WIFI Controlled Bulb Using ESP8266 - Require Help in Understanding the concept

[Harsh Chandola]

Hi,
I am designing an LED bulb that could be controlled via wifi, for this purpose I am using ESP8266 (Adafruit's Huzzah Board). Following many online tutorials I was able to control an LED over wifi.
Few basic things that were required to make it run successfully was to have a running Apache server and php
SSID and Password of the wifi network I am connecting to. (these credentials were to be put on the code that was written on Arduino IDE).

Now, to make it a commercial product this approach is not feasible as one doesn't have the freedom to upload the code with the SSID and password of the customer's wifi on the ESP module which is packed inside the LED housing. So how do I make this product commercially viable?

Here's what I think : 1> Supply the product with another wifi router like Philips Hue supplies a bridge with it's kit.
   2> Each bulb's ESP module will come programmed with SSID and Password of the router being supplied with it.
   3> Connect the wi-fi router(the supplied one) with the home wi-fi router using ethernet cable.
   4> Develop an app using either Android Studio or use Blynk as that omits the need to have your own cloud service for the customers to be able to control their product without any problems.

Is this the correct and only way to make it commercially successful?

What also confuses me is that after connecting my bridge/supplied router to the home network my Bulb connects to it, now does my phone needs to be connected to this router or simply be connected to my home wi-fi router ? Also how will my App detect the Bulb is on network? I know that needs to be in the coding part of the App, but what is the algorithm behind detecting ESP module or any wifi module that's connected to a network? I mean what kind of IF THIS THEN THAT procedure would lie behind detecting the module on network by the app.

Are there other ways to connect your wi-fi bulb with the home wifi without needing additional bridge or router and could be controlled straight away through an app?

If anybody can help me explain the concept of it from absolute basics it'd be highly appreciated.

Also what picture I have in my mind of a successful Wi-Fi led bulb is that, I should plug it in, connect the bridge/router and my phone to the wifi and be able to control it, then if i change home, i do exact same procedure and it should work.

I am sorry i am being unable to structure my thoughts in a proper order but I am very confused at the moment.
Thanks Everyone.

[NottheDan]

5> Run a rudimentary wifi host and web server on it that the user can connect to to do the initial configuration. and that will be shut down unless you reset-and-wipe the device? A few other devices use that approach.

[laneboysrc]

For detecting "services" on IP networks there are MDNS and SSDP, for example. The lamp announces its service, and other devices can find them and execute functions.

Instead looking for a technical solution, maybe consider stepping back and think about your consumers. Nobody wants a bridge. It does not provide any perceivable function (from the user's point of view).
Many solutions today come with a bridge, but only because of requirements that can not fulfilled without: translating radio protocols (Zigbee etc), cloud connectivity, software update ...
If your bulbs are Wi-Fi and all you want to do is a Smartphone app to turn them on/off, then you may not need a bridge. For direct Smartphone control, maybe Bluetooth BLE is a better solution.

good luck, Werner

[Harsh Chandola]

For detecting "services" on IP networks there are MDNS and SSDP, for example. The lamp announces its service, and other devices can find them and execute functions.

Instead looking for a technical solution, maybe consider stepping back and think about your consumers. Nobody wants a bridge. It does not provide any perceivable function (from the user's point of view).
Many solutions today come with a bridge, but only because of requirements that can not fulfilled without: translating radio protocols (Zigbee etc), cloud connectivity, software update ...
If your bulbs are Wi-Fi and all you want to do is a Smartphone app to turn them on/off, then you may not need a bridge. For direct Smartphone control, maybe Bluetooth BLE is a better solution.

good luck, Werner

Thanks, for your suggestion, now for bluetooth, thinking from a customer's point of view, the customer will have to keep his/her bluetooth on at all times when in home draining the battery more quickly, wi-fi is something that people connect to first even before greeting their partners when they get home, secondly a bluetooth controlled device will have range issues if I am controlling ceiling lights in a big room. Other wise your suggestion is very good and I might probably make a start with BLE system first and use Xbee initially.
Also, was I correct the way I understood how WiFi controlled LEDs work? Firstly I want to make sure that my concepts are clear.
Thanks

[Tana Bryan]

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[LukeW]

Here's an example of friendly ESP8266 WiFi provisioning.

https://github.com/tzapu/WiFiManager