Startup ARC Project Error

From the screenshot, this looks much more like a camera / vision robot skill startup issue than an EZB firmware or robot-controller connection problem.

What it usually means

When ARC loads a project at startup, it tries to restore every robot skill in the project. If a camera-related skill is configured to use a USB camera that:

• isn’t available yet at startup,
• is already in use by another app,
• has changed device index/name,
• or was removed / unplugged,

then ARC can show a project load error.

Because your camera is directly connected to the PC via USB and not through an EZB, the likely cause is:

• a camera device detection issue, or
• a Robot Skill configuration issue in ARC, not the EZB firmware itself.

What to check first

1) Identify which robot skill is failing

Open the project manually in ARC and look for the skill with the warning/error.

Common suspects:

• Camera Device skill
• Vision / object detection skill
• OpenCV-related skill
• Any skill that references a webcam or video source

You can usually open the skill’s settings from the kebab / three-line menu on the skill and verify its camera source there.

2) Confirm Windows sees the camera

In Windows, check whether the camera appears under:

• Device Manager
• Camera
• Imaging devices
• or in the Windows Camera app

If Windows doesn’t see it reliably at startup, ARC won’t be able to attach to it either.

3) Make sure the camera is not already in use

Close apps that may claim the camera:

• Teams
• Zoom
• browser tabs
• OBS
• vendor camera tools

4) Check whether the camera name/index changed

Some ARC camera skills bind to a specific device or index. If Windows changes the order of USB devices, ARC may be pointing at the wrong camera.

Why it’s probably not an EZB/hardware issue

If the camera is USB direct to the PC, then the EZB is not part of the camera path. An EZB/hardware issue would be more likely if:

• the camera were connected through an EZB,
• the project error mentions connection to the EZB,
• or other EZB-based skills are also failing.

Best next step

Please send these details and I can narrow it down quickly:

1. ARC version
2. Exact text from the error message
3. List of Robot Skills in the project
4. Whether the project includes any camera/vision skills
5. Windows camera device name as shown in Device Manager
6. Whether the camera works after ARC fully opens manually
7. Whether you have an EZB connected at all in this project

Helpful ARC reference

If you need to open or inspect the project after startup, this page explains project loading options in ARC:

• Open Project

If you’d like, I can also help you isolate the failing skill step-by-step. A screenshot of the robot skill list in the project would be especially useful.

It looks like...

- installation is corrupt (uninstall, remove folder, reinstall with a new download from the website) - the dll is blocked as the message says, so maybe it's blocked because you accidentally added it to a virus scanner or windows defender

The message states that the file is blocked for some reason. Try a complete uninstall and that hopefully will help.

If that fails you can try a big fix: https://synthiam.com/Support/troubleshooting/Completely-Remove-All-ARC

That message is pointing to a blocked or corrupted ARC installation component, not a camera-specific problem.

What it means

If ARC says a DLL is blocked, that usually means one of these:

• Windows Defender / antivirus quarantined or blocked the file
• The ARC install became corrupted
• A plugin/robot skill DLL was not installed cleanly
• The file was marked as coming from the internet and blocked by Windows

Since your camera is USB direct to the PC, this is still not an EZB firmware issue. It’s more likely an ARC installation / robot skill library issue.

What to try

1) Check antivirus / Windows Defender

Look in:

• Windows Security
• Protection history
• Any third-party antivirus quarantine area

If ARC-related DLLs were blocked or removed, restore/allow them.

2) Do a clean reinstall of ARC

A normal uninstall sometimes leaves damaged files behind.

Follow this guide to completely remove ARC:

• Completely Remove All ARC
  https://synthiam.com/Support/troubleshooting/Completely-Remove-All-ARC

Then:

• reinstall ARC from a fresh download
• reopen the project
• let ARC re-download Robot Skills if needed

3) Refresh Robot Skills

If the project still errors after reinstalling ARC, the issue may be a bad robot skill cache or a mismatched plugin. ARC can redownload skills when they’re missing.

This is the general update/refresh area:

• Syncing and Updating Robot Skills
  https://synthiam.com/Support/ARC-Overview/robot-skills/Syncing-and-Updating-Robot-Skills

Why the camera isn’t the main suspect

A USB camera issue would usually mention:

• camera not found
• device unavailable
• unsupported resolution
• cannot open video device

A blocked DLL message is much more consistent with:

• ARC install corruption
• blocked plugin file
• antivirus interference

Best next step

Please tell me:

1. The exact DLL name mentioned in the error
2. Whether Windows Defender or another antivirus is installed
3. Whether ARC starts fine after a reinstall
4. Whether the project uses a camera skill that might need to be redownloaded

If you want, I can also help you do a clean rebuild of the project’s skills one by one so you can find the exact DLL or robot skill causing the failure.