Using the ZED C# API on Windows

This section explains how to use the ZED SDK in C# on Windows platform.

Getting Started

These packages let you use the ZED stereo camera in C#. The C# API is a wrapper around the ZED SDK which is written in C++ optimized code.

To start using the ZED SDK in C#, you will need to install the following dependencies on your system:

  • Visual Studio 2017 with C# extensions
  • Cmake 3.8 at least (Support of C#)
  • ZED SDK (see Installation section)

The C# API uses two libraries that is published to Nuget.org into a single package.

Package Description Link
Stereolabs.zed Contains the C wrapper of the ZED SDK and a .NET interface that imports the functions from the wrapper in C# NuGet version

In our tutorials and samples, these packages are automatically downloaded when building the program. However, it can be manually added to any C# project within Visual Studio. See the Nuget documentation.

Building a sample

We will build a simple tutorial application Hello ZED using the ZED SDK and CMake. CMake is a cross-platform project generation tool. It provides an easy way to build project files that can be used in the compiler environment of your choice. For example, a CMake script can produce Visual Studio project and solution files.

  • Download the ZED Examples sample code available on our GitHub page. You can also browse our GitHub for additional plugins and sample codes.

  • Open cmake-gui.

  • In “Where is the source code“, enter the path of the project folder where the CMakeLists.txt is located.

  • In “Where to build the binaries“, enter the previous path and add: /build.

  • Click on [Configure].

  • A dialog window asks you if CMake can create the “build” folder. Say yes.
  • Another dialog window will ask you to specify a generator for your project. Choose Visual Studio in Win64 and click on [Finish].

  • CMake may take a few seconds to configure the project.
  • Click on [Generate] to build the Visual Studio project files.

  • CMake has now generated your project in the build directory. You can directly open the solution by clicking on [Open Project] or by closing the cmake-gui window and opening the build folder.

  • A Visual Studio solution has been generated. Open Hello_ZED.sln and set it in Release mode.

  • To run the builds from the Build menu or from keyboard shortcuts, set the Hello_ZED target as the startup project. In the Solution Explorer, right-click the Hello_ZED solution and click Set As Startup Project

  • You can now edit and compile your program in the Visual Studio IDE. Hit the Ctrl+F5 key to launch the program.

  • When the program is built, the C# interface (Stereolabs.zed.dll) and the C wrapper (sl_zed_c.dll) are automatically added into the build folder, next to the executable file.

  • When deploying the application, make sure that sl_zed_c.dll and Stereolabs.zed.dll are packaged with the executable files, and shipped on a target PC that has the proper ZED SDK version installed.