# Bridge blocks

Media Blocks SDK .Net

Bridges can be used to link two pipelines and dynamically switch between them. For example, you can switch between different files or cameras in the first Pipeline without interrupting streaming in the second Pipeline.

To link source and sink, give them the same name. Each bridge pair has a unique channel name.

# Bridge audio sink and source

Bridges can be used to connect different media pipelines and use them independently. BridgeAudioSourceBlock is used to connect to BridgeAudioSinkBlock and supports uncompressed audio.

# Block info

# BridgeAudioSourceBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output audio	uncompressed audio	1

# BridgeAudioSinkBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Input audio	uncompressed audio	1

# Sample pipelines

# First pipeline with an audio source and a bridge audio sink

graph LR;
    VirtualAudioSourceBlock-->BridgeAudioSinkBlock;

# Second pipeline with a bridge audio source and an audio renderer

graph LR;
    BridgeAudioSourceBlock-->AudioRendererBlock;

# Sample code

The source pipeline with virtual audio source and bridge audio sink.

// create source pipeline
var sourcePipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();

// create virtual audio source and bridge audio sink
var audioSourceBlock = new VirtualAudioSourceBlock(new VirtualAudioSourceSettings());
var bridgeAudioSink = new BridgeAudioSinkBlock(new BridgeAudioSinkSettings());

// connect source and sink
sourcePipeline.Connect(audioSourceBlock.Output, bridgeAudioSink.Input);

// start pipeline
await sourcePipeline.StartAsync();

The sink pipeline with bridge audio source and audio renderer.

// create sink pipeline
var sinkPipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();

// create bridge audio source and audio renderer
var bridgeAudioSource = new BridgeAudioSourceBlock(new BridgeAudioSourceSettings());
var audioRenderer = new AudioRendererBlock();

// connect source and sink
sinkPipeline.Connect(bridgeAudioSource.Output, audioRenderer.Input);

// start pipeline
await sinkPipeline.StartAsync();

# Bridge video sink and source

Bridges can be used to connect different media pipelines and use them independently. BridgeVideoSinkBlock is used to connect to the BridgeVideoSourceBlock and supports uncompressed video.

# Blocks info

# BridgeVideoSinkBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Input video	uncompressed video	1

# BridgeVideoSourceBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output video	uncompressed video	1

# Sample pipelines

# First pipeline with a video source and a bridge video sink

graph LR;
    VirtualVideoSourceBlock-->BridgeVideoSinkBlock;

# Second pipeline with a bridge video source and a video renderer

graph LR;
    BridgeVideoSourceBlock-->VideoRendererBlock;

# Sample code

Source pipeline with a virtual video source and bridge video sink.

// create source pipeline
var sourcePipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();

// create virtual video source and bridge video sink
var videoSourceBlock = new VirtualVideoSourceBlock(new VirtualVideoSourceSettings());
var bridgeVideoSink = new BridgeVideoSinkBlock(new BridgeVideoSinkSettings());

// connect source and sink
sourcePipeline.Connect(videoSourceBlock.Output, bridgeVideoSink.Input);

// start pipeline
await sourcePipeline.StartAsync();

Sink pipeline with a bridge video source and video renderer.

// create sink pipeline
var sinkPipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();

// create bridge video source and video renderer
var bridgeVideoSource = new BridgeVideoSourceBlock(new BridgeVideoSourceSettings());
var videoRenderer = new VideoRendererBlock(sinkPipeline, VideoView1);

// connect source and sink
sinkPipeline.Connect(bridgeVideoSource.Output, videoRenderer.Input);

// start pipeline
await sinkPipeline.StartAsync();

# Bridge subtitle sink and source

Bridges can be used to connect different media pipelines and use them independently. BridgeSubtitleSourceBlock is used to connect to the BridgeSubtitleSinkBlockand supports text media type.

# Block info

# BridgeSubtitleSourceBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output video	text	1

# BridgeSubtitleSinkBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output video	text	1

# Proxy source

Proxy source/proxy sink pair of blocks can be used to connect different media pipelines and use them independently.

# Block info

Name: ProxySourceBlock.

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output	Any uncompressed	1

# Sample pipelines

# First pipeline with a video source and a proxy video sink

graph LR;
    VirtualVideoSourceBlock-->ProxySinkBlock;

# Second pipeline with a proxy video source and a video renderer

graph LR;
    ProxySourceBlock-->VideoRendererBlock;

# Sample code

// source pipeline with virtual video source and proxy sink
var sourcePipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var videoSourceBlock = new VirtualVideoSourceBlock(new VirtualVideoSourceSettings());
var proxyVideoSink = new ProxySinkBlock();
sourcePipeline.Connect(videoSourceBlock.Output, proxyVideoSink.Input);

// sink pipeline with proxy video source and video renderer
var sinkPipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var proxyVideoSource = new ProxySourceBlock(proxyVideoSink);
var videoRenderer = new VideoRendererBlock(sinkPipeline, VideoView1);
sinkPipeline.Connect(proxyVideoSource.Output, videoRenderer.Input);

// start pipelines
await sourcePipeline.StartAsync();
await sinkPipeline.StartAsync();

# Platforms

All bridge blocks are supported on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android.

# Bridge Buffer sink and source

BridgeBuffer blocks provide high-performance memory buffer-based communication between pipelines, ideal for sharing video frames without encoding overhead.

# Block info

# BridgeBufferSinkBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Input video	uncompressed video	1

# BridgeBufferSourceBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output	auto	1

# Sample code

// First pipeline with video source and bridge buffer sink
var sourcePipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var videoSource = new SystemVideoSourceBlock(videoSettings);

var videoInfo = new VideoFrameInfoX(1920, 1080, VideoFormatX.NV12);
var bufferSink = new BridgeBufferSinkBlock("buffer-channel", videoInfo);
sourcePipeline.Connect(videoSource.Output, bufferSink.Input);

// Second pipeline with bridge buffer source and renderer
var sinkPipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var bufferSource = new BridgeBufferSourceBlock("buffer-channel");
var videoRenderer = new VideoRendererBlock(sinkPipeline, VideoView1);
sinkPipeline.Connect(bufferSource.Output, videoRenderer.Input);

await sourcePipeline.StartAsync();
await sinkPipeline.StartAsync();

# InterPipe sink and source

InterPipe blocks use GStreamer's interpipesink/interpipesrc elements for efficient inter-pipeline communication with support for both audio and video.

# Block info

# InterPipeSinkBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Input	audio or video	1

# InterPipeSourceBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output	audio or video	1

# Sample code

// First pipeline with video source and interpipe sink
var sourcePipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var videoSource = new SystemVideoSourceBlock(videoSettings);

var videoInfo = new VideoFrameInfoX(1920, 1080, VideoFormatX.NV12);
var interpipeSink = new InterPipeSinkBlock("interpipe-channel", videoInfo);
sourcePipeline.Connect(videoSource.Output, interpipeSink.Input);

// Second pipeline with interpipe source and renderer
var sinkPipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var interpipeSource = new InterPipeSourceBlock("interpipe-channel", MediaBlockPadMediaType.Video);
var videoRenderer = new VideoRendererBlock(sinkPipeline, VideoView1);
sinkPipeline.Connect(interpipeSource.Output, videoRenderer.Input);

await sourcePipeline.StartAsync();
await sinkPipeline.StartAsync();

# RS Inter sink and source

RSInter blocks use the Rust-based GStreamer rsinter plugin for high-performance inter-pipeline communication.

# Block info

# RSInterSinkBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Input	audio or video	1

# RSInterSourceBlock information

Pin direction	Media type	Pins count
Output	audio or video	1

# Sample code

// First pipeline with video source and rsinter sink
var sourcePipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var videoSource = new SystemVideoSourceBlock(videoSettings);

var rsinterSink = new RSInterSinkBlock(MediaBlockPadMediaType.Video, "rsinter-channel");
sourcePipeline.Connect(videoSource.Output, rsinterSink.Input);

// Second pipeline with rsinter source and renderer
var sinkPipeline = new MediaBlocksPipeline();
var rsinterSource = new RSInterSourceBlock(MediaBlockPadMediaType.Video, "rsinter-channel");
var videoRenderer = new VideoRendererBlock(sinkPipeline, VideoView1);
sinkPipeline.Connect(rsinterSource.Output, videoRenderer.Input);

await sourcePipeline.StartAsync();
await sinkPipeline.StartAsync();

# Platforms

All bridge blocks are supported on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android.

Note: InterPipe and RSInter blocks require the corresponding GStreamer plugins to be installed.