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

Bi-monthly release with minor bug fixes and improvements

Celestron AVX - bypass manual interaction on start up

Wow Chris, a lot of folks would love that! Maybe (just a thought) this could be enabled for non-home-switch mounts if the user explicitly consents to this feature while getting hearty long warning message? But I'll ask around as well if there are users willing to test this.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36323

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Thanks Jasem,
I realised this is Linux so if a user wants to bypass the check they can edit the code - simply comment out the check and rebuild.

How would I get a dire warning message to the user and get a confirmation back? Strictly speaking the driver has no UI, it's delegated to the application.

For testing what is needed is a user with a CGM or CGM-L mount and a willingness to send me debug logs.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36327

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Chris,

I have a CGX. Not sure how much help I could be, but I would like to see a more automated initial setup. Let me know.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36361

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It would be great if you can test.
This is what I need:
  • Install the latest version of indi. The new version should be built now.
  • Enable driver debug and save to file.
  • Connect to the scope
  • Check the Celestron driver has a Hibernate option and ensure this is enabled.
    This is where you need to be careful because I expect that your mount will move.
  • Click on the Align button in the main control tab. The mount should move to the index switch positions.
    It should then report that it is aligned. The declination will be 90 deg and the Ra depend on the hour angle. Slews to objects should be close to where they should be.
  • Obviously keep an eye on it to ensure that it isn't going to run into anything hard. I test with a naked mount, no OTA or counterweights so it can run freely in both axes but I'm not sure if the CGX will do that.

This should work with a mount that is running and already aligned or after the mount has been powered on from cold regardless of where it is pointed.

In all cases PLEASE send me the log files. There should be useful ones in ~/.indi/logs/<date>/indi_celestron_gps as well as the usual ones. I would far rather have too many logs, they compress well.

Park and Unpark should also work and you should be able to cycle the power between them.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36383

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The attached log files are from a couple of short test. I made sure that the Hibernate option was enabled, but was not able to locate an Align option. The set up was the latest nightly builds, Celestron CGX selected as the driver, and standard logging. To verify, the Align button will be located on the INDI Control panel under Celestron GPS - Main Control?

Also, I was not able to generate log files at ~/.indi/logs/<date>/indi_celestron_gps. I will need more instructions for how to do that.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36428
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Regarding the logs, I think once you enable logs in Ekos (with mount checked) then those are all that is required.
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5 years 2 weeks ago #36431

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Sorry but this was done before the hibernate/wake up code was implemented. I may have misunderstood when the nightly build was done. It's also before I had updated park/unpark.

I think by now there should be a new daily build with this code there. Once it is present you should see the align button on the main control tab, near the bottom.
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5 years 2 weeks ago #36440

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I just started using the AVX as temps have warmed to above freezing. I have placed it - (not leveled it yet) just testing... I polar align using the pole scope. (fairly accurate - but not precise). I did no star alignment because (I'm in the woods and can never find what it wants). I have some N ward - sky for testing. I slewed off a bit (I could reach the Heart neb at around 8pm. I did a plate solve and that synced me. For the AVX I'm using ASIair - I solve and it asks sync mount? I click yes. I then can go into sky safari pro and connect and it shows where It things the mount is pointing. (if it points at the heart - I'm good). After that night I homed to park3 best I could see (not accurately again). But best I could align the white marker lines in the dark. I did a hibernate.

powered down, left it in the garage. Next night (clear too for a while) I bought it out - (on slanted driveway) and polar aligned through polar scope again. I powered up and it asked for time/date/etc. (I hate that how can we put a clock in the HC?) There is also a "sync" from ipad/phone but I've heard that it sketchy. Anyway I did this last night and it seemed fairly accurate. Again I pointed at the heart (about the only thing I can see in this test spot) and did a place solve and sync. I guess I dunno if it stayed aligned... as I plate solved each time. At any rate it seemed to work fine. I did some guiding and test imaging. Now I've been TRYING to get the dang files off the PI and onto my PC (with Linux being new to me). I can see the ipad, but it shows me some apps doc files and NOT PHOTOS? Connecting to windows, shows photos only.
Maybe it's a open inside the ipad, I'll go look in settings. Then I can pull in the subs and do a astrometry test to see where I was REALLY POINTING.

Stellarvue/kstars may be in my future - Should I get it working in my dome. It would then be best to have it on my portable system too. But at this point. The ASIair - works and works well, so far Kstars/Ekos doesn't. But I'm not giving up yet.
AP Mach1 / CP4 APCC & PEMpro.
EXP SCI - ED152cf APO - Celestron 11" RASA - Stellarvue 80mm
Baader F2 HS NB filters, Lodestar X2 guide camera / OAG - ZWO 290mm mini
ZWO ASI1600MM Pro / ASI174M (solar) / ASI094MC
NEXDome, CLoudwatcher, AVX mount/ASIair and Stellarmate

Last edit: 5 years 2 weeks ago by Ron Kramer.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36461

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Align button was a success! After pressing it, the mount would respond with "Align Success" displayed on the HC. The mount returned to the switch position each time it was requested. No manual interaction was performed during the testing.

During the first test, the mount seemed to point in the direction requested, but on the 2nd and 3rd tests the alignment was off enough for the mount to not execute a east to west meridian flip. The mount ended up on the safety stop switches, which is fine, because I was closely monitoring it.

I did test to see if the align button would perform both with Hibernate enabled and disabled. It would return to the switch position either way.

The logs are attached, but I am not sure if the first logs contain tests 1 and 2, or is somehow the first test was overwritten.

This looks very promising. Thanks.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36478
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Hibernate/wakeup assumes that the mount is not moved so putting it in the garage and taking it out the next day won't help. Your alignment will be no better than the reproducibility with which you restore it.

You aren't doing an alignment, just park/unpark I guess because the AVX doesn't have switches.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36479

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Yes. My goal is to one day mount on a pier, so I will be able to park it in a known position and later get it operating without manual interaction, possibly completely automated, with the appropriate monitoring. This is a huge step in that direction.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36483

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Thanks for the logs, they show that the align process is working correctly, that the commands to move to the index switches are doing what I would expect and that the align arrives at a very similar position each time. In fact the first two aligns report the same position to the second.

The first two aligns seem OK but there's something else going on during the third align, it looks as if something is moving both mount axes at the same time, at rate 5 from what I can see. This is happening exactly as the mount reaches the index and it seems to affect the alignment. Could the motion control buttons have been pressed at this time?

One thing I don't understand is the mount running into a stop. I don't see how there can be a stop anywhere near the index position because for both axes the index position is in the middle of the required movement range.

We need to work out and document a process to get a reliable, alignment. I would think that starting at the index position and doing a normal multi star alignment would be a good start. This will generate a good mount model. Doing plate solves and sync isn't really the same, AIUI this simply forces the mount position to be the same as the sync position. This is done in the HC and I'm not sure how.

One thing to check is the time as reported by the HC. I am assuming that the RTC will be used to set a good time but I've noticed that it don't give a good time before the alignment.
5 years 2 weeks ago #36484

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