Universal Remote WIFI Based ESP32C3 -RemodazWifi

What is this?

One Device interface that could learn any of them and actually understand the AC's real protocol instead of guessing at generic codes. Here's the full guide — hardware, flashing, every tab, and where it's headed.

Things Used in This Project

Hardware components

1. ESP32-C3 SuperMini board
2. MicroSD card module (SPI)
3. MicroSD card (FAT32, 8–16GB)
4. IR receiver — TSOP1838
5. IR LED (940nm, 5mm)
6. NPN transistor (S8050 or equivalent)
7. Resistors — 1kΩ (base), 100Ω or 47Ω (IR LED current-limiting)
8. WS2812 / NeoPixel LED
9. Perfboard/protoboard, hookup wire
10. USB-C cable

Optional — battery power

1. 3.7V 800mAh Li-Po battery
2. TP4056 USB-C Li-Ion charging module
3. 3.7V–12V mini DC-DC boost module
4. AMS1117 3.3V step-down module (optional)
5. 0.1µF ceramic + 10µF electrolytic capacitors

Software apps and online services

1. ESP Web Tools (browser-based flashing)

🔩 The Hardware

One board, no display. The ESP32-C3 SuperMini runs the whole thing:

1. MicroSD module (SPI) — device/key database, IR captures
2. TSOP1838/VS1838B — IR receiver, learning and analysis
3. IR LED + NPN driver — transmit stage, since a GPIO can't source enough current for real range
4. WS2812 — single-pixel status feedback

No custom PCB — perfboard and point-to-point wiring is enough.

🔌 Building It

Four subsystems hang off the ESP32-C3. Adding them one at a time means a wiring mistake shows up on the piece you just touched, not thirty minutes later with no idea which connection broke it.

Step 1 — Bare board bring-up. Flash it, power over USB-C, confirm it joins Wi-Fi as "Remodaz Wifi" and serves the captive portal, before wiring anything else.

Step 2 — MicroSD module (SPI):

Check the serial monitor for a successful SD mount before moving on — a bad MISO connection is the most common cause of "device list is empty."

Step 3 — IR receiver:

Point any remote at it and confirm a capture registers in the Analyzer tab — it doesn't need to decode correctly yet, just register.

Step 4 — IR transmitter (driver stage). A GPIO can safely source 20mA; a decent-range IR LED wants closer to 100mA in bursts. So the LED isn't driven directly — an NPN transistor switches it instead:

The base resistor protects the GPIO; the LED's own resistor is a range-vs-stress trade-off — 100Ω is conservative, 47Ω pushes more current for better range at the cost of extra heat. Worth testing both. Confirm this stage by learning a key on a real device and checking it actually responds.

Step 5 — Status LED (WS2812):

Step 6 (optional) — Battery power:

Add a 0.1µF ceramic + 10µF electrolytic capacitor pair at the boost output to smooth current surges. If you see brownouts on the boosted 5V rail, it's usually an underspec'd onboard regulator on the SuperMini clone — feed 3.3V directly into the 3V3 pin from a separate AMS1117 instead, bypassing it entirely.

Grounding: every ground across all subsystems must be common — a floating ground on whichever piece you added last shows up as symptoms that look like software bugs (phantom captures, flickering status LED, intermittent SD failures).

⚠️ 3.3V logic only throughout — never feed 5V into a signal pin.

⚡ Flashing the Firmware

Web Flasher, no installs:

1. Grab firmware.bin from the Releases page
2. Open ESP Web Tools in Chrome or Edge (desktop only — Safari/mobile can't flash)
3. Plug in over USB-C, select the serial port
4. Connect & Flash, power-cycle when done

Port not showing up? Swap the cable first — most "not detected" issues are a charge-only cable, not a driver problem. If connection still fails, put the board into bootloader mode manually: hold BOOT, tap RESET, release BOOT or Keep Holding the Boot Button while Connecting to the USB.

Connection

1. Turn On your phone/laptop Wifi, join the Remodaz Wifi Wi-Fi network.
2. Most phones pop the remote open automatically (captive portal); if not, open http://192.168.4.1 or http://remodaz.local.
3. Default Wifi password irremote123
4. Later default password can be changed by Clicking the Gear Icon,

🗺️ Navigation

Three tabs: Devices (your saved remotes), Analyzer (standalone IR capture/decode), AC (structured AC control). Wi-Fi settings and reboot live behind the gear icon.

🎛️ Universal Remote

Tap a key to fire it, hold to repeat — same as a physical remote. Learning a key: name it, point the original remote at the receiver, press once, then Test before Save — a bad capture never overwrites a good one. Every key stores its raw IR timing waveform rather than a decoded protocol, so replay works even on signals the Analyzer can't identify.

🔬 IR Analyzer

A standalone capture tool, separate from your saved devices. Identifies NEC, Samsung, Sony SIRC, RC5, RC6, Panasonic/Kaseikyo, JVC, or flags Unknown, and shows the raw mark/space timing underneath. Save writes it to /REMOTE/CAPTURES/; Prev/Next browses your last 5 captures.

❄️ AC Control

Structured control — power, mode, temp, fan, swing, turbo, quiet, eco, light, filter, clean, beep — across 70+ AC brands, via IRremoteESP8266's IRac/stdAc abstraction. Change Device picks your AC's protocol from the built-in library. Auto Detect points the AC's own remote at the receiver and pulls the brand and current state automatically. Edit reorders which action buttons show first, shared across every AC device. A favourite device auto-loads after reboot.

💾 SD Card

FAT32-formatted, 8–16GB preferred. The remote boots and runs the Analyzer without a card — device/key storage needs one.

Limits: 20 devices, 40 keys per device, 600 raw pulses per key. A missing or corrupt order file only affects display order — the firmware falls back to folder scanning and rebuilds it, so nothing is actually lost.

❗ Troubleshooting

1. Empty device list after flashing — expected, the firmware ships blank. Tap "+ Add device."
2. A saved device is missing — check the SD card is FAT32 and wired correctly.
3. "No IR signal detected" while learning — aim the original remote directly at the receiver (GPIO 3), check connection.
4. Key transmits but target ignores it — inspect with the Analyzer, check the IR LED's polarity/resistor, test at close range.
5. Can't reach remodaz.local — mDNS support varies by router; use the AP's IP (192.168.4.1) instead.
6. Rapid device switching feels laggy — each switch reads from the SD card; avoid rapid-firing taps on a slow/large card.

💻 Code Files& Schematics

GitHub:github.com/mani12raspi/RemodazWifi