ESPEED32 User Manual

User-focused guide for slot car racing: startup, key driving controls, menus, and backup/restore.

Theme

Firmware source: ESPEED32 v4.8 (source/ESPEED32/).
Local manuals in repo: Quick Start + Extended Guide (DOC folder, DOCX/PDF).
ACD reference: ACD PRO Manual 11E.
CarSteen reference: CS 4.2 Owner's Guide.

1. Quick start

Power the controller normally.
Rotate encoder to move through menu items.
Short press encoder: enter/exit value editing or open submenu.
Short press brake button while editing: cancel (restore original value).
Long press encoder (~1s): toggle LIST and race GRID view (when race view is not OFF).

2. Startup, calibration and self-test

Recalibrate trigger after firmware update, or if trigger mechanics have changed.
Power ON: normal startup, then RUNNING mode.
For TLE493D builds, sensor variant/address is auto-detected on boot (no manual address edit needed).
Hold encoder button during power on: trigger calibration.
Hold brake button during power on: Self-Test (9 steps).

Calibration flow

Hold encoder while powering on until calibration screen appears.
Fully press/release trigger several times.
Press encoder once to store calibration.
Verify throttle reads 0% at released trigger and 100% at full pull.

Trigger calibration — Calibration: move trigger through full travel several times for correct 0-100% mapping.

3. Critical while driving: BRAKE, B_BTN and Q-BRAKE

BRAKE

When trigger is fully released, the controller applies normal braking using the BRAKE value.

B_BTN (Brake Button)

B_BTN is an alternate brake percentage (0-100%), not a relative reduction.
It is applied only when trigger = 0 and you hold the brake button.
If the status bar shows OUTPUT, it displays Bxxx% while the brake button is held.
Typical use: temporary extra hard/soft corner entry braking without changing base setup.

Q-BRAKE (Quick Brake)

Active only when Q-BRAKE is set to ON.
Works as a pre-release brake zone: braking starts before trigger is fully released.
When trigger is above 0 but below threshold, controller applies Strength as brake force.
Threshold range: 0-50%. Strength range: 0-100%.
Practical use: earlier corner-entry braking during trigger release, without going fully to zero first.

4. Main menu parameters

Terminology profiles

ENG: generic naming (BRAKE/SENSI/ANTIS/CURVE/LIMIT).
CS: CarSteen-style terms (ATTACK/CHOKE2/PROFIL/CHOKE1).
ACD: ACD-style terms where directly applicable (SENSI and CHOKE for limit). ANTIS remains anti-spin because the ACD manual does not define a separate Choke2 term.

From CarSteen/ACD terms to ESPEED32

Legacy term	ESPEED32 equivalent	Practical effect
Attack	`SENSI`	How hard the car launches at first trigger movement.
Choke / Choke2	`LIMIT` + `ANTIS`	Top-end limitation and ramp smoothness.
Profile	`CURVE`	Trigger response shape (early vs late aggression).
Brake	`BRAKE` + `B_BTN` + `Q-BRAKE`	Release braking and temporary/early braking behavior.

Legacy setup example (from older guides): for a soft and controlled feel, start around SENSI 40, ANTIS 130 ms, CURVE 30, and adjust from there.

Item	Range	Default	Description
`BRAKE`	0-100 %	95	Brake force when trigger is released.
`SENSI`	0-90 % (and <= LIMIT)	20	Minimum motor output at first measurable trigger movement.
`ANTIS`	0-255 ms	30	Anti-spin ramp duration. Higher value = softer power buildup.
`CURVE`	10-90 %	50	Throttle mapping. 50 = linear. <50 softer start, >50 sharper start.
`PWM_F`	1.0-5.0 kHz	3.0	Motor PWM frequency. Higher value often softens low-end response.
`B_BTN`	0-100 %	50	Alternate brake value used while brake button is held and trigger is released.
`Q-BRAKE`	OFF/ON + threshold/strength	OFF	Dedicated brake zone near trigger release.
`LIMIT`	(SENSI+5)-100 %	100	Maximum motor output. <100 enables LIMITER warning.
`STATS`	-	-	Lap counter, best lap, and scrollable lap history.
`CAR`	0-19 profiles	CAR0	Select/manage profile, copy settings, reset car params.

Linear, Soft and Hard curve examples — CURVE examples from manual: Linear (50%), Soft (lower value), Hard (higher value).

5. Race view behavior (LIST vs GRID)

LIST classic menu with all main items.
GRID race screen for fast edits while driving.
DISPLAY -> RACE MODE: OFF / FULL / SIMPLE.
FULL grid: BRAKE, SENSI, ANTIS, CURVE (+ CAR if RACESWP is ON).
SIMPLE grid: BRAKE, SENSI (+ CAR if RACESWP is ON).
Long encoder press toggles LIST/GRID.

6. CAR menu workflow

SELECT: choose active car profile (0-19).
RENAME: 4-character name editor (ASCII 32-122).
RACESWP: ON allows profile switching directly from GRID mode.
COPY: copy from one profile to another, or to ALL profiles.
RESET: reset all car profiles (with confirmation).

7. SETTINGS and current draw

POWER submenu

SCRSV: screensaver line1/line2 text, timeout, and show-now.
SLEEP: auto sleep timeout + manual sleep now (wake with encoder button).
DEEP SLEEP: auto deep sleep (0 or 2-30 min) + manual.
STARTUP: welcome delay 0-990 ms in 10 ms steps.

DISPLAY + ABOUT

STATUS BAR: 4 fixed slots. Each slot can show OUT%, THRO, CAR, CURR, VOLT, or blank.
While WiFi is active, the status bar shows WIFI. It uses the first blank slot if available; otherwise slot 4 is temporarily overridden.
ABOUT shows firmware/data version, detected trigger sensor, chip details, flash/heap, MAC addresses, and build date/time.

Estimated current draw (controller electronics)

State	Estimate	Notes
Startup	120 mA	Short boot and initialization phase.
Normal operation	100 mA	Typical menu/race operation without WiFi.
WiFi module active	150 mA	AP mode and web server active.
Screensaver	80 mA	Display active, low interaction.
SLEEP (soft)	55 mA (estimated)	OLED off, CPU 80 MHz, motor task suspended.
DEEP SLEEP	10 mA (estimated)	Power-off-like state, wake by power cycle.

Values are estimates and depend on supply voltage, hardware variant, and measurement setup. Motor load for the car is additional.

8. Driving tips

Change one parameter at a time, then run 5-10 laps before the next change.
Tune in this order: SENSI, then BRAKE, then ANTIS, CURVE, and finally PWM_F.
1/32 cars on low-grip tracks: try higher ANTIS (around 100-150 ms) and softer CURVE (<50).
1/24 cars on high-grip tracks: often lower ANTIS (0-40 ms) and more direct CURVE (50-70).
Use B_BTN as a temporary cornering tool instead of changing BRAKE between heats.
Use Q-BRAKE with low threshold (5-12%) and medium strength (40-70%) for calmer technical sections.
If the car spins early in trigger travel: lower SENSI or increase ANTIS.
If the car feels lazy on exit: raise SENSI slightly or reduce ANTIS.

9. WiFi/USB backup, restore and OTA

WiFi

Open SETTINGS -> WIFI to enter the WiFi submenu.
INFO PAGE: opens the WiFi page directly and starts WiFi/AP automatically. Leaving the info page stops WiFi again (unless background mode was started first).
AUTO OFF: set timeout for background WiFi (1-120 min, default 5 min).
START WIFI: starts WiFi without opening the info page, so you can return to the main menu.
STOP WIFI: manually stops background WiFi before timeout.
While WiFi is active: connect to AP ESPEED32_XXXX (password espeed32) and open OLED IP in browser (typically 192.168.4.1).
On the info page you can use Backup, Restore, Upload Firmware, and /docs.

Status bar behavior while WiFi is active: WIFI uses the first blank slot; if no blank slot exists, slot 4 is shown as WIFI until WiFi stops.

USB

Open SETTINGS -> USB.
Use Chrome/Edge (WebSerial).
Backup/restore works over USB; OTA requires WiFi mode.

Never remove power during OTA upload.

10. Menu tree (complete UI map)

ROOT (Main Menu)
|- BRAKE
|- SENSI
|- ANTIS
|- CURVE (graph view)
|- PWM_F
|- B_BTN
|- Q-BRAKE
|  |- Enable (ON/OFF)
|  |- Threshold (%)
|  |- Strength (%)
|  `- Back
|- LIMIT
|- SETTINGS
|  |- POWER
|  |  |- SCRSV
|  |  |  |- LINE1
|  |  |  |- LINE2
|  |  |  |- TIME (0-240 s, 0=OFF)
|  |  |  |- NOW
|  |  |  `- BACK
|  |  |- SLEEP
|  |  |  |- INTERVAL (0-10 min, 0=OFF)
|  |  |  |- SLEEP NOW
|  |  |  `- BACK
|  |  |- DEEP SLEEP
|  |  |  |- INTERVAL (0 or 2-30 min)
|  |  |  |- SLEEP NOW (power-off)
|  |  |  `- BACK
|  |  |- STARTUP (0-99 x 10ms)
|  |  `- BACK
|  |- DISPLAY
|  |  |- RACE MODE (OFF/FULL/SIMPLE)
|  |  |- LANGUAGE (NOR/ENG/CS/ACD)
|  |  |- CASE (UPPER/Pascal)
|  |  |- FONT SIZE (LARGE/small)
|  |  |- STATUS BAR
|  |  |  |- SLOT 1
|  |  |  |- SLOT 2
|  |  |  |- SLOT 3
|  |  |  |- SLOT 4
|  |  |  `- BACK
|  |  `- BACK
|  |- SOUND
|  |  |- BOOT (ON/OFF)
|  |  |- RACE (ON/OFF)
|  |  `- BACK
|  |- WIFI
|  |  |- INFO PAGE
|  |  |- AUTO OFF (1-120 min, default 5)
|  |  |- START/STOP WIFI
|  |  `- BACK
|  |- USB
|  |- RESET
|  |  |- CAR
|  |  |- SETTINGS
|  |  |- CALIBRATION
|  |  |- EVERYTHING
|  |  `- BACK
|  |- TEST (Self-Test, 9 steps)
|  |- ABOUT
|  `- BACK
|- STATS
`- CAR
   |- SELECT
   |- RENAME
   |- RACESWP (grid car select ON/OFF)
   |- COPY
   |- RESET
   `- BACK

Displayed labels can be UPPER or Pascal based on DISPLAY -> CASE.