<s>
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
use	O
the	O
IEEE	B-Protocol
1394	I-Protocol
bus	B-General_Concept
standard	O
for	O
the	O
transmission	O
of	O
audio	O
,	O
video	O
and	O
control	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FireWire	B-Protocol
is	O
Apple	O
Computer	O
's	O
trademark	O
for	O
the	O
IEEE	O
1283	O
standard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
are	O
available	O
in	O
the	O
form	O
of	O
photo	O
cameras	O
and	O
video	O
cameras	O
,	O
which	O
provide	O
image	O
and	O
audio	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
basic	O
structure	O
of	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
is	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
following	O
six	O
modules	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
are	O
based	O
on	O
CCD	B-Algorithm
or	O
CMOS	B-Device
chips	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
light-sensitive	O
area	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
pixels	B-Algorithm
of	O
these	O
chips	O
,	O
are	O
small	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
case	O
of	O
cameras	O
with	O
integrated	O
optics	B-Algorithm
,	O
we	O
can	O
assume	O
that	O
the	O
optics	B-Algorithm
are	O
adapted	O
to	O
these	O
chips	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
domains	O
of	O
professional	O
,	O
and	O
semi-professional	O
photography	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
in	O
the	O
domain	O
of	O
special	O
cameras	O
,	O
interchangeable	O
optics	B-Algorithm
are	O
often	O
used	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
these	O
cases	O
,	O
a	O
system	O
specialist	O
has	O
to	O
adapt	O
the	O
optics	B-Algorithm
and	O
the	O
chip	O
to	O
the	O
application	O
(	O
see	O
System	O
integration	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
exception	O
of	O
the	O
standard	O
C-mount	B-Algorithm
and	O
CS-mount	O
,	O
the	O
mounts	O
of	O
interchangeable	O
optics	B-Algorithm
are	O
company-specific	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
the	O
function	O
of	O
a	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
camera	I-Algorithm
depends	O
upon	O
electrical	O
signals	O
,	O
the	O
module	O
"	O
signal	O
capture	O
"	O
transforms	O
the	O
incident	O
light	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
incident	O
sound	O
into	O
electrons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
case	O
of	O
light	O
,	O
this	O
process	O
is	O
performed	O
by	O
a	O
CCD	B-Algorithm
or	O
CMOS	B-Device
chip	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
transformation	O
of	O
the	O
sound	O
is	O
performed	O
by	O
a	O
microphone	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
step	O
of	O
the	O
image	O
's	O
digitization	O
results	O
from	O
the	O
structure	O
of	O
a	O
CCD	B-Algorithm
or	O
CMOS	B-Device
chip	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
dissects	O
the	O
image	O
into	O
pixels	B-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
a	O
pixel	B-Algorithm
has	O
collected	O
many	O
photons	O
,	O
it	O
creates	O
a	O
high	O
voltage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Now	O
the	O
raw	B-Application
digital	B-Algorithm
image	I-Algorithm
is	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
microphone	B-Application
transforms	O
the	O
sound	O
into	O
a	O
voltage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
creation	O
of	O
color	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
a	O
color	O
filter	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
located	O
in	O
front	O
of	O
the	O
CCD	B-Algorithm
or	O
CMOS	B-Device
chip	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
red	O
,	O
green	O
or	O
blue	O
and	O
changes	O
its	O
color	O
from	O
pixel	B-Algorithm
to	O
pixel	B-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
Therefore	O
,	O
the	O
filter	O
is	O
called	O
a	O
color	B-Algorithm
filter	I-Algorithm
array	I-Algorithm
or	O
,	O
after	O
its	O
inventor	O
,	O
Bayer	B-Algorithm
filter	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
these	O
raw	B-Application
digital	B-Algorithm
images	I-Algorithm
,	O
the	O
module	O
"	O
signal	O
enhancement	O
"	O
creates	O
an	O
image	O
,	O
which	O
meets	O
aesthetic	O
requirements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
forgo	O
any	O
signal	O
enhancement	O
and	O
thus	O
output	O
the	O
digital	B-Algorithm
image	I-Algorithm
data	O
in	O
its	O
raw	B-Application
state	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
special	O
models	O
of	O
color	O
cameras	O
are	O
only	O
capable	O
of	O
outputting	O
raw	B-Application
digital	B-Algorithm
image	I-Algorithm
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Semi-professional	O
photo	O
cameras	O
often	O
offer	O
an	O
optional	O
RAW	B-Application
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
enhancement	O
of	O
the	O
raw	B-Application
digital	O
data	O
takes	O
place	O
outside	O
the	O
camera	O
on	O
a	O
computer	O
and	O
therefore	O
the	O
user	O
is	O
able	O
to	O
adapt	O
it	O
to	O
a	O
particular	O
application	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
three	O
modules	O
are	O
part	O
of	O
any	O
digital	B-Device
camera	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
interface	B-Protocol
is	O
the	O
module	O
that	O
characterizes	O
the	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
camera	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
standard	O
defines	O
a	O
bus	B-General_Concept
,	O
which	O
transmits	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
allows	O
the	O
simultaneous	O
use	O
of	O
up	O
to	O
74	O
different	O
devices	O
(	O
cameras	O
,	O
scanners	O
,	O
video	O
recorders	O
,	O
hard	B-Device
disks	I-Device
,	O
DVD	O
drives	O
,	O
etc	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
mostly	O
use	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
following	O
protocols	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
DCAM	O
DCAM	O
stands	O
for	O
"	O
1394-based	O
Digital	B-Device
Camera	I-Device
Specification	O
"	O
and	O
defines	O
the	O
behavior	O
of	O
cameras	O
that	O
output	O
uncompressed	O
image	O
data	O
without	O
audio	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SBP-2	B-General_Concept
SBP-2	B-General_Concept
stands	O
for	O
"	O
Serial	O
Bus	B-General_Concept
Protocol	O
"	O
and	O
defines	O
the	O
behavior	O
of	O
mass	B-Device
storage	I-Device
devices	I-Device
,	O
such	O
as	O
hard	B-Device
disks	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
typical	O
example	O
is	O
the	O
connection	O
of	O
a	O
video	O
camera	O
and	O
a	O
video	B-Application
recorder	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
in	O
contrast	O
to	O
the	O
USB	O
bus	B-General_Concept
,	O
there	O
is	O
no	O
need	O
to	O
use	O
a	O
controlling	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Professional	O
and	O
semi-professional	O
photo	O
cameras	O
,	O
and	O
especially	O
digital	B-Algorithm
camera	I-Algorithm
backs	I-Algorithm
,	O
offer	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
interfaces	O
to	O
transfer	O
image	O
data	O
and	O
to	O
control	O
the	O
camera	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
image	O
data	O
's	O
transfer	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
protocol	O
SBP-2	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
this	O
mode	O
,	O
the	O
camera	O
behaves	O
as	O
an	O
external	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
and	O
thus	O
enables	O
the	O
simple	O
exchange	O
of	O
image	O
files	O
with	O
a	O
computer	O
(	O
please	O
cf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
increase	O
the	O
work	O
efficiency	O
in	O
a	O
photo	O
studio	O
,	O
additionally	O
photo	O
cameras	O
and	O
digital	B-Algorithm
backs	I-Algorithm
are	O
controllable	O
via	O
the	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
bus	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Therefore	O
,	O
camera	O
control	O
requires	O
a	O
specialized	O
piece	O
of	O
software	O
provided	O
by	O
the	O
camera	O
manufacturer	O
,	O
which	O
mostly	O
is	O
available	O
for	O
Macintosh	B-Device
and	O
Windows	B-Application
computers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
compatibility	O
to	O
the	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
bus	B-General_Concept
is	O
only	O
found	O
in	O
high-end	O
photo	O
cameras	O
,	O
it	O
has	O
usually	O
been	O
present	O
in	O
home-user	O
level	O
video	O
cameras	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
majority	O
of	O
video	O
cameras	O
only	O
provides	O
the	O
output	O
of	O
audio	O
and	O
video	O
data	O
via	O
the	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
bus	B-General_Concept
(	O
"	O
DVout	O
"	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
domains	O
of	O
industry	O
,	O
medicine	O
,	O
astronomy	O
,	O
microscopy	O
and	O
science	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
are	O
often	O
used	O
not	O
for	O
aesthetic	O
,	O
but	O
rather	O
for	O
analytical	O
purposes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
vast	O
majority	O
of	O
special	O
cameras	O
does	O
not	O
offer	O
integrated	O
optics	B-Algorithm
,	O
but	O
a	O
standardized	O
lens	B-Algorithm
mount	I-Algorithm
called	O
"	O
C-mount	B-Algorithm
"	O
or	O
"	O
CS-mount	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Special	O
cameras	O
often	O
utilize	O
monochrome	O
CCD	B-Algorithm
or	O
CMOS	B-Device
chips	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mass	B-Device
storage	I-Device
devices	I-Device
are	O
not	O
available	O
since	O
the	O
images	O
have	O
to	O
be	O
analyzed	O
more	O
or	O
less	O
immediately	O
by	O
the	O
computer	O
connected	O
to	O
the	O
camera	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
vast	O
majority	O
of	O
special	O
cameras	O
is	O
controlled	O
by	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
installed	O
on	O
a	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Application	B-Application
software	I-Application
is	O
rarely	O
available	O
off-the-shelf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
lot	O
of	O
industrial	B-Architecture
computers	I-Architecture
and	O
embedded	B-Architecture
systems	I-Architecture
are	O
compatible	O
to	O
the	O
DCAM	O
(	O
IIDC	O
)	O
protocol	O
(	O
please	O
cf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Structure	O
/	O
Interface	B-Protocol
and	O
Exchanging	O
data	O
with	O
computers	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
are	O
able	O
to	O
exchange	O
data	O
with	O
any	O
other	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
device	O
,	O
as	O
long	O
as	O
both	O
devices	O
use	O
the	O
same	O
protocol	O
(	O
please	O
cf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Structure	O
/	O
Interface	B-Protocol
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
the	O
camera	O
is	O
to	O
communicate	O
with	O
a	O
computer	O
,	O
this	O
computer	O
has	O
to	O
have	O
a	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
interface	B-Protocol
and	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
camera	O
's	O
protocol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
old	O
days	O
of	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
were	O
dominated	O
by	O
company	O
specific	O
solutions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
specialist	O
offered	O
interface	B-Protocol
boards	O
and	O
drivers	O
,	O
which	O
were	O
accessible	O
only	O
by	O
their	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
this	O
approach	O
,	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
is	O
in	O
charge	O
of	O
the	O
protocol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
strategy	O
often	O
leads	O
to	O
problems	O
,	O
using	O
other	O
FireWire	B-Protocol
devices	O
,	O
as	O
for	O
instance	O
hard	B-Device
disks	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
behavior	O
of	O
the	O
single	O
layers	O
(	O
interface	B-Protocol
board	O
,	O
low	O
level	O
driver	B-Application
,	O
high	O
level	O
driver	B-Application
and	O
API	B-Application
)	O
follows	O
the	O
constraints	O
of	O
the	O
respective	O
operating	O
system	O
manufacturer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Application	B-Application
software	I-Application
is	O
allowed	O
to	O
access	O
operating	O
system	O
APIs	B-Application
,	O
but	O
never	O
should	O
access	O
any	O
level	O
lower	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
context	O
of	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
,	O
the	O
high	O
level	O
drivers	O
are	O
responsible	O
for	O
the	O
protocol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
low	O
level	O
drivers	O
and	O
the	O
interface	B-Protocol
boards	O
put	O
the	O
definitions	O
of	O
the	O
standard	O
IEEE	B-Protocol
1394	I-Protocol
into	O
effect	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
advantage	O
of	O
this	O
strategy	O
is	O
the	O
simple	O
realization	O
of	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
which	O
is	O
independent	O
of	O
hardware	O
and	O
specific	O
manufacturers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
interface	B-Protocol
boards	O
and	O
the	O
low	O
level	O
drivers	O
typically	O
adhere	O
to	O
the	O
standard	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
levels	O
above	O
are	O
company	O
specific	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
basic	O
characteristic	O
of	O
open	O
systems	O
is	O
not	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
APIs	B-Application
of	O
the	O
hardware	O
manufacturers	O
,	O
but	O
those	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
their	O
APIs	B-Application
-	O
QuickTime	B-Application
and	O
DirectX	B-Application
-	O
are	O
very	O
well	O
known	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Actually	O
,	O
they	O
are	O
powerful	O
APIs	B-Application
that	O
are	O
also	O
responsible	O
for	O
image	O
acquisition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Under	O
Linux	O
this	O
API	B-Application
is	O
called	O
video4linux	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
less	O
powerful	O
than	O
QuickTime	B-Application
and	O
DirectX	B-Application
and	O
therefore	O
additional	O
APIs	B-Application
exist	O
besides	O
video4linux	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Photo	O
cameras	O
Photo	O
cameras	O
usually	O
use	O
Linux	O
 '	O
infrastructure	O
for	O
mass	B-Device
storage	I-Device
devices	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Video	O
cameras	O
Video	O
cameras	O
are	O
accessed	O
by	O
various	O
APIs	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
image	O
to	O
the	O
right	O
depicts	O
the	O
access	O
of	O
the	O
video	O
editing	O
software	O
to	O
the	O
API	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Kino	O
also	O
accesses	O
other	O
APIs	B-Application
which	O
are	O
not	O
shown	O
in	O
the	O
image	O
to	O
simplify	O
matters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Special	O
cameras	O
The	O
most	O
important	O
API	B-Application
for	O
special	O
cameras	O
is	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
image	O
to	O
the	O
right	O
depicts	O
the	O
access	O
of	O
the	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
to	O
this	O
API	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Coriander	O
controls	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
that	O
are	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
protocol	O
DCAM	O
(	O
IIDC	O
)	O
and	O
acquires	O
their	O
images	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
order	O
to	O
simplify	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
video4linux	O
and	O
the	O
dedicated	O
APIs	B-Application
,	O
the	O
meta	O
API	B-Application
has	O
been	O
developed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Often	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
are	O
only	O
a	O
cog	O
in	O
a	O
bigger	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
typical	O
indicator	O
of	O
this	O
situation	O
is	O
the	O
off-the-shelf	O
availability	O
of	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
such	O
cases	O
,	O
there	O
is	O
typically	O
no	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
available	O
off-the-shelf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
aspects	O
of	O
system	O
integration	O
are	O
not	O
directly	O
related	O
to	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
context	O
of	O
the	O
realization	O
of	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
there	O
is	O
a	O
special	O
feature	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
typical	O
for	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
the	O
availability	O
of	O
standardized	O
protocols	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
AV/C	O
,	O
DCAM	O
,	O
IIDC	O
and	O
SBP-2	B-General_Concept
(	O
please	O
cf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Structure	O
/	O
Interface	B-Protocol
and	O
Exchanging	O
data	O
with	O
computers	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
leaving	O
the	O
realization	O
of	O
the	O
protocol	O
to	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
by	O
enabling	O
access	O
to	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
APIs	B-Application
,	O
software	O
can	O
be	O
developed	O
independently	O
from	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
,	O
for	O
instance	O
,	O
under	O
Linux	O
a	O
piece	O
of	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
uses	O
the	O
API	B-Application
libdc1394	O
(	O
please	O
cf	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Exchanging	O
data	O
with	O
computers	O
)	O
,	O
it	O
can	O
access	O
all	O
FireWire	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
that	O
use	O
the	O
protocol	O
DCAM	O
(	O
IIDC	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
the	O
API	B-Application
unicap	O
additionally	O
permits	O
access	O
to	O
other	O
video	O
sources	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
frame	O
grabbers	O
.	O
</s>
