Touch DRO ESP flashing

[Tecnico]

OK, I gotta ask where the hell that saying comes from! I've never heard it before. Is that a Maritimes moniker?

Disrespect not being an issue I care about, the visual image is kinda funny!

You’ve got me there. I don’t think it’s a maritime thing, I thought it came from Dilbert or something like that but a net search came up with……nothing! I worked around said personas and it seemed to be a known reference. I’ve never had someone that didn’t recognize the reference.

I presume the image is a quick AI thing? At least somebody (or is that something) gets the verbal image!

D 😎

 

[Susquatch]

You’ve got me there. I don’t think it’s a maritime thing,

OK. I just never heard it before.

Yes, that's an AI image I created from your earlier general comments. It fit well with the image you created in my head so I posted it.

 

[slow-poke]

Flashing success, thanks to Tecnico!

Dave did the hard lifting on this one, but looks like we finally have an easy to follow method that seems to work great. Took very little time, perhaps 10 minutes start to finish.

This is what I learned:

The flash utility Dave used successfully with Win10 does not work with Win7, however spring-boarding off his idea I did a quick search for web based ESP32 flashers and found this one: https://esptool.spacehuhn.com/
Works great. just connect, fill in the 3 start addresses and point to the 3 files and it flashes the ESP, no drama.

Be aware that some of the pins used to read the scales changes from one version of the firmware to the next so both the hardware and firmware need to match each other. My understanding is that the E117-00 board uses the old V1.x pinout, and the new E117-02 board has the ability to work with both old and new firmware, by installing appropriate jumpers.

The firmware loading start addresses has also changed, so you need to enter the correct starting addresses based on the firmware you decide to use.

The early versions (1.x) use the following:
0x1000 bootloader.bin
0x8000 partition-table.bin
0x10000 touchdro-diy-universal-1.6.bin

The later versions 3.x use the following:
0x1000 bootloader.bin
0x10000 partition-table.bin
0x20000 touchdro.bin

The firmware is available on the DIY pages.

Just be aware that all of this is for personal hobby use only and can't be sold/advertised/used professionally etc.

 

[Tecnico]

Just a quick progress report today, SUCCESS! I now have a fully functional DIY scale adapter! 😀

I took the bread board approach so all my components are through hole on a strip board. Once I was past the flashing drama, the board went together well with one minor exception.

I built according to Yuriy's V.3 schematic, dated 11/14/2024 9:13 PM and the DIY instructions he posted. That was relatively easy while being patient and methodical. Build once and check twice for workmanship but it didn't work the first time. The ESP32 powered up correctly and the status light blinked (indicates program running) so I knew the problem was not in the ESP32 module but rather in the communication portion.

The reason was that I followed the instructions in the text which calls for holding pin 1 (DIR) of the SN54HCT245 low. The schematic said to hold it high. Consulting the data sheet I found they said to hold DIR high to enable A to B flow which is what we want if the scales are going to send data to the ESP32! My mistake for choosing to follow the instructions and not the schematic but you have to choose one or the other, LOL! Yuriy's photos of his breadboard seem to me to show it held low......

Anyhow, once I had re-wired to hold DIR high and relocated the (noise?) cap so that it was across 3.3V to GND it fired up and worked right away. 😀

Now to get at ordering some scales for the SM1120, I'm thinking embedded cross slide......

D 😎

 

[slow-poke]

I took the bread board approach so all my components are through hole on a strip board.

The reason was that I followed the instructions in the text which calls for holding pin 1 (DIR) of the SN54HCT245 low. The schematic said to hold it high. Consulting the data sheet I found they said to hold DIR high to enable A to B flow which is what we want if the scales are going to send data to the ESP32! My mistake for choosing to follow the instructions and not the schematic but you have to choose one or the other, LOL! Yuriy's photos of his breadboard seem to me to show it held low......

Anyhow, once I had re-wired to hold DIR high and relocated the (noise?) cap so that it was across 3.3V to GND it fired up and worked right away. 😀


D 😎

IMHO a combination of errors in the DIY instructions as well as changes to the DIY schematics ( for example ESP pins moving that need to match a particular version of firmware) is the reason so many people struggle with a true DIY approach.

Personally I would avoid the early versions of the DIY schematic ( the schematic Tom used for the initial board) and V 1.x firmware especially if you have better than 5 micron scales.