setup.md

Setup Guide

This document details the complete end-to-end setup process for VoltWatch.

1. Hardware Requirements

• ESP8266 Microcontroller (e.g., NodeMCU v2 or Wemos D1 Mini)
• INA219 High Side DC Current Sensor Breakout
• DS3231 Precision RTC Module
• Appropriate logic level shifters (if your INA219 breakout is strict 5V, though most Adafruit-style boards have 3.3V regulators).

Wiring

Module	Pin	ESP8266 Pin
INA219	SDA	D2 (GPIO 4)
INA219	SCL	D1 (GPIO 5)
DS3231	SDA	D2 (GPIO 4)
DS3231	SCL	D1 (GPIO 5)
Both	VCC	3.3V
Both	GND	GND

2. Software Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+
• Arduino IDE (or VSCode with PlatformIO / Arduino CLI)

3. Backend Setup

1. Open a terminal in the backend folder.
2. Create the virtual environment: python -m venv .venv
3. Activate it:
   • Windows: .\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
   • Mac/Linux: source .venv/bin/activate
4. Install dependencies: pip install -r requirements.txt
5. Run the server: python run.py (App starts on http://localhost:8000)

4. Dashboard Setup

1. Open a second terminal in the dashboard folder.
2. Create and activate a new virtual environment as above.
3. Install dependencies: pip install -r requirements.txt
4. Run Streamlit: streamlit run app.py

5. Firmware Setup

1. Open esp-ina219-datalogger.ino in Arduino IDE.
2. Ensure you have the esp8266 board manager installed.
3. Install the required libraries via the Library Manager: Adafruit INA219, Adafruit BusIO, Adafruit GFX Library, Adafruit SSD1306, RTClib, ArduinoJson.
4. Compile and upload.
5. On first boot, connect your phone to the VoltWatch Setup Wi-Fi AP.
6. Enter your real Wi-Fi credentials and the IP address of your backend server (e.g., 192.168.1.50).