videre-mcp
videre-mcp is an MCP server that bridges vision models to text-only coding models by converting images, screenshots, and documents into structured text descriptions.
Describe Images (
describe_image): Generate natural language descriptions of images (PNG, JPEG, SVG) using fast Florence-2-base or deep MiniCPM-V 4.6 mode.OCR Images (
ocr_image): Extract text from images using Florence-2 OCR, with options for plain text or detailed output including bounding regions.PaddleOCR (
ocr_paddle): High-accuracy OCR supporting 100+ languages with confidence scores and bounding boxes (requires[paddle]extra).Describe Screenshots (
describe_screenshot): Analyze UI layouts by detecting and labeling regions with bounding boxes — ideal for coding agents.Take Screenshots (
take_screenshot): Capture screenshots across multiple monitors, optionally saving to a file and auto-describing the captured UI.Parse Documents (
parse_document): Extract structured content (text, tables, charts, formulas, code blocks) from PDF, DOCX, PPTX, HTML, and Markdown files in markdown, JSON, HTML, or plain text format via IBM Docling (requires[docling]extra).Flexible Model Modes: Use
"fast"mode (CPU/GPU friendly) or"deep"mode for higher-quality visual reasoning (~8GB VRAM required).
Click on "Deploy Server".
Wait a few minutes for the server to deploy. Once ready, it will show a "Started" state.
In the chat, type
@followed by the MCP server name and your instructions, e.g., "@videre-mcp analyze this screenshot for UI elements"
That's it! The server will respond to your query, and you can continue using it as needed.
Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots.
videre-mcp
MCP server that bridges vision models to text-only coding models using Florence-2.
Non-vision LLMs can't see images — videre-mcp fixes that. It loads a Florence-2 vision model locally and exposes six MCP tools that convert images (including SVGs) and screenshots into structured text descriptions that any text-based model can consume.
Screenshot tool → videre-mcp (Florence-2) → Text description → Coding modelInstallation
pip install videre-mcpOr with uv:
uv pip install videre-mcpRequires Python 3.11+ and ~300MB disk space for the Florence-2-base model weights (downloaded automatically on first use).
Related MCP server: vision-mcp
Usage
Add to your OpenCode configuration:
{
"mcpServers": {
"videre-mcp": {
"command": "videre-mcp"
}
}
}Or run directly:
videre-mcp
# or
python -m videre_mcpModel Modes
All Florence-2 tools support a model_mode parameter to balance speed and quality:
"fast"(default) — Uses Florence-2-base. Fast, lightweight, runs on CPU/GPU."deep"— Uses MiniCPM-V 4.6. Significantly higher quality for complex visual reasoning.Requires:
pip install videre-mcp[deep]Hardware: ~8GB VRAM recommended.
Tools
describe_image
Generate a natural language description of an image.
Parameters:
image_path(str) — Path to the image file (supports PNG, JPEG, SVG)detail_level(str, optional) —"normal"(default) for brief caption,"high"for detailed descriptionmodel_mode(str, optional) —"fast"(default) or"deep"
Example:
result = describe_image("/path/to/photo.png", detail_level="high")
# Returns:
# {
# "description": "A sunlit meadow with wildflowers in bloom...",
# "model": "Florence-2-base",
# "prompt_used": "<MORE_DETAILED_CAPTION>"
# }ocr_image
Extract text from an image using optical character recognition.
Parameters:
image_path(str) — Path to the image file (supports PNG, JPEG, SVG)detail_level(str, optional) —"normal"(default) for plain text,"high"for text with bounding regionsmodel_mode(str, optional) —"fast"(default) or"deep"
Example:
result = ocr_image("/path/to/document.png", detail_level="high")
# Returns:
# {
# "text": "Invoice Number 12345",
# "regions": [
# {"label": "Invoice Number 12345", "bbox": [10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80]}
# ]
# }describe_screenshot
Describe UI regions in a screenshot — designed for coding agents that need to understand screen layouts.
Parameters:
image_path(str) — Path to the screenshot file (supports PNG, JPEG, SVG)detail_level(str, optional) —"normal"(default) for dense region captions,"high"for per-region descriptionsmodel_mode(str, optional) —"fast"(default) or"deep"
Example:
result = describe_screenshot("/path/to/screenshot.png")
# Returns:
# {
# "regions": [
# {"bbox": [10, 20, 30, 40], "label": "search bar"},
# {"bbox": [100, 200, 300, 250], "label": "submit button"}
# ],
# "model": "Florence-2-base"
# }take_screenshot
Capture a screenshot and optionally describe it using Florence-2. Supports multi-monitor setups via the monitor parameter.
Parameters:
output_path(str, optional) — Path to save the screenshot PNG. IfNone, saves to a temp file.monitor(int, optional) — Monitor index:0= all monitors combined,1= primary, etc. (default:0)describe(bool, optional) — IfTrue, also rundescribe_screenshoton the captured image (default:True)model_mode(str, optional) —"fast"(default) or"deep"
Example:
result = take_screenshot(monitor=1, describe=True)
# Returns:
# {
# "path": "/tmp/tmpxxxxxx.png",
# "width": 1920,
# "height": 1080,
# "monitor": 1,
# "regions": [
# {"label": "search bar", "bbox": [10, 20, 30, 40]},
# ...
# ]
# }ocr_paddle
Dedicated OCR using PaddleOCR (100+ languages, PP-OCRv6). Superior accuracy for multi-language documents.
Parameters:
image_path(str) — Path to the image filelanguage(str, optional) — Language code:"en","ch","japan","korean","french","german","spanish","arabic","multilingual", etc. (default:"en")detail_level(str, optional) —"normal"for plain text,"high"for text with bounding boxes and confidence scoresuse_angle_cls(bool, optional) — Use angle classification to correct rotated text (default:True)
Requires: pip install videre-mcp[paddle]
Example:
result = ocr_paddle("/path/to/document.png", language="multilingual", detail_level="high")
# Returns:
# {
# "text": "Invoice Number 12345\nDate: 2024-01-15",
# "regions": [
# {"text": "Invoice Number 12345", "bbox": [...], "confidence": 0.98}
# ]
# }parse_document
Parse documents (PDF, DOCX, PPTX, HTML, MD) into structured output using IBM Docling. Extracts text, tables, charts, formulas, and code blocks.
Parameters:
file_path(str) — Path to the document fileoutput_format(str, optional) —"markdown"(default),"json","text", or"html"extract_tables(bool, optional) — Extract and structure tables (default:True)extract_images(bool, optional) — Extract embedded images (default:False)
Requires: pip install videre-mcp[docling]
Example:
result = parse_document("/path/to/report.pdf", output_format="markdown", extract_tables=True)
# Returns:
# {
# "content": "# Report Title\n\n...",
# "metadata": {"title": "...", "author": "...", "pages": 10},
# "tables": [...]
# }Optional Dependencies
Extra | Package | Enables |
| accelerate, bitsandbytes | MiniCPM-V 4.6 deep mode (~8GB VRAM) |
| docling>=2.0.0 | Document parsing (PDF, DOCX, PPTX, HTML, MD) |
| paddleocr>=2.8.0 | PaddleOCR (100+ languages) |
| dspy-ai>=2.5.0 | DSPy prompt optimization CLI |
Install with: pip install videre-mcp[deep,docling]
Requirements
Python 3.11+
~300MB disk for model weights (auto-downloaded on first inference)
Works on CPU; GPU (CUDA) is auto-detected and used if available
Continuous Integration
The Florence-2 slow tests (real model load + inference) run on a nightly
schedule via GitHub Actions. See .github/workflows/slow-tests.yml.
License
MIT — see LICENSE.
Third-party licenses
This package vendors a patched copy of Microsoft's Florence-2 processor
(src/videre_mcp/_vendor/processing_florence2.py) under Microsoft's MIT license.
See src/videre_mcp/_vendor/LICENSE-Microsoft-Florence-2.
Available Tools
6 toolsdescribe_imageA
Describe an image in natural language using Florence-2.
Args: image_path: Absolute or relative path to the image file (supports PNG, JPEG, SVG). detail_level: 'normal' for a brief caption, 'high' for a detailed one. model_mode: 'fast' for Florence-2 (default), 'deep' for MiniCPM-V 4.6 (better document understanding).
Returns: Dict with description, model name, and prompt used.
Inputs: image_path (required), model_mode, detail_level. Returns: object
describe_screenshotA
Describe UI regions in a screenshot using Florence-2.
Args: image_path: Absolute or relative path to the screenshot file (supports PNG, JPEG, SVG). detail_level: 'normal' for dense region captions, 'high' for per-region descriptions. model_mode: 'fast' for Florence-2 (default), 'deep' for MiniCPM-V 4.6 (better document understanding).
Returns: Dict with detected regions (bounding boxes and labels) and model name.
Inputs: image_path (required), model_mode, detail_level. Returns: object
ocr_imageA
Extract text from an image using Florence-2 OCR.
Args: image_path: Absolute or relative path to the image file (supports PNG, JPEG, SVG). detail_level: 'normal' for plain OCR, 'high' for OCR with region info. model_mode: 'fast' for Florence-2 (default), 'deep' for MiniCPM-V 4.6 (better document understanding).
Returns: Dict with extracted text and optionally bounding regions.
Inputs: image_path (required), model_mode, detail_level. Returns: object
ocr_paddleA
Extract text from an image using PaddleOCR (100+ languages, production-grade).
PaddleOCR is purpose-built for text extraction with superior accuracy and speed compared to general vision models. Best for:
Multi-language documents (100+ languages supported)
CPU-only servers (PP-OCRv6 Tiny is only 1.5M parameters)
High-volume batch OCR (5.2× faster than previous versions)
Args: image_path: Absolute or relative path to the image file (supports PNG, JPEG, etc.). language: Language code - 'en' (English), 'ch' (Chinese), 'japan' (Japanese), 'korean', 'french', 'german', 'spanish', 'arabic', 'multilingual', etc. See PaddleOCR docs for full list. detail_level: 'normal' for plain text, 'high' for text with bounding boxes and confidence. use_angle_cls: If True, use angle classification to correct rotated text (default True).
Returns: Dict with extracted text, and optionally regions with bounding boxes and confidence.
Inputs: image_path (required), language, detail_level, use_angle_cls. Returns: object
parse_documentA
Parse a document (PDF, DOCX, PPTX, HTML, MD) into structured output using Docling.
Docling is IBM's document understanding library that extracts text, tables, charts, formulas, and code blocks from multi-format documents.
Args: file_path: Absolute or relative path to the document file. Supports: PDF, DOCX, PPTX, HTML, Markdown, XLSX, Images. output_format: Output format - 'markdown' (default), 'json', 'text', or 'html'. extract_tables: If True, extract and structure tables (default True). extract_images: If True, extract embedded images (default False).
Returns: Dict with parsed content, metadata, and optionally tables/images.
Inputs: file_path (required), output_format, extract_images, extract_tables. Returns: object
take_screenshotA
Capture a screenshot and optionally describe it using Florence-2.
Args: output_path: Path to save the screenshot PNG. If None, saves to a temp file. monitor: Monitor index (0 = all monitors combined, 1 = primary, etc.). describe: If True, also run describe_screenshot on the captured image. model_mode: 'fast' for Florence-2 (default), 'deep' for MiniCPM-V 4.6 (better document understanding).
Returns: Dict with path, width, height, monitor, and optionally regions.
Inputs: monitor, describe, model_mode, output_path. Returns: object
Tool Schema Changelog
Recent tool additions, removals, and schema changes observed during successful MCP inspections.
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TDQS
Scored across 6 tools
Tools are mostly distinct, but ocr_image and ocr_paddle overlap in OCR functionality. However, descriptions clearly differentiate their strengths (Florence-2 vs PaddleOCR), so ambiguity is minimal.
All tool names follow a consistent verb_noun pattern with snake_case (describe_image, ocr_image, parse_document, take_screenshot). This makes the tool surface predictable for an agent.
6 tools is well-scoped for the server's purpose of image/document analysis and screenshot capture. Each tool serves a clear function without bloat.
The tool set covers the core tasks: image description, screenshot capture and description, OCR (with specialized options), and document parsing. There are no obvious gaps for the intended domain.
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