Case study

TCL AC Original Module ESPHome: reconstructing WL6U air-conditioner control

TCL AC Original Module ESPHome reconstructs local control of a TCL air conditioner on its original WL6U Wi-Fi module. The author traced command building and status decoding in a stock RTL8720CF firmware dump, compared selected functions with replacement codecs, and implemented ESPHome controls and readings over the module's UART link.

Targets: Firmware · Protocol
Category: Independent reconstruction cases
Relationship: Independent reconstruction project
Sources reviewed: 2026-11-06
Evidence class: C2 code & docs, no demo or download

Stars: 0
Last commit: 2026-11-02
Language: C++
License (GitHub): Apache-2.0

GitHub data as of 2026-11-10

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Evidence

Observed: Code, documentation and a demo observed; no download method found.
Checked: 2026-11-08

How evidence classes are assigned

Requirements & limits

Prerequisites: An original WL6U_V4.0 module with RTL8720CF and 2 MiB flash; first installation needs a 3.3 V USB–UART adapter, 5 V supply and Linux computer.
Prerequisites: Back up the original firmware before writing; the module must be disconnected from AC mains during programming.
Testing evidence: The author tested one TAC-12CHSD; other models and full stock restoration remain untested.
License: Apache-2.0 and MIT license files are included.

Cite

BibTeX

@misc{tcl-ac-original-module-esphome-case,
  title = {{TCL AC Original Module ESPHome: reconstructing WL6U air-conditioner control}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://github.com/kralonur/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome}},
  url = {https://github.com/kralonur/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome},
  urldate = {2026-11-06},
  note = {Awesome REA entry: \url{https://awesomerea.org/resources/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome-case/}}
}

Plain text

TCL AC Original Module ESPHome: reconstructing WL6U air-conditioner control. https://github.com/kralonur/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome (accessed 2026-11-06). Awesome REA entry: https://awesomerea.org/resources/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome-case/

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About this entry

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Primary sources

docs/REVERSE_ENGINEERING.md GitHub · kralonur/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome · Revision a18fbab
README.md GitHub · kralonur/tcl-ac-original-module-esphome · Revision a18fbab