ESP32 to Nano communication issues with Dualshock

[Slydr009]

Hi Collin,

thank you for the great work!
I built the entire thing and I'm tinkering with the code and struggling for 3 days now with what I think is a communication problem.
First off, I'm using 1 Nano and 1 ESP32 Wroom Mini D1 (powered with 5V, not 12V), which is different than yours.
Everything is set up nicely on Isaac's PBC.
Arduino IDE 1.8.19
Boards Manager: ESP32 2.0.2 / Arduino AVR Boards 1.8.5

What is happening:

• Dualshock connects perfectly to ESP32
• Dualshock codes are sent correctly to ESP32, confirmed throught serial monitor (tried the debug mode as well)
• ESP32 communicates properly with Nano (rig is moving accordingly) when commands are sent "by hand" with the keyboard in the serial monitor

BUT the rig won't move/store positions in array when playing with the Dualshock joysticks/keys :'(
It's seems the Dualshock commands are not sent to the Nano or the Nano not receiving.
Tried different Nano/ESP32, same issue.

Is that possible there is a problem with my ESP32 with Rx/Tx not working with the correct voltage level or has something changed in some libraries that needs to be fixed in ESP code?

Thank you in advance.
Slyd

[cbradburne]

Hi Slyd,

Thanks for commenting. Sorry to hear you're having issues.

That's a tough one to fix if,
1 - DualShock connects,
2 - confirmed via codes viewed in serial monitor on ESP32,
3 - ESP32 communicates with Nano.

As you can see from the code, there is no magic. It's only sending the same text that you can type in.

Ultimately it does sound like there's some issue sending data from the ESP32 to the Nano (part 3 above).
I know you've tested by typing commands in by hand, but that code doesn't go through the ESP32, that just goes through the USB -> UART chip that's also on the D1, and to the pins 9 & 10, that are also connected to the Nano. So in essence you're connected straight to the Nano and the ESP32 isn't really doing anything at that point.

It's a little tricky to test with the Nano as it only has 1 serial port. Maybe you could try sending serial between your 2 ESP32 boards using the 2nd serial port (UART1 rather that UART0 which is connected to the USB port). In a program like this:

if (Serial.available() > 0) {     // received from typing in serial monitor
  Serial1.print(Serial.read());    // sent via to other ESP32 via UART1
}
if (Serial1.available() > 0) {    // received from other ESP32 via UART1 
  Serial.print(Serial1.read());    // displayed in serial monitor
}

That way, what ever you type in one, should appear on the other, and it's actually gone through the ESP32.

I know it's fairly basic stuff, but as it all seems to be working other than the serial connected between the 2 boards, that's the bit that needs testing.

I hope this helps in some way. It sounds like you've done most of the hard work!

Thanks,
Colin

[Slydr009]

Hi Colin,

thank you for answering me.
When you say: "So in essence you're connected straight to the Nano and the ESP32 isn't really doing anything at that point." is what I thought after a few tests, that ESP32 is like 'transparent' and only let the commands pass directly to the Nano.

So thanks for pointing me in that direction. I will give it a try/test and let you know.

Slyd

[cbradburne]

Yeah, the USB - UART chip converts the data to UART serial. That UART serial output from that IC is connected to pin 9 (RX0) on the ESP32, which you've also connected directly to the Nano RX0, so the Nano is just reading straight from the USB -> UART IC.

Please let me know how you get on. I'm hoping it's a simple fix as it sounds like you have everything mostly working.

One last thing to check. Make sure neither the ESP32 or the Nano is connected via USB to a computer. I found it can cause issues as the USB -> UART IC will interfere with the connection from the other board.

Thanks,
Colin

[cbradburne]

Hi Slyd,

Have you had any success?

Thanks,
Colin

[cbradburne]

I guess you got this working then?

Great!

[Slydr009]

Hi Colin,
sorry for not giving news.
I had no time to dig into the problem and go for further tests. I'll reboot this project when I'll have more time in my hands.
Will keep you all in touch if I'm able to spot the communication issue.