Real-time streaming

The QTM real time process enables QTM to send data to any program that can receive data on TCP/IP or UDP/IP.

Real time protocols

The following protocols are supported by QTM:

  • QTM Real-Time Server protocol (RT protocol)

    QTM's own real-time protocol.

  • Open Sound Control (OSC)

    A protocol widely used for sound synthesizers and other multimedia devices. An example for MAX/MSP, MAX OSC Demo, is available at the QTM download page that can be accessed via https://www.qualisys.com/my/.

The protocols are described in the QTM Real-Time Sever protocol documentation QTM RT protocol.pdf that is included with the QTM installer in the RT Protocol subfolder ("C:\Program Files\Qualisys\Qualisys Track Manager\RT Protocol" when QTM is installed in the default location). The RT Protocol folder also contains a compiled version of the RTClientExample, that can be used for testing and troubleshooting real-time streaming. The RT protocol doumentation is also available online via https://docs.qualisys.com/qtm-rt-protocol/.

QTM can also be controlled through its REST API. For more information, see the RESTful_QTM_API PDF included with the QTM installer in the REST subfolder ("C:\Program Files\Qualisys\Qualisys Track Manager\REST").

The real time performance depends on the computer and graphical card specifications, the number of cameras, the number of markers and the complexity of the used AIM model(s), amongst others. For more information and tips for improving real-time performance, see chapter How real time works in QTM.

Resources

Qualisys offers a variety of resources that can be used for real-time streaming, including:

  • QTM Connect

    Plugins/clients for streaming data from QTM into third party software, such as Matlab, LabVIEW, or game engines, such as Unreal Engine or Unity.

  • SDKs

    Open source SDKs for developing custom QTM clients for C++, C#, Python, etc.

The QTM Connect installers and SDKs are available via the Qualisys downloads page at https://www.qualisys.com/downloads/ and via the Qualisys GitHub page at https://github.com/qualisys/.