Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC VCU TRD 2021.1 - VCU TRD Multi Stream Video Capture and Display

Owned by Ronak Shah (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Oct 19, 2021 by Nirmal Luhana
17 min read

This page provides all the information related to Design Module 1 - VCU TRD Muti Stream design.

Table of Contents

1 Overview

The primary goal of this Design is to demonstrate the capabilities of VCU hard block present in Zynq UltraScale+ EV devices. The TRD will serve as a platform to tune the performance parameters of VCU and arrive at optimal configurations for encoder and decoder blocks. This module supports seven hdmi video streams using AXI4 Stream Broadcaster IP at capture side and eight video streams using mixer at display side for NV12 pixel format.

This design supports the following video interfaces:

Sources:

  • Test pattern generator (TPG) implemented in the PL

  • HDMI-Rx capture pipeline implemented in the PL

  • MIPI CSI-2 Rx capture pipeline implemented in the PL

  • File source (SD card, USB storage, SATA hard disk)

  • Stream-In from network or internet

Sinks:

  • DP-Tx display pipeline in the PS

  • HDMI-Tx display pipeline implemented in the PL

VCU Codec:

  • Video Encode/Decode capability using VCU hard block in PL

    • AVC/HEVC encoding

    • Encoder/decoder parameter configuration.

    • Demonstrate the multi-stream capability of VCU at 4K 60 Hz throughput

Streaming Interfaces:

  • 1G Ethernet PS GEM 

Video format:

  • NV12

This design demonstrates the multi-stream capability of VCU at 4K 60 Hz throughput.

  • Supports 2-4Kp30 multi-stream feature with any 2 of HDMI-Rx, TPG, and MIPI as the input source and HDMI-Tx as display pipeline.

  • Supports 4-1080p60 multi-stream feature with 3 HDMI-Rx and 1 MIPI as the input source and HDMI-Tx as display pipeline.

  • Supports 8-1080p30 multi-stream feature with 7 HDMI-Rx and 1 MIPI as the input source and HDMI-Tx as display pipeline.

Other features:

  • This design supports 8 channel memory-based SCD(Scene Change Detection) IP. SCD can be enabled or disabled through configuration.

Supported Resolution:

The table below provides the supported resolution from GUI and command-line app in this design.

Resolution

GUI

Command Line

Single Stream

Single Stream

Multi-stream

4Kp60

X

√

NA

4Kp30

√

√

√ (Max 2)

1080p60

√

√

√ (Max 4)

1080p30

X

√

√ (Max 8)

√- Supported
x - Not supported
NA - Not applicable

The below table gives information about the features supported in this design. 

Pipeline

Input Source

Output Type

Resolution

VCU Codec

Pipeline

Input Source

Output Type

Resolution

VCU Codec

PASSTHROUGH Pipeline: Capture → Display

HDMI-Rx / MIPI / TPG

HDMI-Tx / DP

4K / 1080p

None

Single Stream: Capture → SCD → Encode → Decode → Display

HDMI-Rx / MIPI / TPG

HDMI-Tx / DP

4K / 1080p

HEVC / AVC

Multi-Stream (2 input sources): Capture → SCD → Encode → Decode → Display

HDMI-Rx / MIPI / TPG

HDMI-Tx

4Kp30

HEVC / AVC

Multi-Stream(4 input sources): Capture → SCD → Encode → Decode → Display

HDMI-Rx / MIPI / TPG

HDMI-Tx

1080p60

HEVC / AVC

Multi-Stream(8 input sources): Capture → SCD → Encode → Decode → Display

7-HDMI-Rx + 1 MIPI

HDMI-Tx

1080p30

HEVC / AVC

Single Stream: Record/Stream-Out pipeline

HDMI-Rx / MIPI / TPG

File Sink / Stream-Out

4K / 1080p

HEVC / AVC

Multi-Stream(2 or 4 i/p sources): Record / Stream-Out pipeline

HDMI-Rx / MIPI / TPG

File Sink / Stream-Out

2-4Kp30 / 4-1080p60

HEVC / AVC

Multi-Stream(8 input sources): Record / Stream-Out pipeline

7-HDMI-Rx + 1 MIPI

File Sink / Stream-Out

8-1080p30

HEVC / AVC

File Playback / Streaming pipeline

File Source / Stream-In

HDMI-Tx / DP

4K / 1080p

HEVC / AVC

  • DP supports a max resolution of 4Kp30.

  • TPG will not support 1080p30 resolution mode.

The below figure shows the VCU TRD Multi Stream design hardware block diagram.

VCU TRD Design hardware block diagram

The below figure shows the VCU TRD Multi Stream design software block diagram.

1.1 Board Setup

Refer below link for Board Setup

1.2 Run Flow

The TRD package is released with the source code, Vivado project, Petalinux BSP, and SD card image that enables the user to run the demonstration. It also includes the binaries necessary to configure and boot the ZCU106 board. Prior to running the steps mentioned in this wiki page, download the TRD package and extract its contents to a directory referred to as TRD_HOME which is the home directory.

Refer below link to download all TRD contents.

TRD package contents are placed in the following directory structure. The user needs to copy all the files from the $TRD_HOME/images/vcu_trd/ to FAT32 formatted SD card directory.

rdf0428-zcu106-vcu-trd-2021-1/ ├── apu │   └── vcu_petalinux_bsp ├── images │   ├── vcu_10g │   ├── vcu_audio │   ├── vcu_llp2_hdmi_nv12 │   ├── vcu_llp2_hdmi_nv16 │   ├── vcu_llp2_hdmi_xv20 │   ├── vcu_llp2_sdi_xv20 │   ├── vcu_multistream_nv12 │   ├── vcu_pcie │   ├── vcu_plddrv1_hdr10_hdmi │   ├── vcu_plddrv2_hdr10_hdmi │   └── vcu_sdi_xv20 ├── pcie_host_package │   ├── COPYING │   ├── include │   ├── LICENSE │   ├── readme.txt │   ├── RELEASE │   ├── tests │   ├── tools │   └── xdma ├── pl │   ├── constrs │   ├── designs │   ├── prebuild │   ├── README.md │   └── srcs └── README.txt └── zcu106_vcu_trd_sources_and_licenses.tar.gz

TRD package contents specific to VCU TRD Multi Stream design are placed in the following directory structure.

rdf0428-zcu106-vcu-trd-2021-1 ├── apu │   └── vcu_petalinux_bsp │   └── xilinx-vcu-zcu106-v2021.1-final.bsp ├── images │   ├── vcu_multistream_nv12 │   │   ├── autostart.sh │   │   ├── BOOT.BIN │   │   ├── boot.scr │   │   ├── config │   │   ├── Image │   │   ├── rootfs.cpio.gz.u-boot │   │   ├── system.dtb │   │   └── vcu ├── pcie_host_package ├── pl │   ├── constrs │ ├── designs │   │   └── zcu106_trd │   ├── prebuild │   │   └── zcu106_trd │   ├── README.md │   └── srcs │   ├── hdl │   └── ip └── README.txt └── zcu106_vcu_trd_sources_and_licenses.tar.gz

The below snippet shows the configuration files (input.cfg) for running various multistream Display, Record, and Streaming use cases. All these configurations files are placed in the images folder mentioned above. The directory structure in /media/card.

config ├── 1-4kp60 │ ├── Display │ ├── Record │ ├── Stream-out │ └── Stream-in ├── 2-4kp30 │ ├── Display │ ├── Record │ ├── Stream-out │ └── Stream-in ├── 4-1080p60 │ ├── Display │ ├── Record │ ├── Stream-out │ └── Stream-in ├── 8-1080p30 │ ├── Display │ ├── Record │ ├── Stream-out │ └── Stream-in └── input.cfg

1.2.1 GStreamer Application (vcu_gst_app)

The vcu_gst_app is a command-line multi-threaded Linux application. The command-line application requires an input configuration file (input.cfg) to be provided in the plain text.

Run below modetest command to set CRTC configurations for 4Kp60:

Run below modetest command to set CRTC configurations for 4Kp30:

Execution of the application is shown below:

Example:

4kp60 HEVC_HIGH Display Pipeline Execution

4kp60 HEVC_HIGH Record Pipeline Execution

4kp60 HEVC_HIGH Stream-out Pipeline Execution

4kp60 HEVC_HIGH Stream-in Pipeline Execution

Make sure HDMI-Rx should be configured to 4kp60 mode

Latency Measurement: To measure the latency of the pipeline, run the below command. The latency data is huge, so dump it to a file.

Refer below link for detailed run flow steps

1.3 Build Flow

Refer below link for detailed build flow steps

2 Other Information

2.1 Known Issues

  • Frame drop observed in TPG pipeline

    • Frequency: Always

    • Workaround: None

56 fps in 4Kp60/1080p60, and 28 fps in 4Kp30 resolution

2.2 Limitations

2.3 Optimum VCU Encoder parameters for use-cases:

Video streaming:

  • Video streaming use-case requires a very stable bitrate graph for all pictures

  • It is good to avoid periodic large Intra pictures during the encoding session

  • Low-latency rate control (hardware RC) is the preferred control-rate for video streaming; as it tries to maintain equal amount frame sizes for all pictures.

  • Good to avoid periodic Intra frames instead use low-delay-p (IPPPPP…)

  • VBR is not a preferred mode of streaming

Performance: AVC Encoder settings:

  • It is preferred to use 8 or higher slices for better AVC encoder performance

  • AVC standard does not support Tile mode processing, which results in the processing of MB rows sequentially for entropy coding.

Quality: Low bitrate AVC encoding:

  • Enable profile=high and use qp-mode=auto for low-bitrate encoding use-cases

  • The high profile enables 8x8 transform which results in better video quality at low bitrates

3 Appendix A - Input Configuration File (input.cfg)

The example configuration files are stored at /media/card/config/ folder.

Configuration Type

Configuration Name

Description

Available Options

Configuration Type

Configuration Name

Description

Available Options

Common

Common Configuration

It is the starting point of common configuration

 

Num of Input

Provide the number of inputs

1 to 8

Output

Select the video interface

HDMI or DP

Out Type

Type of output

display, record, stream

Display Rate

Pipeline frame rate

30 or 60 fps

Exit

It indicates to the application that the configuration is over

 

Input

Input Configuration

It is the starting point of the input configuration

 

Input Num

Starting Nth input configuration

1 to 8

Input Type

Input source type

TPG, HDMI, HDMI_2, HDMI_3, HDMI_4, HDMI_5, HDMI_6, HDMI_7, MIPI, File, Stream

Uri

File path or Network URL. Applicable for file playback and stream-in pipeline only. Supported file formats for playback are ts, mp4, and mkv.

file:///run/media/sda/abc.ts (for file path), udp://192.168.25.89:5004/ (for Network streaming, Here 192.168.25.89 is Client's IP address and 5004 is port number)

Raw

To tell the pipeline is processed or pass-through

True, False

Width

The width of the live source

3840, 1920

Height

The height of the live source

2160, 1080

Format

The format of input data

NV12

Enable SCD

Enable or Disable Memory based SCD in the pipeline

True, False

Exit

It indicates to the application that the configuration is over

 

Encoder

Encoder Configuration

It is the starting point of encoder configuration

 

Encoder Num

Starting Nth encoder configuration

1 to 8

Encoder Name

Name of the encoder

AVC, HEVC

Profile

Name of the profile

AVC: baseline, main or high
HEVC: Main

Rate Control

Rate control options

CBR, VBR, and Low_Latency

Filler Data

Filler Data NAL units for CBR rate control

True, False

QP

QP control mode used by the VCU encoder

Uniform, Auto

L2 Cache

Enable or Disable L2Cache buffer in encoding process

True, False

Latency Mode

Encoder latency mode.

Normal, sub_frame

Low Bandwidth

If enabled, decrease the vertical search range used for P-frame motion estimation to reduce the bandwidth.

True, False

Gop Mode

Group of Pictures mode.

Basic, low_delay_p, low_delay_b

Bitrate

Target bitrate in Kbps

1-60000

B Frames

Number of B-frames between two consecutive P-frames

0-4

Slice

The number of slices produced for each frame. Each slice contains one or more complete macroblock/CTU row(s). Slices are distributed over the frame as regularly as possible. If slice-size is defined as well more slices may be produced to fit the slice-size requirement.

4-22 4Kp resolution with HEVC codec
4-32 4Kp resolution with AVC codec
4-32 1080p resolution with HEVC codec
4-32 1080p resolution with AVC codec

GoP Length

The distance between two consecutive I frames

1-1000

GDR Mode

It specifies which Gradual Decoder Refresh(GDR) scheme should be used when gop-mode = low_delay_p

Horizontal, Vertical, Disabled

Entropy Mode

It specifies the entropy mode for H.264 (AVC) encoding process

CAVLC, CABAC, Default

Max Picture Size

It is used to curtail instantaneous peak in the bit-stream using this parameter. It works in CBR/VBR rate-control only. When it is enabled, max-picture-size value is calculated and set with 10% of AllowedPeakMargin. i.e. max-picture-size =  (TargetBitrate / FrameRate) * 1.1

True, False

Format

The format of input data

NV12

Preset

Based on provided six presets, predefined configuration will be set for encoder parameters. Select custom to provide user-specific options for encoder parameters.

HEVC_HIGH, HEVC_MEDIUM, HEVC_LOW, AVC_HIGH, AVC_MEDIUM, AVC_LOW, Custom

Exit

It indicates to the application that the configuration is over

 

Record

Record Configuration

It is the starting point of record configuration

 

Record Num

Starting Nth record configuration

1 to 8

Out-File Name

Record file path

e.g. /run/media/sda/abc.ts

Duration

Duration in minutes

1-3

Exit

It indicates to the application that the configuration is over

 

Streaming

Streaming Configuration

It is the starting point of streaming configuration.

 

Streaming Num

Starting Nth Streaming configuration

1 to 8

Host IP

The host to send the packets to the client

192.168.25.89 or Windows PC IP

Port

The port to send the packets to port number

5004, 5008, 5012, 5016, 5020, 5024, 5028, and 5032

Exit

It indicates to the application that the configuration is over.

 

Trace

Trace Configuration

It is the starting point of trace configuration

 

FPS Info

To display achieved frame per second information on the console

True, False

APM Info

To display APM counter number on the console

True, False

Pipeline Info

To display pipeline info on console

True, False

Exit

It indicates to the application that the configuration is over

 

4 Appendix B - HDMI-Rx/Tx Link-up and GStreamer Commands

This section covers configuration of HDMI-Rx using media-ctl utility and HDMI-Tx using modetest utility, along with demonstrating HDMI-Rx/Tx link-up issues and steps to switch HDMI-Rx resolution. It also contains sample GStreamer HDMI Video pipelines for Display, Record & Playback, Stream-in and Stream-out use-cases.

  • Kill the Qt GUI application running on target board by executing the below commands from the serial console

  • HDMI source can be locked to any resolution. Run the below command for all media nodes to print media device topology where "mediaX" represents different media nodes. In the topology, log look for the “v_hdmi_rx_ss” string to identify the HDMI input source media node.

  • To check the link status, resolution and video node of the HDMI input source, run below media-ctl command where "mediaX" indicates media node for the HDMI input source.

  • When HDMI source is connected to 4Kp60 resolution, it shows as below:

  • When the HDMI source is not connected, it shows as below:

Notes for gst-launch-1.0 commands:

  • Video node for HDMI-Rx source can be checked using media-ctl command. Run below media-ctl command to check video node for HDMI-Rx source where "mediaX" indicates media node for HDMI input source.

  • Make sure HDMI-Rx media pipeline is configured for 4Kp60 resolution and source/sink have the same color format. Run below media-ctl commands to set resolution and format of HDMI scaler node where "mediaX" indicates media node for HDMI input source.

  • When HDMI Input Source is NVIDIA SHIELD

  • When HDMI Input Source is ABOX

No need to set the format of SCD media node from 2020.1 onward:

  • SCD media node resolution is auto handled as per current pipeline resolution

  • After executing pipeline in case of any error, you can make sure if resolution was auto set as per resolution of pipeline for number of required streams or not using below command:
    (here mediaX is SCD media node)

  • Follow the below steps to switch the HDMI-Rx resolution from 1080p60 to 4Kp60

    • Check current HDMI input source resolution (1080p60) by following the steps mentioned earlier to check HDMI resolution using media-ctl command

    • Set config file for HDMI-1080p60

Below configurations needs to be set in input.cfg for HDMI-1080p60

  • Run vcu_gst_app for current HDMI resolution (1080p60) by executing the following command

  • Change Resolution of HDMI Input Source from 1080p60 to 4Kp60 by following below steps.

    • Set the HDMI input source resolution to 4Kp60 (Homepage → settings → display & Sound → Resolution → change to 4kp60)

    • Save the configuration to take place the change

  • Verify the desired HDMI Input Source Resolution (4Kp60) by following the above-mentioned steps

If HDMI-Tx link-up issue is observed after Linux booting, use the following command:

  • Display RAW use case: Run the following gst-launch-1.0 command to display passthrough pipeline. Where "videoX" indicates a video node for the input source.

  • Display serial use case: Run the following gst-launch-1.0 command to display processed pipeline (capture → scd → encode → decode → display) on HDMI-Tx. Where "videoX" indicates a video node for the input source.

  • Record use case: Run the following gst-launch-1.0 command to record video using GStreamer pipeline. Where "videoX" indicates a video node for the input source.

  • File Playback use case: Run the following gst-launch-1.0 command to play the recorded file on HDMI-Tx using the GStreamer pipeline.

  • Stream-out use case: Run the following gst-launch-1.0 command for CBR stream-out pipeline. Where "videoX" indicates a video node for the input source.

  • Stream-in use case: Run the following gst-launch-1.0 command to display CBR stream-in on HDMI-Tx video using Gstreamer pipeline where 5004 is port number.

 

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