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Hardware & Schematics

Time to dig into the guts of the project! 💥 In this video, we break down the hardware behind the Smart Garage Door system and show how everything connects.

We kick things off with a high-level circuit diagram featuring the ESP32 and four key sub-circuits:

🔹 Garage Door Sensor – tracks door position
🔹 Garage Door Button – mimics your wall-mounted opener
🔹 Device Status – provides visual feedback using a "blink code"
🔹 Device Control Button – allows manual toggling of the device into various modes

Then we zoom in 🔍 and walk through detailed schematics for each sub-circuit — showing exactly how they hook up to the ESP32 pins.

To bring it all home, I share real photos and video of the development board so you can see how the schematics translate into actual hardware on the bench 🛠️📸.

Whether you’re following along or designing your own spin on the project, this episode helps you build with confidence. Let’s wire it up! ⚡️

Software

Now that the hardware’s wired up, it’s time to breathe life into the Smart Garage Door with code! 🚀

In this episode, we walk through the entire software that powers the project — written with clean, object-oriented design to keep things modular and maintainable 🧼👨‍💻.

We do a full code review and break down the key classes that make everything tick:

🔹 DoorSensor – encapsulates logic for detecting the door’s position
🔹 DoorButton – handles interactions with the door opener button
🔹 GarageDoor – the high-level controller that integrates with Apple Home using HomeSpan. It pulls it all together and exposes the device as a HomeKit accessory 🍏🏠

You’ll see how these components work together — and how dependency injection keeps things clean by passing DoorSensor and DoorButton instances right into the GarageDoor class constructor.

Whether you’re into embedded dev, smart home integrations, or just love clean code, this video dives into the software heart of the project. Let’s build smart! 💡💻

What is a "Smart Garage Door"?

Ever left the house and thought… “Wait, did I close the garage door?” 😬 You’re not alone — and that’s exactly the problem we solve in this video!

In this first episode, we break down what makes a garage door smart — including:

✅ Real-time door position detection
✅ Remote open/close functionality
✅ Integration with Apple’s Home app for sleek iPhone control 📱🍏
✅ Notifications and remote access via Apple Home Hub 🌐📬

You’ll also get a full demo of the final product in action — showing exactly how these features come together in a seamless smart home experience.

📂 Resources mentioned:
🔗 Project GitHub Repo: rcravens/esp32_smart_garage_door
🔗 HomeSpan (Apple Home integration): HomeSpan/HomeSpan

Whether you’re into DIY home automation or just love cool projects, this series is for you. Let’s get started! 🚀

WiFi Configuration & Pairing

In the final episode of the series, we bring the Smart Garage Door into the real world! 🌎🚪

I start by sharing photos from my personal installation — giving you a behind-the-scenes look at how the hardware fits into a real garage setup 🧰📸.

Then we dive into a smart and secure feature:
🔄 Using the Device Control Button, we toggle the ESP32 into WiFi Access Point mode — allowing you to configure your network’s SSID and password directly from your phone or laptop. No code changes. No hardcoded passwords. No re-flashing. 🔥

This makes the device portable, secure, and easy to set up on any WiFi network.

Finally, I walk through the Apple Home pairing process using HomeSpan and HomeKit. Once paired, your Smart Garage Door shows up in the Home app — fully functional, remotely accessible, and notification-ready 🏠🍏📱.

This is the last piece that turns a DIY project into a polished smart home device. Let’s connect it all! 🔗🚀