How to make a simple quadcopter using ESP8266

In this project I will show you how to make a quadcopter using ESP8266 (12e). We use ESP8266 as the flight controller. And it is said that this drone can climb walls. Are you shocked? Just kidding, let’s keep reading!

flight control

The flight controller (FC) is the brain of the quadcopter. It is basically an integrated circuit board that includes sensors that detect changes in orientation. It also receives user commands and controls the motors to keep the quadcopter in the air. There are many flight control panels on the market. Some of them are open source, some are not.

Esp8266 quadcopter consumables

Required components:

Esp8266

MPU6050 acceleration/gyro module

brushed motor

propeller

500mAhlipo3.7v

Si2302MOSFET (5x)

pencil

Drone kit (optional)

Tools used:

iron

flight control

Just as we know how the brain works, we know what to do with it. Here you have the parts of the Flight Controller (FC).

The flight controller (FC) is the brain of the quadcopter. It is basically an integrated circuit board that includes sensors that detect changes in orientation. It also receives user commands and controls the motors to keep the quadcopter in the air.

Almost all flight controllers (FC) include basic gyroscope and accelerometer (Gyro and Acc) sensors. Some FCs may include more advanced sensors such as barometers and magnetometers (compasses).

Here I made my own flight controller using ESP8266 and MPU6050 gyro and accelerometer (gyroscope and accelerometer) sensors.

What is ESP8266?

Basically, the ESP8266 is a Wi-Fi module. It has 2.4GHz Wi-Fi capabilities, which is 802.11b/g/n. It supports WPA and WPA2. It is a system-on-chip with an integrated 32-bit processor running at 80MHz (can also be overclocked to 160MHz). It has 64KB of RAM and 64KB of boot ROM.

Why do we use ESP8266?

ESP8266 module enables microcontroller to connect to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi

ESP8266 features

ESP8266 has many applications in IoT. Here are some of the features of the chip:

Network: The module’s Wi-Fi antenna enables embedded devices to connect to the router and transmit data

Data processing: includes processing basic inputs from analog and digital sensors for more complex calculations using RTOS or non-OSSDK

P2P connection: Use IoTP2P connection to create direct communication between the ESP and other devices

Web Server: Access pages written in HTML or development languages.

ESP8266 as a microcontroller:

Low power consumption, highly integrated Wi-Fi solution

Minimum 7 external components

Wide temperature range: -40°C to +125°C

ESP8285—8Mbit Flash Embedded

Radio transmitters and receivers and yaw, pitch, roll

The radio transmitter sends a signal to the receiver, which receives this signal and operates according to the commands from the transmitter.

Radio controllers typically consist of a transmitter and receiver, which typically operate on radio frequencies that do not require a low-power transmitter license.

Yaw, pitch, roll

A radio transmitter sends a signal to a receiver. The receiver receives this signal and operates according to the commands from the transmitter.

Radio controllers typically consist of a transmitter and receiver, which typically operate on radio frequencies that do not require a low-power transmitter license

Yaw, pitch, roll

Moving your drone left or right in the air actually "rolls" your drone.

Tilt your drone forward or backward.

Rotate your drone clockwise or counterclockwise, allowing you to draw circles or patterns in the air.

Control the amount of power sent to the drone, making it faster or slower.

Moving your drone left or right in the air actually "rolls" your drone.

Tilt your drone forward or backward.

Rotate your drone clockwise or counterclockwise, allowing you to draw circles or patterns in the air.

Control the amount of power sent to the drone, making it faster or slower.

Schematic diagram

This is a schematic diagram of this drone

The wiring diagram is very simple

You have to connect the MPU6050 module pins with the Esp8266 pins as per the schematic, the schematic is shown above.

Make a circuit

Make the circuit as per the schematic given in the above image.

software part

How to install Arduino desktop IDE?

Download ArduinoDesktopIDE at ArduinoSoftware

Select your operating system (Windows7, Windows10, Linux64-bit, etc.)

Click on "Download Only" and follow the instructions given

If you do not have administrator rights, download the "Windows ZIP file for non-administrator installations" and extract it to the desired location.

Start ArduinoDesktopIDE (if it doesn't start automatically or you don't find the ArduinoIDE shortcut, click arduino.exe)

Install support for ESP8266

Select "File->Preferences"

Added http://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266. . to "AdditionalBoardsManagerURLs"

Click "OK"

Install ESP8266WiFi.h library

Copy the code and put your own wifiSSID and password in the code

Go to Wall Climbing Drone and download the code.

Change ssid or pass: WiFi.begin("Diyprojectslab", "romeooo"); //Changessidandpassword

Open the provided sketch in Arduino IDE

Update WiFi credentials in Esp826drone.ino file

Upload it to your ESP8266

Assemble your drone

Install all motors

engine

Two motors rotate clockwise and two motors rotate counterclockwise (see picture), if the motors are not rotating in the correct direction, just switch the polarity of the motors

Check battery and voltage

Check that all propellers are securely connected

Check all motor installations

Check all motor installations

Always unplug the battery after flying and only install it a few seconds before flying

Next, you just need

Download app

and install the app

Power up your ESP8266

Connect to the application

Now, carefully place your fingers on those two joysticks

Fly (result)

Ultimately as you can see this is a very simple flight controller.