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03 ‐ Installation

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Resinchem edited this page Dec 2, 2023 · 1 revision

Please follow these steps carefully for a successful install.

Currently, the install is a very manual process. It may be simplified in later versions.

Requirements

  • Properly installed Arduino IDE (or other software like PlatformIO that can load, compile and flash a .ino sketch file).
  • A Wemos D1 Mini or ESP32 Mini. Other ESP8266/ESP32 dev boards should work, but I have not tested and only basic functionality was tested with the ESP32.
  • A USB-to-micro USB cable

You can download the Arduino IDE for free from the Arduino Web Site. Please see the information on that site if you need help with installation or basic use. This document assumes you have basic knowledge of using the IDE, including adding libraries, using the board manager, etc. This repo was developed and testing using v1.8.16. It may or may not have issues with the new version 2.x of the IDE as some libraries have still not been updated for the new environment. I did not test compilation with v2.x.

Installation steps

  1. Download the latest release from this repository. Unzip and copy the .ino and two .h files to your Arduino sketch location.
  2. If your install does not already have the ESP8266/ESP32 board support installed, install via the Arduino --> Preferences --> Additional Board Manager. If you need assistance with this step, see the instructions on this page.
  3. You must now edit the Credentials.h and Settings.h file. This is specific for your particular enviroment and contains info like your wifi settings, optional MQTT broker log in and a local hotspot when WiFi isn't avilable. See the Settings and Credentials page for full details on each line of these files. You can edit these files in the IDE after opening the main .ino file, or via any text editor.
  4. Assure you have installed all required libraries if they are not already installed in your environment. The libraries are listed via #include statements within the main .ino

Install any missing libraries via the Library Manager

  1. Connect your Wemos D1 Mini (or other board) to the computer via USB cable. Assure you have selected the proper board and COM port via the tools menu. Verify the sketch.

  2. If no errors occur, you are ready to upload the sketch to your board. Once the upload completes and the board is reset, you will need to determine the IP address on your network. This can be done via either your router, or by using the Arduino IDE and looking under Tools->Ports for the OTA_HOSTNAME you defined in Settings. The port, if found, will also list the IP address of the controller. Just note the IP address as you will need it for OTA updates or to remotely reboot the board.

At this point, you can disconnect the controller from the computer, connect to the FM receiver if you haven't already done so, and move to any other location as long as the controller can receive and adequate WiFi signal on the same 2.4GHz SSID as your device for OTA updates or to receive MQTT commands. Any future uploads of the code can be performed over-the-air (See OTA Updates for more info).

The controller should be fully operational at this point. Do note that the RADIO library will allow you to issue commands via the serial console for some items like presets, volume, etc. You can test the system in this manner if you like, but the ESP must be connected to the computer via USB and SERIAL_DEBUG must be enabled (set to 1) in the Settings.h file. Issue an ? in the serial monitor to see a list of commands.

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