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INDI Library v2.0.6 is Released (02 Feb 2024)

Bi-monthly release with minor bug fixes and improvements

Meridian Flip - EKOS/Onstep Slews to last star

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Gustav,

This topic is specific to the OnStep telescope controller, and affects far more than just the meridian flip.

For the meridian flip with OnStep, it is a frequently asked question, so we added it to the FAQ page on OnStep's Wiki.

onstep.groups.io/g/main/wiki/7118

I see that your mount is an iOptron. No idea if any (or all) of that applies to iOptron or not.
2 years 6 months ago #75001

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The pull request was merged by Jasem into INDI's repository.

We are now waiting for the PPA packages that incorporates the fixes for OnStep.
2 years 6 months ago #75053

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Hi All - report on operation using the fix and a real run last night - Note: at 2:30 am KStars crashed AFTER going through the rull slew MF, align, guide image flow - so NOT related to this at all:
1) all slews GOOD
2) status accurate
3) MF NORMAL and completed
4) post flip align was GOOD
5) lol - focus not good but that is MY fault for adding and offset and asking for refocus after slew...oh well, live and learn  (hence the out of focus image :-)
5) guide after MF was a little weird but doing it's work, just poorly

The one thing that I see but just may be because I never looked before is the flip pending AFTER the main flip - I guess this could be because this sequence was so long it would suspend for the next night?....anyway all the items the bad status was affecting seem GOOD now - will continue working things to see if other issue can be tackled - BTW - this ALSO include a new fix in Kstars I have been working with Jasem on for official proper operation of pre-capture scripting which enables dual camera operation - been using my variant for months with great success and it is now up on github...have fun dual imagers :-)


 
Last edit: 2 years 6 months ago by JAMIE FLINN. Reason: image corruption
2 years 6 months ago #75056

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2 years 6 months ago #75057
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Hi Jamie,
I'm afraid we're not through yet. I took a closer look to the log file you posted in the other thread. It seems like after the MF your mount reported state "Tracking" with RA= "03h 23m 39s", while your position before the MF was RA= "23h 24m 25s". That's the reason why the second MF started.

So please could you do a dry run for the MF and turn on the logging for the mount driver in EKOS.

Cheers
Wolfgang
Last edit: 2 years 6 months ago by Wolfgang Reissenberger.
2 years 6 months ago #75063

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File Attachment:

File Name: log_18-31-...9-01.zip
File Size:3,123 KB


All the action starts about 2:32 am - as per the analyzer output the actual flip and subsequent align seem like a normal pattern  (My rig aligns very quickly and it looks like 3 steps were needed) - let me know what you see and THANKS!
2 years 6 months ago #75066
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Indeed, alignment succeeds, and it remains find when then the focus routine kicks in at 02:19:49.757. Focusing takes a while, needs some separate investigation, but it completes at 02:31:16.453. This is part of the post-MF activities.

What I do not understand is the event at 02:23:31.679, when the new meridian flip is planned for RA = "03h 23m 39s" (The RA position for the MF that just completed was 23h 24m 25s). And there is no entry indicating a slew during the focus routine. Remember, we are still in the post-MF procedure, focus running.

Any ideas?

That's why I meant that you should try to make a dry run with your mount connected, but using the CCD Simulator and no alignment and no focusing.
2 years 6 months ago #75073

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So it looks like a number of odd things
1) the focus after flip was not focusing on the CURRENT filter of the sequence - it went back to HA which was already complete - does focus now ONLY use the filter selected inthe tab and not in the sequence file?
[2021-08-31T02:18:20.309 EDT INFO ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.align] - "Changing filter to HA..."
[2021-08-31T02:18:20.312 EDT INFO ][ org.kde.kstars.indi] - ASI EFW : "[INFO] Setting current filter to slot 5 "
[2021-08-31T02:18:20.820 EDT DEBG ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.scheduler] - Scheduler iteration never set up.
[2021-08-31T02:18:21.773 EDT DEBG ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.scheduler] - Scheduler iteration never set up.
[2021-08-31T02:18:22.311 EDT INFO ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.focus] - "Focusing inward by 50 steps..."

2) I have positive confirmation that the flip coordinates worked long with align as the image AFTER focus was perfectly placed (and inverted as expected) to a point between the Bubble and M52 - [2021-08-31T02:16:17.718 EDT INFO ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.mount] - Meridian flip: slewing to RA= "23h 23m 39s" DEC= " 61° 29' 18\"" Hour Angle "00h 00m 48s" - so west facing east and east facing west DID capture that point

3)[2021-08-31T02:23:31.679 EDT DEBG ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.mount] - Meridian flip planned with LST= "23h 42m 53s" scope RA= "03h 23m 39s" ha= 8.32047 , meridian diff= 0.13 , hrstoFlip= -8.19047 , flipDelayHrs= 0 , "Pier Side: East (pointing West)"
[2021-08-31T02:23:31.680 EDT DEBG ][ org.kde.kstars.ekos.mount] - Setting meridian flip status to "FLIP_PLANNED"

Yeah this is really odd - hours to flip -8.19??? - I think there was an input/replace of the target coordinates and that forces a bunch of calculations that result in incorrect values and eventually a crash - what for hours to flip with a negative even mean to other code - this indicates time travel ? :-) - this spot in the sky is actually very close to where my session STARTED in the NE about 45 degrees up (to clear trees) and could easily be alone the same line as the bubble - since some of that info is coming from scheduler this gives me the feeling that a buffer has been overrun and we are now seeing another objects data (how many time have I done THAT in structs in c!)

Add to that those warning from align about not enough memory and I am suspecting this is a basic corruption

Day before this I used all the real scope during daytime to slew and flip but never died - and all the numbers looked good - I will try again but turn off logging to reduce IO and load - will see it completes

My big bugaboo here is why when in the middle of shooting OIII the sequence does not take priority of the tab...I could be in the middle of 5 filters and it should STAY on what it is using from sequence - perhaps this is a setting in the focus tab? or I need to NOT select a filter?...I dunno
2 years 6 months ago #75080

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Regarding the HA miracle: did you check your filter settings? Maybe you set HA as lock filter for focusing O-III...
2 years 6 months ago #75095

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A lot went wrong last night - some things went right but check this out:  an extremely short flip pending->flip operation and flip complete marked as the flip happens - GUIDING suspends then tries again constantly DURING the flip - I had logs reduced to specific modules and of course NO LOGS were written so I cannot even see what was happeing - but from the analyzer output and the hours of trailed (driven) images I and see that:
1) MF and Guiding are not listening to each other
2) MF is still being marked far too early - it is not complete and mount is still slewing - this means there is another place in the code that status is not being checked correctly
3) focus is failing which I think  is the reason align is failing (WAY out of focus)
4) after the flip Guiding goes NUTS and all images after the flip are captures of huge movements of the mount

So I really do not know where to go from here - I think if the FLIP propelry reports and Guide listens the cascade will not happen - and if focus worked , align would have also (as it id at the start of the session)
Park worked and KSTARS did not crash - since I have no logs I suspect the crash the night before is due to IO and logging

A lot went wrong last night - some things went right but check this out:  an extremely short flip pending->flip operation and flip complete marked as the flip happens - GUIDING suspends then tries again constantly DURING the flip - I had logs reduced to specific modules and of course NO LOGS were written so I cannot even see what was happeing - but from the analyzer output and the hours of trailed (driven) images I and see that:
1) MF and Guiding are not listening to each other
2) MF is still being marked far too early - it is not complete and mount is still slewing - this means there is another place in the code that status is not being checked correctly
3) focus is failing which I think  is the reason align is failing (WAY out of focus)
4) after the flip Guiding goes NUTS and all images after the flip are captures of huge movements of the mount

So I really do not know where to go from here - I think if the FLIP propelry reports and Guide listens the cascade will not happen - and if focus worked , align would have also (as it id at the start of the session)
Park worked and KSTARS did not crash - since I have no logs I suspect the crash the night before is due to IO and logging

  
2 years 6 months ago #75103
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This is the "successful" focus on OIII - whihc would be what ALIGN would be seeing so no wonder it failed - that is a good failure
2 years 6 months ago #75104
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and this is AFTER the flip and how guiding was operating - something VERY not right as I am guiding via guide scope and NOT through this camera - guide scope was fine and stars sharp 
2 years 6 months ago #75105
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