OpenPIV

Overview

OpenPIV (Open Particle Image Velocimetry) analyzes fluid flow from PIV image pairs. It covers preprocessing, cross-correlation, vector validation, outlier replacement, smoothing, and scaling to physical units.

Targets openpiv 0.26.1. Synthetic checks ran on Python 3.13, NumPy 2.5.3, SciPy 1.18.1, scikit-image 0.26.0, and Matplotlib 3.11.2. Rust was not installed; use backend="scipy" for the tested path. See review evidence.

When to use

Use this skill when working with experimental PIV or flow-visualization image pairs: measuring 2D velocity fields, tuning interrogation-window parameters, validating vectors, or deriving vorticity, strain rate, and turbulence statistics. For simulating flow rather than measuring it, use a CFD skill instead.

Quick Start

Install OpenPIV:

uv pip install openpiv

# Pin it when the analysis needs to be reproducible -- this is the version every
# snippet below was checked against.
uv pip install "openpiv==0.26.1"

Run PIV analysis on an image pair:

import numpy as np
from openpiv import tools, pyprocess, validation, filters, scaling

frame_a = tools.imread("image_a.bmp")
frame_b = tools.imread("image_b.bmp")

# Always returns (u, v, s2n); s2n is all NaN if sig2noise_method=None.
u, v, s2n = pyprocess.extended_search_area_piv(
    frame_a.astype(np.float32),
    frame_b.astype(np.float32),
    window_size=32,
    overlap=12,
    dt=0.02,
    search_area_size=38,
    correlation_method="linear",   # circular also supports extended search
    normalized_correlation=True,
    backend="scipy",
    sig2noise_method="peak2peak",
)

x, y = pyprocess.get_coordinates(
    image_size=frame_a.shape,
    search_area_size=38,
    overlap=12,
    center_on_field=False,         # matches sliding-window positions
)

# flags is a boolean array: True marks a spurious vector.
flags = validation.sig2noise_val(s2n, threshold=1.05) | ~np.isfinite(s2n)
flags |= ~np.isfinite(u) | ~np.isfinite(v)
u, v = filters.replace_outliers(u, v, flags, method="localmean", max_iter=3, kernel_size=2)

# Scale, then convert to right-handed image-boundary coordinates.
x, y, u, v = scaling.uniform(x, y, u, v, scaling_factor=96.52)
y, v = frame_a.shape[0] / 96.52 - y, -v

tools.save("vectors.txt", x, y, u, v, flags)

Or use the bundled CLI, which also checks inputs and preserves masks and processing parameters:

python skills/openpiv/scripts/runner.py \
    --image frame_a.bmp --image frame_b.bmp --output_dir results --verbose

Core Concepts

PIV Fundamentals

Particle Image Velocimetry is an optical method for measuring fluid velocity by tracking illuminated tracer particles between two images.

Process flow:

1. Capture an image pair (frame_a, frame_b) separated by a known time dt.
2. Divide the images into interrogation windows.
3. Cross-correlate matching windows to find peak displacement.
4. Validate vectors (signal-to-noise, global range, local median).
5. Replace spurious vectors with interpolated values.
6. Scale pixel displacements to physical units.

Interrogation Window Parameters

window_size — correlation window in pixels (typically 16–128). Larger windows give better correlation but coarser spatial resolution.

overlap — pixels shared between adjacent windows (typically 50–75% of window_size). Higher overlap raises vector density and cost, but adjacent vectors become correlated rather than independent.

search_area_size — the window searched in the second frame. Must be ≥ window_size; a few pixels larger accommodates larger displacements. Both "circular" and "linear" support extended search. The CLI chooses zero-padded "linear" with normalized_correlation=True for it; this does not recover arbitrary displacement or eliminate spurious peaks. Grid stride is search_area_size - overlap, so overlap must be smaller than the search area.

Rules of thumb: keep the largest displacement under about a quarter of window_size, and aim for 5–10 particles per window.

Signal-to-Noise Ratio

s2n measures how distinct the correlation peak is. sig2noise_method controls how it is computed — "peak2mean" (the function default) or "peak2peak". The two are on different scales, so a threshold tuned for one is meaningless for the other. Typical peak2peak thresholds are 1.05–1.3.

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