OPEN PLATFORM FOR ESP-BASED DRONES

Learn it. Build it. Change it. Create your own.

Build and customize ESP-based drones with open-source firmware, a hardware reference, step-by-step guides, and the ESPFlight companion app.

Start building Explore the platform

Real prototype quadcopter built using the ESPFlight platform

REAL ESPFLIGHT PROTOTYPE

ESPFlight prototype Real hardware, not a render

OPEN-SOURCE FIRMWAREOPEN HARDWARE REFERENCECOMPANION APPBUILD GUIDES

Inside the platform

Three parts. One platform.

Use open-source firmware, an open hardware reference, and a companion app together—or adapt the parts to your own project.

Open-source firmware

ESP-based flight control with stabilization, motor control, telemetry, and safety features.

Explore firmware

Open hardware reference

Study the open reference design, then adapt the board, components, and layout to your needs.

Explore hardware

Companion app

Control compatible drones, view live telemetry, and adjust flight settings.

Explore the app

Choose your path

Start with what you want to build.

New to drones or already building hardware? Pick a starting point and go at your own pace.

LEARN & BUILD

Build your first drone.

Follow the guides to assemble, connect, and test the reference setup.

Start building CUSTOM HARDWARE

Design your own board.

Use the open hardware reference as a basis for your own PCB, parts, and layout.

Explore hardware INDEPENDENT PROJECT

Create your own kit or product.

Test your design, then develop an independently branded kit or product if you choose.

For makers

Make it your own

Understand the system. Adapt the design.

Start with the working reference, then develop the software and hardware around your goals.

flight_firmware.cpp

void readSensors() {
imu.update();
batteryVoltage = readBatteryVoltage();
}
void runControlLoop() {
pidRoll = computePID(rollError);
pidPitch = computePID(pitchError);
pidYaw = computePID(yawError);
}
void mixMotors() {
writeMotorOutputs(throttle, pidRoll, pidPitch, pidYaw);
}

SensorsControl loopMotors

01 / FLIGHT FIRMWARE

Control that you can study and change.

Explore the open-source flight stack, tune its supported settings, and develop your own flight behavior.

StabilizationPID tuningTelemetry

Explore firmware

ESPFlight transparent cropped circuit board image

02 / HARDWARE REFERENCE

A starting design, not a fixed product.

Begin with the reference PCB, understand how the board is organized, and then adapt the layout, components, and connections for your own design.

Transparent board viewPCB structureAdaptable design

Explore hardware

ESPFlight App flight-control interface shown on a smartphone in landscape orientation

Companion application

Flight control and telemetry. One companion app.

Use the ESPFlight app to control compatible drones, monitor telemetry, and adjust supported flight settings.

Flight controls Live telemetry PID settings Takeoff & landing Drone status Safety status

Explore the app

Why ESPFlight

Learn from a working system. Build beyond it.

ESPFlight gives you more than isolated examples. It brings firmware, hardware, documentation, and the companion app into one understandable platform so you can learn faster, test ideas sooner, and build with purpose.

Explore the philosophy

OPEN FIRMWARE

Study how flight behavior is built.

Read the logic, adjust supported settings, and use the firmware as a base for your own experiments and improvements.

REFERENCE HARDWARE

See the system in physical form.

Use the board layout and component structure as a reference, then adapt the design to your own requirements and ideas.

CONNECTED LEARNING

Understand the full workflow.

Move more easily from building and flashing to testing, tuning, and iteration because the parts of the platform are designed to support each other.

Platform structure

Four connected parts. One coherent learning path.

Each part of ESPFlight has a specific role, and together they form a practical foundation for learning and building.

Firmware

Open-source flight logic and control foundation.

MIT

Hardware

Open reference board you can inspect and adapt.

CERN-OHL-P-2.0

Docs

Guides, explanations, and build knowledge.

CC BY 4.0

App

Companion experience for setup and use.

Proprietary

Build independently

Your project. Your identity.

You can develop an independently branded kit or product using the open components under their licenses. Use of the ESPFlight name and logo follows the Brand Policy.

Read the Brand Policy

Optional partnership

Want to collaborate more closely? The Partner Program is optional—not a requirement for using the open firmware or hardware reference.

Explore the Partner Program