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Project Aria Recording Profiles

Writing Sample

This page is based on technical writing I did for Project Aria. Some of the links will be broken, as I did not bring across the whole site. For the most up to date documentation go to Project Aria Docs.

Overview

Project Aria glasses have multiple recording profiles that enable users to choose what sensors to record with and what settings to use. Aria glasses recording profiles can vary by:

  • Sub-selection of sensor streams
  • RGB and ET (Eye Tracking) camera resolution
  • Mono Scene (often, but not exclusively used for SLAM), RGB and ET camera frame rate and auto-exposure settings
  • Image stream format
  • Number of audio channels: all (7) v.s. stereo(2)

The table below provides a detailed spec of each profile we currently support. We add new profiles when necessary.

This page covers:

Recording Profile Specs

The following table provides a detailed spec of each profile we currently support. Keep in mind the following requirements when selecting a recording profile:

  • If Wi-Fi data is being recorded (wifiScanModeActive), you won't be able to create TICSync recordings with that profile
  • To request SLAM (or Multi-SLAM) MPS, you'll need Monoscene/SLAM cameras + IMU enabled
  • To request Eye Gaze MPS, you'll need Eye Tracking cameras enabled
  • To request Hand Tracking MPS, you'll need Monoscene/SLAM camers enabled
Microphones
ET Cameras
RGB Cameras
SLAM (Mono Scene Cameras)
GPS
IMU 1
IMU 2
Magnetometer
Barometer
Wi-Fi
Bluetooth
ProfileChannels Sample Rate (kHz)Resolution FPSImage FormatResolution FPSAuto ExposureImage FormatResolution FPSAuto ExposureImage FormatData Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Scan Duration(s)Scan Duration(s)
07 48 320x240 10 JPEG 2880x2880 1 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG 1 1000 800 10 50 10 10
2- - - - - 1408x1408 20 ON JPEG 640x480 20 ON JPEG 1 1000 800 10 50 10 10
47 48 - - - 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG - - - - 1 1000 800 10 50 - -
5- - 640x480 20 JPEG 1408x1408 20 ON JPEG - - - - - 1000 800 - - - -
77 48 - - - 1408x1408 10 ON RAW - - - - 1 1000 800 10 50 - -
87 48 320x240 30 JPEG 1408x1408 5 ON JPEG 640x480 15 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
97 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 20 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
107 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG 1 1000 800 10 50 10 10
12- - 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
14- - 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 1 ON JPEG 640x480 30 ON JPEG 1 1000 800 10 50 - -
157 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 30 ON JPEG 640x480 30 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
Microphones
ET Cameras
RGB Cameras
SLAM (Mono Scene Cameras)
GPS
IMU 1
IMU 2
Magnetometer
Barometer
Wi-Fi
Bluetooth
ProfileChannels Sample Rate (kHz)Resolution FPSImage FormatResolution FPSAuto ExposureImage FormatResolution FPSAuto ExposureImage FormatData Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Data Rate (Hz)Scan Duration(s)Scan Duration(s)
162 48 640x480 90 JPEG 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG - - - - - 1000 800 10 50 - -
187 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
19- - - - - 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG 1 1000 800 10 50 10 10
202 48 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1000 800 - - - -
217 48 320x240 30 JPEG 1408x1408 15 ON JPEG 640x480 15 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
227 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 30 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
237 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 30 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
24- - - - - 2880x2880 10 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
25- - - - - 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG 640x480 20 ON JPEG 1 1000 800 - - 10 10
262 48 - - - 2880x2880 1 ON JPEG - - - - 1 - - - - - -
277 48 320x240 10 JPEG 1408x1408 10 ON JPEG 640x480 10 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 10 -
287 48 320x240 60 JPEG 1408x1408 30 ON JPEG 640x480 30 ON JPEG - 1000 800 10 50 - -
292 48 - - - 2880x2880 1/0.1 ON JPEG with decimation - - - - 1 - - - - - -

The Decimated JPEG outputs for profile29 means that 9 out 10 JPEG frames are skipped, creating an equivalent frame rate of 0.1FPS. The aim is to create a recording profile that can support 15+ recording hours.

Viewing recording profile details on device

There are several ways you can view recording profile information if you have access to Project Aria glasses

Mobile Companion app

  1. Open the Mobile Companion App and select New Recording Session
  2. Tap Recording Profile
  3. Select More Info in the top right corner
    • The More Info page will show all recording profiles as well as the current settings for the Custom Profile

Project Aria Client SDK

If you've set up your glasses with the Client SDK you can export recording profiles to a JSON file.

General guidance if you're making recordings

These are some sensor profiles researchers have found useful for particular kinds of research. Commonly used recording profiles are Profiles 0, 2, 5, 9, 10, 15 and 23.

If you’re not sure what you want

Profile10 is interesting to explore, it gathers data with all sensors and the RGB Camera records at 10 fps. All sensor data is useful for exploring multimodal ML models.

If you need high RGB Resolution (2880x2880 rather than 1408x1408), and 1FPS is sufficient shutter speed, use Profile0.

If you're streaming data

While you can use any recording profile when streaming, we recommend only using Profiles 12 and 18, which are optimized for streaming.

If you need a high frame rate

Use Profiles 2, 9 or 15, depending on whether you want EyeTracking or GPS. Profile2 does not have ET, Profile15 does not have GPS.

If your research focuses on audio

Try Profiles 4, 7 (no SLAM) or 10.

To avoid image pre-processing

In situations where you want to use RAW videos and skip the Image Sensor Processor (ISP) as much as possible, Profile7 is helpful.

Please note, because Profile7 delivers RAW image files, not JPEGs the data is 8x more costly to store. This profile also uses more energy while recording and may heat up faster than others.

Long duration recordings

Profiles 20 and 26 are optimized for 5+ recording hours. Profile 29 is optimized for recording times over 15 hours and uses JPEG decimation to provide 0.1FPS RGB data.

How to make custom recordings with the Mobile Companion app

The custom profile feature enables users to alter the most commonly used sensor configurations. Further customizations could be added, such as auto-exposure or whether to record images as JPEG or RAW, if there is sufficient demand. Please contact us using one of our support channels if you have any feature requests.

Some custom configurations are restricted, to protect the device or quality of recording:

  • FPS across cameras must be the same, or multiples of each other for the glasses to record.
  • [Warning] RGB Cameras at 2880 x 2880 at 15-20 fps will cause elevated thermal loads and reduced battery life
  • To ensure device stability, recordings at 2880x2880 at 30fps are not allowed

To set a Custom Recording Profile:

  1. In the Mobile Companion app Dashboard, select New Recording Session
  2. Select Recording Profile
  3. The first recording profile in the list will be Custom Profile
    • You may need to scroll up to see this option
  4. Select the Custom Profile
  5. Select Edit parameters
  6. Adjust sensor settings
    • Tap More info on the Recording Profiles Tab to see more details, such as auto exposure