ESP32 development board for 18 servos, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

ESP32 development board for 18 servos, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth - Image 1
ESP32 development board for 18 servos, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth - Image 3
ESP32 development board for 18 servos, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth - Image 4

SKU 7100-FT1507MEAN 8219671076937Item type: Assembled, Board,

Description

Development board built around the ESP32 with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, ideal for driving up to 18 servos. It runs on a battery (available separately) and carries on-board voltage regulators for a steady 5V supply. It also includes Neopixel RGB LEDs and programmable pushbuttons for custom lighting effects.

This development board, built around an ESP32 MCU, is the perfect answer for anyone who needs to drive up to 18 servos. Thanks to the built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth communication module, the system can be controlled remotely with the greatest flexibility.

Power comes from a 7.4V lithium battery (available separately). To guarantee stable operation, the board carries two built-in voltage regulators that provide a constant 5V output whatever the state of charge of the battery. There is also an On/Off toggle switch, a practical and immediate way of turning the board on and off.

The board includes six RGB LEDs using Neopixel (WS2812) technology. These LEDs have four pins (two for the power supply and two for daisy-chaining) and can easily be controlled over a single digital line, letting you switch each individual LED on and off and set its colour. Perfect for creating custom light shows.

The board is also fitted with three programmable pushbuttons, which can be configured to carry out specific functions, adding a further level of interaction to the project.

Perfect for robotics and automation applications, this board offers all the power of the ESP32 with a design optimised for driving servos and for advanced lighting effects.

The board is supplied with a user manual.
Technical specifications
  • Connectivity:
    • Bluetooth: BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and Bluetooth Classic
  • Servos:
    • Number of PWM channels for servos: 18 (driven through digital I/O)
  • Neopixel RGB LEDs:
    • Number of Neopixel RGB LEDs on board: 6
    • Technology: Neopixel WS2812 (driven over a single digital line for on, off and colour setting)
Circuit diagram
ESP32 development board for 18 servomotors with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
The heart of the HEXAPOD robot
ESP32 development board for 18 servomotors with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
Presented in issue no. 283 (February/March) of Elettronica In, this hexapod robot, inspired by the way spiders move, boasts 18 degrees of freedom and Bluetooth control. Built around this development board, it is available to buy on our site!
The development environment

Firmware development can be carried out with the Arduino IDE. To set up the development environment you need to install the ESP32 package, following these steps:

  1. Open the Arduino IDE and go to Preferences.
  2. In the Additional Boards Manager URLs field, enter the following link:
    https://raw.githubusercontent.com/espressif/arduino-esp32/gh-pages/package_esp32_index.json
  3. Restart the IDE and, from the Boards Manager, install the Arduino ESP32 Board package.

You can write your own code to suit your needs. For a more hands-on look at what the board can do, however, we have made available several test sketches, the same ones used for the HEXAPOD robot:

  • TEST_SERVO
  • TEST_RAMP
  • TEST_LEDRGB
  • TEST_BUTTON
  • TEST_BT
  • TEST_ADC

The SPIDERBOT sketch brings together all the functions of the test sketches and implements the coordinated movement of the HEXAPOD robot.
Wireless control

This development board has an ESP32 Bluetooth module on board, allowing simple control from an Android smartphone or a PC. Setting it up is immediate: just two lines of code are enough to enable it and give the device a name. Data is handled through a virtual serial port, which simplifies software development.

To control the system, all you need to do is install the free Bluetooth Electronics app from the Play Store. The app lets you build a custom dashboard for sending and receiving commands in an intuitive way.

Technical details

Microcontroller ESP32 Dual-Core Xtensa LX6
Clock speed up to 240 MHz
RAM 520 KB
Flash memory up to 4 MB
Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz, 802.11 b/g/n
GPIO pin supply 3.3V logic (with short-circuit protection)
PWM resolution 12 bit (4096 steps)
Servo supply 5V (provided by the internal voltage regulators)
Supply voltage 6V - 8.4V (lithium battery, available separately)
Voltage regulators 2 built-in voltage regulators providing a steady 5V output
Dimensions 118x85x45mm
Weight 120 g

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