Webcam Not Working

Hello!

First time CL user, I’m working on a streaming project and thought I’d give this a shot.

I’m attempting to stream a webcam using OBS, but my camera isn’t being detected. Cheese also doesn’t detect my device.

I appreciate any help you can offer.

Here’s a dump from lsusb:

Bus 001 Device 004: ID 05a3:9230 ARC International Camera
Device Descriptor:
  bLength                18
  bDescriptorType         1
  bcdUSB               2.00
  bDeviceClass          239 Miscellaneous Device
  bDeviceSubClass         2 
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Interface Association
  bMaxPacketSize0        64
  idVendor           0x05a3 ARC International
  idProduct          0x9230 Camera
  bcdDevice            1.00a
  iManufacturer           2 HD Camera Manufacturer
  iProduct                1 USB 2.0 Camera
  iSerial                 0 
  bNumConfigurations      1
  Configuration Descriptor:
    bLength                 9
    bDescriptorType         2
    wTotalLength       0x02cb
    bNumInterfaces          2
    bConfigurationValue     1
    iConfiguration          0 
    bmAttributes         0x80
      (Bus Powered)
    MaxPower              500mA
    Interface Association:
      bLength                 8
      bDescriptorType        11
      bFirstInterface         0
      bInterfaceCount         2
      bFunctionClass         14 Video
      bFunctionSubClass       3 Video Interface Collection
      bFunctionProtocol       0 
      iFunction               5 HD USB Camera
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        0
      bAlternateSetting       0
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      1 Video Control
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              5 HD USB Camera
      VideoControl Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                13
        bDescriptorType        36
        bDescriptorSubtype      1 (HEADER)
        bcdUVC               1.00
        wTotalLength       0x004d
        dwClockFrequency       15.000000MHz
        bInCollection           1
        baInterfaceNr( 0)       1
      VideoControl Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                 9
        bDescriptorType        36
        bDescriptorSubtype      3 (OUTPUT_TERMINAL)
        bTerminalID             5
        wTerminalType      0x0101 USB Streaming
        bAssocTerminal          0
        bSourceID               3
        iTerminal               0 
      VideoControl Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                26
        bDescriptorType        36
        bDescriptorSubtype      6 (EXTENSION_UNIT)
        bUnitID                 3
        guidExtensionCode         {28f03370-6311-4a2e-ba2c-6890eb334016}
        bNumControl             8
        bNrPins                 1
        baSourceID( 0)          2
        bControlSize            1
        bmControls( 0)       0x1f
        iExtension              0 
      VideoControl Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                18
        bDescriptorType        36
        bDescriptorSubtype      2 (INPUT_TERMINAL)
        bTerminalID             1
        wTerminalType      0x0201 Camera Sensor
        bAssocTerminal          0
        iTerminal               0 
        wObjectiveFocalLengthMin      0
        wObjectiveFocalLengthMax      0
        wOcularFocalLength            0
        bControlSize                  3
        bmControls           0x0000000e
          Auto-Exposure Mode
          Auto-Exposure Priority
          Exposure Time (Absolute)
      VideoControl Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                11
        bDescriptorType        36
        bDescriptorSubtype      5 (PROCESSING_UNIT)
      Warning: Descriptor too short
        bUnitID                 2
        bSourceID               1
        wMaxMultiplier          0
        bControlSize            2
        bmControls     0x0000177f
          Brightness
          Contrast
          Hue
          Saturation
          Sharpness
          Gamma
          White Balance Temperature
          Backlight Compensation
          Gain
          Power Line Frequency
          White Balance Temperature, Auto
        iProcessing             0 
        bmVideoStandards     0x00
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x83  EP 3 IN
        bmAttributes            3
          Transfer Type            Interrupt
          Synch Type               None
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x0010  1x 16 bytes
        bInterval               6
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       0
      bNumEndpoints           0
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              5 HD USB Camera
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            15
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  1 (INPUT_HEADER)
        bNumFormats                         2
        wTotalLength                   0x01ef
        bEndPointAddress                  129
        bmInfo                              0
        bTerminalLink                       5
        bStillCaptureMethod                 2
        bTriggerSupport                     0
        bTriggerUsage                       0
        bControlSize                        1
        bmaControls( 0)                     0
        bmaControls( 1)                     0
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            11
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  6 (FORMAT_MJPEG)
        bFormatIndex                        1
        bNumFrameDescriptors                7
        bFlags                              0
          Fixed-size samples: No
        bDefaultFrameIndex                  1
        bAspectRatioX                       0
        bAspectRatioY                       0
        bmInterlaceFlags                 0x00
          Interlaced stream or variable: No
          Fields per frame: 1 fields
          Field 1 first: No
          Field pattern: Field 1 only
        bCopyProtect                        0
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         1
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1920
        wHeight                          1080
        dwMinBitRate                995469360
        dwMaxBitRate                995469360
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     4147789
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         333333
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            333333
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         2
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1280
        wHeight                           720
        dwMinBitRate                885018720
        dwMaxBitRate                885018720
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     1843789
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         166666
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            166666
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         3
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1024
        wHeight                           768
        dwMinBitRate                377628720
        dwMaxBitRate                377628720
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     1573453
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         333333
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            333333
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         4
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                            640
        wHeight                           480
        dwMinBitRate                590881431
        dwMaxBitRate                590881431
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize      614989
        dwDefaultFrameInterval          83263
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)             83263
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         5
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                            800
        wHeight                           600
        dwMinBitRate                461082720
        dwMaxBitRate                461082720
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize      960589
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         166666
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            166666
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         6
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1280
        wHeight                          1024
        dwMinBitRate                629286960
        dwMaxBitRate                629286960
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     2622029
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         333333
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            333333
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  7 (FRAME_MJPEG)
        bFrameIndex                         7
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                            320
        wHeight                           240
        dwMinBitRate                148144791
        dwMaxBitRate                148144791
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize      154189
        dwDefaultFrameInterval          83263
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)             83263
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                             6
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                 13 (COLORFORMAT)
        bColorPrimaries                     1 (BT.709,sRGB)
        bTransferCharacteristics            1 (BT.709)
        bMatrixCoefficients                 4 (SMPTE 170M (BT.601))
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            27
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  4 (FORMAT_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFormatIndex                        2
        bNumFrameDescriptors                7
        guidFormat                            {32595559-0000-0010-8000-00aa00389b71}
        bBitsPerPixel                      16
        bDefaultFrameIndex                  1
        bAspectRatioX                       0
        bAspectRatioY                       0
        bmInterlaceFlags                 0x00
          Interlaced stream or variable: No
          Fields per frame: 2 fields
          Field 1 first: No
          Field pattern: Field 1 only
        bCopyProtect                        0
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         1
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1920
        wHeight                          1080
        dwMinBitRate                199065600
        dwMaxBitRate                199065600
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     4147200
        dwDefaultFrameInterval        1666666
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)           1666666
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         2
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1280
        wHeight                           720
        dwMinBitRate                132710400
        dwMaxBitRate                132710400
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     1843200
        dwDefaultFrameInterval        1111111
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)           1111111
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         3
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1024
        wHeight                           768
        dwMinBitRate                 75497472
        dwMaxBitRate                 75497472
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     1572864
        dwDefaultFrameInterval        1666666
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)           1666666
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         4
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                            640
        wHeight                           480
        dwMinBitRate                147456000
        dwMaxBitRate                147456000
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize      614400
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         333333
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            333333
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         5
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                            800
        wHeight                           600
        dwMinBitRate                153600000
        dwMaxBitRate                153600000
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize      960000
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         500000
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            500000
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         6
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                           1280
        wHeight                          1024
        dwMinBitRate                125829120
        dwMaxBitRate                125829120
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize     2621440
        dwDefaultFrameInterval        1666666
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)           1666666
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            30
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  5 (FRAME_UNCOMPRESSED)
        bFrameIndex                         7
        bmCapabilities                   0x00
          Still image unsupported
        wWidth                            320
        wHeight                           240
        dwMinBitRate                 36864000
        dwMaxBitRate                 36864000
        dwMaxVideoFrameBufferSize      153600
        dwDefaultFrameInterval         333333
        bFrameIntervalType                  1
        dwFrameInterval( 0)            333333
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                            10
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                  3 (STILL_IMAGE_FRAME)
        bEndpointAddress                    0
        bNumImageSizePatterns               1
        wWidth( 0)                       1920
        wHeight( 0)                      1080
        bNumCompressionPatterns             0
      VideoStreaming Interface Descriptor:
        bLength                             6
        bDescriptorType                    36
        bDescriptorSubtype                 13 (COLORFORMAT)
        bColorPrimaries                     1 (BT.709,sRGB)
        bTransferCharacteristics            1 (BT.709)
        bMatrixCoefficients                 4 (SMPTE 170M (BT.601))
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       1
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              0 
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x81  EP 1 IN
        bmAttributes            5
          Transfer Type            Isochronous
          Synch Type               Asynchronous
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x0080  1x 128 bytes
        bInterval               1
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       2
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              0 
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x81  EP 1 IN
        bmAttributes            5
          Transfer Type            Isochronous
          Synch Type               Asynchronous
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x0100  1x 256 bytes
        bInterval               1
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       3
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              0 
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x81  EP 1 IN
        bmAttributes            5
          Transfer Type            Isochronous
          Synch Type               Asynchronous
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x0320  1x 800 bytes
        bInterval               1
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       4
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              0 
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x81  EP 1 IN
        bmAttributes            5
          Transfer Type            Isochronous
          Synch Type               Asynchronous
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x0b20  2x 800 bytes
        bInterval               1
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       5
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              0 
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x81  EP 1 IN
        bmAttributes            5
          Transfer Type            Isochronous
          Synch Type               Asynchronous
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x1320  3x 800 bytes
        bInterval               1
    Interface Descriptor:
      bLength                 9
      bDescriptorType         4
      bInterfaceNumber        1
      bAlternateSetting       6
      bNumEndpoints           1
      bInterfaceClass        14 Video
      bInterfaceSubClass      2 Video Streaming
      bInterfaceProtocol      0 
      iInterface              0 
      Endpoint Descriptor:
        bLength                 7
        bDescriptorType         5
        bEndpointAddress     0x81  EP 1 IN
        bmAttributes            5
          Transfer Type            Isochronous
          Synch Type               Asynchronous
          Usage Type               Data
        wMaxPacketSize     0x1400  3x 1024 bytes
        bInterval               1
Device Qualifier (for other device speed):
  bLength                10
  bDescriptorType         6
  bcdUSB               2.00
  bDeviceClass          239 Miscellaneous Device
  bDeviceSubClass         2 
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Interface Association
  bMaxPacketSize0        64
  bNumConfigurations      1
Device Status:     0x0002
  (Bus Powered)
  Remote Wakeup Enabled

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=linux+05a3%3A9230+ARC+International+Camera

A quick search on google reveals many users with the same problem. It may be that the device simply is not supported or needs a firmware update.

I would absolutely try to run a different distribution to see if that works or not. If it does work, great, we can maybe determine whether clearlinux needs to include a driver. If it doesn’t work, then you can at least ask about this camera in 2 forums.

Check if you have /dev/video* and see if there is more than just video0. It could be that the camera sits at /dev/video1 or even /dev/video4 and cheese fails to try all those device nodes.

Default install of Debian 10 works out of the box. Any useful driver info I can pull?

That’s really interesting, I wonder why none of the threads on google show anyone else that figured that out…

lsmod and dmesg in debian should provide more info. Please use e.g. gist.github.com to post the lengthy output if you want - that keeps the forums more readable :).

Here you go ARC International Camera Driver · GitHub

usb-devices apparently has the right info, too (I learn something new every day!).