Looking to collaborate to make the perfect Home Assistant Satellite

Hardware
1

Hi All

I’m looking to make contact with the Software Developers of the Voice integration to develop the hardware to provide an optimal interface to the end user.

So far I’m waiting on a few development boards, specifically the ESP32-Korvo V1.1 and the ESP32-LyraTD-MSC though I have come to realise they are out of date technology in terms of the ESP32 module being used (instead of a ESP32 S3 N16R8)

However I believe they both make compromises in one way or another, and i would like to work with the community to design an open source device that meets the needs of the users, with quality on par with the Echo Dot or Google Home, that is also compatible with a range of existing mounting options, and an enclosure that is 3D printed, but will look as elegant as a commercial option (i.e doesn’t look 3d printed)

3 Likes
2

I have found a few people on the Discord server from both ESPHome and Willow who where both working on their own implementations of smart speakers. So I asked them to come together to collaborate on something that should suit the needs of the most end users, and be expandable enough to take any add-ons the community can dream up.

The ESP32-S3-Box-3 looks to currently be the best open source device available on the market, but still lacking for what I believe a good smart speaker needs. The other Espressif dev kits attempt to cover some of the shortcomings, but all are missing some functionality in one way or another, or have extras we don’t need.

The core parts I believe a polished voice assistant need to have:

  • Far field voice detection
  • Fast response time from Spoken intent to audio Response
  • One wake, if multiple Satellites are in range of the wake word, only use the closest satellite to interface with.
  • Context aware communication, the area a satellite detects communication should be able to infer commands. i.e. turn on the light
  • An table top ready enclosure, 3D printable so no reliance on specific retail parts that aren’t available globally. I find 3D printed objects unpleasing on the eye, so this would be covered in a Speaker grille textile to provide a elegant finish
  • LED feedback in the form of a Ring to provide feedback for the direction of intent being picked up from the array, and other statuses
  • Music playback, the device should function as a DLNA media renderer
  • A decent quality speaker and amplifier, able to render audio to a enjoyable quality and volume.
  • Mounting options, ideally using an established ecosystem

img11
img111807×1070 144 KB

The goals of the project for the PCB are the following:

  • Not to cost a fortune, Aiming for this PCB to be sub £/$/€ 30
  • Be compatible with Any project that can work on the ESP32-S3-Box-3 using ADF
  • ESP32-S3-WROOM-1-N16R16v, 16Mb Flash 16Mb PSRAM. Possibly up to 1Gb technically possible
  • Use a Digital Signal Processor/Audio Processor (to offload Audio processing) and at least an array of 3 microphones for 360 voice pickup
  • 15 Neopixles around the top for visual feedback
  • USB-C host
  • Buttons on top for Volume Up, Down, Mute and Action. (extras for Boot, Reset, and 2 misc)
  • Hardware Mute (no control from software)
  • Built in mono amp for internal speaker
  • Stereo headphone output
  • USB-C powered (initially 5V, but may be changed to USB-C PD 12v if needing more than 3W of audio power. Or possibly a Boost converter?)
  • All spare GPIO will be broken out for use by the end user, this will be at least the same available pins from the ESP32-S3-BOX-3 (and another possible 12 are available via the Audio Processor)

HASDot_v3_v1_2024-Mar-06_11-40-54AM-000_CustomizedView28570048747
HASDot_v3_v1_2024-Mar-06_11-40-54AM-000_CustomizedView285700487471920×1080 72.6 KB

Goals for the project enclosure are the following:

  • Table top ready enclosure, 3D printable, but doesn’t show it/ look like it
  • Acoustic chamber designed for a 2" full range speaker, for correct audio reproduction
  • Connectors accessible from the base, so sticking out of the back at odd angles
  • Compatible with Echo Dot v3 mounting accessories
  • Custom accessories stack-able underneath the unit, your imagination is the limit. For example:
    • Ethernet / POE
    • Display
    • Presence detection
    • Air quality

The initial KiCAD drafts for the project can be found on GitHub
Please feel free to assist in making this project come to fruition for all of us, Collaboration is greatly appreciated, however you can. For live chat find us on the ESPHome Discord server, in the ‘Smart speaker hardware design’ subgroup of the Hardware channel.

2 Likes