Braid - multi-camera acquisition and tracking software
Braid is free, open-source multi-camera acquisition and tracking software. It is useful for 3D tracking of animals, robots, or other moving objects. It operates with low latency and is suitable for closed-loop experimental systems such as virtual reality for freely moving animals.
Individual cameras are controlled with Strand Camera for low-latency 2D tracking without the use of markers and video recording to disk. Braid synchronizes multiple copies of Strand Camera and provides low-latency 3D tracking.
Braid is the successor of flydra, and is the result of a rewrite focused on performance, ease of use, and flexibility.
Features
- Hardware synchronized multiple camera acquisition using the lab's open source hardware triggerbox
- All per-camera features from Strand Camera
- Realtime marker-free 3D tracking of multiple animals
- Web based user interface allowing easy remote control
- Integrated Python scripting
Documentation
- User's guide for Braid (and Strand Camera)
- API documentation for
braid_config_data,
flydra_feature_detector_types::ImPtDetectCfg, andflydra_types::TrackingParams. Follow links for other API documentation.
Online tools
| Name | URL | Description |
|---|---|---|
BRAIDZ viewer | braidz.strawlab.org | Online (and installable) viewer for files saved by Braid. |
| Braid April Tag Calibration Tool | strawlab.org/braid-april-cal-webapp | An online tool to generate Braid calibrations from April tag detection data |
Download
Releases are provided via GitHub.
Supported operating system
Ubuntu Linux (64 bit Intel/AMD) is supported. The lab tests internally on macOS and Windows.
Licensing
Braid is free and open source software.
Support
Support is offered on a best effort basis via the github repository or the online forum. Contact Andrew Straw regarding for potential availability for collaboration or custom development.
Funding
Braid is developed partly via the BeeTracked project which is funded by the the VolkswagenStiftung. Further support comes from the University of Freiburg.
