Capturing video input in a mobile AIR application
Modified
10 October 2011
Requirements
Prerequisite knowledge
Familiarity with ActionScript 3.
Additional Requirements
- Android device
User level
Intermediate
Required products
- Flash Builder (Download trial)
- Flash Professional CS5 (Download trial)
Sample files
You can use the Camera class to capture video from the camera on a mobile device. You can display the camera video using the Video class. This article covers:
- How to create a camera object
- How to declare Android permission to use device camera
- How to attach the camera to a Video object
Creating a Camera object
Get a reference to the Camera object using the camera.getCamera() method. The getCamera() method returns a Camera object if a camera is available and returns null otherwise. On Android, only one camera is supported.
The code below creates a camera object. If the Camera object returns null, the code traces a message, "No camera is installed."
private var camera:Camera = Camera.getCamera();
if (camera == null)
{
trace "No camera is installed.");
}
else
{
trace("Camera is installed.");
camera.setMode( 800, 400, 15, true );
}
The default size of the camera output can be small. Call the setMode() method to set the desired video resolution.
The hardware camera maintains a natural landscape orientation. When you use the Camera class, set the landscape aspect ratio for your application as well. You can set the aspect ratio to landscape in the application descriptor. You can also set it at runtime using the stage aspectRatio property. Avoid enabling the autoOrients setting in the application descriptor. If enabled, the device switches to the portrait aspect ratio when the user rotates the phone.
Declaring Android permission to use device camera
To access device camera, provide the permission to use camera in Android Manifest. In the application descriptor, under <android>, add the following:
<manifestAdditions>
<![CDATA[
<manifest>
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.CAMERA"/>
</manifest>
]]>
</manifestAdditions>
Attaching a Camera object to a Video object
The following method creates a Video object with the same width and height as of the device camera. To display video, attach the Camera object to the Video object. Then, add the Video object to the display list using the addChild() method.
private function connectCamera():void
{
var video:Video = new Video(camera.width, camera.height);
video.x = 10;
video.y = 10;
video.attachCamera(camera);
addChild(video);
}
Where to go from here
In this article, you learned about creating a Camera object and providing permission to use the device camera. You also learned about attaching a Camera object to a Video object to capture a video input. Use the Camera and Video classes in AIR to build complex applications.
For more information, refer to the online documentation, ActionScript 3 API Reference for the Adobe Flash Platform.
