A date-time display on ESP32 using a DS3231 Real-Time Clock

In ham-radio digital mode transmissions some protocols (WSPR, FT8, …) require a synchronization of the order of one second between all stations.

To have an accurate time on ESP32 there are several solutions:
– the connection to an NTP server,
– the connection to a GPS,
– the use of a saved real-time clock,
– a combination of several methods.

The first two solutions involve either being connected to a network (WiFi, …) or to be able to receive GPS signals which is not always possible.

This article presents the realization of a date-time display on an ESP32 TTGO T-Display using a saved DS3231 real-time clock.

The principle is as follows:

– the date and time data is acquired by a WiFi connection with an NTP server and saved on the DS3231,
– the DS3231 then provides the data for display.

Two software versions were developped, one using a button of the TTGO T-Display to switch on or off the display. Source code is available on Github.

A presentation video:

73 by Philippe F6CZV

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *