How does your HA instance handle the connection to the esp32 unit sending the microphone voice data? I may be misunderstanding but it seems like the wake word is handled on the HA instance and not the esp32. If that is the case although no actions happen unless the wake word is said, it would still require processing and network resources to filter for the wake word?
Well at the time I was creating the video, that was state of tech for ESPHome. But in the meantime, ESPHome has integrated Micro Wakeword which allows to perform on-device wake word detection directly on the ESP32 😊
Good question 😊 This would be a question for the Home Assistant community. I haven’t tried playing music with the device yet but it will be part of the next steps
Quick tip/idea... you mentioned not having much experience in designing PCBs. Maybe now is a good moment to switch to KiCad. I'm not paid by them :) but when I switched from EasyEDA to KiCad, my boards instantly became more professional. And to my surprise, it became easier and faster. Although there was a steep learning curve in the beginning. Just keep a shortcut cheat sheet hanging next to your screen. Otherwise... very good designed board!
Ha ha, yes, you are right. You know, I just have so many micro USB cables lying around, but yes, for future projects, definitely USB-C would be better suited.
I do like the video, very informative but I do have to say that the music from 3:46 sounds like an ingame menu while it's loading something :D Consider changing that ;) Other than this it was very nice video!
I have a similar experience level in electronics but I have a few thoughts: Increase the trace sizes for the power (5v, 3.3v & GND) pins. They look a bit small. You might even feel the board getting warm at boot up and whenever the speaker is running. According to the ESP design docs, the modules should be on an edge to allow the built-in wifi antenna the best chance at reception. In square boards, the top right. On your round board, the antenna should be close to an edge. Don’t put any copper below the antenna or put the wroom module over the edge. Or cut out the area below the antenna. Maybe first iterate with one of the pre-built dev kits so you don’t have to worry about paying for PCBA every time. The dev kits have the 3.3v circuitry, USB-> UART, ports, etc. WS2812s or neopixel LEDs need 5v logic. You can sometimes get away with 3.3v logic direct from the ESP32 but the LED usually has to be close and no power issues. You can try putting a neopixel of the same variety on your board, close to an output pin and have the DOUT pin of that neopixel lead to the ring outside. PCBA is more expensive with neopixels though. I prefer Kicad over EasyEDA and I would encourage you to try Kicad but it’s another tool to learn and you may move faster using the tool you know now. Please consider it though. It makes sharing the designs easier if you would like to open source this in the future
@@the_smart_home_maker Cool! I would definitely be interested in using something like this in the future. My description about the module antenna didn’t seem quite clear when I read it back. I meant to write: Do put the module on the edge of the board. Or at least as close to the edge as possible. Don’t let the area under the antenna have a copper fill. Do try cutting out the area on the PCB under the antenna, if space allows. A round PCB might have better mounting options though. Espressif has a nice infographic on their website. Try searching for “ESP-WROOM-02 PCB Design and Module Placement Guide”. The guide applies to all Espressif modules with a PCB antenna. It will show mounting options and a graph of the resulting wifi power. Center of the board with copper fill is the worst but still useable.
Thank you so much, @Matthew!! Will definitely consider this in Revision 2 of the board. WiFi reception has not yet been a problem but might arise in the future, so it is good to follow these guidelines 😊👍🏻😊👍🏻😊👍🏻
@@clairerovic you can find the code here: medium.com/@the_smart_home_maker/use-esphome-and-home-assistant-to-replace-alexa-with-local-voice-assistant-part-i-prototype-1ff9f55602c0
How does your HA instance handle the connection to the esp32 unit sending the microphone voice data? I may be misunderstanding but it seems like the wake word is handled on the HA instance and not the esp32. If that is the case although no actions happen unless the wake word is said, it would still require processing and network resources to filter for the wake word?
Well at the time I was creating the video, that was state of tech for ESPHome. But in the meantime, ESPHome has integrated Micro Wakeword which allows to perform on-device wake word detection directly on the ESP32 😊
is it possible to play music on multiroom?
Good question 😊 This would be a question for the Home Assistant community. I haven’t tried playing music with the device yet but it will be part of the next steps
This is great. I'd love to build this project when you get it all working. Good job!
Thank you 😊👍🏻
Quick tip/idea... you mentioned not having much experience in designing PCBs. Maybe now is a good moment to switch to KiCad. I'm not paid by them :) but when I switched from EasyEDA to KiCad, my boards instantly became more professional. And to my surprise, it became easier and faster. Although there was a steep learning curve in the beginning. Just keep a shortcut cheat sheet hanging next to your screen. Otherwise... very good designed board!
Thank you - will give it a try for the next design 😊👍🏻
Madman is still using Micro USB
Ha ha, yes, you are right. You know, I just have so many micro USB cables lying around, but yes, for future projects, definitely USB-C would be better suited.
@@the_smart_home_maker hey I get it, don’t worry. I’m just surprised it’s not easier to get USB C at this point, over Micro USB. In terms of BOM etc
@o0julek0o yes, I guess USB-C is much better
I'm waiting for more videos on this :)
3D prints etc. Great project!
More will come 😊👍🏻
I do like the video, very informative but I do have to say that the music from 3:46 sounds like an ingame menu while it's loading something :D Consider changing that ;) Other than this it was very nice video!
Thank you for the feedback!
Subscribed! I really want to see how this plays out. Thanks for documenting your project on this channel ❤
Thank you for subscribing and for being interested in how it will continue 😊👍🏻
I have a similar experience level in electronics but I have a few thoughts:
Increase the trace sizes for the power (5v, 3.3v & GND) pins. They look a bit small. You might even feel the board getting warm at boot up and whenever the speaker is running.
According to the ESP design docs, the modules should be on an edge to allow the built-in wifi antenna the best chance at reception. In square boards, the top right. On your round board, the antenna should be close to an edge. Don’t put any copper below the antenna or put the wroom module over the edge. Or cut out the area below the antenna.
Maybe first iterate with one of the pre-built dev kits so you don’t have to worry about paying for PCBA every time. The dev kits have the 3.3v circuitry, USB-> UART, ports, etc.
WS2812s or neopixel LEDs need 5v logic. You can sometimes get away with 3.3v logic direct from the ESP32 but the LED usually has to be close and no power issues. You can try putting a neopixel of the same variety on your board, close to an output pin and have the DOUT pin of that neopixel lead to the ring outside. PCBA is more expensive with neopixels though.
I prefer Kicad over EasyEDA and I would encourage you to try Kicad but it’s another tool to learn and you may move faster using the tool you know now. Please consider it though. It makes sharing the designs easier if you would like to open source this in the future
Wow! Thank you so much for all the tips and ideas 😊👍🏻 I will definitely try them and let you know 😊
@@the_smart_home_maker Cool! I would definitely be interested in using something like this in the future.
My description about the module antenna didn’t seem quite clear when I read it back. I meant to write:
Do put the module on the edge of the board. Or at least as close to the edge as possible.
Don’t let the area under the antenna have a copper fill.
Do try cutting out the area on the PCB under the antenna, if space allows. A round PCB might have better mounting options though.
Espressif has a nice infographic on their website. Try searching for “ESP-WROOM-02 PCB Design and Module Placement Guide”. The guide applies to all Espressif modules with a PCB antenna. It will show mounting options and a graph of the resulting wifi power. Center of the board with copper fill is the worst but still useable.
Thank you so much, @Matthew!! Will definitely consider this in Revision 2 of the board. WiFi reception has not yet been a problem but might arise in the future, so it is good to follow these guidelines 😊👍🏻😊👍🏻😊👍🏻
With the current state of voice assistant, can you request it to play music like from spotify?
This is something I haven’t tried yet. But it’s one of the features I definitely need and will try out soon 👍🏻
Can’t wait to see how this turns out. I am very interested in replacing alexa
Happy that you like it 👍🏻😊
Amazing Job!!! Can you play any music from Home Assistant to your device? Or can you "just" control the devices?
Can't wait to see the final result.
Hey! Glad you like it 😊👍🏻 Playing music should theoretically work but I haven’t tested it yet. But this will definitely be a next step.
@@the_smart_home_maker I can't wait for the final result... Please, keep posing any news.
@joelfrojmowicz For sure! 😊👍🏻
Very nice video.
Happy that you like it 👍🏻😊
When will you have another version?
Might take some time but definitely within the next months
Looking forward to seeing the update. Do you have the files on GitHub.
@@clairerovic you can find the code here:
medium.com/@the_smart_home_maker/use-esphome-and-home-assistant-to-replace-alexa-with-local-voice-assistant-part-i-prototype-1ff9f55602c0