MIPI CSI Interface

Interface differences

• The ROCK 5B has one four-lane(can be split into 2x two-lane) MIPI CSI Camera connector.
• The ROCK 5B+ is equipped with two four-channel MIPI CSI camera connectors connector.

Support List

ROCK 5B

Camera Name	Sensor Model	Resolution
OKDO 5MP Camera	OV5647	5 megapixels
Radxa Camera 4K	IMX415	8.29 megapixels
Raspberry Pi Camera V2	IMX219	8 megapixels
Raspberry Pi Camera v1.3	OV5647	5 megapixels

ROCK 5B+

Camera Name	Sensor Model	Resolution
Radxa Camera 4K	IMX415	8.29 megapixels
Raspberry Pi Camera V2	IMX219	8 megapixels

Accessory usage

tip

Only these two are given as examples. Apart from possible differences in wiring and overlay, the operational steps for other cameras are similar.

Radxa Camera 4K

• Hardware Connection

Connect ROCK 5B using the FPC cable as shown below:

1. Lift the MIPI CSI interface latches on both the board and camera module to the unlocked position.
2. Insert one end of the FPC cable into the board's MIPI CSI interface, then press down the latch to secure it after ensuring the cable is fully seated.
3. Insert the other end of the cable into the camera module's MIPI CSI interface, then press down the latch to secure it after ensuring full insertion.
4. Double-check that all latches on both the board and camera ends are securely locked, and that the cable lies flat without any twists.

Notes

• Ensure the device is powered off before installation.
• When connecting to the board's MIPI CSI interface, the gold fingers (metal contacts) of the cable should face the board's PCB.
• When connecting to the camera module's MIPI CSI interface, the gold fingers should face the camera's PCB.
• Avoid using excessive force during installation; ensure the cable is fully inserted before locking the latches to prevent damage to the cable or connectors.

• Enable Overlay

  1. Open the Kconsole terminal via the Application Launcher in the lower left corner and run the rsetup command:

   radxa@rock-5b:~$ rsetup 

  2. Enable Radxa 4K Camera Overlay by Device Tree Configuration .
  tip

  Please enable [] Enable Radxa Camera 4K Overlay。
  Exit and reboot after enabling the successful display of [*] Enable Radxa Camera 4K for the configuration to take effect.

  3. Reboot

• Test

  1. Preview

  Open a terminal and enter the following command to open the camera preview:

  gst-launch-1.0 v4l2src device=/dev/video11 io-mode=4 ! videoconvert ! video/x-raw,format=NV12,width=1920,height=1080 ! xvimagesink;

  2. Take a picture

  Open a terminal and enter the following command to turn on the camera to take a picture:

  gst-launch-1.0 v4l2src device=/dev/video11 io-mode=4 ! videoconvert ! video/x-raw,format=NV12,width=1920,height=1080 ! jpegenc ! multifilesink location=file.name.jpg;

  3. Shooting videos

  Open a terminal and enter the following command to turn the camera on to capture video:

  gst-launch-1.0 v4l2src num-buffers=512 device=/dev/video11 io-mode=4 ! videoconvert ! video/x-raw, format=NV12, width=1920, height=1080, framerate=30/1 ! tee name=t ! queue ! mpph264enc ! queue ! h264parse ! mpegtsmux ! filesink location=/home/radxa/file.name.mp4

Raspberry Pi Camera V2

• Hardware Connection

Connect ROCK 5B+ using the FPC cable as shown below:

1. Lift the MIPI CSI interface latches on both the board and camera module to the unlocked position.
2. Insert one end of the FPC cable into the board's MIPI CSI interface, then press down the latch to secure it after ensuring the cable is fully seated.
3. Insert the other end of the cable into the camera module's MIPI CSI interface, then press down the latch to secure it after ensuring full insertion.
4. Double-check that all latches on both the board and camera ends are securely locked, and that the cable lies flat without any twists.

Notes

• Ensure the device is powered off before installation.
• When connecting to the board's MIPI CSI interface, the gold fingers (metal contacts) of the cable should face the board's PCB.
• When connecting to the camera module's MIPI CSI interface, the gold fingers should face the camera's PCB.
• Avoid using excessive force during installation; ensure the cable is fully inserted before locking the latches to prevent damage to the cable or connectors.

• Enable Overlay

  1. Open the Kconsole terminal via the Application Launcher in the lower left corner and run the rsetup command:

   radxa@rock-5b-plus:~$ rsetup 

  2. Enable Raspberry Pi Camera V2 Overlay by Device Tree Configuration .
  tip

  Please enable [] Enable Raspberry Pi Camera V2 Overlay。
  Exit and reboot after enabling the successful display of [*] Enable Raspberry Pi Camera V2 for the configuration to take effect.

  3. Reboot

• Test

  1. Preview

  Open a terminal and enter the following command to open the camera preview:

  gst-launch-1.0 v4l2src device=/dev/video11 io-mode=4 ! videoconvert ! video/x-raw,format=NV12,width=1920,height=1080 ! xvimagesink;

  2. Take a picture

  Open a terminal and enter the following command to turn on the camera to take a picture:

  gst-launch-1.0 v4l2src device=/dev/video11 io-mode=4 ! videoconvert ! video/x-raw,format=NV12,width=1920,height=1080 ! jpegenc ! multifilesink location=file.name.jpg;

  3. Shooting videos

  Open a terminal and enter the following command to turn the camera on to capture video:

  gst-launch-1.0 v4l2src num-buffers=512 device=/dev/video11 io-mode=4 ! videoconvert ! video/x-raw, format=NV12, width=1920, height=1080, framerate=30/1 ! tee name=t ! queue ! mpph264enc ! queue ! h264parse ! mpegtsmux ! filesink location=/home/radxa/file.name.mp4