Using tools and hacking the firmware of a commercial actuator
In this section, we will teach you about the tools and materials required to hack a commercial actuator. We will also cover the main subject of this chapter, which is effectively hacking the firmware of an actuator. We will do this using an extremely popular actuator that’s available on the market.
Learning about the tools and materials used to hack an actuator
The materials we will be using to hack a sensor are as follows:
- 3.3 V DC / 1 A (min) power supply
- Power supply cables
- USB-to-serial converter (+3.3 V option)
- USB type A to USB mini type B cable
- Jump wires
- Soldering iron and solder
- 4-way terminal bar
- A computer with the Tasmotizer software installed
Note
Tasmota can also be installed using a web installer. I will provide more details about this firmware deployment tool in Chapter 10, in the Upload the ESP32 Tasmota firmware variant to the temperature hub...
