SIMPLIFIED! How to Use OV7670 Camera with Arduino.

Written by Indrek Luuk

This article is a step-by-step guide for setting up all the necessary connections to stream images from the OV7670 camera module to your computer.

You can also watch the same tutorial as a Youtube video:

I have made an easy-to-install "ArduImageCapture" plug-in for Arduino IDE that captures images on the computers' side. The plug-in works on all platforms that can run Arduino IDE (Windows, Mac, Linux).

After installing "ArduImageCapture," you can easily follow along by making all the connections on a breadboard. I have also added some mid-point checks to verify if everything is connected correctly thus far.

I have another article about the OV7670 camera module, where the image is displayed on a tiny TFT screen at 10fps:
https://circuitjournal.com/arduino-ov7670-10fps

Required Components

• 

  The OV7670 camera module (without the FIFO chip)
• 

  An Arduino Uno or Uno compatible board
• 

  Or an Arduino Nano or Nano compatible board
• 

  A breadboard
• 

  Two 10kΩ resistors for the I²C connection to the camera and one pair of 650Ω and 1kΩ resistors for the camera clock voltage divider.
• 

  A bunch of jumper wires: male to male and male to female

[OPTIONAL] Oscilloscope I used to get it all working

If you can't get the image to show up, it is much easier to track down issues with an oscilloscope. Often the problem is the shape of the clock signals. With an oscilloscope, you can see which wire is not working properly and then try to find a solution to fix it.

• 

  Oscilloscope RIGOL DS1054Z

Installing "ArduImageCapture" Plug-In

ArduImageCapture.1.1.zip

https://github.com/indrekluuk/ArduImageCapture

Extract the zip file and copy the "ArduImageCapture" folder into your Arduino "tools" folder next to the Arduino "libraries" folder. If the "tools" folder doesn't exist, then you can create it yourself.

C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Arduino\tools

/Users/<username>/Documents/Arduino/tools

Now run/restart your Arduino IDE, and you should see "ArduImageCapture" under the "Tools" menu.

Arduino Code

1. Download the code of my LiveOV7670 project:
https://github.com/indrekluuk/LiveOV7670

Click on the green "Code" button and then "Download ZIP."

Extract the downloaded ZIP file.

2. Copy the two libraries "LiveOV7670Library" and "Adafruit_GFX_Library" from "src/lib" to your Arduino "libraries" folder.

C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Arduino\libraries

/Users/<username>/Documents/Arduino/libraries

"LiveOV7670Library" contains the code that communicates with the OV7670 camera module.

"Adafruit_GFX_Library" is a dependency of the "Adafruit-ST7735" screen library. We aren't using any screens in this tutorial, but the dependency is still required for the LiveOV7670 sketch to compile.

3. Open "src/LiveOV7670/LiveOV7670.ino" with Arduino IDE.

This project takes advantage of some of the C++11 features. C++11 is enabled by default since Arduino IDE version 1.6.6. If you have an older version for some reason, you should either upgrade or enable C++11 in the Arduino IDE configuration file.

4. Switch to "EXAMPLE 3" in "setup.h".

Select "setup.h" tab and change the definition to:

#define EXAMPLE 3

"EXAMPLE 3" will activate the "ExampleUart.cpp". This is the code that sends images over the USB cable.

The default "EXAMPLE 1" tries to send the image to a tiny TFT screen.

I have another article about that setup:
https://circuitjournal.com/arduino-ov7670-10fps

5. Upload the code to your Arduino.

We can make the first test before connecting any wires.

Checkpoint 1

Open "ArduImageCapture." It should start listening to the serial port automatically. If not, select the correct COM port and click "Listen."

You should see a red image. This means that you have the correct code in your Arduino, but it couldn't detect the camera module.

The default baud rate for the LiveOV7670 project is 1Mbit/sec (1000000) at 320x240 resolution. It works well if you have an Arduino clone with the CH340 serial chip and a Windows PC.

If you have a genuine Arduino with an FTDI serial chip or use a Mac, then you may see a scrambled line ends:

For some reason, a genuine Arduino with an FTDI serial chip will not work with a 1MBit/sec baud rate. So you need to reduce the speed to 115200 bit/sec.

Similar problem with Mac. For some reason, 1Mbit/sec doesn't work on Mac.

In those cases, select the "ExampleUart.cpp" tab and change the definition to:

#define UART_MODE 4

This lowers the resolution to 160x120 with a 115200 baud rate. (Unfortunately, 115200 is too slow to transfer higher resolution)

After uploading the code again, choose "115200" from the serial speed selection.

Now You should see this image:

First Part of the Camera Connections – Power It Up

We will do the camera wiring in two phases. In this chapter, we will make all the necessary connections to get the camera running and configured by the Arduino.

Step 1. Make a voltage divider from the Arduino pin 3 to the XCLK pin of the camera.

Create a voltage divider to get the 5V signal from Arduino to 3.3V for the camera. It is necessary because The OV7670 camera module is not 5V tolerant.

XCLK is the input clock that makes the camera run. The maximum frequency that Arduino can put out is 8Mhz. For full speed, the camera module needs 30Mhz, but eight is enough to send a small image to the computer.

Click on the buttons to switch between the steps of the schematic.

Schematic

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Step 6

Step 1. Make a voltage divider from the Arduino pin 3 to the XCLK pin of the camera.

Create a voltage divider to get the 5V signal from Arduino to 3.3V for the camera. It is necessary because The OV7670 camera module is not 5V tolerant.

XCLK is the input clock that makes the camera run. The maximum frequency that Arduino can put out is 8Mhz. For full speed, the camera module needs 30Mhz, but eight is enough to send a small image to the computer.

Step 2. Make the I²C connections. Arduino pin A5 to SIOC and Arduino pin A4 to SIOD. Then add a 10k pull-up resistors to 3.3V to both of the wires (A5 to 10k to 3.3V, A4 to 10k to 3.3V).

I²C is necessary for sending configuration data to the camera (resolution, pixel format, etc.).

Step 3. VSYNC to Arduino pin 2.

It's a 3.3V signal from the camera to the Arduino. This connection can be made directly without a voltage divider.

We need vertical sync to know when a new frame begins. Otherwise, it looks to Arduino like a constant pixel stream with no start or end.

Step 4. PCLK to Arduino pin 12.

This is also a 3.3V signal from the camera to the Arduino and can be connected directly.

Pixel cock is necessary for knowing the exact time when to read pixel data.

Step 5. Connect power to the camera. From Arduino 3.3V pin to the camera's 3.3V input and from Arduino GND pin to the camera's GND.

Step 6. Connect the camera's RESET pin to 3.3V and PWDN to GND.

The Reset pin could be used to reset the camera module and power down to turn it off. But since we don't have any left-over pins, we let it run all the time.

Checkpoint 2

Let's validate that the Camera is Running. This is the second test before we get to the actual images from the camera.

Your wiring should look something like this:

When you start your Arduino again and open "ArduImageCapture," it should flash a green image. This means that the LiveOV7670 library was able to detect and configure the camera successfully.

You can't see any images yet since the pixel data pins are not connected.

If you still see the red image, then check the wiring. Make sure that the XCLK wire isn't too long. The square wave of the input clock signal to the camera may become too deformed for it to operate correctly.

Second Part of the Camera Connections – Pixel Data Pins

Now we can finish the camera wiring by connecting pixel data inputs. Pixels are streamed from the camera one byte at a time. Each pixel consists of two bytes that are read sequentially.

Step 1. Connect Camera's D0 to D3 to the Arduino pins A0 to A3.

These are the lower four bits of a pixel byte.

Click on the buttons to switch between the steps of the schematic.

Schematic

Step 1

Step 2

Step 1. Connect Camera's D0 to D3 to the Arduino pins A0 to A3.

These are the lower four bits of a pixel byte.

Step 2. Connect Camera's D4 to D7 to the Arduino pins 4 to 7.

These are the higher four bits of a pixel byte.

Done!

Now you can power up your Arduino and open "ArduImageCapture" again.

It starts with a green image like in the previous checkpoint, and then you should see a live video streaming from the camera.