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Topic starter
2026-04-06 6:22 pm
Hey All, I'm new to the microcontroller/arduino ide world and am enjoying learning the process. Joining the forum to glean info and inspiration from anyone willing and able to do so.
Happy to share my projects and will describe in more detail in later posts.
Thanx
guyzly
g0thy reacted
Topic starter
2026-04-24 4:49 pm
My project is a Rescue Boat to retrieve discs lost in water hazards (ponds) playing disc golf. The boat is about 18Wx25Lx12D or so with 2 motors and a pump. 1 motor to move the barge like a cable ferry via a line stretched across the pond the other to raise and lower a silicon tube from a reel. The reel has a suction cup on the end and is connected to the pump.
The Boat is controlled via PS4 on shore to ESP32 32U on board. I just switched to the 32u from a esp32 dev1(generic with pcb antenna) as the 32u is hoped to extend the range as I once lost bluetooth connection with the boat at about 40ft. I have not tested the new range yet.
There is a gopro8 that looks down thru a clear container (glass bottom boat style) to provide live video. That range is also limited but 60' out still seems ok. I have not tested farther.
The system works well when the water is clear enough to see a disc but when it is turbid even 2' of water can be too much to spot a disc especially if it is silted over a bit.
One solution is to remove the gopro from the container and lower it into the water which will immediately break the wifi signal. The 2.4ghz I use can be brought to the surface via the RG174 as antenna technique (Paul Illsley and others) but i would imagine I would need to boost (repeat) that signal to get it to shore.
Another solution may be to use a lidar, sonar, or other sensor to detect the discs.
DroneBot Workshop reacted