Supported Platforms and System Requirements
Supported Operating Systems
MERLIC is available for Windows and Linux systems. On Windows, all components of MERLIC can be used. On Linux, only specific components of MERLIC can be used.
|
Component |
Windows |
Linux |
|---|---|---|
|
MERLIC Creator |
✔ |
✘ |
|
MERLIC Designer |
✔ |
✘ |
|
MERLIC Frontend |
✔ |
✔ |
|
MERLIC RTE |
✔ |
✔ |
|
MERLIC RTE Setup |
✔ |
✘1 |
|
MERLIC Communicator SDK |
✔ |
✔ |
|
MVApp examples |
✔ |
✔ |
|
Communication plug-ins |
✔ |
✔ |
1Only via remote connection
Developing the MERLIC Vision App (MVApp) for the use on a Linux system is still done on a Windows system with the MERLIC Creator. The application can then be used with MERLIC RTE on the Linux system. Cameras can be set up remotely with the help of MERLIC RTE Setup.
System Requirements
For all systems applies that MERLIC actively makes use of multi-core platforms and AVX (Advanced Vector Extensions) for highest performance.
The following sections give more detailed information on the system requirements for the supported platforms.
Windows
To use MERLIC 5.8.2 on Windows systems, the following system requirements must be fulfilled:
|
Component |
Property |
|---|---|
|
Operating system |
Windows 11 (64-bit, version 23H2) or newer |
|
Processor |
x64 quad-core (2.50 GHz) |
|
Memory |
at least 4 GB |
|
Disk space |
6 GB (Default installation; during the installation process more space is needed) If smaller MERLIC packages are installed, for example, only the package for the MERLIC Frontend, less disk space is required. |
|
Graphics |
1920x1080, 32-bit color In addition, one of the following graphics API must be provided on the system:
|
Linux
To use MERLIC RTE or MERLIC Frontend on Linux systems, the following system requirements must be fulfilled:
|
Component |
PC-based systems |
Arm®-based platforms |
|---|---|---|
|
Operating system |
Linux 5.4 or newer |
Linux 5.4 or newer |
|
Processor |
Intel 64 or AMD 64 |
Arm®v8-A-64bit compliant with support for NEON instruction set |
|
Libraries |
The dependencies below are listed as found in Canonical's Ubuntu package manager, and may differ in other distributions.
|
The dependencies below are listed as found in Canonical's Ubuntu package manager, and may differ in other distributions.
|
|
Graphics |
1920x1080, 32-bit color In addition, one of the following graphics API must be provided on the system:
|
1920x1080, 32-bit color In addition, one of the following graphics API must be provided on the system:
|
MERLIC RTE or MERLIC Frontend on Linux was tested specifically on the following Arm-based platforms:
- Raspberry PI 64-bit
- NVIDIA Jetson Xavier NX Developer Kit
It might also work on different Arm-based platforms. However, none but the above mentioned systems have been specifically tested.
MERLIC RTE for Linux requires significantly less disk or flash memory when not all functionality, for example, Deep Learning, is needed. The installation can be manually reduced as far as 400 MB.
Further Requirements for Installation and License Activation
For specific tasks, some further requirements are necessary:
- Administrator privileges are required during the installation of MERLIC and for the installation of USB3 Vision camera drivers
- For the activation of the MERLIC license, a connection to the internet is required.
Deep-Learning-Based Applications
To benefit from the provided Artificial Intelligence Acceleration Interfaces (AI²) when using MERLIC tools with deep learning technology, make sure to install the respective AI accelerator hardware with the appropriate drivers. For more information on the supported AI² interfaces, see the topic AI² Interfaces for Tools with Deep Learning.
Image Acquisition Interfaces
MERLIC offers hardware independence by supporting image acquisition interfaces of the latest industry standards GigE Vision, GenICam GenTL, and USB3 Vision. For more information about the respective system requirements, see the topic Supported Image Acquisition Interfaces.
Additional Tips on OpenGL
If the requirement for OpenGL is not met, software-only OpenGL is automatically used as fallback. The fallback technology will be slower and/or the display might not always work correctly. If needed, the autodetection of OpenGL can be disabled by explicitly setting one of the following environment variables before launching MERLIC:
- QT_OPENGL=desktop (uses OpenGL)
- QT_OPENGL=software (uses software-only OpenGL)
