ESP8266 a Complete Beginners Guide (IOT)

I am making this instructable after my long 2-day struggle with ESP866. Since the day it arrived , to this day , I have surfed through nearly 50+ websites , blogs, instructables , data-sheets . In middle of all this I decided to make my own INSTRUCTABLE for other people who would like to be a part of this wonderful family .

(Yes I used the word family, IOT is a family )

CRUX of this instructable:

1. About ESP8266 .

2. How to start ESP8266 ?

3. Flashing and Programming ESP8266 .

4. Basic Blink Example controlled via Mobile .

Note to the readers : I added this instructable in various Contest , so if you like what you read please VOTE .

Winning a contest will help for further development and experimenting .

If you have read this far :READ MY COMPLETE INSTRUCTABLE AND I ASSURE YOU , IT WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER .

Questions and Queries are welcome , feel free to drop a message ( with some love , hehe )

Let us start -

• What is ESP8266 ?
• The ESP8266 is a low-cost WiFi chip with full TCP/IP stack and MCU (Micro Controller Unit) capability produced by Shanghai-based Chinese manufacturer, Espressif Systems.
• OR It is just a WiFi module which can be used with other Electronic Platforms . You can relate to it as the WiFi which is present in your Laptops , Smartphones , Tablets , etc . It has a 4 MB Flash memory which can be used to store programs .
• Over the years there have been many advancements on ESP8266 and there are many different modules of the same. Since I have the ESP-01 module only I will discuss it , also it is not breadboard friendly so therefore we have to use Male to Female headers / PCB with Female headers for ESP and Male Headers for breadboard .

• The BEST PART is it is very cheap starting from $3 .

• It can act like AP(Access Point) or connect to AP or Both .

• It can be used in Home Automation devices .

• It can very well receive commands via the internet or local host.

• It can act like an ARDUINO .

• The ESP8266 is also faster and stores more than the Arduino , the only con is with the ESP-01 since it has only 2 GPIO pins ( General Purpose Input Output ) , for which you can use ESP-12.

Working of ESP8266 :

1. First we connect and set-up the environment required for ESP8266 , that is through the Arduino-IDE . Nowadays there are may different platforms to run ESP8266 , but since Arduino is universal , we will use that.
2. The ESP8266 needs to be flashed with a firmware which will host the program . In this too there are many different firmware(s) . And it needs to be put into Flash mode before flashing.
3. After Flashing we upload our program in the same way like an Arduino but with a small catch that the ESP8266 needs to be put into Bootloader mode before uploading .
4. Saving the program on the ESP8266 so that it does not reset after restarting .
5. Last but not the least ONLY 3.3V and NOT 5V .

*************************************************************************************

WARNING : WORKS ONLY WITH 3.3V AND NOT 5V . ESP8266 WILL PROBABLY FRY AT 5V .

ENSURE TX ,RX , Vcc ARE AT 3.3V BEFORE CONNECTION .

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Step 1: Collect Material

The basic question is what all is needed to use this great tool . I will also lay out all the alternatives I have read so far which are used to program ESP-01 (ESP8266) .

1. ESP8266 module . I will use ESP-01 .
2. A 3.3 Volts power supply

   or 5 volt to 3.3 volt DC-to-DC converter

   for standalone ESP projects or AMS1117 or LM1117 converters(LD33 ) .
   

3. Arduino UNO or any other Arduino , with wire ( With or Without the IC )
4. Female to Male , Male to Male Header wires .
5. Breadboard mini or general 850 Point one ( Basically any Breadboard ) .
6. If you don't have or want Arduino , You can use a FTDI or USB to Serial TTL CP2102 adapter .

NOTE : Basic thing to understand is that the ESP can be powered with Arduino or the CP2102 adapter while programming , but for standalone projects we need a solid power supply at 3.3 Volt and 500mA .

*************************************************************************************

WARNING : WORKS ONLY WITH 3.3V AND NOT 5V . ESP8266 WILL PROBABLY FRY AT 5V .

I don't take responsibility for it.

*************************************************************************************

Basically it needs only 3.3V and Maximum of 800mA at peak and Minimum 250mA to operate .

I have attached a PDF from the ESP8266 Community Wiki that is a datasheet of ESP8266 .

I will be using this Freeduino ( Similar to Arduino ) to program the ESP-01 , since I don't want to remove the IC from my new UNO .

Step 2: Setting Up Environment for ESP8266

Setting up the Environment .

Software Arduino Environment v 1.6.4 or greater

Installing with Boards Manager Starting with 1.6.4, Arduino allows installation of third-party platform packages using Boards Manager.

It have packages available for Windows, Mac OS, and Linux (32 and 64 bit).

Install Arduino 1.6.4 (or greater) from the Arduino website ( I have 1.6.11) . Start Arduino and open Preferences window.

Enter http://arduino.esp8266.com/package_esp8266com_ind... into Additional Board Manager URLs field. You can add multiple URLs, separating them with commas. Open Boards Manager from Tools > Board menu and install ESP8266 platform (and don't forget to select your ESP8266 board from Tools > Board menu after installation).

Procedure:
Start Arduino 1.6.4 or Higher

Select ‘Tools’- ‘Port’ whatever # your USB-serial is on

Select ‘Tools’ -‘Board’ ‘Generic ESP8266 Module’

Select ‘Tools’- ‘CPU Frequency’ ‘80MHz’ or Overclock afterwards at '160Mhz'

Select ‘Tools’ -‘Flash Size’ ‘512K (64K SPIFFS)

Select ‘Tools’ -‘Upload Speed’ ‘115200’ for ESP 12E , also Some ESPs may be 9600

Step 3: Connecting ESP8266 With Arduino or USB to Serial

CONNECTIONS

The Connections are ( For ARDUINO ) :-

Firstly Remove the Atmega Chip from the Arduino

1. Vcc and CH_PD ( ENable) to 3.3V on Arduino
2. GND to Ground . ( For ESP -12 , GPIO15 to GND as well )
3. Tx to Tx of Arduino
4. Rx to Rx of Arduino
5. RST , GPIO0, GPIO2 are floating ( Neither High nor Low )

Important part here is the ESP uses more current than the Arduino , thus at risk .

Therefore I use and external DC 12 V , 1 A beside the PC connection .

For other connections refer the Images .

Step 4: Checking the Connections

Before flashing lets check the connections

The ESP modules usually come with a built in AT Firmware by the Ai-Thinker .

So refer to this Image for commands .

Open up the Arduino , Go to the Serial Monitor ( Do select your COM port ) and Write :

AT

// This should return OK , else it's not working

Possible Errors :

1. Check connections
2. Select proper Baud Rate
3. Arduino COM port is correct
4. The Red LED ( ESP 01 ) is Bright (High )

If none of these work Pray to God .

Some Commands :

AT+GMR = to check firmware version

AT+RST = Soft reset

AT+CWLAP = Find Nearby Wi-Fi

AT+CWJAP = Connect to a specified AP

NOTE : If you are trying to connect to any wifi using AT+CWJAP and it returns ERROR or just sits there

Follow these commands :

AT+RST

AT+CWJAP=" "," " // ( This should return Error or OK, it's fine )

AT+CWJAP? // No AP or Error , Still Fine

AT+CWJAP = "Your SSID","Your Password" // THESE ARE CASE SENSITIVE

ALTERNATE TO AT command from ARDUINO :

There is this Java Software : ESPlorer , a wonder to use .

I have uploaded this also in the ZIP file .

Step 5: Flashing Your Own Firmware

Now the main step ,

The ESP can be programmed by various methods .

There are many Firmwares for it like the NodeMCU , ESPBasic , Arduino , etc

The NodeMcu runs on the LUA script ( Out of my expertise as of now )

But Arduino still runs on C++ ( In my expertise )

So we will Flash a firmware which will make the ESP to take the Arduino Script (Cpp script ) and run it .

Softwares available :

1. ESP8266 Flasher
2. NodeMcu's own Flasher
3. ESP Flash Download Tool
4. Another ESP flash tool

In my Quest ( To flash ESP 12E ) , I learnt and tried mostly all of them .

I made a zip file for all the different tools I have used .

Now to the main part ( Using the ESP8266 Flasher )

• Open ESP8266 Flasher
• Select the COM port ( Very Important )
• Select the BIN file , i.e your Firmware file
• Take GPIO0 to GND ( RST and GPIO2 are floating )
• Select 0x00000
• Hit Download
• The Blue Led starts to Blink fast

It will start to Erase and Write firmware ( 0 to 99% )

And will end at saying Unable to leave Flash mode , Don't worry it's perfectly fine.

THE BIN FILE is in THE ZIP ( v0.9.2.2 AT Firmware.bin ) Use this .

Possible Errors :

• GPIO0 is not grounded
• Loose connections
• COM port is not correct

If nothing works , restart your ESP and Take the RST ( Reset ) to Gnd and remove

Let the blue Led flash once and try again from the start

Step 6: Uploading an Arduino Program (Final )

These instructions are available everywhere but the most important part here is to put the ESP module in Bootloader mode before uploading .

Firstly select The correct Board - Generic ESP8266 module

Then the COM port

Open any program in Arduino , let us say Blink .

Change pin 13 to 2 , and use a LED and Upload

Now before hitting Upload , take Gpio0 to ground

And RST to ground afterwards , Remove RST after half a second ( The blue led flashes for some millisecond )

Take GPIO0 back ( To high or Float )

Hit Upload , the blue flashes once and then blinks till it gets uploaded .

Now you are all done . Remember before uploading put ESP in Boot Mode .

Step 7: Thanks

Thanks for reading and If you have any queries just comment below , Very Happy to Help .

P.S : If you are looking for serious home automation , Try using NodeMCU or ESP-12E or 12F .

Since they have More GPIO pins .

If I helped you in any way , do hit on that little heart , means a lot to me .