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true Discover how to use YOLOv8 predict mode for various tasks. Learn about different inference sources like images, videos, and data formats. Ultralytics, YOLOv8, predict mode, inference sources, prediction tasks, streaming mode, image processing, video processing, machine learning, AI

YOLOv8 predict mode can generate predictions for various tasks, returning either a list of Results objects or a memory-efficient generator of Results objects when using the streaming mode. Enable streaming mode by passing stream=True in the predictor's call method.

!!! example "Predict"

=== "Return a list with `stream=False`"
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')  # pretrained YOLOv8n model

    # Run batched inference on a list of images
    results = model(['im1.jpg', 'im2.jpg'])  # return a list of Results objects

    # Process results list
    for result in results:
        boxes = result.boxes  # Boxes object for bbox outputs
        masks = result.masks  # Masks object for segmentation masks outputs
        keypoints = result.keypoints  # Keypoints object for pose outputs
        probs = result.probs  # Class probabilities for classification outputs
    ```

=== "Return a generator with `stream=True`"
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')  # pretrained YOLOv8n model

    # Run batched inference on a list of images
    results = model(['im1.jpg', 'im2.jpg'], stream=True)  # return a generator of Results objects

    # Process results generator
    for result in results:
        boxes = result.boxes  # Boxes object for bbox outputs
        masks = result.masks  # Masks object for segmentation masks outputs
        keypoints = result.keypoints  # Keypoints object for pose outputs
        probs = result.probs  # Class probabilities for classification outputs
    ```

Inference Sources

YOLOv8 can process different types of input sources for inference, as shown in the table below. The sources include static images, video streams, and various data formats. The table also indicates whether each source can be used in streaming mode with the argument stream=True . Streaming mode is beneficial for processing videos or live streams as it creates a generator of results instead of loading all frames into memory.

!!! tip "Tip"

Use `stream=True` for processing long videos or large datasets to efficiently manage memory. When `stream=False`, the results for all frames or data points are stored in memory, which can quickly add up and cause out-of-memory errors for large inputs. In contrast, `stream=True` utilizes a generator, which only keeps the results of the current frame or data point in memory, significantly reducing memory consumption and preventing out-of-memory issues.
Source Argument Type Notes
image 'image.jpg' str or Path Single image file.
URL 'https://ultralytics.com/images/bus.jpg' str URL to an image.
screenshot 'screen' str Capture a screenshot.
PIL Image.open('im.jpg') PIL.Image HWC format with RGB channels.
OpenCV cv2.imread('im.jpg') np.ndarray of uint8 (0-255) HWC format with BGR channels.
numpy np.zeros((640,1280,3)) np.ndarray of uint8 (0-255) HWC format with BGR channels.
torch torch.zeros(16,3,320,640) torch.Tensor of float32 (0.0-1.0) BCHW format with RGB channels.
CSV 'sources.csv' str or Path CSV file containing paths to images, videos, or directories.
video 'video.mp4' str or Path Video file in formats like MP4, AVI, etc.
directory 'path/' str or Path Path to a directory containing images or videos.
glob 'path/*.jpg' str Glob pattern to match multiple files. Use the * character as a wildcard.
YouTube 'https://youtu.be/Zgi9g1ksQHc' str URL to a YouTube video.
stream 'rtsp://example.com/media.mp4' str URL for streaming protocols such as RTSP, RTMP, or an IP address.

Below are code examples for using each source type:

!!! example "Prediction sources"

=== "image"
    Run inference on an image file.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define path to the image file
    source = 'path/to/image.jpg'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "screenshot"
    Run inference on the current screen content as a screenshot.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define current screenshot as source
    source = 'screen'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "URL"
    Run inference on an image or video hosted remotely via URL.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define remote image or video URL
    source = 'https://ultralytics.com/images/bus.jpg'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "PIL"
    Run inference on an image opened with Python Imaging Library (PIL).
    ```python
    from PIL import Image
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Open an image using PIL
    source = Image.open('path/to/image.jpg')

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "OpenCV"
    Run inference on an image read with OpenCV.
    ```python
    import cv2
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Read an image using OpenCV
    source = cv2.imread('path/to/image.jpg')

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "numpy"
    Run inference on an image represented as a numpy array.
    ```python
    import numpy as np
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Create a random numpy array of HWC shape (640, 640, 3) with values in range [0, 255] and type uint8
    source = np.random.randint(low=0, high=255, size=(640, 640, 3), dtype='uint8')

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "torch"
    Run inference on an image represented as a PyTorch tensor.
    ```python
    import torch
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Create a random torch tensor of BCHW shape (1, 3, 640, 640) with values in range [0, 1] and type float32
    source = torch.rand(1, 3, 640, 640, dtype=torch.float32)

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "CSV"
    Run inference on a collection of images, URLs, videos and directories listed in a CSV file.
    ```python
    import torch
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define a path to a CSV file with images, URLs, videos and directories
    source = 'path/to/file.csv'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source)  # list of Results objects
    ```

=== "video"
    Run inference on a video file. By using `stream=True`, you can create a generator of Results objects to reduce memory usage.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define path to video file
    source = 'path/to/video.mp4'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source, stream=True)  # generator of Results objects
    ```

=== "directory"
    Run inference on all images and videos in a directory. To also capture images and videos in subdirectories use a glob pattern, i.e. `path/to/dir/**/*`.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define path to directory containing images and videos for inference
    source = 'path/to/dir'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source, stream=True)  # generator of Results objects
    ```

=== "glob"
    Run inference on all images and videos that match a glob expression with `*` characters.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define a glob search for all JPG files in a directory
    source = 'path/to/dir/*.jpg'

    # OR define a recursive glob search for all JPG files including subdirectories
    source = 'path/to/dir/**/*.jpg'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source, stream=True)  # generator of Results objects
    ```

=== "YouTube"
    Run inference on a YouTube video. By using `stream=True`, you can create a generator of Results objects to reduce memory usage for long videos.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define source as YouTube video URL
    source = 'https://youtu.be/Zgi9g1ksQHc'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source, stream=True)  # generator of Results objects
    ```

=== "Stream"
    Run inference on remote streaming sources using RTSP, RTMP, and IP address protocols.
    ```python
    from ultralytics import YOLO

    # Load a pretrained YOLOv8n model
    model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

    # Define source as RTSP, RTMP or IP streaming address
    source = 'rtsp://example.com/media.mp4'

    # Run inference on the source
    results = model(source, stream=True)  # generator of Results objects
    ```

Inference Arguments

model.predict accepts multiple arguments that control the prediction operation. These arguments can be passed directly to model.predict: !!! example

```python
model.predict(source, save=True, imgsz=320, conf=0.5)
```

All supported arguments:

Key Value Description
source 'ultralytics/assets' source directory for images or videos
conf 0.25 object confidence threshold for detection
iou 0.7 intersection over union (IoU) threshold for NMS
half False use half precision (FP16)
device None device to run on, i.e. cuda device=0/1/2/3 or device=cpu
show False show results if possible
save False save images with results
save_txt False save results as .txt file
save_conf False save results with confidence scores
save_crop False save cropped images with results
hide_labels False hide labels
hide_conf False hide confidence scores
max_det 300 maximum number of detections per image
vid_stride False video frame-rate stride
line_width None The line width of the bounding boxes. If None, it is scaled to the image size.
visualize False visualize model features
augment False apply image augmentation to prediction sources
agnostic_nms False class-agnostic NMS
retina_masks False use high-resolution segmentation masks
classes None filter results by class, i.e. class=0, or class=[0,2,3]
boxes True Show boxes in segmentation predictions

Image and Video Formats

YOLOv8 supports various image and video formats, as specified in data/utils.py. See the tables below for the valid suffixes and example predict commands.

Image Suffixes

The below table contains valid Ultralytics image formats.

Image Suffixes Example Predict Command Reference
.bmp yolo predict source=image.bmp Microsoft BMP File Format
.dng yolo predict source=image.dng Adobe DNG
.jpeg yolo predict source=image.jpeg JPEG
.jpg yolo predict source=image.jpg JPEG
.mpo yolo predict source=image.mpo Multi Picture Object
.png yolo predict source=image.png Portable Network Graphics
.tif yolo predict source=image.tif Tag Image File Format
.tiff yolo predict source=image.tiff Tag Image File Format
.webp yolo predict source=image.webp WebP
.pfm yolo predict source=image.pfm Portable FloatMap

Video Suffixes

The below table contains valid Ultralytics video formats.

Video Suffixes Example Predict Command Reference
.asf yolo predict source=video.asf Advanced Systems Format
.avi yolo predict source=video.avi Audio Video Interleave
.gif yolo predict source=video.gif Graphics Interchange Format
.m4v yolo predict source=video.m4v MPEG-4 Part 14
.mkv yolo predict source=video.mkv Matroska
.mov yolo predict source=video.mov QuickTime File Format
.mp4 yolo predict source=video.mp4 MPEG-4 Part 14 - Wikipedia
.mpeg yolo predict source=video.mpeg MPEG-1 Part 2
.mpg yolo predict source=video.mpg MPEG-1 Part 2
.ts yolo predict source=video.ts MPEG Transport Stream
.wmv yolo predict source=video.wmv Windows Media Video
.webm yolo predict source=video.webm WebM Project

Working with Results

The Results object contains the following components:

  • Results.boxes: Boxes object with properties and methods for manipulating bounding boxes
  • Results.masks: Masks object for indexing masks or getting segment coordinates
  • Results.keypoints: Keypoints object for with properties and methods for manipulating predicted keypoints.
  • Results.probs: Probs object for containing class probabilities.
  • Results.orig_img: Original image loaded in memory
  • Results.path: Path containing the path to the input image

Each result is composed of a torch.Tensor by default, which allows for easy manipulation:

!!! example "Results"

```python
results = results.cuda()
results = results.cpu()
results = results.to('cpu')
results = results.numpy()
```

Boxes

Boxes object can be used to index, manipulate, and convert bounding boxes to different formats. Box format conversion operations are cached, meaning they're only calculated once per object, and those values are reused for future calls.

  • Indexing a Boxes object returns a Boxes object:

!!! example "Boxes"

```python
results = model(img)
boxes = results[0].boxes
box = boxes[0]  # returns one box
box.xyxy
```
  • Properties and conversions

!!! example "Boxes Properties"

```python
boxes.xyxy  # box with xyxy format, (N, 4)
boxes.xywh  # box with xywh format, (N, 4)
boxes.xyxyn  # box with xyxy format but normalized, (N, 4)
boxes.xywhn  # box with xywh format but normalized, (N, 4)
boxes.conf  # confidence score, (N, )
boxes.cls  # cls, (N, )
boxes.data  # raw bboxes tensor, (N, 6) or boxes.boxes
```

Masks

Masks object can be used index, manipulate and convert masks to segments. The segment conversion operation is cached.

!!! example "Masks"

```python
results = model(inputs)
masks = results[0].masks  # Masks object
masks.xy  # x, y segments (pixels), List[segment] * N
masks.xyn  # x, y segments (normalized), List[segment] * N
masks.data  # raw masks tensor, (N, H, W) or masks.masks
```

Keypoints

Keypoints object can be used index, manipulate and normalize coordinates. The keypoint conversion operation is cached.

!!! example "Keypoints"

```python
results = model(inputs)
keypoints = results[0].keypoints  # Masks object
keypoints.xy  # x, y keypoints (pixels), (num_dets, num_kpts, 2/3), the last dimension can be 2 or 3, depends the model.
keypoints.xyn  # x, y keypoints (normalized), (num_dets, num_kpts, 2/3)
keypoints.conf  # confidence score(num_dets, num_kpts) of each keypoint if the last dimension is 3.
keypoints.data  # raw keypoints tensor, (num_dets, num_kpts, 2/3)
```

probs

Probs object can be used index, get top1&top5 indices and scores of classification.

!!! example "Probs"

```python
results = model(inputs)
probs = results[0].probs  # cls prob, (num_class, )
probs.top5    # The top5 indices of classification, List[Int] * 5.
probs.top1    # The top1 indices of classification, a value with Int type.
probs.top5conf  # The top5 scores of classification, a tensor with shape (5, ).
probs.top1conf  # The top1 scores of classification. a value with torch.tensor type.
keypoints.data  # raw probs tensor, (num_class, )
```

Class reference documentation for Results module and its components can be found here

Plotting results

You can use plot() function of Result object to plot results on in image object. It plots all components(boxes, masks, classification probabilities, etc.) found in the results object

!!! example "Plotting"

```python
res = model(img)
res_plotted = res[0].plot()
cv2.imshow("result", res_plotted)
```
Argument Description
conf (bool) Whether to plot the detection confidence score.
line_width (int, optional) The line width of the bounding boxes. If None, it is scaled to the image size.
font_size (float, optional) The font size of the text. If None, it is scaled to the image size.
font (str) The font to use for the text.
pil (bool) Whether to use PIL for image plotting.
example (str) An example string to display. Useful for indicating the expected format of the output.
img (numpy.ndarray) Plot to another image. if not, plot to original image.
labels (bool) Whether to plot the label of bounding boxes.
boxes (bool) Whether to plot the bounding boxes.
masks (bool) Whether to plot the masks.
probs (bool) Whether to plot classification probability.

Streaming Source for-loop

Here's a Python script using OpenCV (cv2) and YOLOv8 to run inference on video frames. This script assumes you have already installed the necessary packages (opencv-python and ultralytics).

!!! example "Streaming for-loop"

```python
import cv2
from ultralytics import YOLO

# Load the YOLOv8 model
model = YOLO('yolov8n.pt')

# Open the video file
video_path = "path/to/your/video/file.mp4"
cap = cv2.VideoCapture(video_path)

# Loop through the video frames
while cap.isOpened():
    # Read a frame from the video
    success, frame = cap.read()

    if success:
        # Run YOLOv8 inference on the frame
        results = model(frame)

        # Visualize the results on the frame
        annotated_frame = results[0].plot()

        # Display the annotated frame
        cv2.imshow("YOLOv8 Inference", annotated_frame)

        # Break the loop if 'q' is pressed
        if cv2.waitKey(1) & 0xFF == ord("q"):
            break
    else:
        # Break the loop if the end of the video is reached
        break

# Release the video capture object and close the display window
cap.release()
cv2.destroyAllWindows()
```