From c80183bd3174ee20ac9bc66e488aa2d3c6ec2fe8 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Andrew Kettel <andrew.kettel@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 2026 18:06:06 -0700
Subject: [PATCH] Switch to jpeg output

---
 src/app.py               |  2 +-
 src/camera.py            | 63 +++++++++++++++++++---------------------
 src/templates/index.html |  4 +++
 3 files changed, 35 insertions(+), 34 deletions(-)

diff --git a/src/app.py b/src/app.py
index c922c93..6d124b7 100644
--- a/src/app.py
+++ b/src/app.py
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ def camera_stop() -> tuple[Response, int]:
 def camera_stream() -> Response:
     def generate() -> Generator[bytes, Any, Any]:
         for frame in camera.frames():
-            yield (b"--frame\r\n" b"Content-Type: video/H264\r\n\r\n" + frame + b"\r\n")
+            yield (b"--frame\r\n" b"Content-Type: image/jpeg\r\n\r\n" + frame + b"\r\n")
 
     return Response(
         generate(),
diff --git a/src/camera.py b/src/camera.py
index 4c22fe0..57699bf 100644
--- a/src/camera.py
+++ b/src/camera.py
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import io
 import logging
 import threading
 from collections.abc import Iterator
@@ -6,8 +7,6 @@ logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 try:
     from picamera2 import Picamera2
-    from picamera2.encoders import H264Encoder
-    from picamera2.outputs import FileOutput
 
     PICAMERA_AVAILABLE = True
 except ImportError:
@@ -15,24 +14,13 @@ except ImportError:
     logger.warning("picamera2 not available — running in mock mode")
 
 
-class StreamOutput:
-    """Thread-safe buffer that holds the latest H.264 frame."""
-
-    def __init__(self) -> None:
-        self.frame: bytes = b""
-        self.condition = threading.Condition()
-
-    def write(self, data: bytes) -> None:
-        with self.condition:
-            self.frame = data
-            self.condition.notify_all()
-
-
 class Camera:
     def __init__(self) -> None:
         self._picam: Picamera2 | None = None
-        self._output: StreamOutput | None = None
-        self._encoder: H264Encoder | None = None
+        self._thread: threading.Thread | None = None
+        self._frame: bytes = b""
+        self._lock = threading.Lock()
+        self._stop_event = threading.Event()
         self.running = False
 
     def start(self) -> None:
@@ -45,38 +33,47 @@ class Camera:
 
         self._picam = Picamera2()
         config = self._picam.create_video_configuration(
-            main={"size": (1280, 720)},
+            main={"size": (1280, 720), "format": "RGB888"},
         )
         self._picam.configure(config)
-        self._output = StreamOutput()
-        self._encoder = H264Encoder(bitrate=2_000_000)
-        self._picam.start_recording(self._encoder, FileOutput(self._output))
+        self._picam.start()
+        self._stop_event.clear()
+        self._thread = threading.Thread(target=self._capture_loop, daemon=True)
+        self._thread.start()
         self.running = True
         logger.info("Camera started")
 
+    def _capture_loop(self) -> None:
+        assert self._picam is not None
+        while not self._stop_event.is_set():
+            buffer = io.BytesIO()
+            self._picam.capture_file(buffer, format="jpeg")
+            with self._lock:
+                self._frame = buffer.getvalue()
+
     def stop(self) -> None:
         if not self.running:
             return
+        self._stop_event.set()
+        if self._thread:
+            self._thread.join(timeout=2)
         if self._picam:
-            self._picam.stop_recording()
+            self._picam.stop()
             self._picam.close()
             self._picam = None
         self.running = False
         logger.info("Camera stopped")
 
+    def get_frame(self) -> bytes:
+        with self._lock:
+            return self._frame
+
     def frames(self) -> Iterator[bytes]:
-        """Yield H.264 frames for multipart streaming."""
-        if not PICAMERA_AVAILABLE:
-            # yield a small empty frame in mock mode
-            while self.running:
-                yield b""
-                return
-        assert self._output is not None
+        """Yield JPEG frames for multipart streaming."""
         while self.running:
-            with self._output.condition:
-                self._output.condition.wait()
-                frame = self._output.frame
-            yield frame
+            frame = self.get_frame()
+            if frame:
+                yield frame
 
 
 camera = Camera()
diff --git a/src/templates/index.html b/src/templates/index.html
index 7cbbf75..1121e31 100644
--- a/src/templates/index.html
+++ b/src/templates/index.html
@@ -120,6 +120,10 @@
             btnStart.disabled = true;
             status.textContent = "Starting…";
             await postAction("/camera/start");
+
+            // small delay to let camera initialise
+            await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, 500));
+
             streamImg.src = "/camera/stream";
             streamImg.style.display = "block";
             placeholder.style.display = "none";