Oneincheye lens controller not working

[donoMondes]

Hello,

Here's my problem!

Context :

• Kernel version > 6.12.x
• OneInchEye v2.1
• Raspberry PI CM5 8Go RAM with 16 Go EMMC

I got a OneinchEye version of the cef168 EF lens controller, but I cannot make it work.
When following the tutorial for installation, I found that after the install my IMX283 that worked before doesn't work. Using dmesg, I get a failed to read chip ID error. I added the following since the Linux overlay could not be found :
commit=$(wget -q -O - "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/raspberrypi/firmware/refs/heads/next/extra/git_hash") \ ./configure.sh imx283
I saw the troubleshooting answer for this, and I tried with three different 22 pins FPC with no luck.
After reinstalling the imx283 V4l2 driver using the will127534 driver, the sensor works again.
Trying to understand, I compared the imx283-overlay.dts vs the one found using the commit, and they are really different.
By tweaking the imx overlay file in the cef168 repository after the configure.sh, I got the IMX283 to work again, but not the lens controller.

Do you have any idea how to help me?

Thank you again for this project, and I'll wait for your answer

[pinefeat]

Hi Donovan,
please don't worry - the hardware is ok - the issue is caused by using an outdated driver together with a newer overlay.

The will127534 driver and the overlay from Will’s repository are both outdated. The current Linux source tree already includes a newer imx283 driver, and recent Raspberry Pi firmware ships with it by default.

Please install the latest Raspberry Pi OS (or upgrade your existing installation) and switch to the built-in imx283 driver. To enable it, add the following to your configuration:

camera_auto_detect=0
dtoverlay=imx283

After installing the native driver and confirming that the camera works correctly, you can then proceed with installing the lens controller driver.

Let me know how it goes and I can guide you further.

[donoMondes]

Thank you for your answer.

I did not think of that as I didn't know the imx283 driver was officialised.
I did tweak the overlay using Will's driver and I was able to get the imx283 and the cef168 to work.

Really an amazing work !

I'll try the newer version , do you have a specific linux version that you recommend that works with your oneincheye setup ?

Also kind of off topic but did you think of a version that allow the user to add a focal reducer inside the cef168 cs mount version ? This would improve the crop factor and the overall exposure. Since the OneInchEye and the StarLightEye are kinda small. I'll try to implement it to see if it works

[pinefeat]

I’m glad you were able to find a solution.

---

do you have a specific linux version that you recommend that works with your oneincheye setup

I generally recommend keeping the Raspberry Pi firmware up to date, as it brings the latest Linux kernel and libcamera updates. Starting from version 0.5, the autofocus algorithm in libcamera was improved to support continuous autofocus even on sensors that rely solely on contrast detection such as imx283 and imx477.

The latest firmware release, 1.20250915, already has the imx283 driver, though the device tree overlay hasn’t been included yet - which is why pulling it from the next branch is currently necessary. Once the next firmware version is officially released, the cef168 installation process should be no different from setting up the Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera.

---

a focal reducer inside the cef168 cs mount version

Similar to the astro version of the adapter, which can include an integrated holder for a 1.25″ filter, the CS mount can be adapted to allow a focal reducer to be screwed in. However, finding a reducer that meets Canon EF optical spacing requirements can be difficult, and this option has not been explored in detail.

[donoMondes]

Hello again!
I did try to update the Raspberry Pi using full-update and rpi-update.
I have the latest firmware release 1.20250915.
The default driver for the imx283 in working as intended.
I did try to compile the cef169 modified overlay, but I did not have the Raspberry Pi Linux kernel headers installed.
I'm in a weird position where my /usr/src/ folder doesn't have the 6.12.70-v8-16k+ kernel sources, so I cannot compile with make, but it tells me that it cannot find the dt-bindings files. Also, the sudo apt install raspberrypi-kernel-headers doesn't work for me.

When using rpi-sources to get the proper source. I can compile, but the compiled driver doesn't work, as I cannot see the cef168 when using media-ctl.

Did you encounter the same problem, or do you have a specific way to compile the overlay?

I will try again using a fresh install after I flash the CM5 to check if it works

[pinefeat]

Make sure you'are using Raspberry PI OS 64-bit version. The 32-bit version cannot build kernel drivers. In 64-bit the installation process is straightforward as all build tools and kernel headers are included.