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Draw Zones Quickstart (GUI)

Use this guide when you want to draw and manage zones quickly on a loaded frame.

Before You Start

  1. Open Annolid.
  2. Load your video (or image) and move to a representative frame.
  3. Open Video Tools → Zones.

If no frame is loaded, the zone panel will stay read-only.

Fast Drawing Flow

Use Annolid's existing canvas drawing tools:

  1. Choose a draw mode from the main Annolid toolbar or canvas context menu.
  2. Draw any shape(s) on the live frame.
  3. In Video Tools → Zones, select a shape from Zone Inventory.
  4. In Zone Details, click Use as Zone.

The Zone Dock no longer duplicates draw controls; it focuses on classification and zone metadata management. If your label/description includes zone words (for example zone, chamber, doorway, tube, passage), Annolid will recognize it as a zone candidate (zone (keyword)) in the inventory. Defined zones are displayed across all video frames so you can navigate and annotate without redrawing zone boundaries on each frame.

Set Good Defaults First

In Zone Details → Defaults for New Zones, set:

  • zone_kind
  • phase
  • occupant_role
  • access_state
  • optional tags

Every new zone you draw will inherit these values, which avoids repetitive editing. When you mark a selected shape as a zone, these defaults are applied unless you override them in the selected-zone form.

Manage Zones Efficiently

In Zone Inventory:

  1. Filter by label/kind/phase/role/tags.
  2. Sort by label, kind, or area.
  3. Select a zone to edit it in Zone Details.

Useful actions for the selected zone:

  • Use as Zone: convert the selected annotation shape into a zone.
  • Apply Zone Details: save label/metadata edits on an already classified zone.
  • Use Selected as Defaults: copy current zone semantics for future drawings.
  • Duplicate: clone zone + semantics (offset slightly for immediate editing).
  • Recolor: visual differentiation only.
  • Delete Selected: remove zone from current canvas.

Save Zone JSON

Use Save Zone JSON (top row in the panel).

Recommended naming:

  • video_stem_zones.json

The file stays LabelMe-compatible and can be reloaded with Load Zone JSON.

Practical Patterns

Three-chamber assays

  • Chambers: zone_kind=chamber
  • Neutral connecting tubes: zone_kind=connector_tube or occupant_role=neutral
  • Optional hard marker: neutral_zone=true in flags

Social-zone scoring

Neutral connector/tube zones are excluded from social summaries by default. If you want one included in social metrics, add social tags or set include_in_social=true.

Common Mistakes

  • Drawing before setting defaults, then having to retag every zone manually.
  • Saving zones from the wrong frame/layout.
  • Forgetting to click Use as Zone after drawing shapes.
  • Reusing one zone JSON across sessions with different crops or geometry.

Next Step

After drawing and saving zones, run:

  • Video Tools → Zone Analysis for zone metrics and assay/social summaries.