CE432 Robotics II
Lab 1: ESP32-CAM Introduction Tutorial
Name: Audra Benally
Email: albenally1@fortlewis.edu

1. Title: ESP32-CAM Introduction

2. Introduction: This is the first lab of the semester and it introduces the ESP32-CAM. In this lab, the Arduino software is updated and the basic hardware connections are made by following the first tutorial in the ESP32-CAM Project eBook. The LED light on the ESP32-CAM is also controlled using a push button and specific code in Arduino.

3. Materials and Methods:
        Materials:
                     - ESP32-CAM
                 - Computer
                 - Various connector wires
                 - Push button
                 - Resistor
        Methods:
             For the first step, the arduino software was updated to include the ESP32-CAM function available through arduino. Then the ESP32-CAM was connected according to the instructions in the book. For task 1 the example: CameraWebServer, was loaded in arduino and updated with network and camera information. Then the code was uploaded and the given IP address was placed in Chrome. In the results (Figure 1) you can see the face recognition placing a square around my face. Then the face recognition was switched on as seen in Figure 2. For task 2, the first step was to flash the LED pin located on the ESP32-CAM microcontroller. In figure 3, you can see that the LED light is turned on. For the second part of task 2, a push button was connected and used to control the LED light. Figure 4 shows the wiring of the button and Video 1 shows the push button in action. For the last part of task 2, the brightness of the LED light was varied using PWM controls. Video 2 shows the LED dimming and brightning (since Arduino loops the code).

4. Results:

   
             Figure 1. Face detection.

   
             Figure 2. Face recognition. Before my face was enrolled (left) and after my face was enrolled (right).

   
             Figure 3. LED is turned on.

   
             Figure 4. Push button wiring.

   
                Video 1. Using a push button to control the LED.
                Video Link: https://flc.instructuremedia.com/embed/b099964f-6515-4d25-9275-31afeee97800

   
                Video 2. Led decreasing and increasing in brightness.
             Video Link: https://flc.instructuremedia.com/embed/02eb09c5-76d9-4c7a-b04a-2d52e4bac77d


5. Discussion
    At the beginning of this lab I had a ton of trouble getting my Arduino software to recognize the ESP32-CAM USB cable. It took awhile and I finally was able to download a driver directly from the cable manufacturer's site and update the driver on my laptop. Unfortunately, after figuring this problem out I overthought my next problem and got stuck. My ESP32-CAM wasn't connecting to the Arduino and I couldn't figure out why. It turned out my power supply wasn't sufficient because I was not grounding the ESP32-CAM board. Once this problem was solved the rest of the Tutorial went very smoothly. I also found out that the face detection doesn't work if the person is wearing a face mask.