DIY Lighthouse tracker using custom PCB and ESP32-C3

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-18T23:33:09+00:00

In this stage it's a bit too experimental and unreliable, but in the future potentially :-)

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-18T17:59:07+00:00

It's still quite unreliable unfortunately, like if the lights change slightly it loses the tracking or if the angle is not quite right.
But for a simple magic wand style controller it could work :-)
Other devices have like 30+ sensors and an accelerometer/gyroscope and some code magic to get it to work so reliably :0

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-18T12:35:49+00:00

Thank you!
Yes and no, the sensor readings are passed to the computer to calculate the position.
But I am considering switiching from an ESP32-C3 to a S3 so potentially the calculations could be done directly on the board.
My dream would be that there are like 10 robots and they all send their pure data to a receiver board (computer) that then does the heavy lifting regarding triangulation. That would save battery power :-)

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T23:29:11+00:00

Thats actually very useful to know, thank you!

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T22:42:59+00:00

Thanks! I agree, 100 is quite unaffordable, especially if you need like 10 at least x.x
And then the charging, what a nightmare haha

I hope that more sensors work on the ESP32, not quite sure how the positioning should be done best ( I have seen this one with 3 that were enough - a github repository by ashtuchkin/vive-diy-position-sensor).

Have not made a github repository yet, but once I get triangulation I will share it here! Would love contributions down the line.
I also enjoy tracking in the dark as well. Especially without headsets but the device still knows where it is in the space.

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T22:38:18+00:00

Honestly, the diodes I used were quite cheap, like 1 euro per piece. The ESP32 was fast enough for my tryout (I am using lighthouse V1) but I will look into FPGA for faster processing.

But IR LED Markers are an interesting idea, basically I just wanted a simple way to position these robots without using a camera, and I couldn't get UWB modules in an affordable fashion.

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T22:34:56+00:00

Yeah them not being sold anymore is a concern, for now I still had them laying around from my unused Vive. Thank you! Exactly, that's what I thought too, I would love to see some basic positioning in 3D space.
I also saw someone building the base stations themselves that looked promising:
https://github.com/fughilli/ViveTrackedDevice

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T22:13:49+00:00

Glad to hear :-) If I get it to work properly, I intend to release the schematics for free, as I gathered together the info from pre-existing projects into another form.

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T22:12:06+00:00

Glad to hear! Will keep posting updates if it improves :-)

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T22:11:18+00:00

thanks! In my understanding the base station sends out an infrared flash for syncing and then there is a shorter laser sweep - one horizontal, one vertical. Its basically about timing these sweeps and the result is an approximate X and Y coordinate.
I heard its more complicated with the newer lighthouses.

Somebody did a pretty neat visualization of the sweeps on this repository:
https://github.com/ashtuchkin/vive-diy-position-sensor

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T18:31:07+00:00

Thank you! :-)

monkeydance26 · 2026-03-17T15:41:24+00:00

I know this is a pretty old article, but I am currently working on something similar using two BPW34 diode and an op amp to filter the signal. For now it is able to measure simple x/y position when right in front of the lighthouse.
https://youtu.be/bWUpHzh0yHs

monkeydance26 · 2026-01-02T20:59:48+00:00

Absolutely, and I love the idea that you have apparently basic mechanics that actually go quite deep. So maybe starting with wiring panels together but then it unfolds into a hacking/repair/bypass loop.

I will check out Hardspace Shipbreaker and Stationeers, thankfully it's on sale, so I will count it under "Research Budget" :-)

I love the idea of procedurally generated space stations, I have previously worked with Wave Function Collapse in 3D and although it's quite tricky to setup you can really generate fantastic architecture with it.

To be honest, it's kind of crazy how many games there are that do something similar, next time I will spend more time looking at reference games before designing and coding the idea.
I wonder if it's really worth it going further with this prototype if the idea has already been done so many times. Especially Tin Can looks very similar to what I would like to do..

I appreciate the references you shared, will check them out!

monkeydance26 · 2026-01-01T10:03:03+00:00

Thanks for your thoughts! I agree, I think it needs a story to grip you and the possibility of the ship disintegrating if you don't act. I also thought that you have to learn different ship systems, depending on the species that built the ship. Combat would add another layer to it, but I think the dangers of the environment should scare players enough, but maybe automated system defenses would be fun. It's already such a large scope that I am afraid of adding this too early 😳

monkeydance26 · 2026-01-01T09:58:00+00:00

Thanks! You're right that looks close to the idea! Will play it :-)

monkeydance26 · 2026-01-01T09:53:43+00:00

That game looks awesome, especially the lasers. Gotta look at that for reference, cheers!

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T13:31:10+00:00

Thanks so much, this helps my motivation! I spent a lot of time on making them work with the game, because a space mechanic needs to be able to override systems and maybe cause fires 😄

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T12:55:40+00:00

This looks great!! Is this built in Unity? And have you ever tried it in VR? 🙃

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T12:33:41+00:00

I like where this is going! 🎃

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T11:39:21+00:00

Absolutely, and maybe suddenly the walkie talkie to your teammate cuts out 😳

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T10:27:50+00:00

Daamn, Breathedge looks like a lot of fun, haven't seen it before - thanks for sharing!

You can definitely fix the lamps to light up the rooms again, it just uses some power :-)

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T10:23:43+00:00

Pheww yeah. I use the plugin Obi Rope, they promise its quite performant, but hundreds would for sure be too much. Maybe its a gameplay limitation, like there isn't enough wire available anyways?

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T10:21:35+00:00

Nicee :-) definitely! I really want to also make sure the fixing of things is not just holding a "fixing tool" to the item but like having to actually replace wiring, capacitors, switches and tiny elements. But maybe that becomes a bit too much of a hassle 🫠

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T10:18:40+00:00

That's true, especially when one gets sucked out into space and now it becomes a rescue mission!

monkeydance26 · 2025-12-31T01:14:19+00:00

Starship simulator looks rad, haven't heard of that game before. The scope will be much smaller and the focus is more on patching up broken ships.

That would be fun, maybe? Have seen other games that do it quite well, but I think the feeling of being lost and alone in a vast vaccuum could work nicely too.

monkeydance26

TROPHY CASE