Camera system

The Camera system branch of the options tree consists of hardware settings for the cameras. On the Camera System page you can locate the system, set the Marker capture frequency and the Real time frequency, and obtain an overview list with the status of the Camera system settings.

The Camera system page contains the following subcategories: Cameras, Calibration and Synchronization.

Marker capture frequency

The Marker capture frequency is the capture rate that will be used in a marker measurement. The frequency can be set to an integer between 1 Hz (frames per second) up to the maximum frequency of the current camera type. For an overview of maximum capture frequencies per camera, see chapter Qualisys camera sensor specifications (marker mode).

Real time frequency

The Real time frequency is the frequency that is used for the real-time processing. It applies both in Preview mode and Capture mode. For more information on real-time measurements see chapter Real-time streaming. There are two options for the Real time frequency.

  • Marker capture frequency
    With this option the real-time frequency will be the same as set with Marker capture frequency. Which means that the cameras will capture at that frequency and QTM will process as many frames as it can.

  • Reduced real time frequency
    On this option the real time processing is set to run on a fixed frequency other than the Marker capture frequency. It can be useful if you will make a capture at a high frequency, then the real-time can be set to a lower rate so that you can view the data better in preview. You can also set a lower real time frequency during capture to optimize the real time output. During capture it is recommended to use a reduced frequency which is a divisor of the capture rate.

  • The reduced frequency cannot be set higher than the Marker capture frequency setting. This is to ensure that you are not using an exposure setting that is too high for the real-time frequency.

    If the analog board uses the External sync option, the analog frequency can be too low in the real time mode (less than 20 Hz) when reducing the real time frequency. Because the ratio between the camera frequency and the analog frame rate will still be the same. If this happens increase the real time frequency so that the analog frame rate becomes higher than 20 Hz.

Camera system settings

Under the Camera system settings heading, the settings for the current camera system are displayed. Every entry is marked with a notification icon. There are three different notification icons, which have the following meaning:


  • The specified setting is within the range of the normal settings.


  • The specified setting is configured in a way that differs from the normal setting. Make sure that it is correct.


  • The specified setting is configured in a way that can ruin the measurement if it is not correct. Make absolutely sure that the setting is correct. Some settings may actually damage the camera system, see chapter External timebase.

Click on an entry to go directly to the corresponding page in the Project options dialog. By right-clicking on an entry a menu with two options appear: Change and Reset to default(s). Click Change to go directly to the corresponding page. Click Reset to default(s) to reset that setting to the default value.