Getting Started with IoT

IoT Tutorials, , , ,

Introduction

Extending the current Internet and providing connection, communication, and inter-networking between devices and physical objects, or “Things,” is a growing trend that is often referred to as the Internet of Things.

 “The technologies and solutions that enable integration of real world data and services into the current information networking technologies are often described under the umbrella term of the Internet of Things (IoT)”

What we Learn ?

1. How to program ESP8266? 

2. Selecting right IoT wifi module?

3. How to program ESP8266 using Arduino IDE?

4. IoT Software configurations.

5. Which tools to select ?

IOT in simple words connecting sensors, devices to internet (monitoring and control over internet).

for example Home automation, In IOT you can control your electrical appliances from internet and also get file/theft alert on your tweeter, email, etc we will see it in project section how to do that?

Not to take more time on discussing IOT, Lets get started…..

IOT Hardware Requirements to start application development

What do you need to buy for getting started?
1. esp-12 Module
2. USB to Serial Converter
3. 3.3V Power Supply

1. esp-12 Module or esp-01 Module

Choosing WiFi IOT module is very easy, I recommend you to go with ESP-12 having connections on both sides and also on bottom to get more IOs and Interfaces.
ESP-12 That I use (Recommended)
ESP8266-ESP12 Module
ESP8266-ESP12 Module
ESP-01
 Useful where size requirement is small and you want to control one or two Relays (Device on/off), this module dose not contain ADC So not suitable for sensor interface.
ESP01 Module
ESP01 Module

2. Which USB to Serial converter is best suitable?

FT232RL based usb to serial converter is best suitable with voltage levels selection jumpers is recommended. keep usb to serial converter on 3.3V level.
USB to Serial Converter
FT232 USB to Serial Converter

3. A 3.3V power supply

You can make or buy power supply using LM1117-3.3V Regulator. Components required to make 3.3V power supply1. LM1117-3.32. 10uF/16V Capacitor

Circuit Diagram
3.3V Power Supply
3.3V Power Supply

The ESP8266 runs on anything from 2.8 to 3.5 volts, so a couple of AA batteries will work. Most of us use a 3.3 volt regulated power source. Maximum current draw is 300 mA, so use a supply that can supply 500 mA to be safe. More is better. A weak or poor quality supply will cause the board to reset unexpectedly and make debugging difficult. The NodeMCU Development Board has a USB to 3.3V power supply on the board.

Software Requirements of IOT Programming

Take your fear away for programming IOT
Let me clear you first Programming of IOT esp8266 is done in Arduino software and uses same commands that we use for Arduino Uno

Steps for software setup

Step 1: Download latest Arduino Software from www.arduino.cc

Starting with 1.6.4, Arduino allows installation of third-party platform packages using Boards Manager. We have packages available for Windows, Mac OS, and Linux (32 and 64 bit).

Step 2: Download Arduino Core for ESP8266 WiFi Chip from GitHub
Arduino Core for ESP8266 project brings support for ESP8266 chip to the Arduino environment. It lets you write sketches using familiar Arduino functions and libraries, and run them directly on ESP8266, no external microcontroller required.
ESP8266 Arduino core comes with libraries to communicate over WiFi using TCP and UDP, set up HTTP, mDNS, SSDP, and DNS servers, do OTA updates, use a file system in flash memory, work with SD cards, servos, SPI and I2C peripherals.
Step 3: Installing with Boards Manager
Starting with 1.6.4, Arduino allows installation of third-party platform packages using Boards Manager. We have packages available for Windows, Mac OS, and Linux (32 and 64 bit).
  • Install Arduino 1.6.8 from the Arduino website.
  • Start Arduino and open Preferences window.
File preference
File preference
  • Enter http://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json into Additional Board Manager URLsfield. You can add multiple URLs, separating them with commas.
Preference JSON
Preference JSON
  • 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).
Board Manager
Board Manager
  • Select ESP8266 then press install
Install ESP8266
Install ESP8266
This pakage installation is from internet, your computer must be connected to internet it is around 250 MBytes. Read details on GitHub
Step 4: After installing everything you may find trouble in compiling missing .h files
4.1 Go to your arduino installation folder (where your arduino.exe is) in this folder create folder “portable”
4.2 copy and paste  copy from “C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Application Data\Arduino” (check that this address is shown while compilation error missing .h file)
4.3 copy all contains (folder naming “pakages” and “staging” and surrounding files)
4.4 paste the copied contains in “portable” folder that you created in Arduino folder.
Check that compilation works now. If all ok go ahead to test it on hardware

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