[albright888]

I am needing to load still image frames from disk and merge them into an MXF video file. Along with each image frame I have a corresponding GPS timestamp and I need to include the timestamps along with the frames. I am new to the MXF format. Is MXFLib the right tool for the job? Does anyone have any pointers on how to get started with the code?

Much appreciated!
-Cory

[Matt Beard]

MXFLib does not come with applications that will do exactly what you are wanting, but the library can be used to build such an app.

The most important factor would be the exact format required for the output file. What type of essence container will be used for the images; how will the timestamps be held?

Are you planning to code this yourself? Or are you hoping to find someone that can code it for you?

[albright888]

I am planning to do this myself. I have been able to leverage GStreamer to gather the images together into an mpeg2 video, but it does not seem to be the mpeg 2 elementary stream, as mxfwrap/simplewrap did not like them (couldn't identify the essence). GStreamer has its own mxf plugin, but I haven't been able to get it to write an mxf file that is readable by any software (other than GStreamer itself).
I do not have an exact specification on paper for the timestamp metadata, but I do have a couple of sample videos that are already setup properly (I think one came from Avid and the other from a Sony cam). I have been playing with mxfdump to try to understand the layout.
I was hoping it would be as straightforward as taking the mpeg2 video (and frame timestamps) and writing a 'custom' mxfwrap application to merge it all together into a final mxf.
I assume mxflib does not have the ability to mpeg encode the frames?

[Matt Beard]

MXFLib does not do video or audio encoding or decoding, it just handles the MXF reading and writing parts.

It may be that the timecode data is in GC System Items.

Is there a sample file that you can make available to me? If so, you could PM me the details.

[albright888]

Interesting . . . I have been reading forum posts regarding JPEG2000 in MXF. Would it make sense to simply convert my image frames into JPEG2000 and wrap them into a MXF? Would this bypass the need to encode into a video format?

(I have "The MXF Book" on order so hopefully my questions will start to look more intelligent in 3-5 days )

[Matt Beard]

That is certainly a valid thing to do; however the 'right' thing depends on what system will be receiving the files.