BreadboardBot

Web-based control & camera (ESP32S3 Sense)

This example requires the use of the Xiao ESP32S3 or (for camera functionality) the Xiao ESP32S3Sense microcontroller.

• Wiring

  This example uses the OLED wiring, without the line sensors. You can also comment out the OLED functionality in the code and just use the base assembly wiring.

• Programming

  The ESP32S3 needs to be flashed with CircuitPython 8 as described here, except you should use the Espressif - ESP32S3-DevkitC-1-N8R8 image for camera support.

  Then copy the contents of the examples folder as usual. Make sure that your MCU’s root directory contains the settings.toml file - without it the camera crashes with an out of memory error.

  Then edit wifi_config.py, specifying the correct Wifi SSID and password.

  Finally, edit code.py to do import esp32s3_http_control or import esp32s3sense_http_control_cam respectively.

• Result

  On boot the microcontroller will show a web server, reporting its IP in both the serial debug message and on the OLED screen. You can connect to that address and use the forward/backward/left/right/stop buttons to control the motors and view the live camera image.

  Unfortunately, this is not a very practical solution, as the microcontroller seems to heat up a lot and with the BreadboardBot lacking any cooling system, it might not last for longer sessions. It also consumes the battery rather quickly.