How to integrate OpenCV Manager in Android App

To integrate OpenCV Manager in an Android application, first understand that OpenCV Manager is a utility designed to manage OpenCV library versions, provide a consistent interface, and minimize the size of your application's APK. It achieves this by decoupling the OpenCV library from your application logic. Below are the steps to integrate OpenCV Manager:

Step 1: Add the OpenCV Library to Your Project

1. Download OpenCV for Android: First, download the OpenCV for Android package from the official OpenCV website.
2. Import the OpenCV Library into Android Studio:
   • Extract the downloaded file and add the OpenCV-android-sdk/sdk/java directory to your Android Studio project.
   • Add the following line to your project's settings.gradle file: include ':opencv'.
   • Add the dependency for the new OpenCV module to your app module's build.gradle file: implementation project(':opencv').

Step 2: Configure OpenCV Manager

Since OpenCV Manager was deprecated in 2018, ensure your application loads the OpenCV library using static initialization instead of relying on OpenCV Manager. Below are the steps to load the OpenCV library using static initialization:

1. Load the OpenCV Library:

   • In your Activity or Application class, statically load the OpenCV library by calling OpenCVLoader.initDebug().

   java
   @Override
   protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
       super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
       setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
   
       if (!OpenCVLoader.initDebug()) {
           Log.e("OpenCV", "Unable to load OpenCV!");
       } else {
           Log.d("OpenCV", "OpenCV loaded successfully!");
       }
   }

2. Utilize OpenCV Features in Your Project:

   • Once the OpenCV library is successfully loaded, you can leverage its image processing capabilities, such as image conversion and face detection.

Step 3: Test and Deploy

1. Test the Application:

   • Test the application on an emulator or physical device to verify that OpenCV features function as expected.

2. Deploy the Application:

   • Package and deploy the application to Google Play or other Android app stores.

By following these steps, you can successfully integrate and use the OpenCV library in your Android application without relying on OpenCV Manager. This reduces the application size and minimizes download and installation costs for users.