Any Embedded System Can Be Modified To Work As An IoT System Using Several Modules Available In The Market such as ESP8266.
The Internet is a boom in today’s digital era. so, It connects the world irrespective of the location. Imagine integrating the Internet into your embedded device. However, You could implement the resultant system in different domains from engineering to medicine to business.
Yes, it is possible now. Hence, You can implement the Internet in your embedded systems and this implementation is the Internet of Things (IoT).
So, you can remotely access your devices install at one corner of the building from a different corner provide that they both are connected to the same WiFi network.
Implementation of IoT With ESP8266
IoT consists mainly of 4 different parts namely, Input, Connectivity, Processing and Output. The input for an IoT system can be provide by using three different methods such as sensors, mobile applications, and voice commands. The output after the processing can be received in two forms: namely, triggered action and display depending upon the purpose of the system.
IoT with ESP8266
ESP8266 is a low-cost WiFi module that also plays a major role in the implementation of IoT in embedded systems. Some key features of ESP8266 are:
- Powerful WiFi module capable of working as a station or access point or both commands.
- Can be use upon 802.11 b/g/n protocol.
- Easily available, compact, and low cost.
- Integrated with a low power 32-bit CPU with a clock speed of 80 MHz.
- Integrated with a Temperature sensor.
- Low power consumption of 0.33 Watt.
- In-built 512 KBytes of flash memory.
- Can be programmed using Arduino IDE.
Interfacing of ESP8266 with microcontrollers
Some boards like NodeMCU comes with a built-in ESP8266 module but it can also be interfaced with the other boards with ease to add remote access to the system. So, The hardware assembly is shown below.
| PIN Name | Purpose | Microcontroller Pin |
| Vcc | Connects to 3.3V | 3.3 V |
| GND | Connects to ground | GND |
| Rx | For receiving data from the microcontroller | Tx |
| Tx | For transmitting data to the microcontroller | Rx |
| CH_EN | Chip Enable | 3.3 V |
| Reset | Resets the module | – |
| GPIO 1 | General-purpose I/O | – |
| GPIO 2 | General-purpose I/O | – |
For programming the module using Arduino IDE. ESP8266 libraries are required, which can be included using the following steps:
- Open Arduino IDE> File> Preferences> Settings.
- Paste the following command in the Additional Board Manager URLs textbox and press the ok button. http://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json
- Open Arduino IDE> Tools> Board> Boards Manager and install the esp8266 library as follows:
Now, you are all set to use ESP8266 in your project. So, To connect ESP8266 to the available WiFi networks and provide remote access to your project. The following code must be added to the source code of your project.
Applications of IoT Using ESP8266
More than a million projects can create using IoT. It is also a very vast domain that can be implement upon everywhere from a small school to space projects. Some applications of the IoT are:
1. Home Automation System
It is a project in which home appliances like fan, bulb, television, refrigerator, etc. are in control using IoT. though The input in this project can be sensors or voice commands and the output would be a triggered action that would turn ON or OFF the appliances. The appliances are also in control using a digital switch which acts as an intermediate between the processor and home appliances.
This digital switch is use to control the intensity or state of an appliance. It also constitutes two different sides with different power levels.
On the input side connections to the processor are made with a 5V supply. while on the output side connections with the home appliances have a power supply of 220-240V.
2. Smart Street Light
This project arises from the problem of power wastage as during daytime street lights are turn on in some areas due to the carelessness of the power station workers. due to which a huge amount of electricity goes in waste resulting in power cuts. To resolve this problem smart street lights were introduce .
These lights are capable of detecting sunlight and turn ON or OFF accordingly. Also, the data is transmit and store in a cloud database that could help in power management in a particular area. The input for this project incudes sensors and the output will be triggered action.
3. Automated Smart Bin
This project arises from the problem of waste management. As we all know, there are laws regarding the disposal of waste in India but they are not execute properly. Also, some people mix non-biodegradable and biodegradable waste together which is hard to separate. To overcome the problem of waste disposal on the streets a smart bin can introduced.
However, This bin would segregate the disposed waste into different categories like plastic, metal, biodegradable waste, etc. using different sensors available for plastic and metal detection. When this dustbin is filled around 80-90% it would notify the online server for collection of waste from that particular area preventing the spilling of waste on streets.
Summary
So, in this IoT tutorial, we went through the basics of IoT. We understood the definition of IoT, working of IoT using ESP8266, and the interfacing of ESP8266. We also went through the Arduino IDE set up for ESP8266, Embedded C code for ESP8266, and applications of IoT in daily life. As an embedded systems enthusiast, knowing IoT can make your project more reliable and feature-filled.
Therefore, IoT is a network of physical objects connect in different corners of a building or an area to form a reliable and efficient system that enables them to collect and exchange data. This is the right time to learn and also implement IoT in your embedded systems project.
Hope the tutorial was helpful. If there’s anything we miss out, Inform us in the comments section.
Written by: Harshit Goel
Reviewed by: Batta Pruthvi
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