The adventures of Taylor D. and the automatic door with missing IR remote got me pondering. We need an easier way to document IR commands. I know, learning remotes, pretty well documented TV codes, and the well trodden path of the Arduino IR Remote library. But I’m thinking those weird IR remotes that come with assorted electronics.

While we can always wire up an Arduino, IR detector, and read some serial values, I want something that I can toss into a toolbox. I’ve done some searching, but most seems ad hoc or learning remotes (not documenting).

In the field, the Maker can use the gizmo to record IR codes from a no-name remote (many of them use some variation of the NEC protocol). Then those numbers can be written down and posted publicly. So when the remote gets lost, it can be recreated.

This won’t help the already lost remote situation, but if we can record this stuff during install, and — heck — print out and file the codes, I think it would save future heartache. And means we don’t have to throw out a perfectly good piece of equipment just because the remote is gone.

I’ve made some initial progress, and am busy hunting down all my “custom” remotes to see if I can read them. If I’m successful, I’ll post the code & models & required parts.

On the roadmap, I’ve got RF, too. But that’s a trickier one. Probably will give me a chance to finally use my ADALM-PLUTO SDR.

For the Proof of Concept, I’m using some boards I had on hand. They have an ESP8266, charger, ON/OFF SWITCH!, screen, joystick. Great, right? Except they made some horrible I/O design decisions — in other words, don’t use this for new work. A real shame, since it’s a wonderful collection of items on one board.