Maker board. Classroom kit. Same weird little sprinkler galaxy.
ESPrinkler32 is an open ESP32 automation controller family: rev4.1 for DIY Home Assistant makers, and rev4.0 as a through-hole STEM kit for future nerds who deserve a real project.
Two lanes, no forced compromise.
DIY makers and STEM classrooms need different things. The family shares ideas and firmware where it can, but each board gets to serve its actual people.
For DIY dudes lurking in ESP32/Home Assistant communities.
Hybrid SMD/through-hole board with local web UI, weather-brain integration, OTA firmware, expansion headers, LED status, and a “bring your own chaos” personality.
- Board-only or SMD-preassembled option
- Home Assistant/local-first docs
- Hackable, expandable, garage-friendly
For STEM schools and departments.
Through-hole classroom kit with big teachable parts, safe LED/demo-load mode, worksheets, teacher checklist, and a real-world automation story without live irrigation liability.
- Student kit or classroom pack
- Pre-flashed option
- LED ring galaxy lesson
Hardware path
Current architecture: ESP32-S3 touchscreen controller, MCP23017 relay expansion, safe local control, and an explicit split between maker manufacturing and classroom teachability.
| Controller | ESP32-S3 touchscreen module |
|---|---|
| Maker PCB | rev4.1 hybrid SMD/TH, PCBWay SMD assembly candidate |
| EDU PCB | rev4.0 through-hole kit candidate |
| Zones | 8 relay-controlled sprinkler/automation outputs |
| Integration | Local web/API, Home Assistant, weather-brain service |
| Status UI | Touchscreen plus optional LED ring feedback |
The LED ring galaxy moment.
Teacher turns off the classroom lights and says “Go.” Twenty tiny boards light up. Some are perfect, one is rainbow by accident, one is dark because DIN/DOUT got crossed, and suddenly debugging is real.
They learn power
5V, 3.3V logic, shared ground, current limits, and why full-white LEDs are emotionally educational.
They learn APIs
Browser or curl calls change physical pixels. Software stops being abstract when the room lights up.
They learn debugging
“It doesn’t work” is not a diagnosis. Check power, ground, DIN, data pin, brightness, then blame the code.
STEM warning labels / Future Liability™
A little merch lab for the formulas and electronics jokes the other nerds have to decode. These first four are live Printful API mockups on Bella + Canvas 3001 blanks; school-safe line first, garage-only dark jokes stay in the back pocket.
Next build steps
Validate rev4.1 manufacturing
Use corrected BOM/CPL, SMD top-side assembly only, and let PCBWay ask useful factory questions.
Freeze rev4.0 EDU baseline
Identify the through-hole board state that best supports classroom assembly and demo mode.
Write Lesson 01
LED ring galaxy module: wire, power, call API, debug, celebrate tiny photons.
Ask a real teacher
Use the local STEM school feedback lane before pretending a spreadsheet is market truth.
Fresh docs
Working documents generated from the current board/product split. Markdown for now; polished PDFs later if the lane proves out.