Gotta Press ’Em All

Engineers will do almost anything to save a few seconds. Spending a full week to automate a process that saves a minute per week may not seem like a wise decision, but it’s best not to try and reason with an engineer who is bound and determined to do exactly that. They’ll whip out a marker and head over to the whiteboard, scribbling out calculations until you wish that you had just left the matter alone.

YouTuber “What Up TK Here” has created a way to shave some time off of pressing buttons that is equal parts useful and ridiculously overengineered. Called The Button Presser, What Up TK Here’s project can save you some time when you need to press a button that is across the room. You still need to press a button, but one that is always right next to you.

The wireless solution consists of a sender and a receiver. The sender is equipped with a large, arcade-style button and an ESP32 development board. When the button is pressed, it wirelessly communicates with another ESP32 in the receiver. When a signal is received, it triggers a small hobby servo to rotate momentarily, such that it presses a button positioned immediately next to it.

The device relies on the ESP-NOW wireless communication protocol to minimize latency and simplify setup. It allows for a range of about 15 to 20 meters, so it has great range for indoor applications, but don’t expect to use this from another city.

3D-printed cases were created for both parts of the system. The receiver has a plastic base that allows the servo to sit above the button that it is to press, and also to provide some weight so that it can press buttons with some resistance. For the sender, a Poké Ball-inspired case was printed, sanded, and painted with a paint pen.

Design files and source code are available on GitHub.