ESP32 Hacking Project
Overview
Firmware customization and experimentation for ESP32 CSI (Channel State Information) sensors used in the wifi-sensing project.
Goals
- Document current firmware and configuration
- Add remote management commands (reboot, identify, status)
- Implement OTA firmware updates
- Explore BLE scanning for complementary presence detection
- Optimize CSI data pipeline (adaptive rate, on-device processing)
Current State
- 3x ESP32-DevKitC V1 deployed with stock
csi_recv_router firmware
- Firmware sends raw CSI data via UDP at ~100 pkt/s per device
- No remote management capability (must physically access USB)
Hardware
| Device |
Chip |
IP Address |
Location |
| muddy-storm |
ESP32-WROOM-32 |
192.168.129.29 |
Living Room |
| amber-maple |
ESP32-WROOM-32 |
192.168.129.30 |
Office |
| hollow-acorn |
ESP32-WROOM-32 |
192.168.129.31 |
Kitchen |
Software Stack
| Component |
Version |
Purpose |
| ESP-IDF |
v5.5.2 |
Development framework (~/esp/esp-idf/) |
| esp-csi |
latest |
CSI extraction library |
| FreeRTOS |
(bundled) |
RTOS kernel |
Key Paths
| Path |
Description |
~/git/esp32-hacking/ |
This project (firmware sources, docs) |
~/git/wifi-sensing/ |
Server application (receives CSI data) |
~/esp/esp-idf/ |
ESP-IDF toolchain |
~/esp/esp-csi/ |
Original esp-csi repo (build from here) |
Dependencies
- ESP-IDF toolchain (
~/esp/esp-idf/)
- USB cable for initial flash (OTA planned)
References