Workers

HoloMIT SDK provides a flexible and extensible multi-threading system to offload performance-intensive operations from Unity’s main thread. At the core of this system is the BaseWorker class, which allows developers to implement long-running or recurring tasks in a separate thread, safely and efficiently.

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What is a Worker?

A Worker is a class that runs its own dedicated thread and executes logic in a controlled loop. Workers are commonly used in the SDK for:

• Capturing frames
• Media encoding/decoding
• Network I/O
• Background reconstruction
• Data preprocessing
• Telemetry and analytics

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BaseWorker Overview

The BaseWorker class is the foundation for creating threaded components in HoloMIT.

public class BaseWorker {
    public enum WorkerType {
        Init,
        Run,
        End
    }

    public bool isRunning { get; private set; }

    public BaseWorker(WorkerType _type = WorkerType.Run) { ... }

    protected virtual void Start();         // Starts the thread
    public virtual void Stop();             // Signals the thread to stop
    public virtual void StopAndWait();      // Waits for clean termination
    protected virtual void Update();        // Override: logic per loop iteration
    public virtual void OnStop();           // Override: cleanup logic
}

• Each worker runs its logic in the Update() method, which is called repeatedly on a background thread.
• The thread is started via Start() and can be stopped using Stop() or StopAndWait().
• The WorkerType only indicates if you want to concatenate workers, which kind of worker is, but works only as a guideline, has no effect.

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Creating Custom Workers

To implement your own worker, simply inherit from BaseWorker and override the Update() method:

public class MyWorker : BaseWorker {
    public MyWorker() : base(WorkerType.Run) { }

    protected override void Update() {
        // Your logic here
        Debug.Log("Running custom threaded operation.");
    }

    public void Launch() {
        Start(); // Call when ready to start the thread
    }
}

This thread runs independently of Unity’s main loop, making it ideal for asynchronous or blocking operations.

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Threading Notes

• All logic inside Update() must be thread-safe.
• Avoid accessing Unity API objects (like GameObjects, Transforms, UI) from inside a worker thread.
• Use thread-safe queues or data structures to communicate with the main thread or among workers.

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Lifecycle Management

Workers can safely handle their own shutdown procedure using the OnStop() method. This is especially useful for:

• Closing sockets
• Flushing buffers
• Releasing unmanaged resources

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Debugging and Monitoring

• Thread start/stop messages are logged if debugThreading is set to true.
• Unhandled exceptions inside the worker thread are caught and logged.
• Name() provides a readable name for debugging purposes.

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Best Practices

• Keep Update() logic as fast and isolated as possible
• Always use StopAndWait() during cleanup or scene changes to prevent thread leaks
• Use inheritance and override only the parts you need (SRP – Single Responsibility Principle)
• Encapsulate long-running media or network systems inside dedicated workers for performance and maintainability

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HoloMIT Workers follow a clean threading abstraction that aligns with SOLID design principles, allowing safe extensibility and modular background processing.