02 Initial Installation
Please follow these steps for a successful installation
Note that these steps only have to be done once for a new controller. After this initial upgrade, all future firmware upgrades can be loaded over-the-air (OTA) via the web interface.
- A Wemos D1 Mini* with 4 MB of flash. Other ESP8266-based development boards, such as a NodeMCU should work (as long as they have 4 MB of flash), but this has not been tested.
- A USB-to-micro USB data cable
- Flashing software suitable for your computer's operating system
- A downloaded copy of the latest .bin file from this repository's releases (e.g. ParkingAsst_x.xx_ESP8266.bin)
*Note: It has been confirmed that the current firmware does not work properly with the newer D1-Mini v4 (with USB-C). Work on a fix is in progress, but until new firmware is released to address the issue, you must use the older D1-Mini v3 (with microUSB).
For flashing, I recommend either NodeMCU PyFlasher (Windows or Mac) or ESPHome Flasher (Windows, Mac, Linux)
Neither of the above require installation. Just go to the releases, download the executable file for your operating system and launch.
If you have already built your parking assistant, assure that you remove any external 5V power source from your controller before proceeding. NEVER connct a controller to both external power and USB at the same time. Doing so may destroy your controller and could also damage your PC!
Launch the flashing software (NodeMCU PyFlasher shown here, but both are nearly identical except NodeMCU PyFlasher has a few extra options). Do not plug in the controller yet.
At the top of the window, drop down the box to see if any COM ports are listed. Note the ones that are listed.
Now use the USB-to-micro USB cable to connect the ESP8266 board to your computer. Click the refresh/reload button next to the COM port in the flashing software and drop down the list again. A new COM port should have appeared. If so, select it. If not, try unplugging and plugging in the USB cable again. If a COM port still does not appear, you may need to install a USB-to-TTL driver on your machine.
If you are not sure which COM port to select, you can also check Windows Device Manager (or your OS equivalent). Look for the COM port that is shown as USB-SERIAL CH340. This is the ESP8266 and the COM port you want to select.
Once the proper COM port is selected, load the ParkingAsst_x.xx_ESP8266.bin file you downloaded from this repository as the firmware. Then select other options as shown below:
To summarize these settings (not present if using ESPHome Flasher):
- Baud: 115300
- Flash mode: DualI/O (DIO)
- Erase Flash: YES
Click the install button and watch the output window. The MAC address of the board will be shown and you may want to record this to assist you in identifying the IP address of the controller once it is added to your WiFi network.
When the installation is complete, you can unplug the USB cable and reconnect the ESP8266 to another 5V source or place it back into your Parking Assistant build. All other setup and configuration can be completed wirelessly.
But you must first join your new controller to your local Wifi, which is covered under First Time Setup.