OpenVINO™ Samples

The OpenVINO™ samples are simple console applications that show how to utilize specific OpenVINO API capabilities within an application. They can assist you in executing specific tasks such as loading a model, running inference, querying specific device capabilities, etc.

• If you installed OpenVINO Runtime via archive files, sample applications for С, and C++, and Python are created in the following directories:

  • <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/c

  • <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp

  • <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/python

• If you installed OpenVINO via PyPI, download the OpenVINO repository and use samples from samples/python.

• If you installed OpenVINO via HomeBrew, download the OpenVINO repository and use samples from samples/cpp.

The applications include:

• Speech Sample - Acoustic model inference based on Kaldi neural networks and speech feature vectors.

  • Automatic Speech Recognition C++ Sample

  • Automatic Speech Recognition Python Sample

• Hello Classification Sample – Inference of image classification networks like AlexNet and GoogLeNet using Synchronous Inference Request API. Input of any size and layout can be set to an infer request which will be pre-processed automatically during inference (the sample supports only images as inputs and supports Unicode paths).

  • Hello Classification C++ Sample

  • Hello Classification C Sample

  • Hello Classification Python Sample

• Hello NV12 Input Classification Sample – Input of any size and layout can be provided to an infer request. The sample transforms the input to the NV12 color format and pre-process it automatically during inference. The sample supports only images as inputs.

  • Hello NV12 Input Classification C++ Sample

  • Hello NV12 Input Classification C Sample

• Hello Query Device Sample – Query of available OpenVINO devices and their metrics, configuration values.

  • Hello Query Device C++ Sample

  • Hello Query Device Python* Sample

• Hello Reshape SSD Sample – Inference of SSD networks resized by ShapeInfer API according to an input size.

  • Hello Reshape SSD C++ Sample**

  • Hello Reshape SSD Python Sample**

• Image Classification Sample Async – Inference of image classification networks like AlexNet and GoogLeNet using Asynchronous Inference Request API (the sample supports only images as inputs).

  • Image Classification Async C++ Sample

  • Image Classification Async Python* Sample

• OpenVINO Model Creation Sample – Construction of the LeNet model using the OpenVINO model creation sample.

  • OpenVINO Model Creation C++ Sample

  • OpenVINO Model Creation Python Sample

• Benchmark Samples - Simple estimation of a model inference performance

  • Sync Benchmark C++ Sample

  • Sync Benchmark Python* Sample

  • Throughput Benchmark C++ Sample

  • Throughput Benchmark Python* Sample

  • Bert Benhcmark Python* Sample

• Benchmark Application – Estimates deep learning inference performance on supported devices for synchronous and asynchronous modes.

  • Benchmark C++ Tool

  Note that the Python version of the benchmark tool is currently available only through the OpenVINO Development Tools installation. It is not created in the samples directory but can be launched with the following command: benchmark_app -m <model> -i <input> -d <device> For more information, check the Benchmark Python Tool documentation.

Note

All C++ samples support input paths containing only ASCII characters, except for the Hello Classification Sample, that supports Unicode.

Media Files Available for Samples

To run the sample applications, you can use images and videos from the media files collection available at https://storage.openvinotoolkit.org/data/test_data.

Samples that Support Pre-Trained Models

To run the sample, you can use public or Intel’s pre-trained models from the Open Model Zoo. The models can be downloaded using the Model Downloader.

Build the Sample Applications

Build the Sample Applications on Linux

The officially supported Linux build environment is the following:

• Ubuntu 18.04 LTS 64-bit or Ubuntu 20.04 LTS 64-bit

• GCC 7.5.0 (for Ubuntu 18.04) or GCC 9.3.0 (for Ubuntu 20.04)

• CMake version 3.10 or higher

Note

For building samples from the open-source version of OpenVINO toolkit, see the build instructions on GitHub.

To build the C or C++ sample applications for Linux, go to the <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/c or <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp directory, respectively, and run the build_samples.sh script:

build_samples.sh

Once the build is completed, you can find sample binaries in the following folders:

• C samples: ~/openvino_c_samples_build/<architecture>/Release

• C++ samples: ~/openvino_cpp_samples_build/<architecture>/Release where the <architecture> is the output of uname -m, for example, intel64, armhf, or aarch64.

You can also build the sample applications manually:

Note

If you have installed the product as a root user, switch to root mode before you continue: sudo -i

1. Navigate to a directory that you have write access to and create a samples build directory. This example uses a directory named build :

   mkdir build

2. Go to the created directory:

   cd build

3. Run CMake to generate the Make files for release or debug configuration. For example, for C++ samples:

   • For release configuration:

     cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp

   • For debug configuration:

     cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp

4. Run make to build the samples:

   make

For the release configuration, the sample application binaries are in <path_to_build_directory>/<architecture>/Release/; for the debug configuration — in <path_to_build_directory>/<architecture>/Debug/.

Build the Sample Applications on Microsoft Windows

The recommended Windows build environment is the following:

• Microsoft Windows 10

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2019

• CMake version 3.10 or higher

Note

If you want to use Microsoft Visual Studio 2019, you are required to install CMake 3.14 or higher.

To build the C or C++ sample applications on Windows, go to the <INSTALL_DIR>\samples\c or <INSTALL_DIR>\samples\cpp directory, respectively, and run the build_samples_msvc.bat batch file:

build_samples_msvc.bat

By default, the script automatically detects the highest Microsoft Visual Studio version installed on the machine and uses it to create and build a solution for a sample code

Once the build is completed, you can find sample binaries in the following folders:

• C samples: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Intel\OpenVINO\openvino_c_samples_build\<architecture>\Release

• C++ samples: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Intel\OpenVINO\openvino_cpp_samples_build\<architecture>\Release where the <architecture> is the output of echo PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE%, for example, intel64 (AMD64), or arm64.

You can also build a generated solution manually. For example, if you want to build C++ sample binaries in Debug configuration, run the appropriate version of the Microsoft Visual Studio and open the generated solution file from the C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Intel\OpenVINO\openvino_cpp_samples_build\Samples.sln directory.

Build the Sample Applications on macOS

The officially supported macOS build environment is the following:

• macOS 10.15 64-bit or higher

• Clang compiler from Xcode 10.1 or higher

• CMake version 3.13 or higher

Note

For building samples from the open-source version of OpenVINO toolkit, see the build instructions on GitHub.

To build the C or C++ sample applications for macOS, go to the <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/c or <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp directory, respectively, and run the build_samples.sh script:

build_samples.sh

Once the build is completed, you can find sample binaries in the following folders:

• C samples: ~/openvino_c_samples_build/<architecture>/Release

• C++ samples: ~/openvino_cpp_samples_build/<architecture>/Release where the <architecture> is the output of uname -m, for example, intel64 or arm64.

You can also build the sample applications manually:

Note

If you have installed the product as a root user, switch to root mode before you continue: sudo -i

Note

Before proceeding, make sure you have OpenVINO environment set correctly. This can be done manually by

cd <INSTALL_DIR>/
source setupvars.sh

1. Navigate to a directory that you have write access to and create a samples build directory. This example uses a directory named build :

   mkdir build

2. Go to the created directory:

   cd build

3. Run CMake to generate the Make files for release or debug configuration. For example, for C++ samples:

   • For release configuration:

     cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp

   • For debug configuration:

     cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug <INSTALL_DIR>/samples/cpp

4. Run make to build the samples:

   make

For the release configuration, the sample application binaries are in <path_to_build_directory>/<architecture>/Release/; for the debug configuration — in <path_to_build_directory>/<architecture>/Debug/.

Get Ready for Running the Sample Applications

Get Ready for Running the Sample Applications on Linux

Before running compiled binary files, make sure your application can find the OpenVINO Runtime libraries.

Run the setupvars script to set all necessary environment variables:

source <INSTALL_DIR>/setupvars.sh

(Optional) Set Environment Variables Permanently

The OpenVINO environment variables are removed when you close the shell. As an option, you can permanently set the environment variables as follows:

1. Open the .bashrc file in <user_home_directory> :

   vi <user_home_directory>/.bashrc

2. Add this line to the end of the file:

   source /opt/intel/openvino_2022/setupvars.sh

3. Save and close the file: press the Esc key, type :wq and press the Enter key.

4. To test your change, open a new terminal. You will see [setupvars.sh] OpenVINO environment initialized.

You are ready to run sample applications. To learn about how to run a particular sample, read the sample documentation by clicking the sample name in the samples list above.

Get Ready for Running the Sample Applications on Windows

Before running compiled binary files, make sure your application can find the OpenVINO Runtime libraries. Use the setupvars script, which sets all necessary environment variables:

<INSTALL_DIR>\setupvars.bat

To debug or run the samples on Windows in Microsoft Visual Studio, make sure you have properly configured Debugging environment settings for the Debug and Release configurations. Set correct paths to the OpenCV libraries, and debug and release versions of the OpenVINO Runtime libraries. For example, for the Debug configuration, go to the project’s Configuration Properties to the Debugging category and set the PATH variable in the Environment field to the following:

PATH=<INSTALL_DIR>\runtime\bin;%PATH%

where <INSTALL_DIR> is the directory in which the OpenVINO toolkit is installed.

You are ready to run sample applications. To learn about how to run a particular sample, read the sample documentation by clicking the sample name in the samples list above.

See Also

• OpenVINO Runtime User Guide