Introduction
Aximmetry Gateway is a software capable of transmitting video, tracking, and controller data to, and receiving video from another computer. It's a simplified version of Composer, where the flowgraph is absent, leaving you only with the basic features to send and receive data. It can be used in cases where the device inputs are on one computer but the compositing is done on a different one.
NOTE: In this document, "video" refers to both video and its embedded audio.
User Interface
Upon launching Gateway, it automatically tries to open the most recent setup. If the file cannot be found, you'll be notified and can choose to open another file or create a new one.
On the first launch, a new setup is automatically created.
Upon creating or loading a setup, you are greeted with 4 sections; 3 responsible for sending data, and the last for receiving and outputting it.
These sections can be filled with panels, each responsible for handling and transferring a specific group of devices.
You can add new panels to the sections by clicking the plus sign at the top-right corner of each section.
If you don't need some panels, you can easily remove them by clicking the close button at the top-right corner of a panel.
NOTE: VIDEO INPUTS and CAMERA TRACKING panels are created and removed in pairs, as they are usually used in pairs. This keeps working with them a bit more straightforward. If you don't need camera tracking, simply leave the Tracking device and/or Zoom device empty.
Setting Up the Project Frame Rate
You can set up the project frame rate under Edit / Preferences / Rendering:
If Sync is set for any device under Edit / Video Outputs..., the synced frame rate will overwrite the project frame rate:
Server Setup
The server PC's - where the compositing happens - address, alongside the OSC port where the controller data will be sent to, can be defined under Edit / Preferences / Server Setup.
Data Configuration and Transmission
Once the Server Setup is done, two other steps are required to be able to transmit data from Gateway:
- defining the data to be transmitted
- defining the channels the data will be transmitted by
Setting Up Data to Transmit
In each section handling inputs and sending data, you can select the device (with its related settings) to transmit data.
NOTE: Software-based devices (including tracking data protocols) must first be created under Edit / Manage Devices.
Setting Up Video Transmit Channel
Transmitting video happens via the SRT protocol. When the Transmit channel's Setup... button is pressed, an SRT setup dialog comes up.
In this window, the Host is already set from the Server Setup page, and the device Name field is removed.
The other fields should be set up according to our SRT documentation's Adjustable Output Parameters section.
Setting Up Tracking Transmit Channel
Transmitting tracking data happens with the Format and to the Target port set on a CAMERA TRACKING panel, and to the server address set on the Server Setup page.
NOTE: If you are transmitting tracking data to another Aximmetry we recommend using AxiBridge, or if the connection is unstable, AxiBridge TCP. For other applications use the format that is supported at the other end.
NOTE: When selecting Free-D, the forwarded Camera ID will be 0.
Setting Up Controller Transmit Channel
Transmitting controller inputs happens via the OSC protocol. No further setup is required, the Hostname and OSC port on the Server Setup define where the OSC messages will be sent.
Handling the Final Output
To receive the final output from the server, one or more VIDEO OUTPUTS panels must be created.
Receiving the Final Output
The final output is received via the SRT protocol. When the Receive channel's Setup... button is pressed, an SRT setup dialog comes up.
In this window, the Host is already set from the Server Setup page, and the device Name field is removed.
The other fields should be set up according to our SRT documentation's Adjustable Input Parameters section.
NOTE: Contrary to Aximmetry Composer's default setting for an SRT Video input device, the default Connection mode for the receiving channel here is Caller instead of Listener, as the most usual network setup when using Gateway requires this setup. If left unchanged, when creating the SRT Video Out device in Composer, the Connection mode must be changed from Caller to Listener.
Outputting to a Device
The final composite can be output to any two video out devices by selecting them from the Output to dropdown menus. However, only those devices are listed here that have an index number set under Edit / Video Outputs...
For easier reach, the Configure... button opens the Video Outputs window.
NOTE: Software-based devices (including tracking data protocols) must first be created under Edit / Manage Devices.
Setting up the Delays
Video Inputs
If the Timecode master checkbox is
- Checked: The video input's timecode will be used as the timecode for synchronizing all video and tracking data. We suggest its usage if every input is connected to a timecode generator.
- Unchecked: Aximmetry's base Timecode will be used for synchronizing all video and tracking data.
Camera Tracking
- Tracking device Delay: The specific delay for the Tracking device.
- Zoom device Delay: The specific delay for the Zoom device.
- TC sync: Timecode sync for the Tracking device. Check this box, if your camera and tracking device are timecode synced.
- Zoom TCs: Timecode sync for the Zoom device. Check this box, if your camera and zoom device are timecode synced.
If you want to read more about delays, please refer to the Delays section of our Tracked Camera Inputs document: Delays
Delay Settings on the Server
The video frames and the tracking data sent via Aximmetry Gateway will have Aximmetry's base timecode embedded. All inputs will be Timecode synced so you need to turn on the Timecode Sync switch for your INPUT # and also set the Tracking Delay and Zoom Delay values to 0.
NOTE: Some tracking formats do not support the use of timecode, e.g. Free-D. In this case, Timecode Sync will not work. We recommend using a tracking format that does support it, e.g. AxiBridge.
Starting the Streams
Once everything has been set up, the streams can be started or stopped on the title bar or in the Server menu.
Receiving Data in Composer
To receive the data transmitted by Gateway, a device for each input in Composer should be created under Edit / Manage Devices.
Receiving Video
To receive the video transmitted by Gateway, an SRT Video device must be created corresponding to the VIDEO INPUTS' Transmit channel on the transmitting machine.
Once the device is configured, it can be used in Composer as a video input.
NOTE: You can learn more about the SRT Video device creation here: SRT
Receiving Tracking Data
To receive the tracking data, a tracking device must be created corresponding to the CAMERA TRACKING's Target port and Format on the transmitting machine.
Setting up the device depends on which protocol you've chosen on the transmitting PC:
- AxiBridge:
Enter the Target port from the transmitting machine to the UDP port field.
- AxiBridge TCP:
Set the Hostname to the transmitting machine, and set the Port the same as the Target port on the transmitting machine. - AGTP:
Simply enter the Target port from the transmitting machine to the UDP port field. - Free-D:
Enter the Target port from the transmitting machine to the UDP port field, and set the Camera ID to 0. - Passthru:
Passthru format forwards the tracking data in its original format, with the port replaced by the Target port from the transmitting machine. The device to be created should be configured for the original input, except that the port used should be the one set as the Target port on the transmitting machine.
Once the device is configured, it can be used in Composer as camera tracking.
Receiving Controller Data
To receive controller data, the OSC Server must be set corresponding to the Server Setup on the transmitting machine. In most cases, identical port numbers are enough.
Once the connection is established, the controller can be used as an OSC controller in Composer.
NOTE: You can read more about using OSC controllers here: OSC messages in Aximmetry
Transmitting the Final Composite Back to Gateway
When you're finished setting up your production, you can send back the final composite (or any other video) to the original PC, where Gateway is running.
Since the Gateway's VIDEO OUTPUTS' panels receive the final composite via the SRT protocol, the final output from Composer must be sent using the SRT protocol.
For this, an SRT Video Out device must be created corresponding to the VIDEO OUTPUTS' Receive channel.
Once the device is configured, it can be used in Composer as a video output and Gateway should receive the signal.
NOTE: You can learn more about the SRT Video Out device creation here: SRT
NOTE: If the Connection mode for Gateway's VIDEO OUTPUTS' Receive channel has been left unchanged (Caller), then the Composer's default SRT Video Out Connection mode must be changed from Caller to Listener.
