ESP8266 MQTT Roomba Controller (Useful to connect old Roombas to the Smart Home)
- ESP8266 NodeMCU V3 ESP8266 Wifi microcontroller ($10-14) Though any ESP module will probably work
- Small 3.3V switching step-down regulator ($1-2)
- 5kOhm & 10kOhm resistor for 5V->3.3V voltage divider (any two resistors above a few kOhm with a 1:2 ratio should work)
- Some ~10kOhm pullup/pulldown resistors to get the ESP12E in the right modes for programming (probably anything 2k-20kOhm will work fine)
- 3.3V FTDI cable for initial programming
- Some wire you can jam into the Roomba's Mini Din connector, or a proper Mini Din connector
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ESP GPIO15 -> 10kOhm Resistor -> GND
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ESP GPIO0 -> 10kOhm Resistor -> 3.3V
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ESP GPIO14 -> Roomba BRC (Pin5 on Roomba)
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Voltage regulator Vin -> Roomba Vpwr (Pin 1 or 2 on Roomba)
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Voltage regulator GND -> Roomba GND (Pin 6 or 7 on Roomba)
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Roomba TX -> 5kOhm -> ESP RX -> 10kOhm -> GND
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Roomba RX -> 5kOhm -> ESP TX -> 10kOhm -> GND
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ESP 3.3V -> Voltage regulator 3.3V
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ESP GND -> Voltage regulator GND
Use at your own risk!!
