MCP Web Cam Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for controlling webcams. This server enables LLMs to capture photos, record videos, and manage camera settings through the MCP protocol.

Installation as MCP Server

For Claude Desktop App

Option 1: Using npx (Recommended)

Add to your Claude Desktop configuration:

On macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json On Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "webcam": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@kmizu/mcp-web-cam"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Then restart Claude Desktop.

Option 2: Manual Installation

1. Install the dependencies and build:

git clone https://github.com/mizushima/mcp-web-cam.git
cd mcp-web-cam
npm install
npm run build

2. Add to your Claude Desktop configuration:

On macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json On Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "webcam": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/mcp-web-cam/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop

For Other MCP Clients

The server communicates via stdio, so you can run:

node /path/to/mcp-web-cam/dist/index.js

Features

• Photo Capture: Take high-quality photos with customizable settings
• Video Recording: Record videos with various formats and codecs
• Camera Management: List available cameras and adjust settings
• Image Processing: Basic image manipulation capabilities
• Cross-platform: Supports Linux, Windows, and macOS

Installation

Global Installation (for use outside MCP)

npm install -g @kmizu/mcp-web-cam

Local Development

npm install
npm run build

Usage

As an MCP Server

The server can be used with any MCP-compatible client:

npm start

Development

npm run dev    # Watch mode for development
npm run build  # Build TypeScript
npm run typecheck  # Type checking only

Available Tools

select_camera

Open a modern web UI to select from available cameras with live preview.

Features:

• Live preview of all connected cameras
• WebRTC-based preview when available
• Fallback to snapshot mode for compatibility
• Persistent camera selection

get_current_camera

Get the currently selected camera device.

capture_photo

Take a photo using the webcam.

Parameters:

• width (optional): Image width in pixels (320-3840)
• height (optional): Image height in pixels (240-2160)
• quality (optional): Image quality (1-100)
• format (optional): Image format ('jpeg', 'png', 'bmp')
• return_type (optional): How to return data ('location', 'buffer', 'base64')
• device (optional): Camera device ID

start_recording

Start recording video from the webcam.

Parameters:

• duration (optional): Recording duration in seconds (1-3600)
• fps (optional): Frames per second (1-60)
• format (optional): Video format ('mp4', 'avi', 'mkv')
• codec (optional): Video codec (e.g., 'libx264', 'libx265')

stop_recording

Stop the current video recording.

list_cameras

List all available camera devices.

get_camera_settings

Get current camera settings.

Parameters:

• device (optional): Camera device ID

set_camera_settings

Adjust camera settings like brightness, contrast, etc.

Parameters:

• device (optional): Camera device ID
• brightness (optional): Brightness level (0-100)
• contrast (optional): Contrast level (0-100)
• saturation (optional): Saturation level (0-100)
• hue (optional): Hue adjustment (-180 to 180)
• gamma (optional): Gamma correction (1-500)
• sharpness (optional): Sharpness level (0-100)
• whiteBalance (optional): White balance in Kelvin (2000-10000)
• exposure (optional): Exposure compensation (-10 to 10)
• gain (optional): Gain level (0-100)
• focus (optional): Focus level (0-100, 0=auto)

Resources

The server provides the following resources:

• webcam://cameras: List of available camera devices
• webcam://captures: List of captured photos
• webcam://recordings: List of video recordings

Dependencies

Required System Dependencies

Linux

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install v4l-utils ffmpeg

# CentOS/RHEL
sudo yum install v4l-utils ffmpeg

Windows

• FFmpeg (download from https://ffmpeg.org/)
• Windows Media Foundation

macOS

brew install ffmpeg

File Structure

mcp-web-cam/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts              # Main MCP server
│   ├── webcam/
│   │   ├── controller.ts     # Camera control logic
│   │   └── types.ts          # TypeScript type definitions
│   ├── tools/                # MCP tool implementations
│   │   ├── capture.ts        # Photo capture tool
│   │   ├── recording.ts      # Video recording tools
│   │   └── camera.ts         # Camera management tools
│   └── types/
│       └── node-webcam.d.ts  # Type declarations
├── captures/                 # Captured photos (auto-created)
├── recordings/               # Video recordings (auto-created)
└── dist/                     # Compiled JavaScript

License

MIT