Can I genlock ZED cameras to a cinema camera to capture a synchronized depth image for each frame?

Last updated: October 23, 2026

USB 3 cameras: ZED 2i and ZED Mini

The USB 3 cameras (ZED 2i, ZED Mini, and the discontinued ZED and ZED 2) do not provide a hardware genlock input. However, every image is precisely timestamped at acquisition: if the cinema camera provides timestamped images (or embeds a timecode), you can synchronize the two streams in post-processing by comparing the acquisition timestamps and selecting the closest matching frames.

GMSL2 cameras: ZED X family and ZED X One

The GMSL2 cameras (ZED X, ZED X Mini, ZED X Nano, ZED X One GS, ZED X One S, and ZED X One 4K) support hardware frame synchronization, the closest equivalent to a genlock workflow:

  • All the GMSL2 cameras connected to the same ZED Link capture card port are triggered by the same electronic signal, which guarantees simultaneous exposure with an accuracy of 15 µs.

  • The ZED Link capture cards expose frame-sync trigger signals on a GPIO connector. The card can work in master mode, generating a trigger output to synchronize external equipment, or in slave mode, accepting an external trigger input (a 3.3 V square wave with a frequency matching the camera frame rate: 15, 30, 60, or 120 Hz). For pinout and configuration details, see the GPIO triggering guides of the ZED Link Mono, ZED Link Duo, and ZED Link Quad.

  • The ZED Box Mini provides dedicated SYNC-IN and SYNC-OUT connectors for the same purpose, to synchronize multiple ZED Box Mini units or third-party sensors. The ZED Box 2 provides a Sync + IO connector.

  • The same mechanism allows two ZED X One cameras to be combined into a custom-baseline stereo rig with hardware-synchronized capture; see Dual Camera Stereo Vision.

Therefore, if your cinema camera can generate or accept a compatible frame-sync trigger signal, you can hardware-synchronize a GMSL2 ZED camera with your main camera, and obtain a depth image captured simultaneously with each frame of the main camera. If a direct electrical trigger connection is not possible, timestamp-based matching remains available, as with the USB cameras.

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