Remote control for a tennis machine

[Touftaf]

Hello everyone,

I post in this forum because i'm facing a problem and want to know what solutions do i have.

I just bought a tennis ball machine, the Lobster Elite Grand 4(EL-04). This machine can be controlled remotly by three ways, an RF remote (which has been lost by the old owner), a wifi module for iOS devices and a bluetooth module for Android devices.

All those modules are sold separatly and they are (too much !) Expensive. But as the RF remote was lost, the RF module is already in the machine.

The old remote was a 20 functions remote control.

I wanted to know if it was possible to add a non official bluetooth module ? If this is not possible, i wanted to know if there is a way to use a generic remote control control and how to program it.

I can disasemble the machine and take pictures of the motherboard if needed, i also post a link to the manufacturer's procedure to add the wifi/bluetooth module.

https://www.tennisballmachines.com/img/replacing-and-installing-wi-fi-and-bluetooth-in-grand-through-phenom-machines.pdf

Thank you very much for any help

[BreakingOhmsLaw]

As this machine has many functions to be controlled, any remote device would need to send the right commands to the CPU of the machine. Liikely over a serial connection somewhere on that 4-pin connector.

You don't know the commands, and the only way to reverse-engineer them is with access to the remote, which you don't have.
So your chance of getting this to work are extremely low.

Let's put it this way: In the amount of hours needed to reverse engineer this and write the software for any self-made replacement, you can easily make twenty times the money to actually buy the original remote. Even if you just make minimum wage.

[Touftaf]

Thank you for your answer.
I understand that trying to get an RF remote control working doesnt worth it.
But what about the bluetooth function ? I've found on their website a troubleshooting guide and as the bluetooth remote is an Android app, there is no command to program, all is already programmed in the application and according to this guide, the bluetooth device is detected as "RN42-xxxx" and seems to be a 2 wire connection. Could the bluetooth module be this one ?

https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/en/DeviceDoc/Class-2-Bluetooth-Module-with-EDR-Support-DS50002328B.pdf

Bluetooth troubleshoot guide :

https://www.lobstersports.com/picts/troubleshooting/ts-my-remote-control-is-not-working.pdf

If yes, is there a way to get some informations about wiring ?

PS , i prefer to put it this way : you were talking about money but the problem is not that i can't buy it, 500 euros won't change my life and i can easily afford it, i just have a problem with buying 500 euros a 20 euros bluetooth receiver, and as i like to adapt, modify and repair stuff, electronics in general, even if i'm not a specialist i have some modest skills and good material, so if i can make it work i would be proud and even if i would have earned more money during the time spent if i was at work, i would have learned new things instead of just buying something with an unjustified price.

Thank you

[ledtester]

1) Check ebay - I just saw a Lobster remote listing. Don't know if it will work with your unit.

2) You have the same problem with infrared remotes. Almost every IR remote sends like a 16-bit code over a well-known protocol. The problem is determining what code is actually sent for each key.

If you had a working RF remote you might be able to sniff the signal and determine what the codes are - but then you have a chicken and egg problem.

3) What does your control panel look like? One direction to pursue is to hack your control panel and create your own remote control.