Overview

Goal

Train the team to build a real-time 3D room mapper using ESP32 + VL53L5CX (8x8 ToF) + IMU, producing a point cloud / occupancy-like map that can be viewed on a laptop.

This is a tutorial track (multiple small projects), not one big risky project.

References

• XDA — Microcontroller projects used to require a full SBC running Linux
  • https://www.xda-developers.com/microcontroller-projects-used-require-full-sbc-running-linux/
• XDA — $30 ESP32 room mapper
  • https://www.xda-developers.com/you-too-can-make-this-30-esp32-room-mapper-at-home/
• Hackaday — Real-Time 3D Room Mapping With ESP32, VL53L5CX Sensor, And IMU
  • https://hackaday.com/2026/02/14/real-time-3d-room-mapping-with-esp32-vl53l5cx-sensor-and-imu/

Recommended hardware for the tutorial

Minimum:

• ESP32-S3 dev board (team standard)
• VL53L5CX ToF breakout (I2C)
• MPU6050 6-axis IMU breakout (I2C) (team standard)

Nice-to-have:

• Small pan/tilt mount (or manual sweeping)
• LiPo + 5V boost (portable)

Track structure (deliverables per tutorial)

1. T0 — ESP-IDF baseline + I2C scanner
2. T1 — VL53L5CX bring-up + stream range frames
3. T2 — IMU bring-up + orientation estimate (basic fusion)
4. T3 — Mapper: fuse ToF rays + pose into 2.5D/3D points
5. T4 — Viewer: Python/Web viewer to plot live point cloud
6. T5 — Performance + robustness: timestamps, buffering, calibration

Each tutorial has:

• a small repo folder layout
• acceptance criteria
• evidence pack (screenshots/logs)

Golden rules (team)

• ESP-IDF first.
• Deterministic logs (timestamps + tags).
• Don’t skip calibration.
• Keep a docs/ folder in each tutorial repo.