SMARS rover remake for use with ESP32-WROVER-CAM
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Description
I've printed the SMARS tracked rover to see if I can adapt to use an ESP32-WROVER-CAM Dev.B microcontroller which has a built-in 2Mpx camera so I can turn it into a tracked mobile, WiFi controlled webcam.
Although the ESP32-WROVER-CAM has enough GPIOs to use with the L298N dual motor driver, when the webcam is turned on in the sketch along with the WiFi, there are only 4 usable GPIOs remaining. Luckily, I found that it should be possible to use just the 4 GPIOs to control the two motors, but it also requires that the L298N EN-A and EN-B pins be raised to +5V. If you discarded the two jumpers that usually come with the L298N, then use two DuPont wires to connect the two enable pins on the driver to +5V.
The print profile available for the BambuLab A1 Mini worked perfectly although I cannot use the IR sensor mount since the chassis is fully occupied by the L298N and the 2S1P 18650 pack with switch and voltmeter, but more importantly, there are no more GPIOs left to use the IR sensor. As you can see from the photo I took of the result is not very good looking but it does move quite nicely. I have two 100rpm DC motors which give it a decent scurry speed.
The code I can share upon request if anyone wants to give it a go. Ping me and I can share the sketch and describe the wiring since it took a bit of experimenting to get the ESP32 to eventually be able to control the two motors as desired.













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