Hi guys!
Would you be so kind to save me some time and forward to proper direction of research. I need to send commands to 24 arduinos like "1515, 2" or "1230, 1". Arduinos are moving clock hands to appropriate positions, second number is the speed. I'm thinking about esp32 to control the array.
Thx for your insight.
Using 24 Arduinos for this may be a good idea or it may be serious mistake. Without knowing more about the project, it is difficult to advise you. You need to describe the project in much more detail: components, dimensions/distances, operation, environment and so on.
Hi,
How are you going to communicate with all the Arduinos?
WiFi, Wireless, Ethernet, some form of comms cable?
What model Arduino?
Thanks.. Tom... 
It's a clock with 24 faces. Each arduino will contol the movement of 2 hands attached to stripper motor. Will run wires form control unit to each arduino. Size is around 2 meters x 1 meter. I want to program the slave units to respond to the commands of master.
It might help others help you, if you explain why you want (or think you need) a separate Arduino for each clock face.
The reason I say this is that one Arduino can easily control more than one stepper motor. And, depending on your entire project goals and how much time you have to research/learn/write code, one board could possibly control them all.
A lot of folks that have been programming computers and controllers (such as Arduinos) for a long time may not find anything about the Arduino as remarkable. However, it amazes me how much one of these little things can do if programmed properly.
I feel comfortable with 1 board per clock as it allows to build bigger projects.
So what is the best way to communicate with slaves?
One board to rule them all, one board to find them. One board to bring them all, and in the darkness, bind them.
What's the distance between each micro controller device?
Back to the question. What is the best way to communicate given the scenario above?
itsskin:
Back to the question. What is the best way to communicate given the scenario above?
Have a look at THIS PAGE
Additional slaves share the same pins but have a distinct address. Theoretically, one could have as many slaves as one wants. Theoretically.
Now, if your asking "What's the best coding method to send commands to each slave?" That's a whole different can of worms dictated by a lot of variables that nobody else knows.
In words (not code) break it down to just a master, one slave and one stepper motor
What do you want the stepper to do?
What do you want the Slave to do to make that stepper do what you want?
What do you want the Master to tell the Slave?
At least that's how I would go about figuring it all out. The Pros here may do things differently though. These folks are great at what they do. But they'll need you to do some homework.
Just my opinion.
Thank you!
All the answers are literally in the first post.
What's the expected/approximate distance between the microController?
50cm max
Suggestions/ideas are:
An ESP32 WROVER-B as the brain, larger memory capacity to hold data for the 24ish devices and do the OTA thing. The current Arduino ESP32 core allows for the access to 4Mb of PSRAM.
CAN buss is one kind of communication possibility
ESP8266's for the remote units using either WiFi or BLE for coms.
Please post a link to the youtube video so others can understand that you have a matrix of clock.hands as a piece of art.
Assuming you still decide to implement multiple slaves, Id be using RS485 or any multidrop serial topology.
Make each node addressable in code, then you can send messages to one, a group or all slaves simultaneously.
itsskin:
All the answers are literally in the first post.
You need to use esp32 to control the array, and send commands to 24 arduinos like "1515, 2" or "1230, 1". Sorry it took us so long to figure that out.