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+.. SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0
+
+.. _transmitter-receiver:
+
+Pixel data transmitter and receiver drivers
+===========================================
+
+V4L2 supports various devices that transmit and receive pixel data. Examples of
+these devices include a camera sensor, a TV tuner and a parallel or a CSI-2
+receiver in an SoC.
+
+Bus types
+---------
+
+The following busses are the most common. This section discusses these two only.
+
+MIPI CSI-2
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+CSI-2 is a data bus intended for transferring images from cameras to
+the host SoC. It is defined by the `MIPI alliance`_.
+
+.. _`MIPI alliance`: https://www.mipi.org/
+
+Parallel
+^^^^^^^^
+
+`BT.601`_ and `BT.656`_ are the most common parallel busses.
+
+.. _`BT.601`: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rec._601
+.. _`BT.656`: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITU-R_BT.656
+
+Transmitter drivers
+-------------------
+
+Transmitter drivers generally need to provide the receiver drivers with the
+configuration of the transmitter. What is required depends on the type of the
+bus. These are common for both busses.
+
+Media bus pixel code
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+See :ref:`v4l2-mbus-pixelcode`.
+
+Link frequency
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+The :ref:`V4L2_CID_LINK_FREQ <v4l2-cid-link-freq>` control is used to tell the
+receiver the frequency of the bus (i.e. it is not the same as the symbol rate).
+
+``.s_stream()`` callback
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+The struct struct v4l2_subdev_video_ops->s_stream() callback is used by the
+receiver driver to control the transmitter driver's streaming state.
+
+
+CSI-2 transmitter drivers
+-------------------------
+
+Pixel rate
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+The pixel rate on the bus is calculated as follows::
+
+ pixel_rate = link_freq * 2 * nr_of_lanes * 16 / k / bits_per_sample
+
+where
+
+.. list-table:: variables in pixel rate calculation
+ :header-rows: 1
+
+ * - variable or constant
+ - description
+ * - link_freq
+ - The value of the ``V4L2_CID_LINK_FREQ`` integer64 menu item.
+ * - nr_of_lanes
+ - Number of data lanes used on the CSI-2 link. This can
+ be obtained from the OF endpoint configuration.
+ * - 2
+ - Data is transferred on both rising and falling edge of the signal.
+ * - bits_per_sample
+ - Number of bits per sample.
+ * - k
+ - 16 for D-PHY and 7 for C-PHY
+
+.. note::
+
+ The pixel rate calculated this way is **not** the same thing as the
+ pixel rate on the camera sensor's pixel array which is indicated by the
+ :ref:`V4L2_CID_PIXEL_RATE <v4l2-cid-pixel-rate>` control.
+
+LP-11 and LP-111 modes
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+As part of transitioning to high speed mode, a CSI-2 transmitter typically
+briefly sets the bus to LP-11 or LP-111 state, depending on the PHY. This period
+may be as short as 100 µs, during which the receiver observes this state and
+proceeds its own part of high speed mode transition.
+
+Most receivers are capable of autonomously handling this once the software has
+configured them to do so, but there are receivers which require software
+involvement in observing LP-11 or LP-111 state. 100 µs is a brief period to hit
+in software, especially when there is no interrupt telling something is
+happening.
+
+One way to address this is to configure the transmitter side explicitly to LP-11
+or LP-111 mode, which requires support from the transmitter hardware. This is
+not universally available. Many devices return to this state once streaming is
+stopped while the state after power-on is LP-00 or LP-000.
+
+The ``.pre_streamon()`` callback may be used to prepare a transmitter for
+transitioning to streaming state, but not yet start streaming. Similarly, the
+``.post_streamoff()`` callback is used to undo what was done by the
+``.pre_streamon()`` callback. The caller of ``.pre_streamon()`` is thus required
+to call ``.post_streamoff()`` for each successful call of ``.pre_streamon()``.
+
+In the context of CSI-2, the ``.pre_streamon()`` callback is used to transition
+the transmitter to the LP-11 or LP-111 mode. This also requires powering on the
+device, so this should be only done when it is needed.
+
+Receiver drivers that do not need explicit LP-11 or LP-111 mode setup are waived
+from calling the two callbacks.
+
+Stopping the transmitter
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+A transmitter stops sending the stream of images as a result of
+calling the ``.s_stream()`` callback. Some transmitters may stop the
+stream at a frame boundary whereas others stop immediately,
+effectively leaving the current frame unfinished. The receiver driver
+should not make assumptions either way, but function properly in both
+cases.