExtended profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGHHigh profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGH_10High 10 profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGH_422High 422 profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGH_444_PREDICTIVEHigh 444 Predictive profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGH_10_INTRAHigh 10 Intra profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGH_422_INTRAHigh 422 Intra profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_HIGH_444_INTRAHigh 444 Intra profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_CAVLC_444_INTRACAVLC 444 Intra profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_SCALABLE_BASELINEScalable Baseline profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_SCALABLE_HIGHScalable High profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_SCALABLE_HIGH_INTRAScalable High Intra profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_STEREO_HIGHStereo High profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_PROFILE_MULTIVIEW_HIGHMultiview High profileV4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_PROFILEenum v4l2_mpeg_mpeg4_profileThe profile information for MPEG4.
Applicable to the MPEG4 encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_PROFILE_SIMPLESimple profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_PROFILE_ADVANCED_SIMPLEAdvanced Simple profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_PROFILE_CORECore profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_PROFILE_SIMPLE_SCALABLESimple Scalable profileV4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_PROFILE_ADVANCED_CODING_EFFICIENCYV4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MAX_REF_PICintegerThe maximum number of reference pictures used for encoding.
Applicable to the encoder.
V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_multi_slice_modeDetermines how the encoder should handle division of frame into slices.
Applicable to the encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE_SINGLESingle slice per frame.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE_MAX_MBMultiple slices with set maximum number of macroblocks per slice.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE_MAX_BYTESMultiple slice with set maximum size in bytes per slice.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MAX_MBintegerThe maximum number of macroblocks in a slice. Used when
V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE is set to V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE_MAX_MB.
Applicable to the encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MAX_BYTESintegerThe maximum size of a slice in bytes. Used when
V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE is set to V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_MULTI_SLICE_MODE_MAX_BYTES.
Applicable to the encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LOOP_FILTER_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_h264_loop_filter_modeLoop filter mode for H264 encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LOOP_FILTER_MODE_ENABLEDLoop filter is enabled.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LOOP_FILTER_MODE_DISABLEDLoop filter is disabled.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LOOP_FILTER_MODE_DISABLED_AT_SLICE_BOUNDARYLoop filter is disabled at the slice boundary.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LOOP_FILTER_ALPHAintegerLoop filter alpha coefficient, defined in the H264 standard.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_LOOP_FILTER_BETAintegerLoop filter beta coefficient, defined in the H264 standard.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_ENTROPY_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_h264_symbol_modeEntropy coding mode for H264 - CABAC/CAVALC.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_ENTROPY_MODE_CAVLCUse CAVLC entropy coding.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_ENTROPY_MODE_CABACUse CABAC entropy coding.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_8X8_TRANSFORMbooleanEnable 8X8 transform for H264. Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_CYCLIC_INTRA_REFRESH_MBintegerCyclic intra macroblock refresh. This is the number of continuous macroblocks
refreshed every frame. Each frame a succesive set of macroblocks is refreshed until the cycle completes and starts from the
top of the frame. Applicable to H264, H263 and MPEG4 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_FRAME_RC_ENABLEbooleanFrame level rate control enable.
If this control is disabled then the quantization parameter for each frame type is constant and set with appropriate controls
(e.g. V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_I_FRAME_QP).
If frame rate control is enabled then quantization parameter is adjusted to meet the chosen bitrate. Minimum and maximum value
for the quantization parameter can be set with appropriate controls (e.g. V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_MIN_QP).
Applicable to encoders.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MB_RC_ENABLEbooleanMacroblock level rate control enable.
Applicable to the MPEG4 and H264 encoders.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_QPELbooleanQuarter pixel motion estimation for MPEG4. Applicable to the MPEG4 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_I_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an I frame for H263. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_MIN_QPintegerMinimum quantization parameter for H263. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_MAX_QPintegerMaximum quantization parameter for H263. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_P_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an P frame for H263. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H263_B_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an B frame for H263. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_I_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an I frame for H264. Valid range: from 0 to 51.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_MIN_QPintegerMinimum quantization parameter for H264. Valid range: from 0 to 51.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_MAX_QPintegerMaximum quantization parameter for H264. Valid range: from 0 to 51.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_P_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an P frame for H264. Valid range: from 0 to 51.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_B_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an B frame for H264. Valid range: from 0 to 51.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_I_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an I frame for MPEG4. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_MIN_QPintegerMinimum quantization parameter for MPEG4. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_MAX_QPintegerMaximum quantization parameter for MPEG4. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_P_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an P frame for MPEG4. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_B_FRAME_QPintegerQuantization parameter for an B frame for MPEG4. Valid range: from 1 to 31.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_VBV_SIZEintegerThe Video Buffer Verifier size in kilobytes, it is used as a limitation of frame skip.
The VBV is defined in the standard as a mean to verify that the produced stream will be succesfully decoded.
The standard describes it as "Part of a hypothetical decoder that is conceptually connected to the
output of the encoder. Its purpose is to provide a constraint on the variability of the data rate that an
encoder or editing process may produce.".
Applicable to the MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4 encoders.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_CPB_SIZEintegerThe Coded Picture Buffer size in kilobytes, it is used as a limitation of frame skip.
The CPB is defined in the H264 standard as a mean to verify that the produced stream will be succesfully decoded.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_H264_I_PERIODintegerPeriod between I-frames in the open GOP for H264. In case of an open GOP
this is the period between two I-frames. The period between IDR (Instantaneous Decoding Refresh) frames is taken from the GOP_SIZE control.
An IDR frame, which stands for Instantaneous Decoding Refresh is an I-frame after which no prior frames are
referenced. This means that a stream can be restarted from an IDR frame without the need to store or decode any
previous frames. Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_HEADER_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_header_modeDetermines whether the header is returned as the first buffer or is
it returned together with the first frame. Applicable to encoders.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_HEADER_MODE_SEPARATEThe stream header is returned separately in the first buffer.V4L2_MPEG_VIDEO_HEADER_MODE_JOINED_WITH_1ST_FRAMEThe stream header is returned together with the first encoded frame.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_DECODER_MPEG4_DEBLOCK_FILTERbooleanEnabled the deblocking post processing filter for MPEG4 decoder.
Applicable to the MPEG4 decoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_VOP_TIME_RESintegervop_time_increment_resolution value for MPEG4. Applicable to the MPEG4 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MPEG4_VOP_TIME_INCintegervop_time_increment value for MPEG4. Applicable to the MPEG4 encoder.
MFC 5.1 MPEG ControlsThe following MPEG class controls deal with MPEG
decoding and encoding settings that are specific to the Multi Format Codec 5.1 device present
in the S5P family of SoCs by Samsung.
MFC 5.1 Control IDsIDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_DECODER_H264_DISPLAY_DELAY_ENABLEintegerIf the display delay is enabled then the decoder has to return a
CAPTURE buffer after processing a certain number of OUTPUT buffers. If this number is low, then it may result in
buffers not being dequeued in display order. In addition hardware may still use those buffers as reference, thus
application should not write to those buffers. This feature can be used for example for generating thumbnails of videos.
Applicable to the H264 decoder.
V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_DECODER_H264_DISPLAY_DELAYintegerDisplay delay value for H264 decoder.
The decoder is forced to return a decoded frame after the set 'display delay' number of frames. If this number is
low it may result in frames returned out of dispaly order, in addition the hardware may still be using the returned buffer
as a reference picture for subsequent frames.
V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_H264_NUM_REF_PIC_FOR_PintegerThe number of reference pictures used for encoding a P picture.
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_PADDINGbooleanPadding enable in the encoder - use a color instead of repeating border pixels.
Applicable to encoders.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_PADDING_YUVintegerPadding color in the encoder. Applicable to encoders. The supplied 32-bit integer is interpreted as follows (bit
0 = least significant bit):Bit 0:7V chrominance informationBit 8:15U chrominance informationBit 16:23Y luminance informationBit 24:31Must be zero.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_RC_REACTION_COEFFintegerReaction coefficient for MFC rate control. Applicable to encoders.
Note 1: Valid only when the frame level RC is enabled.Note 2: For tight CBR, this field must be small (ex. 2 ~ 10).
For VBR, this field must be large (ex. 100 ~ 1000).Note 3: It is not recommended to use the greater number than FRAME_RATE * (10^9 / BIT_RATE).V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_H264_ADAPTIVE_RC_DARKbooleanAdaptive rate control for dark region.
Valid only when H.264 and macroblock level RC is enabled (V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MB_RC_ENABLE).
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_H264_ADAPTIVE_RC_SMOOTHbooleanAdaptive rate control for smooth region.
Valid only when H.264 and macroblock level RC is enabled (V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MB_RC_ENABLE).
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_H264_ADAPTIVE_RC_STATICbooleanAdaptive rate control for static region.
Valid only when H.264 and macroblock level RC is enabled (V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MB_RC_ENABLE).
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_H264_ADAPTIVE_RC_ACTIVITYbooleanAdaptive rate control for activity region.
Valid only when H.264 and macroblock level RC is enabled (V4L2_CID_MPEG_VIDEO_MB_RC_ENABLE).
Applicable to the H264 encoder.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_FRAME_SKIP_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_mfc51_frame_skip_mode
Indicates in what conditions the encoder should skip frames. If encoding a frame would cause the encoded stream to be larger then
a chosen data limit then the frame will be skipped.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_MFC51_FRAME_SKIP_MODE_DISABLEDFrame skip mode is disabled.V4L2_MPEG_MFC51_FRAME_SKIP_MODE_LEVEL_LIMITFrame skip mode enabled and buffer limit is set by the chosen level and is defined by the standard.V4L2_MPEG_MFC51_FRAME_SKIP_MODE_BUF_LIMITFrame skip mode enabled and buffer limit is set by the VBV (MPEG1/2/4) or CPB (H264) buffer size control.V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_RC_FIXED_TARGET_BITintegerEnable rate-control with fixed target bit.
If this setting is enabled, then the rate control logic of the encoder will calculate the average bitrate
for a GOP and keep it below or equal the set bitrate target. Otherwise the rate control logic calculates the
overall average bitrate for the stream and keeps it below or equal to the set bitrate. In the first case
the average bitrate for the whole stream will be smaller then the set bitrate. This is caused because the
average is calculated for smaller number of frames, on the other hand enabling this setting will ensure that
the stream will meet tight bandwidth contraints. Applicable to encoders.
V4L2_CID_MPEG_MFC51_VIDEO_FORCE_FRAME_TYPEenum v4l2_mpeg_mfc51_force_frame_typeForce a frame type for the next queued buffer. Applicable to encoders.
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_MFC51_FORCE_FRAME_TYPE_DISABLEDForcing a specific frame type disabled.V4L2_MPEG_MFC51_FORCE_FRAME_TYPE_I_FRAMEForce an I-frame.V4L2_MPEG_MFC51_FORCE_FRAME_TYPE_NOT_CODEDForce a non-coded frame.
CX2341x MPEG ControlsThe following MPEG class controls deal with MPEG
encoding settings that are specific to the Conexant CX23415 and
CX23416 MPEG encoding chips.
CX2341x Control IDsIDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_SPATIAL_FILTER_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_cx2341x_video_spatial_filter_modeSets the Spatial
Filter mode (default MANUAL). Possible values
are:V4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_SPATIAL_FILTER_MODE_MANUALChoose the filter manuallyV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_SPATIAL_FILTER_MODE_AUTOChoose the filter automaticallyV4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_SPATIAL_FILTERinteger (0-15)The setting for the
Spatial Filter. 0 = off, 15 = maximum. (Default is 0.)V4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPEenum v4l2_mpeg_cx2341x_video_luma_spatial_filter_typeSelect the algorithm
to use for the Luma Spatial Filter (default
1D_HOR). Possible values:V4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_OFFNo filterV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_1D_HOROne-dimensional horizontalV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_1D_VERTOne-dimensional verticalV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_2D_HV_SEPARABLETwo-dimensional separableV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_2D_SYM_NON_SEPARABLETwo-dimensional symmetrical
non-separableV4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_CHROMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPEenum v4l2_mpeg_cx2341x_video_chroma_spatial_filter_typeSelect the algorithm
for the Chroma Spatial Filter (default 1D_HOR).
Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_CHROMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_OFFNo filterV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_CHROMA_SPATIAL_FILTER_TYPE_1D_HOROne-dimensional horizontalV4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_TEMPORAL_FILTER_MODEenum v4l2_mpeg_cx2341x_video_temporal_filter_modeSets the Temporal
Filter mode (default MANUAL). Possible values
are:V4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_TEMPORAL_FILTER_MODE_MANUALChoose the filter manuallyV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_TEMPORAL_FILTER_MODE_AUTOChoose the filter automaticallyV4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_TEMPORAL_FILTERinteger (0-31)The setting for the
Temporal Filter. 0 = off, 31 = maximum. (Default is 8 for full-scale
capturing and 0 for scaled capturing.)V4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_MEDIAN_FILTER_TYPEenum v4l2_mpeg_cx2341x_video_median_filter_typeMedian Filter Type
(default OFF). Possible values are:V4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_MEDIAN_FILTER_TYPE_OFFNo filterV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_MEDIAN_FILTER_TYPE_HORHorizontal filterV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_MEDIAN_FILTER_TYPE_VERTVertical filterV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_MEDIAN_FILTER_TYPE_HOR_VERTHorizontal and vertical filterV4L2_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_MEDIAN_FILTER_TYPE_DIAGDiagonal filterV4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_MEDIAN_FILTER_BOTTOMinteger (0-255)Threshold above which
the luminance median filter is enabled (default 0)V4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_LUMA_MEDIAN_FILTER_TOPinteger (0-255)Threshold below which
the luminance median filter is enabled (default 255)V4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_CHROMA_MEDIAN_FILTER_BOTTOMinteger (0-255)Threshold above which
the chroma median filter is enabled (default 0)V4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_VIDEO_CHROMA_MEDIAN_FILTER_TOPinteger (0-255)Threshold below which
the chroma median filter is enabled (default 255)V4L2_CID_MPEG_CX2341X_STREAM_INSERT_NAV_PACKETSbooleanThe CX2341X MPEG encoder
can insert one empty MPEG-2 PES packet into the stream between every
four video frames. The packet size is 2048 bytes, including the
packet_start_code_prefix and stream_id fields. The stream_id is 0xBF
(private stream 2). The payload consists of 0x00 bytes, to be filled
in by the application. 0 = do not insert, 1 = insert packets.
Camera Control ReferenceThe Camera class includes controls for mechanical (or
equivalent digital) features of a device such as controllable lenses
or sensors.
Camera Control IDsIDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_CAMERA_CLASSclassThe Camera class
descriptor. Calling &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL; for this control will return a
description of this control class.V4L2_CID_EXPOSURE_AUTOenum v4l2_exposure_auto_typeEnables automatic
adjustments of the exposure time and/or iris aperture. The effect of
manual changes of the exposure time or iris aperture while these
features are enabled is undefined, drivers should ignore such
requests. Possible values are:V4L2_EXPOSURE_AUTOAutomatic exposure time, automatic iris
aperture.V4L2_EXPOSURE_MANUALManual exposure time, manual iris.V4L2_EXPOSURE_SHUTTER_PRIORITYManual exposure time, auto iris.V4L2_EXPOSURE_APERTURE_PRIORITYAuto exposure time, manual iris.V4L2_CID_EXPOSURE_ABSOLUTEintegerDetermines the exposure
time of the camera sensor. The exposure time is limited by the frame
interval. Drivers should interpret the values as 100 µs units,
where the value 1 stands for 1/10000th of a second, 10000 for 1 second
and 100000 for 10 seconds.V4L2_CID_EXPOSURE_AUTO_PRIORITYbooleanWhen
V4L2_CID_EXPOSURE_AUTO is set to
AUTO or APERTURE_PRIORITY,
this control determines if the device may dynamically vary the frame
rate. By default this feature is disabled (0) and the frame rate must
remain constant.V4L2_CID_PAN_RELATIVEintegerThis control turns the
camera horizontally by the specified amount. The unit is undefined. A
positive value moves the camera to the right (clockwise when viewed
from above), a negative value to the left. A value of zero does not
cause motion. This is a write-only control.V4L2_CID_TILT_RELATIVEintegerThis control turns the
camera vertically by the specified amount. The unit is undefined. A
positive value moves the camera up, a negative value down. A value of
zero does not cause motion. This is a write-only control.V4L2_CID_PAN_RESETbuttonWhen this control is set,
the camera moves horizontally to the default position.V4L2_CID_TILT_RESETbuttonWhen this control is set,
the camera moves vertically to the default position.V4L2_CID_PAN_ABSOLUTEintegerThis control
turns the camera horizontally to the specified position. Positive
values move the camera to the right (clockwise when viewed from above),
negative values to the left. Drivers should interpret the values as arc
seconds, with valid values between -180 * 3600 and +180 * 3600
inclusive.V4L2_CID_TILT_ABSOLUTEintegerThis control
turns the camera vertically to the specified position. Positive values
move the camera up, negative values down. Drivers should interpret the
values as arc seconds, with valid values between -180 * 3600 and +180
* 3600 inclusive.V4L2_CID_FOCUS_ABSOLUTEintegerThis control sets the
focal point of the camera to the specified position. The unit is
undefined. Positive values set the focus closer to the camera,
negative values towards infinity.V4L2_CID_FOCUS_RELATIVEintegerThis control moves the
focal point of the camera by the specified amount. The unit is
undefined. Positive values move the focus closer to the camera,
negative values towards infinity. This is a write-only control.V4L2_CID_FOCUS_AUTObooleanEnables automatic focus
adjustments. The effect of manual focus adjustments while this feature
is enabled is undefined, drivers should ignore such requests.V4L2_CID_ZOOM_ABSOLUTEintegerSpecify the objective lens
focal length as an absolute value. The zoom unit is driver-specific and its
value should be a positive integer.V4L2_CID_ZOOM_RELATIVEintegerSpecify the objective lens
focal length relatively to the current value. Positive values move the zoom
lens group towards the telephoto direction, negative values towards the
wide-angle direction. The zoom unit is driver-specific. This is a write-only control.V4L2_CID_ZOOM_CONTINUOUSintegerMove the objective lens group
at the specified speed until it reaches physical device limits or until an
explicit request to stop the movement. A positive value moves the zoom lens
group towards the telephoto direction. A value of zero stops the zoom lens
group movement. A negative value moves the zoom lens group towards the
wide-angle direction. The zoom speed unit is driver-specific.V4L2_CID_IRIS_ABSOLUTEintegerThis control sets the
camera's aperture to the specified value. The unit is undefined.
Larger values open the iris wider, smaller values close it.V4L2_CID_IRIS_RELATIVEintegerThis control modifies the
camera's aperture by the specified amount. The unit is undefined.
Positive values open the iris one step further, negative values close
it one step further. This is a write-only control.V4L2_CID_PRIVACYbooleanPrevent video from being acquired
by the camera. When this control is set to TRUE (1), no
image can be captured by the camera. Common means to enforce privacy are
mechanical obturation of the sensor and firmware image processing, but the
device is not restricted to these methods. Devices that implement the privacy
control must support read access and may support write access.V4L2_CID_BAND_STOP_FILTERintegerSwitch the band-stop filter of a
camera sensor on or off, or specify its strength. Such band-stop filters can
be used, for example, to filter out the fluorescent light component.
FM Transmitter Control ReferenceThe FM Transmitter (FM_TX) class includes controls for common features of
FM transmissions capable devices. Currently this class includes parameters for audio
compression, pilot tone generation, audio deviation limiter, RDS transmission and
tuning power features.
FM_TX Control IDsIDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_FM_TX_CLASSclassThe FM_TX class
descriptor. Calling &VIDIOC-QUERYCTRL; for this control will return a
description of this control class.V4L2_CID_RDS_TX_DEVIATIONintegerConfigures RDS signal frequency deviation level in Hz.
The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_RDS_TX_PIintegerSets the RDS Programme Identification field
for transmission.V4L2_CID_RDS_TX_PTYintegerSets the RDS Programme Type field for transmission.
This encodes up to 31 pre-defined programme types.V4L2_CID_RDS_TX_PS_NAMEstringSets the Programme Service name (PS_NAME) for transmission.
It is intended for static display on a receiver. It is the primary aid to listeners in programme service
identification and selection. In Annex E of , the RDS specification,
there is a full description of the correct character encoding for Programme Service name strings.
Also from RDS specification, PS is usually a single eight character text. However, it is also possible
to find receivers which can scroll strings sized as 8 x N characters. So, this control must be configured
with steps of 8 characters. The result is it must always contain a string with size multiple of 8.V4L2_CID_RDS_TX_RADIO_TEXTstringSets the Radio Text info for transmission. It is a textual description of
what is being broadcasted. RDS Radio Text can be applied when broadcaster wishes to transmit longer PS names,
programme-related information or any other text. In these cases, RadioText should be used in addition to
V4L2_CID_RDS_TX_PS_NAME. The encoding for Radio Text strings is also fully described
in Annex E of . The length of Radio Text strings depends on which RDS Block is being
used to transmit it, either 32 (2A block) or 64 (2B block). However, it is also possible
to find receivers which can scroll strings sized as 32 x N or 64 x N characters. So, this control must be configured
with steps of 32 or 64 characters. The result is it must always contain a string with size multiple of 32 or 64. V4L2_CID_AUDIO_LIMITER_ENABLEDbooleanEnables or disables the audio deviation limiter feature.
The limiter is useful when trying to maximize the audio volume, minimize receiver-generated
distortion and prevent overmodulation.
V4L2_CID_AUDIO_LIMITER_RELEASE_TIMEintegerSets the audio deviation limiter feature release time.
Unit is in useconds. Step and range are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_LIMITER_DEVIATIONintegerConfigures audio frequency deviation level in Hz.
The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_COMPRESSION_ENABLEDbooleanEnables or disables the audio compression feature.
This feature amplifies signals below the threshold by a fixed gain and compresses audio
signals above the threshold by the ratio of Threshold/(Gain + Threshold).V4L2_CID_AUDIO_COMPRESSION_GAINintegerSets the gain for audio compression feature. It is
a dB value. The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_COMPRESSION_THRESHOLDintegerSets the threshold level for audio compression freature.
It is a dB value. The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_COMPRESSION_ATTACK_TIMEintegerSets the attack time for audio compression feature.
It is a useconds value. The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_AUDIO_COMPRESSION_RELEASE_TIMEintegerSets the release time for audio compression feature.
It is a useconds value. The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_PILOT_TONE_ENABLEDbooleanEnables or disables the pilot tone generation feature.V4L2_CID_PILOT_TONE_DEVIATIONintegerConfigures pilot tone frequency deviation level. Unit is
in Hz. The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_PILOT_TONE_FREQUENCYintegerConfigures pilot tone frequency value. Unit is
in Hz. The range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_TUNE_PREEMPHASISintegerConfigures the pre-emphasis value for broadcasting.
A pre-emphasis filter is applied to the broadcast to accentuate the high audio frequencies.
Depending on the region, a time constant of either 50 or 75 useconds is used. The enum v4l2_preemphasis
defines possible values for pre-emphasis. Here they are:V4L2_PREEMPHASIS_DISABLEDNo pre-emphasis is applied.V4L2_PREEMPHASIS_50_uSA pre-emphasis of 50 uS is used.V4L2_PREEMPHASIS_75_uSA pre-emphasis of 75 uS is used.V4L2_CID_TUNE_POWER_LEVELintegerSets the output power level for signal transmission.
Unit is in dBuV. Range and step are driver-specific.V4L2_CID_TUNE_ANTENNA_CAPACITORintegerThis selects the value of antenna tuning capacitor
manually or automatically if set to zero. Unit, range and step are driver-specific.
For more details about RDS specification, refer to
document, from CENELEC.Flash Control ReferenceExperimentalThis is an experimental
interface and may change in the future.
The V4L2 flash controls are intended to provide generic access
to flash controller devices. Flash controller devices are
typically used in digital cameras.
The interface can support both LED and xenon flash devices. As
of writing this, there is no xenon flash driver using this
interface.
Supported use casesUnsynchronised LED flash (software strobe)
Unsynchronised LED flash is controlled directly by the
host as the sensor. The flash must be enabled by the host
before the exposure of the image starts and disabled once
it ends. The host is fully responsible for the timing of
the flash.
Example of such device: Nokia N900.Synchronised LED flash (hardware strobe)
The synchronised LED flash is pre-programmed by the host
(power and timeout) but controlled by the sensor through a
strobe signal from the sensor to the flash.
The sensor controls the flash duration and timing. This
information typically must be made available to the
sensor.
LED flash as torch
LED flash may be used as torch in conjunction with another
use case involving camera or individually.
Flash Control IDsIDTypeDescriptionV4L2_CID_FLASH_CLASSclassThe FLASH class descriptor.V4L2_CID_FLASH_LED_MODEmenuDefines the mode of the flash LED,
the high-power white LED attached to the flash controller.
Setting this control may not be possible in presence of
some faults. See V4L2_CID_FLASH_FAULT.V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_NONEOff.V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_FLASHFlash mode.V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_TORCHTorch mode. See V4L2_CID_FLASH_TORCH_INTENSITY.V4L2_CID_FLASH_STROBE_SOURCEmenuDefines the source of the flash LED
strobe.V4L2_FLASH_STROBE_SOURCE_SOFTWAREThe flash strobe is triggered by using
the V4L2_CID_FLASH_STROBE control.V4L2_FLASH_STROBE_SOURCE_EXTERNALThe flash strobe is triggered by an
external source. Typically this is a sensor,
which makes it possible to synchronises the
flash strobe start to exposure start.V4L2_CID_FLASH_STROBEbuttonStrobe flash. Valid when
V4L2_CID_FLASH_LED_MODE is set to
V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_FLASH and V4L2_CID_FLASH_STROBE_SOURCE
is set to V4L2_FLASH_STROBE_SOURCE_SOFTWARE. Setting this
control may not be possible in presence of some faults.
See V4L2_CID_FLASH_FAULT.V4L2_CID_FLASH_STROBE_STOPbuttonStop flash strobe immediately.V4L2_CID_FLASH_STROBE_STATUSbooleanStrobe status: whether the flash
is strobing at the moment or not. This is a read-only
control.V4L2_CID_FLASH_TIMEOUTintegerHardware timeout for flash. The
flash strobe is stopped after this period of time has
passed from the start of the strobe.V4L2_CID_FLASH_INTENSITYintegerIntensity of the flash strobe when
the flash LED is in flash mode
(V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_FLASH). The unit should be milliamps
(mA) if possible.V4L2_CID_FLASH_TORCH_INTENSITYintegerIntensity of the flash LED in
torch mode (V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_TORCH). The unit should be
milliamps (mA) if possible. Setting this control may not
be possible in presence of some faults. See
V4L2_CID_FLASH_FAULT.V4L2_CID_FLASH_INDICATOR_INTENSITYintegerIntensity of the indicator LED.
The indicator LED may be fully independent of the flash
LED. The unit should be microamps (uA) if possible.V4L2_CID_FLASH_FAULTbitmaskFaults related to the flash. The
faults tell about specific problems in the flash chip
itself or the LEDs attached to it. Faults may prevent
further use of some of the flash controls. In particular,
V4L2_CID_FLASH_LED_MODE is set to V4L2_FLASH_LED_MODE_NONE
if the fault affects the flash LED. Exactly which faults
have such an effect is chip dependent. Reading the faults
resets the control and returns the chip to a usable state
if possible.V4L2_FLASH_FAULT_OVER_VOLTAGEFlash controller voltage to the flash LED
has exceeded the limit specific to the flash
controller.V4L2_FLASH_FAULT_TIMEOUTThe flash strobe was still on when
the timeout set by the user ---
V4L2_CID_FLASH_TIMEOUT control --- has expired.
Not all flash controllers may set this in all
such conditions.V4L2_FLASH_FAULT_OVER_TEMPERATUREThe flash controller has overheated.V4L2_FLASH_FAULT_SHORT_CIRCUITThe short circuit protection of the flash
controller has been triggered.V4L2_CID_FLASH_CHARGEbooleanEnable or disable charging of the xenon
flash capacitor.V4L2_CID_FLASH_READYbooleanIs the flash ready to strobe?
Xenon flashes require their capacitors charged before
strobing. LED flashes often require a cooldown period
after strobe during which another strobe will not be
possible. This is a read-only control.