Micropython and the ESP32

Device required

• ESP32 development kit (tested on Adafruit HUZZAH32 - ESP32 Feather Board)

Recommended Tools

• Python 3.x (with pip)
• Visual Studio Code (vscode)

Installation

First step is to grab the micropython binary from here, I recommend the latest stable version from the ESP-IDF v3.x branch, which is currently v1.13

Next the very handy tool esptool.py, which is used to load the binary onto the ESP32. It can be installed via pip

pip install esptool

Also required is ampy which is used to upload our python filest to the devkit. It can be installed via pip

pip install adafruit-ampy

Setup

Plug a micro USB cable into the ESP32 devkit, a new COM port should appear on your computer (if not, you may need to install a device driver for the CP2104 USB-UART, or similiar device, depending on your devkit).

Erase the flash of the ESP32 using the following, please replace COM4 with the appropriate port

esptool.py --chip esp32 --port COM4 erase_flash

Then program the micropython firmware into the ESP32

esptool.py --chip esp32 --port COM4 --baud 460800 write_flash -z 0x1000 esp32-idf3-20200902-v1.13.bin

Lets test ampy and make sure it's working

ampy --port COM4 --baud 115200 ls

Expected result is

/boot.py

Run Example

Let's upload a simple example that blinks the red LED on the HUZZAH32 devkit

Run the following

ampy --port COM4 --baud 115200 src/main.py

Verify the main.py was uploaded

ampy --port COM4 --baud 115200 ls

Expected result is

/boot.py
/main.py

Now press the reset button on the HUZZAH, the red LED should begin to blink!

Notes

If an .ampy file is filled in and placed in the directory you are using ampy it can save you a lot of typing. An example .ampy is in the docs directory, edit it to match your settings and rename it .ampy and place it in the base directory of this repository, where you are running the commands.

References

• ESP32 Micropython Quick Reference