MicroPython Mega Course: Build IoT with Sensors and ESP8266

Explore MicroPython, a tiny open-source Python interpreter for microcontrollers like ESP8266 and ESP32, enabling easy hardware control, sensor reading, and on-device execution with a REPL.

Explore the ESP8266 nodemcu board and its wifi-enabled prototyping capabilities. Learn to program it using Arduino or MicroPython and review key hardware features and versions.

Explore ESP8266 components and how they enable Wi-Fi communication, highlighting the digital aspects and the reset and flash switches used for setup.

Set up MicroPython on the ESP8266 by downloading the firmware and flashing it to the board, then connect to your PC and write and run simple MicroPython code.

Learn to blink an LED using MicroPython on ESP8266 by importing machine, defining a pin, applying logic high and low, and looping with sleep for timing before downloading and running.

Learn to use a pull-up resistor to interface a push button with an ESP8266 in MicroPython, wiring to a GPIO pin and reading logic high when open, low when pressed.

Learn to interface a switch with an LED using MicroPython on ESP8266, reading the switch input and driving the LED with a pull-up configuration in a continuous loop.

Learn how interrupts pause the main program to run an interrupt service routine, then resume execution, using callbacks to handle external events in microcontroller projects.

Configure a GPIO pin on ESP8266 using MicroPython to trigger an external interrupt, handle it with an interrupt service routine, and display a message on switch press.

Explore how to implement multiple interrupt service routines in MicroPython on the ESP8266, duplicating the setup, creating separate callbacks, and wiring buttons to trigger distinct responses on hardware.

Convert analog quantities like temperature, humidity, and pressure into digital signals with a 10-bit ADC. Microcontrollers read binary values from a single 3.3 V input.

Learn to access the ESP8266's built-in ADC with MicroPython, create an ADC object via machine.ADC(pin), and read 0–1023 values corresponding to 0–3.3 volts from sensors, including wiring basics.

Learn to interface a light dependent resistor with the ESP8266 using a voltage divider, read the analog value with an ADC, and interpret light intensity from 0 to 1024.

Demonstrate how the LM35 temperature sensor outputs a voltage proportional to temperature, with 10 mV per °C, powered from 3 to 5.5 V and read by a microcontroller.

Learn to interface the LM35 temperature sensor with the ESP8266 using MicroPython, read the ADC value, convert it to millivolts, scale to degrees Celsius, and print periodic readings.

Define and call a MicroPython LM35 function to read an ADC value from pin 35, convert to millivolts, derive temperature in Celsius, return it, and print every 2 seconds.

Learn how pulse width modulation converts digital control signals to analog voltage by varying on-time and duty cycle to control motor speed and brightness.

Learn to generate pwm signals with MicroPython on the ESP8266 to control LED brightness via duty cycle and frequency, using pins and shared frequency.

Explore how pwm controls LED brightness in MicroPython on the ESP8266, building an infinite loop that gradually increases duty cycle, pauses, then repeats to form a brightness waveform.

Enable WebREPL on ESP8266 nodeMCU, set security and wifi access, then use a browser to upload and run Python scripts on the device, including blinking an LED.

Explain how a relay actuator uses a common terminal to switch NO and NC. Energize the 5V coil to drive a load, controllable by 3.3V microcontrollers such as the ESP8266.

Learn how to interface an ESP8266 with a relay to control a bulb, using a transistor and active-low signaling, and to program MicroPython to switch the relay on and off.

Explore the DHT11 and DHT22 sensors, which measure humidity and temperature with a capacitive humidity sensor and a temperature sensor, and convert analog readings to digital for easy microcontroller interfacing.

Interface a DHT11 sensor with the ESP8266 using MicroPython to read temperature and humidity, importing the DHT and machine libraries, configuring a pin, and looping with a sampling rate.

This lecture introduces the internet of things and how wifi-enabled ESP8266 devices connect to cloud platforms. It covers application domains such as monitoring and control, home automation, and agriculture.

Explore the IoT technology stack from sensor, microcontroller, and actuator hardware to device software written in MicroPython, and from local and internet communications to cloud platform.

Learn how the ESP8266 and NodeMCU connect to a Wi-Fi access point in station mode, configure credentials, and obtain an IP address to reach the IoT cloud.

Explore major IoT cloud platforms and learn why ThingSpeak is chosen for this course due to Matlab integration. Understand how cloud platforms collect, analyze, and act on sensor data.

Create a thingSpeak account by visiting the site, signing up with your email and details, verifying your email, and setting a strong password to begin using the platform.

Create a ThingSpeak channel to upload data, naming the channel, adding a description, and enabling sensor fields such as temperature and humidity, with optional location and other parameters.

Configure a ThingSpeak channel, choosing private or public visibility and fields like temperature and humidity. Push data from a browser using http post to update multiple fields with timestamps.

Learn how to upload data to a thingSpeak channel using a computer browser, including creating entries, updating field values, and viewing multiple uploads.