How a $20 ESP8266 Calls and Tracks Elevators
A roughly $20 ESP8266 setup calls an apartment elevator before anyone reaches the hallway, then tracks its movement locally. A relay copies the existing hall-button press, while MQTT, Home Assistant, a permitted camera view, and a door-side display work together without touching the elevator controller.
Read the build on github.com: How a $20 ESP8266 Calls and Tracks ElevatorsFeatured in TinkerNews Issue 37 ·
More IoT builds
13 buildsESP32-C3 Super Mini: Wi-Fi Tests and Deep Sleep
Small enough for tight enclosures, the ESP32-C3 Super Mini still offers Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, useful GPIO, and a deep-sleep mode. This hands-on guide moves from pinout and Arduino IDE setup to a local web server and timed wake-up test, showing where the board fits in battery-powered IoT projects.
Read the build on randomnerdtutorials.com: ESP32-C3 Super Mini: Wi-Fi Tests and Deep SleepTurning an E-Waste PC into a Router
An old Intel board can make a useful router, but this build hit a software snag: OpenWrt booted while its missing e1000e module hid the 82574L ports. The project then tests OPNsense, weighing a lightweight setup against a fuller firewall platform and showing why drivers matter.
Read the build on hackaday.com: Turning an E-Waste PC into a RouterSync Home Assistant Lights With the Sun
Static brightness and color settings can make a smart home feel out of step with the day. Adaptive Lighting uses Home Assistant’s sun data to set cooler, brighter daytime light and warmer, dimmer evening light, while keeping manual controls available and requiring no custom lighting hardware.
Read the build on github.com: Sync Home Assistant Lights With the SunTurning Huawei Solar into Home Assistant Data
Solar equipment can report far more than a single production number. This Home Assistant integration reads supported Huawei Solar data and functions through Modbus, then presents them as entities for dashboards and automations. Setup depends on compatible hardware, a reachable interface, correct addressing, and sensible polling intervals.
Read the build on github.com: Turning Huawei Solar into Home Assistant DataBuild Long-Running ESP32 Sensor Nodes with Deep Sleep
Battery life depends on more than an ESP32’s sleep-current figure. This practical guide lays out a wake, measure, transmit, and sleep pattern for soil monitors, weather stations, and other remote devices, while covering wake sources, retained state, wireless costs, board leakage, and realistic runtime estimates.
Read the build on iotjournal.net: Build Long-Running ESP32 Sensor Nodes with Deep SleepBuild a Pocket BLE Privacy Scanner with an M5Stack
A BLE radio can reveal device names and other details before any pairing happens. GhostBLE turns that lesson into a pocket tool: an M5Stack scans nearby advertisements, shows devices on its display, and flags privacy concerns, giving makers a practical way to inspect their own homes, labs, and prototypes.
Read the build on github.com: Build a Pocket BLE Privacy Scanner with an M5Stack