INDI Library - Recently Added Listings https://indilib.org/ Thu, 28 Mar 2024 10:55:35 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 DragonLIGHT Flat Panel Controller https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/dragonlight-flat-panel-controller.html Installation

DragonLIGHT is included with libindi. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

The DragonLIGHT is a DC powered flat panel controller to illuminate any 12V light source.

Configuration

As a network device, you will need to connect the DragonLIGHT to your network. Just connect the ethernet port to your router or switch and it will automatically get an IP address. Now you can use the "Discover" button in the INDI Control Panel to find the DragonLIGHT.

If you wish to add WiFi connectivity, just type the IP address of the device into your web browser and use the built in web page to configure WiFi.

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rickbassham Fri, 15 Mar 2024 18:05:39 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/dragonlight-flat-panel-controller.html
DragonLAIR Roof Controller https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/dragonlair-roof-controller.html Installation

DragonLAIR is included with libindi. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

The DragonLAIR is a DC powered roll off roof controller, capable of moving full buildings 6,500lbs (3,000kg) and more. It has a built in web server, redundant networking, 4 safety sensors, and 2 limit switches.

Configuration

As a network device, you will need to connect the DragonLAIR to your network. Just connect the ethernet port to your router or switch and it will automatically get an IP address. Now you can use the "Discover" button in the INDI Control Panel to find the DragonLAIR.

If you wish to add WiFi connectivity, just type the IP address of the device into your web browser and use the built in web page to configure WiFi.

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rickbassham Fri, 15 Mar 2024 13:54:32 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/dragonlair-roof-controller.html
Dew Controller - CheapoDC https://indilib.org/controllers/dew-controller-cheapodc.html

Installation

INDI CheapoDC driver is included with libindi 2.0.7+.

To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update 
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The Cheapo Dew Controller, or CheapoDC, is a low cost, low component count, easy to build DIY dew controller based on an ESP32-C3 mini. Parts required include the ESP32-C3 mini, one or two MOSFET modules, a 12V to 5V buck converter, some protoboard, a couple of RCA sockets, a 12V barrel socket and wire. Cost of the parts should be less than $20 for a unit that controls 2 dew heater straps. Details for build and operation of CheapoDC can be found on the project site.

Current features include:

  • Automated tracking using either OpenWeather or Open-Meteo to retrieve ambient temperature, humidity and dew point.
  • Designed to work with Indilib with the ability to leverage geographic coordinates from your mount and temperature from your focuser temperature probe.
  • Controller modes supporting both Automated and Manual operation.
  • Flexible tracking modes supporting multiple methods to calculate output power to the two output channels.
  • Can operate in WiFi Access Point mode in either a semi-Automated or Manual mode if no network or Internet connectivity is available. But the CheapoDC does work best with internet connectivity,

A primary goal was to keep the build simple with minimal parts. This is done by leveraging the ESP32 WiFi capability to query one of the open weather service APIs. API queries are used for ambient temperature, humidity and dew point. This is then used for calculating CheapoDC's power output. No additional integrated components, such as temperature or humidity probes, are required. Many astrophotographers already have temperature probes for their electronic focuser and these may be leveraged through the INDI driver. The responsiveness and aggressiveness of the controller can be adjusted through the CheapoDC configuration settings. All temperature values reported in the driver interface are in degrees celsius.

When running the driver for the first time, the default Server Address, cheapodc.local, should work. If not, go to the Connection tab to change the Server Address. Enter your CheapoDC IP address or modified hostname then retry the connection using the Connect button on the Main Control tab. After connecting succesfully go to the Options tab and save the settings.

Controller Power Output Calculation

Controller output is calculated by determining the position of a reference temperature withing a tracking range. This is outlined below.

Output Calculation Variables:

  • Set Point = SP
    • a temperature point set using the Set Point Mode selection.
  • Reference Temperature = RT
    • as set using the Temperature Mode selection.
  • Track Point = TP
    • the calculated temperature point where the Tracking Range starts. A Reference Temperature less than or equal to the Track Point will cause the controller to use Maximum Output.
  • Track Point Offset = TPO
    • a temperature offset applied to the Set Point when calcualting the Track Point relative to the Set Point. The Track Point Offset may be set from -5.0°C to 5.0°C. The default is 0.0°C.
  • Tracking Range = TR
    • the temperature range, with the lower end starting at the Track Point. The controller output ramps up from Minimum Output at the high end of the range to Maximum Output at the low end of the range. The range may be set to values from 4.0°C to 10.0°C. The default is 4.0°C.
  • Power Output = PO
    • the percentage of power the controller is outputting to the dew straps. It varies from the Minimum Output setting to the Maximum Output setting.
  • Minimum Output = MinO
    • the minimum percent power setting for the controller to output when not in the OffController Mode. Defaults to 0%.
  • Maximum Output = MaxO
    • the maximum percent power setting for the controller to output when at full output. Defaults to 100%.

Output Calculation

Calculations

Output Example

Example

The Power Output (PO) curve is shown relative to the Track Point (TP) and the Tracking Range (TR). While the Reference Temperature (RT) is greater than the high end of the Tracking Range the Power Output is set to Minimum Output (MinO). The Power Output ramps up linearly through the Tracking Range from the Minimum Output to the Maximum Output (MaxO) as the Reference Temperature drops.

  • This example shows a Reference Temperature, RT = 8°C, which is greater than the upper end of the Tracking Range, causing Power Output to be set to Minimum Output. In this case Minimum Output is set to 10%.
  • The upper end of the Tracking Range, at 7°C, is determined from the Set Point (SP = -2°C) plus the Track Point Offset (TPO = 4°C), creating a Tack Point, TP = 2°C, plus the Tracking Range (TR = 5°C).

Note The Set Point and the Reference Temperature values may vary from one output calculation to the next with each weather update.

Operation

Connection

Connection details are based on the configuration of the hostname set in the CheapoDC CDCWiFi.json file installed on the controller. Only TCP/IP network connections are supported.

Connection

  • Network: Use TCP with the default port number of 58000. CheapoDC uses mDNS with a default hostname of cheapodc.local which should allow for an automatic connection. If you changed CheapoDC hostname you will need to update the server address.

Options

Under the Options tab, you can configure parameters to optimize the operation of the dew controller.

Options

  • Debug: Not currently supported.
  • Configuration: Load/Save/set to Default/Purge the configuration for connection setup as well as Snoop Location and Snoop Temperature settings. CheapoDC controller settings are automatically saved in the controller.
  • Polling: Polling defines the period in milliseconds that the driver uses to retrieve data from the dew controller. The default is 30,000 milliseconds or 30 seconds. This is the recommended polling period with an Update Output period of 1 minute.
  • Output Min: Minimum % power level to output to both channels. 0 to (Output Maximum - 1) (Default 0).
  • Output Max: Maximum % power level to output to both channels. (Output Minimum + 1) to 100 (Default 100).
  • Track Point Offset: Number of degrees celsius to adjust the Track Point. -5.0 to 5.0 (Default 0.0).
  • Tracking Range: Number of degrees celsius over which the Output Power will ramp when the Reference Temperature is in this range. 4.0 to 10.0 (Default 5.0).
  • Update Output: Period for recalculation of the Output Power in minutes. 1 to 20 (Default 1).
  • Query Weather: Period for weather service API queries in minutes. 1 to 20 (Default 5).
  • Weather API Key: An API key is required to use OpenWeather which can be acquired after registering for a free OpenWeather account. If Open-Meteo is used then no API key is needed and this property will not be displayed.
    Note: Weather service selection is done as part of the firmware build configuration.
  • Weather Location Name: If using OpenWeather this is the name of the weather station found closest to the location coordinates provided below. If using Open-Meteo then this is the location name set through the CheapoDC Web UI.
  • Weather Last Updated: The date and time of the last weather report update from the weather service. OpenWeather is in local time as configured on the CheapoDC. Open-Meteo is in GMT.
  • Latitude: The Latitude in digital degrees for your location. If Snoop Location is Enabled then this will be Read-only and the value taken from the snooped device. -90.00 to 90.00.
  • Longitude: The Longitude in digital degrees for your location. If Snoop Location is Enabled then this will be Read-only and the value taken from the snooped device. -180.00 to 180.00
  • Snoop Location: Enable/Disable getting the Latitude and Longitude automatically from another device. Generally the other device would be a mount. The configuration of the active device to snoop is done with the Location Device settings. (Default Disable).
  • Location Device: Settings for getting geographic coordinates from another active device:
    • Device: Name of device to snoop. Usually the same as the device's tab name in the INDI Control Panel. Info - Name. (Default Telescope Simulator).
    • Property: The property name used for snoop configuration. The default, GEOGRAPHIC_COORD, is specified by INDI as the standard property name for geographic coordinates.
    • LAT Attribute: The attribute to use for the Latitude value. The default, LAT, is specified by INDI as the standard attribute name for Latitude in geographic coordinate properties.
    • LONG Attribute: The attribute to use for the Longitude value. The default, LONG, is specified by INDI as the standard attribute name for Longitude in geographic coordinate properties.
  • Snoop Temperature: Enable/Disable getting temperature automatically from another device. This is particularly useful if there is another active device with a temperature probe mounted on the telescope. When Enabled, the temperature detected by the other device's temperature probe will be used to update CheapoDC's External Input temperature. If the CheapoDC Temperature Mode is set to External Input then the External Input temperature will be used as the Reference Temperature for calculating output power. The configuration of the active device to snoop is done with the Temperature Device settings. (Default Disable).
  • Temperature Device: Settings for getting temperature from another active device:
    • Device: Name of device to snoop. Usually the same as the device's tab name in the INDI Control Panel. Info - Name. (Default Focus Simulator).
    • Property: The property name used for snoop configuration. The default, FOCUS_TEMPERATURE, is specified by INDI as the standard property name for temperature with electronic focuser drivers.
    • Attribute: The attribute to use for the temperature value. The default, TEMPERATURE, is specified by INDI as the standard attribute name for temperature.

After setting up the Snoop device configuration, save the configuration using the Configuration - Save button.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the different CheapoDC operating modes may be set and current controller power output may be monitored.

Main Control

  • Connection: Shows current connection state as well as the ability to Connect or Disconnect.
  • Controller Mode: Sets the primary operating mode for the dew controller:
    • Automatic: In this mode the controller will automatically calculate and update the output power based on the Output Update period set in the Options tab. (Default)
    • Manual: In this mode a user may manually set the output level with the OutPut Power setting. The Output Power setting is writable only when the controller is in this mode.
    • Off: The controller is off and output power is zero. Weather queries will continue and update the weather values. If the CheapoDC comes up in WiFi AP mode then it will default to Off until changed by the user.
  • Output Power: Displays the current controller output power as a percentage from 0 to 100. May also be used to enter output power values if Controller Mode is set to Manual.
  • Temperature Mode: Sets the method used for determining the Reference Temperature to use in output calculations.
    • Weather Query: When in Weather Query mode the Ambient Temperature retrieved from the weather service using the service query API will be used for the Reference Temperature. (Default)
    • External Input: When in External Input mode the External Input temperature will be used for the Reference Temperature. This is the mode to use when snooping temperature values from another device with a temperature probe.
  • Temperature: Temperature values that may be used for calculating power output.
    • Weather Query (°C): Ambient temperature returned from a weather service API query. This value is used for the output calculation when the Temperature Mode is set to Weather Query.
    • External Input (°C): Temperature returned from an external input such as the Snoop Temperature device. This value is used for the output calculation when the Temperature Mode is set to External Input.
  • Humidity: The relative humidity in percent returned from a weather service API query.
  • Dew Point: The dew point in °C based on a weather service API query.
  • Refresh: Force a weather service query and update of the driver property values.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

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naheedsa Wed, 13 Mar 2024 23:31:33 +0100 https://indilib.org/controllers/dew-controller-cheapodc.html
CheapoDC Dew Controller https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/cheapodc-dew-controller.html ]]> Tunafish Sat, 09 Mar 2024 07:19:39 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/cheapodc-dew-controller.html WandererBox Plus V3 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wandererbox-plus-v3.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 18 Feb 2024 06:49:33 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wandererbox-plus-v3.html WandererCover V4-EC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wanderercover-v4-ec.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 18 Feb 2024 06:47:13 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wanderercover-v4-ec.html WandererBox Pro V3 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wandererbox-pro-v3.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 18 Feb 2024 06:45:51 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wandererbox-pro-v3.html Alluna TCS2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/alluna-tcs2.html

The Telescope-Control-System TCS of ALLUNA Optics has been designed for the remote control of high-quality telescopes. Alluna Optics provides only ASCOM drivers and a Windows EXE program to control the TCS2 Device. The TCS2 can also be controlled by an optional handheld device.

With TCS several telescope functions are controlled and monitored:

  • Air conditioning of the optical tube and the main mirror i.e., primary/secondary mirror heating and ventilation
  • Temperature of ambient (focuser), primary and secondary mirror
  • Focusing on the optics
  • Control of the optionally available CCD Rotator
  • Control of the optionally available robotic Dust Cover
  • Setting configuration parameters
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naheedsa Sun, 11 Feb 2024 05:47:34 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/alluna-tcs2.html
Arduino MeteoStation SQM https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-meteostation-sqm.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 10:38:07 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-meteostation-sqm.html Arduino Roof https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-roof.html naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 10:35:53 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-roof.html Arduino Servo https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-servo.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 10:33:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-servo.html Arduino Cosmos https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-cosmos.html naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 10:32:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-cosmos.html Arduino Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/arduino-focuser.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 10:28:41 +0100 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naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 09:55:29 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-simple-switcher.html Bresser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/bresser.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 09:51:57 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/bresser.html Bresser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/bresser.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 09:50:06 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/bresser.html BRESSER Messier EXOS-2 EQ GoTo https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/bresser-messier-exos-2-eq-goto.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 09:46:54 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/bresser-messier-exos-2-eq-goto.html DreamFocuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/dreamfocuser.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 09:25:43 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/dreamfocuser.html Atik GP https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/atik-gp.html ]]> 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https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/astromechanics.html Beaver Dome https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/beaver-dome.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:49:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/beaver-dome.html ASI ST4 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/asi-st4.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:43:33 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/asi-st4.html Apogee CFW https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/apogee-cfw.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:23:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/apogee-cfw.html Altair https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/altair.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:20:34 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/altair.html AHP GT Mount https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ahp-gt-mount.html naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:17:29 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ahp-gt-mount.html AHP XC Correlator https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/spectrographs/xc-correlator.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:16:35 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/spectrographs/xc-correlator.html iNova PLX https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/inova-plx.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 08:14:25 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/inova-plx.html Mallincam https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/mallincam.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:59:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/mallincam.html Mallincam https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/mallincam.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:53:27 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/mallincam.html RTKLIB Precise Positioning https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/rtklib-precise-positioning.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:52:08 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/rtklib-precise-positioning.html OmegonPro https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/omegonpro.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:45:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/omegonpro.html OmegonPro https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/omegonpro.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:43:53 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/omegonpro.html Ogmacam https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/ogmacam.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:41:52 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/ogmacam.html Ogmacam https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/ogmacam.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:38:56 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/ogmacam.html Oasis Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/oasis-focuser.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:37:21 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/oasis-focuser.html Orion StarShoot G3/G4 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/orion-starshoot-g3-g4.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:33:04 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/orion-starshoot-g3-g4.html PlayerOne EFW https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/playerone-efw.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:21:45 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/playerone-efw.html PlayerOne Camera 1 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/playerone-camera-1.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 07:05:51 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/playerone-camera-1.html Platypus focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/platypus-focuser.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:57:20 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/platypus-focuser.html RollOff ino https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/rolloff-ino.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:50:29 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/rolloff-ino.html SkyAdventurer GTi https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skyadventurer-gti.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:40:36 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skyadventurer-gti.html Shelyak eShel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/spectrographs/shelyak-eshel.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:39:06 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/spectrographs/shelyak-eshel.html Teleskop https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/teleskop.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:23:31 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/teleskop.html StartshootG https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/startshootg.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:18:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/startshootg.html StartshootG https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/startshootg.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:17:09 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/startshootg.html Star Adventurer 2i WiFi https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/star-adventurer-2i-wifi.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:12:53 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/star-adventurer-2i-wifi.html Arduino Power Box https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-power-box.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 06:01:43 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/arduino-power-box.html Weather Radio https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-radio.html naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 05:54:59 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-radio.html LIME-SDR Receiver https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/lime-sdr-receiver.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 05:47:38 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/lime-sdr-receiver.html Nncam https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/nncam.html naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 05:46:39 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/nncam.html SpectraCyber https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/spectracyber.html ]]> naheedsa Sun, 19 Nov 2023 05:44:51 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/spectracyber.html AAF2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/aaf2.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:34:36 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/aaf2.html RBF Excalibur https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rbf-excalibur.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:32:28 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rbf-excalibur.html Esatto Arco https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/esatto-arco.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:30:45 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/esatto-arco.html Esatto https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/esatto.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:29:35 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/esatto.html DomePro2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/domepro2.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:26:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/domepro2.html HitecAstro DC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/hitecastro-dc.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:21:13 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/hitecastro-dc.html Lakeside https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/lakeside.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:19:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/lakeside.html Lacerta MFOC FMC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/lacerta-mfoc-fmc.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:17:57 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/lacerta-mfoc-fmc.html Manual Filter https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/manual-filter.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:15:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/manual-filter.html MoonLite DRO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/moonlite-dro.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:14:05 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/moonlite-dro.html OnFocus https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/onfocus.html naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:13:04 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/onfocus.html Pegasus FocusCube https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-focuscube.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:08:52 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-focuscube.html Planewave https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/planewave.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:04:09 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/planewave.html PlaneWave Delta-T https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/planewave-delta-t.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:03:12 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/planewave-delta-t.html PerfectStar https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/perfectstar.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:02:22 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/perfectstar.html Telescope Scripting Gateway https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/telescope-scripting-gateway.html naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:54:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/telescope-scripting-gateway.html Dome Scripting Gateway https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/dome-scripting-gateway.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:43:05 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/dome-scripting-gateway.html SkyCommander https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skycommander.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:40:46 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skycommander.html Starlight EFS https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/starlight-efs.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:38:15 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/starlight-efs.html Sesto Senso 2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/sesto-senso-2.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:34:25 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/sesto-senso-2.html SynScan Legacy https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/synscan-legacy.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:33:13 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/synscan-legacy.html Celestron CPC HC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/celestron-cpc-hc.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:06:27 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/celestron-cpc-hc.html Pegasus PPBM https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-ppbm.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 13:45:15 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-ppbm.html Pegasus PPB https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-ppb.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 13:32:49 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-ppb.html Pegasus INDIGO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/pegasus-indigo.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 13:05:49 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/pegasus-indigo.html Digital Setting Circle https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/digital-setting-circle.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 13:03:59 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/digital-setting-circle.html Pegasus FlatMaster https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-flatmaster.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 13:00:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-flatmaster.html Wanderer Rotator Lite https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/wanderer-rotator-lite.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:56:04 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/wanderer-rotator-lite.html OpenWeatherMap https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/openweathermap.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:51:28 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/openweathermap.html ZWO AM5 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/zwo-am5.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:50:29 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/zwo-am5.html Uranus Meteo Sensor https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/uranus-meteo-sensor.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:47:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/uranus-meteo-sensor.html CRUX TitanTCS https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/crux-titantcs.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:42:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/crux-titantcs.html iOptron HC8406 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron-hc8406.html naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:37:55 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron-hc8406.html Imager Agent https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/imager-agent.html naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:34:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/imager-agent.html STAR2000 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/star2000.html naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:29:36 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/star2000.html Pegasus UCH https://indilib.org/controllers/pegasus-uch.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:22:51 +0100 https://indilib.org/controllers/pegasus-uch.html Pegasus NYX-101 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/pegasus-nyx-101.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 11:59:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/pegasus-nyx-101.html Pegasus ProdigyMF https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-prodigymf.html ]]> naheedsa Thu, 16 Nov 2023 11:48:28 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-prodigymf.html AstroArch https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/astroarch.html

AstroArch is a 64bit OS that works on Raspberry 3/4. It packages all INDI drivers and tries to stay always up to date with the latest INDI and Kstars releases. Based on ArchLinuxARM it's not your everyday raspbian but it's thought to be as user friendly as it can. It also uses KDE Plasma to make your Kstars experience as natural as possible.

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astromatto Thu, 24 Aug 2023 15:15:28 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/astroarch.html
Primaluce ALTO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/primaluce-alto.html

Installation

INDI Primaluce ALTO driver is bundled with INDI v2.0.1+. No driver download or installation necessary.

Features

If you want to automate the capture of your calibration files or if you're searching for the best way to remotely open and close your telescope, you can add the optional ALTO telescope cover motor and use GIOTTO as a remotely controlled motorized cap! Primaluce designed ALTO to be easily connected with our PLUS clamp to any Vixen or Losmandy style dovetail bar that is already present in many telescopes (like SCT, Aplanatic SCT, RCT, etc).

If your telescope has a short bar (for example in refractors or newtonians) you can easily add a longer dovetail bar to let you clamp ALTO just above or below the front end of your tube! This design allows you to adjust GIOTTO and ALTO positions to allow an optimal opening and closing of your telescope.

Control

The ALTO controls are very straightforward. You can Park (fully close) or unpark (fully open) the cover. Speed can be set to either slow or fast (default).

Main Control

Calibration

The maximum and minimal positions can be calibrated by clicking the Start calibration button. Set the desired speed then start by moving the cover to its close position by pressing Close. Once ALTO reaches closed position, click Stop. Proceed to move the cover to its open position by pressing Open and then stop when it reaches the position. Calibration is complete by now and the cover range should respect the calibration limit set.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found an issue, please report it at INDI's issue tracking system.

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knro Wed, 29 Mar 2023 15:53:13 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/primaluce-alto.html
Primaluce GIOTTO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/primaluce-giotto.html

Installation

INDI Primaluce GIOTTO driver is bundled with INDI v2.0.1+. No driver download or installation necessary.

Features

GIOTTO is the Smart Flat Field Generator we designed to help you capture flat calibration frames for telescopes. GIOTTO uses many LED lights at a color temperature similar to the Sun, a specially designed light diffuser and, thanks to the included thumbscrews, you can easily lock it in front of telescopes. GIOTTO is provided with integrated electronics that allow you adjust GIOTTO’s light intensity by 100 steps (0 to 100%), USB-C port to let you connect to your EAGLE or StellarMate for remote control.

WiFi connectivity to let you wirelessly control it using your smartphone or tablet via the included Virtual HandPad and 12V power port! And if you want to automate the capture of your calibration files or if you're searching for the best way to remotely open and close your telescope, you can add the optional ALTO telescope cover motor and use GIOTTO as a remotely controlled motorized cap!

Control

The controls are very simple. You can toggle the light on/off and set the intensity from 0% to 110%. Ekos can control GIOTTO directly.

Main Control

If you equipment profile includes a filter wheel, you can adjust the preset values for each wheel in the Presets tab. These values are saved and re-used for future sessions.

Preset

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found an issue, please report it at INDI's issue tracking system.

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knro Wed, 29 Mar 2023 15:28:40 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/primaluce-giotto.html
MyDCP4ESP32 Dew Controller https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/mydcp4esp32-dew-controller.html

Installation

INDI myDCP4ESP32 driver is included with libindi >= 2.0.1. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

myDCP4ESP32 is an enhanced 4-Channel automated Dew Controller designed by Robert Brown, based on an ESP32 WiFi chip. The project is open sourced with details found on the project site.

Current features include:

  • Fully automated standalone operation or monitoring/control from any device
  • 4 channel temperature probes and dew channel outputs
  • Tracking modes - Ambient, Midpoint, Dew point
  • Tracking offset can be set to adjust response
  • Offsets can be applied to each channel for compensate for probe variations
  • Channel override support for temporary 100% power boost
  • 3rd channel standard, manual and mirroring modes to mirror channels 1 and 2

Before starting the driver, make sure all temperature probes are connected and then power on the controller. All temperature values reported in the driver interface are in degrees celsius.

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select Network and the port to connect to. After making changes in the Connection tab, go to Options tab and save the settings.

Connection

Connection support is based on the configuration of the firmware when built and installed on the controller. TCP/IP network connections are recommended but serial connections via USB is also supported.

Connection

  • Network: WiFi connectivity in either Access Point Mode or Station Mode. Use TCP with the default port number of 3131. mDNS support is available with a default name of mydcp4esp32.local otherwise and IP address will need to be used. LAN Search if enable also works if you don't know the IP address.
  • Serial: Serial connectivity via USB is supported with a default speed of 57,600 baud.
  • Reboot: The Reboot button will cause the dew controller to reboot. The MyDCP3ESP32 driver will attempt to reconnect every 10 seconds for up to 60 seconds.

Operation

Options

Under the options tab, you can configure parameters to optimize the operation of the dew controller.

Options

  • Debug: Not currently supported.
  • Configuration: Load/Save/set to Default/Purge the configuration. Only the Connection and Polling settings are affected by this control. All other configuration information is automatically saved and recovered from the myDCP4ESP32 dew controller.
  • Polling: Polling defines the period in milliseconds that the driver uses to retrieve data from the dew controller. The default is 10,000 milliseconds or 10 seconds. This is also the shortest recommended polling period.
  • T Offset: Temperature Offset for the different temperatures reported and used by the controller.
    • Tracking: Temperature Offset used to adjust the three tracking algorithms. The tracking algorithm may be selected on the Main Control tab.
    • Ambient: Temperature Offset used to adjust the reported ambient temperature. This will also affect the calculation of the dew point.
    • Channel 1: Temperature Offset used to adjust the reported temperature for Channel 1.
    • Channel 2: Temperature Offset used to adjust the reported temperature for Channel 2.
    • Channel 3: Temperature Offset used to adjust the reported temperature for Channel 3.
    • Channel 4: Temperature Offset used to adjust the reported temperature for Channel 4.
  • 100% Boost: Set one or multiple channels to 100% override power for the dew strap. 100% Boost will automatically cancel for each channel after 1 minute. A channel must be active for the 100% override to activate.
  • Ch3 Mode: Select the operating mode for Channel 3:
    • Disabled: Disable the operation of Channel 3. No power will be output to the Channel 3 dew strap port.
    • Channel 1: Channel 3 will mirror Channel 1. The power output to the Channel 3 dew strap will be the same as for Channel 1.
    • Channel 2: Channel 3 will mirror Channel 2. The power output to the Channel 3 dew strap will be the same as for Channel 2.
    • Manual: The Channel 3 dew strap power output is manually controlled using the Ch3 Manual Power control.
    • Channel 3: If Channel 3 is active the dew strap power will be controlled based on the Channel 3 temperature probe.
  • Ch3 Manual Power: Manually set the power level for the Channel 3 dew strap port. This control is only available when Ch3 Mode is set to Manual.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the tracking mode used for setting the outputs of the dew controller is set and the primary information used by the controller is reported.

Main Control

  • Connection: Shows current connection state as well as the ability to Connect or Disconnect.
  • Tracking: Shows the current tracking mode as well as the ability to change the tracking mode. Details on the tracking modes and how they affect power output to the dew strap ports follows. The information is taken from the myDCP4ESP32 documentation, &copy Robert Brown.

    Determining how much power to apply to the Dew Straps

    There needs to be a way to calculate how much power to apply to the dew straps based on some value (tracking mode) as well as a range of temperature bands (range) over which the dew strap power is altered.

    In general, most dew controllers operate relative to the dew point temperature, and try to maintain the telescope optics temperature at some delta point above the dew point. The myDCP4ESP32 controller has three different methods of maintaining optics temperature which are

    • Ambient
    • Dew point
    • Midpoint

    Users are advised to spend an evening session monitoring the values, trying various tracking modes and offset values to determine what they feel is best for their equipment setup. Having the flexibility of adjustment provided by the myDCP4ESP32 unit should meet even the most demanding of situations.

    Temperature Tracking Algorithms

    Power output to a dew controller channel is determined by the tracking mode and the adjusted temperature of channels temperature probe. The output is determined as indicated in the following table.

    Tracking Algorithms

    Tracking Examples

    Ambient

    Power output for a channel is determined by the number of degrees celsius the probe temperature is below ambient temperature. If the probe temperature is 5 degrees below ambient then the power output is set to 50% for the dew strap port.

    Dew point

    Power output for a channel is determined by the number of degrees celsius the probe temperature is away from the calculated dew point temperature. As the probe temperature drops towards the dew point power to the dew strap port is increased until it reaches 100% at 1 degree above the dew point.

    Midpoint

    Power output for a channel is determined by the number of degrees celsius the probe temperature is relative to the midpoint between the ambient temperature and the dew point. If the ambient temperature is 20℃ and the dew point is 2℃ then the midpoint is 11℃, AT-(AT-DP)/2. If the probe temperature is at or above 20℃ then output is 0% but as the probe temperature drops below 17℃ ,AT<3, power is set to 10%. When the probe temperature drops to the midpoint, 11℃, then power is set to 20% until probe temperature drops to 9℃, AT-(((AT-DP)/2)+2) where power is set to 50%. At the dew point, 2℃, and below power is 100%.

    Tracking Offset

    Tracking offset is set in the Options tab and affects the algorithms by adjusting them by the offset. For example with Ambient tracking a tracking offset of 3 would adjust the ambient algorithm up 3℃. This would cause output to be 10% at 2℃ above ambient temperature instead of 1℃ below ambient temperature.

  • Temperature Ambient: The adjusted ambient temperature. The raw ambient temperature detected by the controller's sensor plus the Ambient T Offset.
  • Humidity: The relative humidity detected by the controller's sensor.
  • Dew Point: The dew point calculated by the dew controller based on the ambient temperature and relative humidity.
  • Sensors: Indicates which dew channels are active based on detecting the presence of a temperature probe. This is a readonly control, clicking on the radio buttons will not cause an action to be executed.
  • Temperature: The temperature for each channel. If a channel has no probe then it is not active and will show 0.00℃.
      • Channel 1: Adjusted temperature reported for channel 1. The raw temperature detected by temperature probe 1 plus the Channel 1 T Offset.
      • Channel 2: Adjusted temperature reported for channel 2. The raw temperature detected by temperature probe 2 plus the Channel 2 T Offset.
      • Channel 3: Adjusted temperature reported for channel 3. The raw temperature detected by temperature probe 3 plus the Channel 3 T Offset.

    Note: A temperature may only be reported for Channel 3 if the Ch3 Mode is set to Channel 3.

    • Channel 4: Adjusted temperature reported for channel 4. The raw temperature detected by temperature probe 4 plus the Channel 4 T Offset.
  • Power: The power output for each channel reported as a percentage from 0 to 100.
    • Channel 1: Power output currently available at dew channel 1.
    • Channel 2: Power output currently available at dew channel 2.
    • Channel 3: Power output currently available at dew channel 3.
    • Channel 4: Power output currently available at dew channel 4.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

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Tunafish Fri, 10 Mar 2023 03:56:12 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/mydcp4esp32-dew-controller.html
myDewControllerPro https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/mydewcontrollerpro.html ]]> Chemistorge Sun, 19 Feb 2023 15:53:47 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/mydewcontrollerpro.html OpenAstroTech https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/openastrotech-mounts.html

Installation

This driver for OpenAstroTech mounts is included with INDI v1.9.9+

Features

The OpenAstroTech driver extends the LX200 GPS that was previously used driver and adds some extra features:

  • Focusing with relative (instead of time based) movements and backlash compensation.
  • Support for the Auto Polar Alignment extension.
  • Custom "Meade Command" field. Enter a command like ":GVP#" and work with the responses until there's real support for the feature you're missing.

Under development are these items, but if you know the Meade commands you can use them by just using the "Meade Command" field:

  • RA Homing (you need to have the RA Homing extension installed)
  • DEC Homing
  • DEC Limits

Operation

Let KStars set the time/date and simply operate like you normally would. More information can be found on the wiki.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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naheedsa Wed, 05 Oct 2022 07:18:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/openastrotech-mounts.html
Wanderer Cover V3 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wanderer-cover-v3.html

Installation

INDI FlipFlat driver is included with libindi v1.9.7+

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

INDI Wanderer Cover driver provides control to open/close the dust cap and to control and light and its brightness level.

Operation

Before establishing connection, set the device port in the Options tab. After connection, you can Park (Close) or UnPark (Open) the panel and set the light level and turn on/off the light source.

connection

Under the options tab, you can optionally set the INDI Filter Wheel device (whether embedded within a CCD or a standalone filter device). Make sure to save the config so that it is loaded on next start up.

 

main control

Once the driver receives filter information, it shall constructions the Presets tab where you can set the desired brightness level for each filter accordingly. Therefore, whenever the filter wheel changes, the brightness level for the new filter slot is updated accordingly. This feature is very useful when taking flats via narrowband filter as they require higher brightness settings to obtain flats at a desirable ADU level. The filter-adjusted brightness settings are saved for future sessions after you save the driver configuration in the driver's tab

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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grm Tue, 13 Sep 2022 21:35:47 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/wanderer-cover-v3.html
WeeWX Weather Station https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weewx-weather-station.html

Installation

INDI WeeWX JSON driver is included available as 3rd party driver. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
 
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-weewx-json

Features

You must first have a working WeeWX installation with the WeeWX JSON Plugin installed and working.

With a working WeeWX install, the only option you need to set in the driver is the WeeWX JSON URL.

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rickbassham Mon, 04 Jul 2022 12:22:02 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weewx-weather-station.html
Astrophysics V2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-v2.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.9.5+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi

Features

This driver supports Astro-Physics mounts over a serial connection with a firmware version of 'V' or newer.

This driver is a re-write of the previous "experimental" driver. It was written with the aim of full automation using Ekos. It is a new driver with limited user testing. Because of this, we urge you to take it slowly and make sure you carefully supervise use of the driver for several nights until you are comfortable that it is operating properly. 

Operation

This driver is under development and as such should be considered in a BETA state.  This means you are testing the driver as much as using it.

That said it has been used for imaging and appears to operate correctly.  Use common sense when testing this driver - be near the mount whenever slewing or parking just in case!  

First Time 

  • When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.
  • Set the geographic location and park position in the Site Management tab.
  • Use one of the predefined "ParkTo" positions of PARK1/PARK2/PARK3/PARk4. They are the only park positions supported. These are defined in this document from Astro-Physics: PARK POSITIONS
  • Make sure the "Unpark From" option on the Main is set to "Last Parked".  This is the safest option since it will let the mount determine its position based on where it was last parked.  The only reason to use a different setting is if the mount seems to have lost sense of where it is and you want to start from a predefined position.
  • Do not try parking the mount until this position is defined!
  • Save these options using the "Save"  button on the Options tab or else the changes will be loss when the driver is closed.

Initialization 

The mount will automatically be initialized by the driver - the user is not required to do anything extra.

Main Control 

APV2bMain

  • Connect: You can manually connect/disconnect to the mount.
  • UnparkFrom?: This should usually be set to LastParked. That means when you unpark, the mount remembers where it was last pointing, and as long as the geography and time are properly set in the mount, and the user has not move the mount's pointing position manually, it should be able to recover its position. You can force it to assume it is in the Park1, Park2, Park3, or Park4 position, but, of course, please make sure it really is. These are positions defined in this document from Astro-Physics: PARK POSITIONS 
  • ParkTo?: Tell the mount which of the above 4 park positions should be used.
  • Manual Set Parked: This is a button to help fix a problematic mount. You can force the mount to consider itself parked whereever it is pointing by pressing this button. After doing that, you would manually place it in a known park position, set UnparkFrom? to that position, and click unpark. Carefully test to make sure the mount is acting reasonably. Please supervise very carefully and be prepared to stop motion (possibly with a power switch). After that it is highly recommended to change UnparkFrom back to LastParked.

WARNING - Leave this option at "Last Parked" unless you know what you are doing.  If you start the driver up and it is set to something besides "Last Parked" and the mount is not actually in the configured PARK position it will be very confused about where it is really pointing and lead to improper slews that may cause a pier strike!

Connection

APV2Connection

The main control here is the port to connect to. The driver being used, and its version are also displayed.

Options

astrophysics options

The Options tab is used to set debugging and other configuration options, as well as being able to load and save configurations.

  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices the driver should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

astrophysics motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • PEC Playback: Controls whether PEC correction are enabled.
  • GOTO Rate: Rate of motion for GOTO operations.
  • Swap Buttons: Reverse direction mount moves.
  • Sync: Controls whether SYNC or RECAL is used for syncs.  The recommended setting is :CMR# to use RECAL!

Site Management

SiteManagement

 

Time and Location are configured in the Site Management tab.

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Firmware: (read only) display of the internal firmware of the mount.
  • AP sidereal time: (read only) display of the sidereal time, as computed by the AP mount.
  • AP UTC Offset: (read only) display of the internal UTC offset value. Note this will not be negative.

Guide

astrophysics guide 

Guide related option:

  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guide Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. Example: 0.25 means the mount shall move at 25% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.25x, the mount shall move 0.25*15.04 = 3.76 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 3.76 arcseconds.  The recommended value is 1.0x.

Issues

  • The lx200ap_v2 driver has been tested successfully by several folks, but not the number typical of a standard product. Please be aware and be observant of the mount when doing slews and parking the first several times you use the driver.
  • If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

 

]]>
hy Mon, 14 Mar 2022 04:35:10 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-v2.html
Lunatico NexDome Beaver INDI Driver https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/lunatico-nexdome-beaver-indi-driver.html

Installation

Nexdome Beaver driver is included with libindi >= 1.9.4 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

This package provides the INDI driver for Lunatico NexDome Beaver controller.

NexDome is a classic observatory dome with more than 100 degrees of shutter opening, allowing you to point your telescope to the zenith while remaining shielded from stray light and wind. The 2.2 meter inside diameter provides plenty of space to operate up to a 14” Schmidt Cass or a refractor 1400mm long.

The driver is compatible with Beaver firmware version 1.1.1 or higher.

INDI NexDome Beaver driver is compatible with libindi >= v1.8.2

Notes:

  • Network connection has not been tested: use USB or let me know if it works for you.
  • The controller does not support setting the shutter timeout value.
  • Aborting while the shutter is in motion will stop the shutter, however the controller will issue hardware errors.
    • (This is compatible with ASCOM)
    • Simply close or open the shutter to continue.
  • Use the MSWindow's based [Beaver software utility](https://www.nexdome.com/resources) to:
    • Set IP address inside the controller if you want to use the network
    • Update the firmware
    • Reset rotator or shutter low level settings

Features:

NexDome is a fully automatic observatory dome control system. Link your dome to a computer for complete automation including telescope slaving and shutter control. It supports the following features:

  • Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  • Rotation-only and full shutter-and-rotation available
  • Dome and Shutter status
  • Rotator homing and park
  • Motor control (Mmx/min speeds, acceleration and timeouts)
  • Direct confirmation of shutter open/closed state
  • Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  • Failsafe feature for shutter on low battery, disconnection with controller or computer
  • Park-before-close option to avoid mechanical interferences
  • Manual override controls for shutter and rotation control
  • (Not implemented yet) Field-upgradable firmware (You will need to use the Window's Beaver configuration utility atm)

How to use:

You can use the driver in any INDI-compatible client (such as KStars or Xephem) - just select
Beaver from the Dome list

To run the driver from the command line:

$ indiserver indi_beaver # plus other needed drivers (telescope, camera, etc)

or using the indiwebserver.

You can then connect to the driver from any client, the default port is 7624.
If you're using KStars, the drivers will be automatically listed in KStars' Device Manager.

Before you start:

  • Shutter controls will not show unless the rotator unit is in communication with the shutter unit.
    • This can take up to 20 secs after turning on the shutter
  • Under the Slaving tab: you need to set the parameters for your dome:
    • (Reference the Slaving Tab below)
  • Set the Park and Home positions
    • (Reference the Site Management Tab below)
  • Initialize the rotator and shutter
    • (Reference both the Rotator and Shutter tabs)
  • Do monitor the shutter battery field (see Main tab)

Operations:

Connection Tab

ConnectionsTab

You can connect to the Beaver controller via Serial (USB) or Network

USB:

  • Look for Silicon_Labs_CP2102N_USB_to_UART_Bridge_Controller_d88d70e0fd44eb11ad70aa52b003b68c-if00-port0
  • idVendor=10c4, idProduct=ea60 (On linux run: lsusb)
  • BaudRate 115200

Network:

  • I am having a problem connecting to the controller, so this is not tested. Let me know if this works for you.
  • Currently you would have to use the Window's [Beaver software utility](https://www.nexdome.com/resources) tool to set the controlers IP address.
  • Port should be 10000
  • Connection type is UDP

The INDI driver version is listed under Driver Info (that's this software)

Beaver controller's firmware version is listed on the Beaver line.

Main Tab

MainTab

Shutter Open/Close will only show up if the Shutter controller is up and communicating with the Rotator controller.

Move Relative buttons are meant to start/stop motion. However, instead they move the dome by the amount set by the relative amount set in t he field above. As a result, you need to press the CW or CCW button twice (once to start, once to stop).

Absolute Position will move the dome AZ relative to what you set the Home Offset to, which if set according to the instruction in the Rotator Tab, this will be from true north.

Dome and Shutter Status fields will display any errors, idle, moving, etc.

The Shutter Volts field displays the current voltage of the shutter battery. In combination with the Safe Voltage on the Shutter tab, this can trigger the rotator controller to go into safety mode and call for the shutter to close.

  • Shutter Volts and Status fields will not show if the shutter controller is off or not in communication.

Options Tab

OptionsTab

You can enable or disable automatic shutter opening and closing when dome goes to into or out of the Park position. After changing these settings, click 'Save configuration' button to save the driver settings.

Mount Policy: Mount policy can be either set to Ignore Telescope (default) or Telescope Locks. When the policy is set to Ignore Telescope then the dome can park/unpark regardless of the mount parking state. When it is set Telescope locks, this disallows the dome from parking when telescope is unparked. This might be important if you telescope has to be parked so as not to interfere with the dome parking.

Site Management Tab

site management

Park position can be set anywhere. Usually this is set to where the shutter charger is located, so the shutter will be charging when parked.
There are four options for setting the park position:

  • Set the 'Park Position' field by entering the degrees, minutes and seconds of the offset from the home magnet to north
  • Move the dome to where you want and click 'Current'
  • 'Default' button sill set park to zero
  • 'Write Data' button will force a write to ~/.indi/ParkData.xml file which is read on startup

 

Note: clicking on 'Park' will move to the park position and also prevent any rotator movement/action, until UnPark is clicked.

Home is defined as where the rotator controller's index magnet is located. This can be anywhere convenient (like not by the door, over a bay, etc.). Setting the Home Position field will correctly index this from north.
There are three options to set the home position(Home ...ition).

  • Set the 'Home Position' field by entering the degrees, minutes and seconds of the offset from the home magnet to north
  • Move the dome to the home magnet sensor and click 'Current'
  • 'Default' button will set the offset to zero

Slaving Tab

SlavingTab

 

You can slave the dome to the mount by setting the required slaving parameters (by convention the units are in meters);

  • Radius is for the radius of the dome (typically 2.2 for a Nexdome)
  • Shutter width is the aperture of the shutter of the dome in meters (0.6m in current models)
  • N displacement is for north-south displacement of the intersection of the RA & DEC axis as measured from the center of the dome. Displacement to north is positive, and to south is negative.
  • E displacement is for east-west displacement. Similar as the above, displacement to east are positive, and to west are negative.
  • Up displacement is for displacement of the RA/DEC intersection in the vertical axis as measured from the origin of the dome (not the walls). Up is positive, down is negative.
  • OTA offset is for the distance of the optical axis to the RA/DEC intersection. In fork mount this is generally 0, but for German like mounts is the distance from mount axis cross to the center line of the telescope. West is positive, east is negative.

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions. You can also set the Autosync threshold which is the minimum distance autosync will move the dome. Any motion below this threshold will not be triggered. This is to prevent continuous dome moving during telescope tracking.

See this [Reference] (https://www.nexdome.com/_files/ugd/8a866a_9cd260bfa6de414aacdc7a9e26b0a607.pdf) for more infomation on these settings - scroll to the bottom

 

Rotator Tab

RotatorTab

 

  • Click on the 'Measure Home' button to initialize the rotator. This will
    find and measure the home sensor on the rotator and set all the parameters.
  • The 'Find Home' button will find the home sensor then calculate and set all the max/min/acceleration/timeout settings
  • Settings fields:
    • You should not change these unless you know what you are doing!
    • To reset the rotator parameters back to defaults, click the 'Measure Home' button
  • To Park or unPark the dome or goto Home, see the Main tab

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions.

Shutter Tab

ShutterTab1

 

  • NOTE: This tab will not show up unless the rotator controller is communicating with the shutter
    • When turning the shutter power on, it can take up to 20 seconds for communication to be established
  • The 'AutoCalibrate' button will exercise the shutter through it's full range from closed to open. It will then set all these fields appropriately.
  • If these values are zero, click on the 'AutoCalibrate' button to initialize them
  • Safe Voltage is the level at which the rotator will execute it's shutter safety proceedure and close the shutter.
  • Settings fields:
    • You really should not change these unless you know what you are doing!
  • To open or close the shutter, see the Main Tab.

To enable or disable automatic shutter opening and closing when dome goes to into or out of the Park position, see the Options Tab.

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions.

 

Presets Tab

PresetsTab

 Allows you to set 3 rotator positions for convenient locations of your dome.

  • Example, maybe you need a ladder to access the dome or shutter for maintenance. One preset could rotate the dome so that's it's more convenient.

]]>
naheedsa Mon, 31 Jan 2022 09:07:21 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/lunatico-nexdome-beaver-indi-driver.html
Rigel Systems nFrame Rotator https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rigel-systems-nframe.html

Installation

Rigel Systems nStep driver is included with libindi >= 1.9.4 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The nFrame rotator controller is a small absolute-position unipolar stepper motor controller that can work on a variety of motor configurations. It connects to your PC/StellarMate via Serial-to-USB cable It supports the following features:

  • Speed adjustments: 254 levels of speed adjustment controls.
  • Stepping Controls: Control the motor stepping mode and wiring phase.
  • Sync: Set the rotator position to any arbitrary values to reset the position to the desired value.

image001

Main Control Tab 

  • Goto: Move to any arbitrary angle
  • Abort: Stop motion
  • Max Position: Define an arbitrary maximum travel position. Any GOTOs beyond this position are rejected.
  • Sync: Set the current angle position to this value.
  • Steps: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe if any.
  • Speed: Set the current stepping rate, lower is slower
  • Max Speed: Set the maximum step rate allowed

Connection

 

image003

The rotator can connected to the PC/StellarMate via either a serial-USB connection or WiFi. Use Serial to USB adapter and connect it to a USB port. By default, the driver would try to connect to all available systems ports until a successful connection is made. It is generally recommend to employ the Serial Port Assistant tool to assign a permanent designation for the port. This would make connecting to the serial port reliable from the first time if there are multiple serial to usb devices being used at the same time by the system.

 

For WiFi nFrame controllers, click on Ethernet button to switch to Networked connection. Refer to nFrame documentation for configure the WiFi option. The IP address and port of the WiFi adapter is required to make the connection.

 

After making changes to the connection parameters, go to the Options tab and save the configuration.

 

Options

image005

 

The options tab includes parameters to enable/disable logging and debugging settings in addition to polling and joystick control.

The debugging and logging options should remain off unless you are to diagnose a problem with the driver.

Polling: How often should the driver read the device output signals? By default it is set to 500ms or twice per second.

Coil After Move: Set whether the stepper coils should be energized or de-energized after motion is complete.

Caution: When set to energized, watch the stepper motor temperature as it might get warm.

Presets

image007

Allows the user to pre-define specific rotation values then click one of the Pre-sets to move to that angle.

 

Settings

image009

Allows the user define the number of steps per degree of rotation.

 

Stepping Settings

image011
 

Controls the stepping mode and phase.

o    Wave: Wave Stepping Mode.

o    Half: Energizes 1 or two coils at a time, doubling step resolution.

o    Full: Highest power mode, two coils always energized.

  • Phase Selectset to 0 for usb-nFrame. Can be used for any possible phase wirings. Allow a person to wire the phases in any order then chose one of 3 settings in software to drive them.

]]>
naheedsa Tue, 25 Jan 2022 06:44:57 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rigel-systems-nframe.html
Rainbow Astro https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/rainbow-astro.html ]]> sywong2000 Thu, 16 Dec 2021 07:47:26 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/rainbow-astro.html Astrotrac 360 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrotrac-360.html

Installation

INDI Astrotrac 360 Driver is released with INDI Library >= v1.9.2 To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

This INDI Astrotrac driver interacts with Astrotrac mounts via WiFi. It fully supports all the mount features and provides support for a mount model powered by INDI Alignment Subsystem. This results in highly accurate GOTOs when used with a plate solving software (e.g. Ekos) as the driver compensates for differences between the sky and mount coordinates on the fly.

Current features are:

  • Goto/Slew/Sync.
  • Park/Unpark with configurable custom parking positions.
  • Custom tracking rates
  • Custom acceleration rates
  • Guiding
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom trackrates
  • Full joystick support
  • Mount modelling

Main Control

Connectivity

The driver communicates with the mount over the netwrok. Therefore, before establishing connection to the mount, you must set the mount's IP address and port in the Connection tab. Please ensure the machine running the driver is on the same network as the mount so they can talk to each other.

Connection

Please note 2 ways to connect RA/DEC drives

  1. RA power first then once on then after 15 or so seconds connect cable from RA to DEC , that should trigger the RA to configure the DEC as a DEC automatically
  2. However with some peoples mounts that doesn’t happen due to some issue that Richard from Astrotrac does not know how to fix in which case you have to manually configure the DEC drive as a DEC drive:
    1. In this case you can connect the RA and DEC connecting cable before powering on everything or after it does not matter
    2. You then connect to the drive you will configure as a DEC drive and connect to its wifi (AstroTrac360:RA:XX.XX.XX.XX) from any device can be same or for example your phone. Navigate to the IP address via the browser and go to the console (in the UI)
    3. You type 1i50 and hit enter
    4. The drive will now disconnect itself and in a few moments will appear as AstroTrac360:DEC:XX.XX.XX.XX ( WHERE XX IS THE IP address OF YOUR DRIVE)
    5. Now the RA drive will be able to send commands via the cable to control the DEC drive

For more information on communication with the mount, you can check a detailed INDI thread on the subject.

Operation

By default, the mount type is set to German-Equatorial (GEM) and can be switched to Single-ARM mode if desired. This must be done before connecting to the mount.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of Astrotrac takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will rarely use this driver controls directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Lunar, Solar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used. Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property. The units are arcseconds per second.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

Options

  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices Paramount should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

Motion Control

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate. This feature is currently not supported in the firmware since the slew speed is fixed to 10800 arcsec per sec.
  • Acceleration: Acceleration rates per axis in arcseconds per seconds squared. The mount uses this value to accelerate from rest to the full slew speed (currently fixed at 10800 arcsecs per sec by the mount firmware).
  • Encoders: Displays the current Hour-Angle (HA) and Declination (DE) axis encoder values in degrees. You can manually command the mount to move to a specific encoder position by changing this property.
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.

Site Management

Time, Locaiton, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

 Site Management

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking: By default, the parking position is when the OTA to be looking directly at the celestial pole. To restore parking position to the default value, please Default under Park option. You can set a custom parking position using two methods. The mount must be unparked before you can set a new position:
    • Enter the desired HA & DE encoder values for the custom parking position, then press Set and then press Write Data to save the new parking position.
    • Slew the mount to the desired parking position, then press Current to sync the encoders position to this value, and then Write Data to save.

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

If you are using KStars as your INDI client, you can click on any object or location on the Sky Map and then set it as the desired parking position as illustrated below:

Site Management

Alignment

The mount model utilized by the driver is managed by the properties in the alignment tab. Each time a sync point is added (by Plate solving software for example), the Current Set size is incremented by one. To save the list to disk so that it can be utilized in a future session, click on the Action to take dropdown and select Save the alignment database to local storage then press OK next to Execute Action property. For best results, change the Math Plugins to use the Nearest Math Plugin since it is very simple and reliable when used with plate-sovling software. For more complicated modelling, select SVG Math Plugin

Alignment

Issues

Thanks to Mr. Sameer Bharadwaj and Mr. Abdulrahman R. for their extensive testing on the driver during development process, their help was invaluable. There are no known issues for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

]]>
knro Thu, 23 Sep 2021 21:32:03 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrotrac-360.html
SVBony Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/svbony-sv305-cameras.html

Installation

The INDI SVBony driver supports SV305 and later models on Linux & MacOS. The SV105 and SV205 are UVC devices and can be controlled via the INDI V4L2 or Webcam drivers.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-svbony

Features

Main Control Panel

The driver supports the standard single-frame capture mode in addition to video streaming when supported. Furthermore, it supports:

  • SV305 Pro ST4 port guiding
  • Software Framing/ROI.
  • Software Binning
  • Slow, medium and fast framing
  • RAW8 and RAW12 frame format
  • Dynamic stretching in RAW12 mode
  • Color bayer pattern

Operation

Connecting to SVBony Cameras

Simply connect the camera via USB to your PC or SBC (Single board computer). The camera can be connected to an external powered hub as well. You can connect multiple cameras

General Info

General Info

The main control tab provides settings to adjust common camera parameters such as gain, gamma, contrast..etc. You may choose between RAW 12 bits depth or RAW 8 bits depth frame format. For planetary imaging or fast streaming, use the Fast framerate. For long exposure, use Normal or Slow.

RAW 12 bits depth frames are stored as 16 bits FITS files. By default, the driver use the 12 least significant bits, resulting in very dark images. You can then choose a stretch factor.

Capture

To capture a signle-frame image, simple set the desired exposure time in seconds and click Set. After the capture is complete, it should be downloaded as a FITS image. If the camera is equipped with a cooler, target temperature can be set. To change the format and bit depth (if supported), select a different image format in the Main Control tab.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging. The polling period for this driver should be kept as is unless you need to reduce it for a specific reason.

  1. Debug: Toggle driver debug logging on/off
  2. Configuration: After changing driver settings, click Save to save the changes to the configuration file. The saved values should be used when starting the driver again in the future. The configuration file is saved to the user home directory under .indi directory in an XML file.(e.g. ~/.indi/camera_name.xml)
  3. Snoop Device: The camera driver can listen to properties defined in other drivers. This can be used to store the relevant information in the FITS header (like the mount's RA and DE coordinates). The respective drivers (Telescope, Focuser..etc) are usually set by the client, but can be set directly if desired.
  4. Rapid Guide: Rapid Guide uses internal algorithm to automataically select guide stars.
  5. Telescope: Toggle between Primary and Guide scope selection. This selection is required in order to calculate World-Coordinate-System (WCS) values like Field-Of-View (FOV). When WCS is enabled, the FITS header is populated with WCS keywords that enable clients to map the sources in the image to physical coordinates in the sky. Usually, you do not need to toggle this setting manually as it is usually set by the client automatically
  6. Upload: Selects how the captured image is saved/uploaded?
    • Client: The image is uploaded the client (i.e. Ekos or SkyCharts)
    • Local: The image is saved to local storage only.
    • Both: The image is saved to local storage and also uploaded to the client.
  7. Upload Settings: Sets the local desired directory and prefix used to save the image when either the Local or Both upload modes are active. The IMAGE_XXX is automatically replaced by the image name where the XXX is the image counter (i.e. M42_005.fits). The driver scan the local storage and increments the counter automatically when a new image is captured and stored.

Image Settings

Image Settings

In the Image Settings tab, you can configure the framing and binning of the captured image:

    • Frame: Set the desired Region-Of-Interest (ROI) by specifying the starting X and Y positions of the image and the desired width and height. It is recommended to set use even numbers only to enable binning if required. The ROI values are indenepdent of the binning used.
    • Binning: Set the desired binning. The usually supported

Image compression can be turned on in image settings to compress FITS images. This might require more processing but can reduce the size of the image by up to 70%. The uploaded image would have an extenstion of .fits.fz and it can be viewed in multiple clients like KStars.

The Frame Type property is used to mark the frame type in the FITS header which is useful information for some processing applications. If there an electronic or mechanical shutter, the driver closes it automatically when taking dark frames.

To restore the ROI to the default values, click on the Reset button.

Image Info

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the camera (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. If the camera supports Bayer mask, then the bayer filter and offset can be set here. These are usually set automatically by the driver, but can be adjusted manually if needed.

Issues

These are mostly firmware related

  • Exposures can't be aborted
  • Intensive configuration changes could lead to a crash
  • Some shifts in frame order had been reported (frame N-1 uploaded instead of frame N)
]]>
knro Tue, 07 Sep 2021 05:13:35 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/svbony-sv305-cameras.html
Player One Astronomy Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/player-one-astronomy-cameras.html

Installation

INDI PlayerOne cameras Driver currently supports all of PlayerOne mono and color cameras.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-playerone

Features

Main Control Panel

The driver supports the standard single-frame capture mode in addition to video streaming when supportted. Furthermore, it supports:

  • Guiding via ST4 port.
  • Color and Mono cameras.
  • RAW8, RAW16 and RGB24 image data support.
  • Temperature control if cooler is available.
  • Black and White balance adjustments.
  • USB bandwidth control and frame rate limit.
  • Gain, Offset, Flip, Hard Bin, etc controls.

Operation

Connecting to PlayerOne Cameras

Simply connect the camera via USB to your PC or SBC (Single board computer). The camera can be connected to an external powered hub as well. You can connect multiple cameras

General Info

General Info

This provides general information about the currently running driver and driver version.  It also lets you set the Observer and Object Information for the FITS Header.

Capture

To capture a signle-frame image, simple set the desired exposure time in seconds and click Set. After the capture is complete, it should be downloaded as a FITS image. If the camera is equipped with a cooler, target temperature can be set. To change the format and bit depth (if supported), select a different image format in the Controls tab.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging. The polling period for this driver should be kept as is unless you need to reduce it for a specific reason.

  1. Debug: Toggle driver debug logging on/off
  2. Configuration: After changing driver settings, click Save to save the changes to the configuration file. The saved values should be used when starting the driver again in the future. The configuration file is saved to the user home directory under .indi directory in an XML file.(e.g. ~/.indi/camera_name.xml)
  3. Snoop Device: The camera driver can listen to properties defined in other drivers. This can be used to store the relevant information in the FITS header (like the mount's RA and DE coordinates). The respective drivers (Telescope, Focuser..etc) are usually set by the client, but can be set directly if desired.
  4. Rapid Guide: Rapid Guide uses internal algorithm to automataically select guide stars.
  5. Telescope: Toggle between Primary and Guide scope selection. This selection is required in order to calculate World-Coordinate-System (WCS) values like Field-Of-View (FOV). When WCS is enabled, the FITS header is populated with WCS keywords that enable clients to map the sources in the image to physical coordinates in the sky. Usually, you do not need to toggle this setting manually as it is usually set by the client automatically
  6. Upload: Selects how the captured image is saved/uploaded?
    • Client: The image is uploaded the client (i.e. Ekos or SkyCharts)
    • Local: The image is saved to local storage only.
    • Both: The image is saved to local storage and also uploaded to the client.
  7. Upload Settings: Sets the local desired directory and prefix used to save the image when either the Local or Both upload modes are active. The IMAGE_XXX is automatically replaced by the image name where the XXX is the image counter (i.e. M42_005.fits). The driver scan the local storage and increments the counter automatically when a new image is captured and stored.

Image Settings

Image Settings

In the Image Settings tab, you can configure the framing and binning of the captured image:

    • Frame: Set the desired Region-Of-Interest (ROI) by specifying the starting X and Y positions of the image and the desired width and height. It is recommended to set use even numbers only to enable binning if required. The ROI values are indenepdent of the binning used.
    • Binning: Set the desired binning. The usually supported

Image compression can be turned on in image settings to compress FITS images. This might require more processing but can reduce the size of the image by up to 70%. The uploaded image would have an extenstion of .fits.fz and it can be viewed in multiple clients like KStars.

The Frame Type property is used to mark the frame type in the FITS header which is useful information for some processing applications. If there an electronic or mechanical shutter, the driver closes it automatically when taking dark frames.

To restore the ROI to the default values, click on the Reset button.

Image Info

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the CCD (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. If the camera supports Bayer mask, then the bayer filter and offset can be set here. These are usually set automatically by the driver, but can be adjusted manually if needed.

Controls

Controls

The controls tab provides settings to adjust common camera parameters such as gain, gamma, brightness, contrast..etc.

The Auto switches enable to automatically calibrate exposure and while/black balance using the camera own internal algorithms. For astronomy, it is usually recommended to set all controls manually to achieve the most level of control over the produced images.

Some cameras support higher bit depth rates such as 10, 12, and 14bits. However, the generated FITS file is either 8bit or 16bit, so any intermediate bit depths are automatically stored as 16bit.

For color camera, the formats are RGB and RAW. If RGB is selected, the FITS color image would be stored as an 8bit per channel color image. For RAW images, the FITS image is stored using higher bit depths if supported by the camera (10, 12..etc). Therefore, to capture images in high bit-depths, select the RAW format.

]]>
hiro3110 Tue, 31 Aug 2021 08:14:02 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/player-one-astronomy-cameras.html
Digital Dome Works https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/digital-dome-works.html

Installation

DDW is included with libindi > v1.9.0. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-full

Features

DDW is a fully automatic observatory dome control system. Link your dome to a computer for complete automation including telescope slaving and shutter control. It supports the following features:

  1. Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  2. Rotation-only and full shutter-and-rotation systems available.
  3. Direct confirmation of shutter open/closed state.
  4. Safety interlocks automatically close dome upon loss of data from PC.
  5. Park-before-close option to avoid mechanical interferences.
  6. Manual override controls for shutter and rotation control

The driver has been tested with DDW Model 4 with firmware version 5.1, but should work with any similar versions.

Operation

Once you are connected to the dome, you can move it in absolute or relative position. You can slave the dome to the mount by setting the required slaving parameters:

  1. Radius is for the radius of the dome in meters.
  2. Shutter width is the clearance of the shutter of the dome in meters
  3. N displacement is for North displacement. If telescope is not in its ideal central position this parameter allows to configure how much it is displaced from the center. Displacement to north are positive, and to south are negative.
  4. E displacement is for East displacement. Similar as the above, displacement to east are positive, and to west are negative.
  5. Up displacement is for displacement in the vertical axis. Up is positive, down is negative.
  6. OTA offset is for the distance of the optical axis to the crossing point of RA and DEC. In fork mount this is generally 0, but for German like mounts is the distance from mount axis cross to the center line of the telescope. West is positive, east is negative.

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions. You can also set the Autosync threshold which is the minimum distance autosync will move the dome. Any motion below this threshold will not be triggered. This is to prevent continuous dome moving during telescope tracking.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

]]>
jpaana Sat, 31 Jul 2021 18:12:59 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/digital-dome-works.html
Celestron SCT Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/celestron-sct-focuser.html

Installation

INDI Celestron SCT Focuser driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.8 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

Main Control Panel

Celestron SCT Focuser driver is used to control Celestron Motorized Focuser when connected directly to a computer via USB. This driver should not be used if the focuser is connected directly to the mount. When connected directly to the mount, simply use the Celestron mount driver and it would automatically recognize and connect to the focuser.

Do not use Celestron SCT driver if the focuser is connected directly to the Mount direct via AUX cable. Instead, use the Celestron Mount driver to control the focuser.

This driver can be used to :

  • Move the focuser to an absolute position (specific absolute steps)
  • Focus IN and OUT using selected steps (relative position)
  • Abort the focuser motion
  • Set backlash.
  • Calibrate the focuser position.

Operation

Connecting

In order to connect to the focuser you just have to plug the USB cable and power up the focuser. Under Connection tab, you can set the Serial Port especially if you have multiple serial ports connected to the same PC. It is best to use Serial Assistant Manager to designate a permenant port (e.g. /dev/focuser) to this device.

Calibrating

You need to calibrate the focuser when using it for the first time. The calibration parameters are stored on the focuser itself so it can be re-used later. To begin the calibration process:

  1. Ensure the focuser is installed correctly and that the screws are tightend correctly.
  2. Set the starting point of the focuser halfway/center. This is very important, try to get it to halfway as close as possible.
  3. Click Start Calibration and then monitor the Calibration Status until the calibration process is complete.
  4. If the focuser does not stop on its own, make sure to check and address common mechanical issues.
  5. After it is complete and successful, you can begin to utilize the focuser.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Presets

Issues

If the focuser fails to calibration, here are some tips shared by Mr. Joe Larch. Thank you Joe!

  1. To basically check the function of the calibration process, I removed the focuser and stopped the rotating part with a firm grip a few seconds after the start of the calibration process (focus motor starts rotating counterclockwise). The focuser then changed its direction of rotation due to the calibration process. After a few seconds I slowed down the rotating part again with my hand. The calibration process was completed and I was sure that the focuser was working properly.
  2. The problem that the focuser did not work at the first start was the poor clamping of the plastic part on the C8-fokuser spindle. The metal part of the focuser that is supposed to clamp the plastic part (transition to the spindle) is too immobile/rigid despite the fully tightened clamping screw, so that the focuser does not reach an end or start position during the calibration process. The motor noise does change its frequency when the focuser reaches the start or end position, but the resistance is too low to complete the calibration process in the respective direction of rotation.
  3. The problem could be solved in a simple way. The brass sleeve of the focusing spindle was wrapped 3x with a Tixo tesa tape. The metal sleeve with the gear wheel that holds the plastic sleeve (already screwed in) was removed from the focuser. In order to connect the plastic sleeve with the brass part, which is wrapped with Tixo tape, without slipping, a few drops of super glue were spread on the inside of the plastic sleeve and the sleeve was then pushed onto the brass part. After a few seconds, the focuser part with the gear wheel and the plastic sleeve was well, but not completely permanently, connected to the spindle.
    Finally, the focuser (motor and connections) was pushed onto the part with the gear wheel and screwed onto the other end with the fixing nut.
  4. The calibration process necessary for Stellarmate/EKOS could now be started. The focus motor (C8 focuser at the starting point) then rotates approx. 42,000 steps to the left (counterclockwise), reaches the "end position" and then changes the direction of rotation. When the start position is reached, the focus motor stops after approx. 42,100 steps (+100 step = backlash) and the calibration process is successfully completed

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

]]>
knro Mon, 19 Apr 2021 14:30:01 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/celestron-sct-focuser.html
Raspberry Pi GPIO control https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gpio-control.html

The Raspberry Pi GPIO driver allows you to control up to five GPIO pins on a Raspberry Pi. Typically, each GPIO pin is connected to an opto-isolator circuit or Raspberry Pi hat to control larger voltages and currents.

The driver uses the pigpio library at http://abyz.me.uk/rpi/pigpio/

 

Installation

On Ubuntu systems install with:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install indi-rpi-gpio

 

This installs the indi_rpi_gpio driver and the pigpiod daemon which runs as a systemd service pigpiod.service. This service is installed by default on Raspbian systems and is replaced when the driver is installed. There should be no functional difference between the default service installed by Raspbian and the one installed by the driver.

The pigpiod service uses about 2% of CPU (8% of one core) depending on the type of Raspberry Pi. You can disable the service till next reboot with:

sudo systemctl stop pigpiod.service

Or disable permanently with

sudo systemctl disable pigpiod.service

 

Features

Up to five ports can be assigned a GPIO pin to control.

Note that GPIO pins are numbered by their GPIO (aka BCM) number per the Raspberry Pi pinout diagram and NOT by their physical pin number on the header. e.g. GPIO 3 is physical pin 5 on the Raspberry Pi 4.

Each port can be configured to be:

Not used

A simple on/off switch (active high)

A Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) control. This is normally how variable level output is controlled for things like LED panels, dew heaters etc. 

The pulse frequency is set at 1000Hz. The duty cycle can be set between 0% and 100%

A series of timed pulses. This is typically used for actuating a DSLR shutter in Bulb mode.

The driver lets you set pulse length, number of pulses and delay between pulses.

Pulse length can be set between 0 to 3600 seconds. Below 5 seconds pulse length can be set in 0.1 second increments.

Delay can be set between 0 to 60 seconds. Below 5 seconds delay can be set in 0.1 second increments.

Number of pulses can be between 0 to 500.

Each port can be configured as Active High or Active Low

A label can be set for each port for easy identification

 

Operation

On the GPIO Config tab

Select the GPIO number for each port or Not in use of it is not used

Select the type of port: On/Off, PWM, Timer or None if it is inactive

If the port is a PWM type, set the duty cycle

 

If the port is a Timer type set the timing parameters on the Timer Config page

Set the Duration of the switch on time in seconds

Set the Count for the number of times the port switches on

Set the Delay between the port being switched off and switched on. The delay also applies before the first switch on

Activate a port from the Main Control page.

If the port is a PWM type, set the duty cycle

 

]]>
kengs Tue, 16 Mar 2021 04:29:07 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gpio-control.html
Rainbow Astro RSF https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rainbow-astro-rsf.html

Installation

INDI Rainbow Astro RSF driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.8 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

Rainbow Astro RSF is a secondary mirror focuser with a stepper motor. It includes a physical remote controller that can be used without a computer.

Main Control

Main Control Panel

 

Please note the range for the RSF focuser is -8000 to +8000 with zero being the home position. However, in INDI the range is 0 (corresponding to -8000) to 16000 (corresponding to +8000) with 8000 being the zero home position. You do not really need to take any action, this is just for your information.

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT to control the relative position direction
  • Relative Position: Moving the focuser a number of steps relative to the current position
  • Absolute Position: Moving the focuser to the specified position from 0 to 16000
  • Max Position: The maximum number of steps
  • Temperature: The current temperature reading of the focuser's sensor
  • Go Home: Takes the focuser to the home position which uses a sensor to confirm the position

 

Connection

 

Main Control Panel

 

  • Driver Info: General driver infomation
  • Connection Type: Serial or Ethernet 
  • Baudrate: 9600

 

  Options

The Options tab contains settings for all drivers that include polling (frequency of updates), logging, and debugging. Contains the option for simulation to run the driver without using the physical device.

Options 

 

 

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

 

Presets

 

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

]]>
abouland Wed, 30 Dec 2020 13:45:57 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rainbow-astro-rsf.html
ActiveFocuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/activefocuser.html

Installation

INDI ActiveFocuser driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.8 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

Main Control Panel

The ActiveFocuser driver is used to control the focuser on the Mewlon-250CRS and CCA-250 from Takahashi.

Those focusers can be controlled to get the perfect focus with your scope and they also include three fans and three temperature sensors used to find the thermal equilibrium of the scope.

This driver can be used to :

  • Move the focuser to an absolute position (specific absolute steps)
  • Focus IN and OUT using selected steps (relative position)
  • Abort the focuser motion
  • Read the data coming from the temperature sensors
  • Enable or disable the fan directly into the driver

This driver has been made by Takahashi Europe team.

Operation

Connecting to ActiveFocuser driver

In order to connect to the focuser you just have to plug the USB cable and power up the focuser.

The driver will automatically connect to your device using their hardware identifiers.

After connecting, the focuser is ready to go and you can use this driver in any other INDI application in order to control the focuser from your Mewlon or CCA.

Options

The Options tab contains settings for all drivers that include polling (frequency of updates), logging, and debugging.

Options

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Presets

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

]]>
abouland Wed, 30 Dec 2020 11:01:00 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/activefocuser.html
SkyWatcher Alt/Az https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/skywatcher-alt-az-dobsonian.html

Installation:

INDI Skywatcher Alt-Az Driver is installed by default with INDI. To install under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

 Features

The driver uses SkyWatcher protocol to directly control Alt-Az mounts without the need for the Synscan hand controller. In addition to general Park/Unpark and GOTO (SLEW) capability, it supports SYNC, TRACK and pulse guiding. It is designed to work with KStars, Ekos and other INDI-compatible planetarium automation platforms.

 INDI Main Contro Panel

Current features are:

  • GoTo Coordinates
  • Slew & Sync
  • Slew Rates
  • Sidereal Tracking rate
  • Full joystick support
  • Pulse Guiding

Mount should be in the Park Position (scope horizontal, pointing North) prior to driver connection for best results.

 

Connectivity

There are basically two way to connect your mount to your computer (PC or Raspberry PI/StellarMate):  Direct serial cable or Network. In either case you are directly connecting to the motor controller of the mount and the driver does not utilize the services of the Synscan Hand Controller or Synscan app.

1. USB

 SkyWatcherAltAzMount INDI Connection USB Panel

Connect a USB cable from the mount directly to a USB port on your PC or StellarMate. Depending on your specific mount, you might need to change the default baudrate of 9600 to whichever rate supported by your mount. You can select the USB serial port from the available port detected on the system.

For AZ-GTi mounts in Alt-Az configuration, connect from the RJ12 port to PC/StellarMate using a proper cable.

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2. Network (WiFi)

SkyWatcherAltAzMount indi ConnectionTCP2

Network WiFi connectivity to current SkyWatcher models is available via a built-in WiFi device. Previous models require a WiFi dongle attached to the motor controller. Both WiFi devices operate in much the same way.

The default mode for both the internal and dongle WiFi is HOTSPOT/ADHOC mode and the default address of the motor controller is 192.168.4.1 and the default password is not set. This is important to note, as if no device connects to the motor controller within a given time period (15 minutes to 24 hours, depending on firmware version), the HOTSPOT resets to this default configuration. The default configuration uses DHCP to assign an address when connecting from your computer.  The AZ-GTi driver shows a typical network diagram image here.

SkyWatcherAltAzMount indi ConnectionTCP

It is important to note the router in the SkyWatcher HOTSPOT is not robust, and while it will suffice for telescope control and visual astronomy, connecting multiple devices to the internal HOTSPOT router and porting images through it between devices may be beyond its capability. In this case, it may be advantageous to switch to Station Mode and configuring the Wifi as a client to connect to your local WiFi network. With the current model motor controllers that have internal WiFi, this is done using a computer, phone or tablet running the Synscan program or app, and as private netorks vary, is beyond the scope of this tutorial. The image above, however, shows a typical configuration for a home network (192.168.5.0/24) where the telescope address has been set via DCHP to permanently be 192.168.5.111. It is recommended that a static IP be used if setting up on a home WiFi network.

Note that the protocol is UDP and will not work if set to TCP. Presently, all SkyWatcher WiFi motor controllers communicate via UDP.

3. First Time Connecting

SkyWatcherAltAzMount INDI Options Panel

Enter the appropriate information into the Connection tab when running the driver for the first time, then select the Options tab and press SAVE to save the settings. You may also wish to enter telescope or accessory information in this tab. KStars, Ekos and other programs may make use of these data if provided. If you change settings in future, always remember to return to the Options tab to save your settings again.

 Operation

Main Control

 SkyWatcherAltAzMount indi Main Control

It is most practical to use Ekos or some other INDI client to control the mount, however some basic functions may be performed in the INDI Control Panel.  The Main Control tab shows the current connection and park status.  The "Connection" indicator must be green and the mount listed as UnParked for the driver to execute any motion commands.  While it may not seem necessary for parking/unparking to be implemented on what is typically a portable mount, parking the scope at the end of the session and unparking it at the beginning of a session may improve initial slew accuracy and may be required for more permanent installations in a domed or automated roof environment. UnPark does not move the mount, however Park will slew the mount and return it to its parked position (horizontal, pointing North).

The "On Set" buttons govern the action to be taken after new "Eq. Coordinates" are set.  They may be use to Slew or Sync the mount or simply begin tracking once the "Set" butten is pressed.

"Abort Motion" will command the mount motor system to stop all motion.  It may be used to avoid a scope collision with an unexpected obstacle or to halt a slew started by a client or the Motion Control tab.

Alignment

The Alignment tab in the default configuration show show one green indicator at startup for "Alignment Subsystem Active."  Other settings on this tab are for specialty applications and advanced use beyond the scope of this tutorial.  No adjustment for these parameters is required for general use.

Motion Control

SkyWatcherAltAzMount INDI Motion Control

The "Motion N/S,"  (North/South) and "Motion W/E" "West/East" may be used to start the scope slewing at the listed "Slew Rate."  If you are not using a Joystick or INDI Client with a mount simulator, it may be necessary to press the "Abort Motion" Abort button on the Main Control tab to stop the slew.  It is not intended for fine adjustments.

The "Slew Rate" may be adjusted at any time.  It is suggested that a low to moderate slew rate be selected initially, whether in the Motion Control tab or an INDI compatible Client.  Remember to return to the Options tab and save your settings once you have found a setting you like.

"Slew Mode" defaults to "Normal."  "Silent" mode is not as loud, but may not allow some of the faster "Slew Rates" on some mounts.

Mounts without SoftPEC may enable "SoftPEC Mode" for tracking.  Otherwise, the default setting is "Disabled."  It is best to begin with the default SoftPEC value if you Enable SoftPEC.

"Guide Rates" are set to a default of 120.000 arcsec/second for both RA and DEC.  Most guiding software will override these values and the current recommendation is to leave them at the default value.

Site Management

 SkyWatcherAltAzMount INDI Site Management Tab

It is critical that the information in the Site Management tab is accurate.  KStars-Ekos, GPS add-on devices and some clients will populate these fields if properly configured, however some clients will not.  If the startup time/date and Lat/Lon values are incorrect or missing, accurate pointing will not be possible.

Detailed Mount Information

SkyWatcherAltAzMount INDI Detailed Mount Information Tab

The Detailed Mount Information tab is primarily detail for troubleshooting.  It shows real-time process during mount operations.  The data elements displayed are polled from the mount by the indi driver upon startup.

Guide

SkyWatcherAltAzMount indi Guide

The Guide tab is for entries of minor adjustments to the pulse guiding system.  In most cases, these adjustments are best made within the guiding software.  Use with care.

 

]]>
JonCarleton Tue, 29 Dec 2020 15:02:45 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/skywatcher-alt-az-dobsonian.html
RBFocuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rbfocuser.html

Installation

INDI RBFocuser driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.8 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Main Control Panel

RB Focuser is a budget-friendly telescope electronic focuser with a resolution of 0.7 microns, made to keep up with today's fast optics standard. Depending on the version, it comes with: temperature sensor, Auto home function, BlueTooth connectivity, and Android APP. The unit is 3D printed what makes it easy to develop new mounting systems for any OTA.

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count. Selecting this controls the direction of the Relative Position property below.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Sync: Set the current focus position as the entered position.
  • Max. movement: Maximum position change in a single movement (in steps).
  • Abort Motion: Force focuser to stop when is moving.
  • Temperature: Ambient temperature(in Celcius).

Operation

Connecting to RBFocuser

Connect to the focuser using a USB cable. The connection type is serial and by default the port is set to /dev/ttyUSB0. The default baud rate is 9600.

After establishing connection to the focuser, you can use the focuser control in the INDI control panel directly to move and sync the focuser. Alternatively, the focuser can be used in any INDI compatible autofocusing application.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for all drivers that include polling (frequency of updates), logging, and debugging.

  • Focuser Hold: Keeps the telescope focuser held by the stepper motor when a movement is finished.
  • Direction change: allows the user to reverse de stepper movement direction in case of being necessary.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

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knro Wed, 02 Dec 2020 13:09:10 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rbfocuser.html
AHP XC8 Telescope Array Correlator https://indilib.org/devices/detectors/ahp-xc4-correlator.html

Installation

You can install the INDI AHP Telescope Array correlator driver by typing:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-ahp-correlator

Features

The INDI AHP Telescope Array correlator driver permits the usage of multiple flux collectors, both in radio and optical frequencies, and gives the possibility to plot a sky correlation of the visibilities of each baseline obtained. The result is stored into an image and can be post-processed.

Operation

Once you're connected, You can enable and power-up each line (flux collector) of the array and read directly its pulsing rate, and start the integration like a common CCD.

 

The delay between each line is calculated automatically and the result will be a Fourier plane filled with the correlation ratios been read during the observation.

It is important the Flux collectors location to be precise at most, so the best usage would be custom GPS drivers snooped by this driver.

All flux collector should point at the same object, so each mount snooped on each line should be linked to others.

 

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Platone Wed, 28 Oct 2020 01:22:10 +0100 https://indilib.org/devices/detectors/ahp-xc4-correlator.html
RTL-SDR Spectrograph https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/spectrographs/rtl-sdr-spectrograph.html

Installation

You can install the INDI RTL-SDR driver by typing:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-rtlsdr

Features

The RTL-SDR driver permits usage of the RTL-SDR radio receivers with INDI.

Operation

Once connected, you can start an integration and capture the radio flux from a FITS file. The RTL-SDR dongle must be connected before starting the driver executable. Also TCP connections can be used for remote RTL-SDR servers.

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Platone Tue, 27 Oct 2020 21:22:26 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/spectrographs/rtl-sdr-spectrograph.html
Pegasus Falcon Rotator https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-falcon-rotator.html

Installation

Pegasus Falcon driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.7 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Pegasus Astro – Falcon Rotator is a light-weighted, low profile camera field rotator. Do not be fooled by its thin size! It can lift and handle heavy image trains – dead accurate! Very easy to operate via INDI and it will make your life easier to automatically adjust with precision your camera field.

Falcon Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Goto: Command rotator to a specific rotation angle. 0 degrees is home position where the camera is level.
  • Sync: If the current position angle value is incorrect, use Sync to reset it to the correct observed value.
  • Derotation: Set Experimental field derotation. Value is steps per millisecond.
  • Firmware: Display rotator firmware.
  • Reload: Reload rotator firmware.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

The INDI Pegasus Falcon driver provides complete functionality for all the features supported by Falcon rotator including GOTO, Sync, and field derotation.

Falcon Connection

Connection is via USB. Set the port accordingly or click Scan Ports to detect any ports on the system. The angle reported is the rotation angle and should not be confused with Position Angle (PA) reported by astrometry. Some clients (e.g. Ekos) provide rotator control. Once an image is plate solved via astrometry, the image PA is known and it is then possible to command the rotator to a specific position angle

Ekos Rotator Control

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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knro Sat, 03 Oct 2020 09:55:26 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-falcon-rotator.html
Pentax DSLR https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/pentax-dslr.html

This driver supports various Pentax cameras in MSC and/or PTP mode, depending on the camera.

Installation

The driver requires two libraries: libRicohCameraSDKCpp and libPkTriggerCord. These are included with indi-pentax in the indi-3rdparty repository.

sudo apt install indi-pentax 

Compatibility

In general, a greater number of cameras are supported in MSC mode. However, in certain use cases on more recent cameras (e.g. no bulb mode, no prime focus), PTP mode is more reliable and will get you live view as well. See known issues.

Based on the documentation for the libraries that this driver relies upon, the following cameras should work. However, only cameras with an asterisk are actually confirmed. Please update this list if you verify support for any camera:

  • Pentax K-01 (MSC - known bugs)
  • PENTAX K-1 (PTP, MSC?)
  • PENTAX K-1 Mark II (PTP, MSC?)
  • Pentax K-3 / K-3 II (MSC)
  • Pentax K-5 (MSC)
  • Pentax K-5 II / K-5 IIs (MSC)
  • Pentax K-7 (MSC)
  • Pentax K10D / Samsung GX-10 (MSC - fw 1.20 or later)
  • Pentax K20D / Samsung GX-20 (MSC)
  • Pentax K-30 (MSC - no bulb) *
  • Pentax K-50 (MSC - known bugs)
  • PENTAX K-70 (PTP, MSC - with bugs) *
  • Pentax K200D (MSC)
  • Pentax K-500 (MSC)
  • PENTAX 645Z (PTP, MSC?)
  • Pentax K-r (MSC)
  • Pentax K-m / K2000 (MSC)
  • PENTAX KP (PTP, MSC?)

Cameras suspected to have limited MSC support include:

  • Pentax istDS2
  • Pentax istDL
  • Pentax K100D Super

Cameras likely not to work include:

  • Pentax istDS
  • Pentax istD
  • Samsung GX-1L
  • Pentax K110D
  • Pentax K100D
  • Pentax K-S2

Features

The exact set of features available will depend on the current USB mode and capture mode of the camera. Not all features will be available on all cameras. The following is a rough list of what to expect:

  • Still image capture
  • Live View (PTP mode only)
  • Capture as FITS (processor intensive), Native, or both
  • Change image format (JPEG, PEF, or DNG) (DNG is saved as a .raw file)
  • Predefined capture mode support (e.g. Auto, Manual, etc.)
  • Bulb mode support (MSC mode only)
  • Set shutter speed to any supported by the capture mode to which the camera is currently set
  • Change ISO (For certain cameras, such as K70, works in PTP mode only)
  • Change Exposure (For certain cameras, such as K70, works in PTP mode only)
  • Change White Balance
  • Change JPEG image quality
  • Change JPEG image resolution (PTP mode only)
  • Toggle save to SD Card (PTP mode only)
  • Monitor battery level

The driver should support multiple cameras at once, and the author is happy to verify that if anyone wants to donate another camera.

If there's a feature that PkTriggerCord supports for your camera, but the driver currently does not, it should be possible to add support. Contact the author with requests.

Operation

  1. First, be sure the camera is in the desired USB mode (PTP or MSC). Then connect the camera via a USB cable to the Indi host and power the camera on.
  2. Set the camera to the appropriate capture mode. For MSC mode, Bulb (B) provides maximum flexibility for exposures greater than 1 second, and M mode is recommended otherwise. For PTP mode, Manual (M) is suggested for maximum flexibility.
  3. Start indiserver on the host with "Pentax DSLR (Native)" selected as a driver.

If you are starting indiserver from the command line, you can use:

indiserver indi_pentax
  1. Launch your Indi client, if you are not already in the client, and click "Connect" if you are not already connected.
  2. Once connected, you should see a device pane for your Pentax camera. The device pane will have a number of tabs. You may change most settings in the Image Settings tab of the Indi Control Panel, though FITs/Native settings are in the Options tab.
  3. To capture an image using the Indi Control Panel, go to the Main Control tab and select an exposure duration. Then click "Set" to start the exposure.

Note that unless you are in bulb mode, the exposure time you choose will not be the exact exposure time, but will be matched to the closest predefined exposure time of your current capture mode.

  1. For Live View, be sure you are in PTP mode, and select the Streaming tab.

Images and Live View are also supported through Ekos, as explained in the Ekos documentation.

Switching operational modes

You may switch capture modes (e.g. switch from Auto to Manual or Manual to Bulb) at any time.

To switch between PTP and MSC, you will need to unplug the camera from the host and change to the desired USB mode using the on-camera menu. You may need to manually disconnect from the driver in the Indi client (e.g. using the "Disconnect" button) if you are in MSC mode. Then, plug the camera back into the host and click on "Connect" again. A separate device pane will be created for your new USB mode, if it does not already exist. Switch to the new device pane and cick "Connect" to continue in the new USB mode.

Known Issues

All modes

  • On low-power systems (e.g. Raspberry Pi 3 and older), for performance reasons, the Native output format is recommended for the driver instead of FITS. In such environments, if you need FITs, I would recommend running KStars remotely, and configuring Ekos to auto-convert to FITS.
  • When DNG format is selected, images are currently saved with a "raw" extension. This is because Indi seems to have a bug with .DNG files where it grabs the JPEG preview out of DNGs and discards the rest of the DNG file. The raw files may be safely renamed to ".DNG."
  • Download time estimates computed by Ekos are wrong, especially if you're using a slower system like a Raspberry Pi 3.

PTP mode only

  • No support for PTP mode on 64-bit ARM-based operating systems.
  • Bulb capture does not work in PTP mode.
  • Many settings (including exposure time) are unavailable in PTP mode when a lens is not attached (i.e. for prime focus).
  • When compiled on a Raspberry Pi 3B running Ubuntu Mate 18.0.4 (32 bit), PTP mode does not work. This appears to be because the indi_pentax binary generated by the compiler is for armv7, whereas the library files provided by Ricoh are for armv6. Yet, I currently cannot figure out how to get indi-pentax to compile if I force the compiler to armv6. A workaraound is to use a binary generated on Raspbian.

MSC mode only

  • No Live View.
  • Changing ISO and exposure compensation do not work on the K-70 in MSC mode (probably other cameras as well).
  • Driver-based conversion from JPEG to FITs throws a corrupt JPEG error. This does not actually seem to cause problems, but I could be wrong. To avoid the issue, though, select Native format for the driver, and configure KStars to convert to FITs if you need it (recommended anyway, see above). Or capture in RAW format instead of JPEG.
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karlrees Mon, 24 Aug 2020 21:25:06 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/pentax-dslr.html
Raspberry Pi Camera https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-camera.html

Installation

RPI Camera Driver currently supports the Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera in full raw mode.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-rpicam

Features

Main Control Panel

The driver supports capture and gain adjustment. The image returned in FITS format is in Bayer BGGR 16 unsigned raw format. Currently with a fixed size of 4056x3040.

To capture a single-frame image, simply set the desired exposure time in seconds and click Set. After the capture is complete, it should be downloaded as a FITS image.

Operation

Connecting to RPI Camera

Before connecting the camera to the RPI camera CSI port make sure the camera port is enabled on the RPI. Run raspi-config and under the choice "Interfacing Options" select to enable the camera.

General Info

General Info

This provides general information about the currently running driver and driver version. It also lets you set the Observer and Object Information for the FITS Header.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging. The polling period for this driver should be kept as is unless you need to reduce it for a specific reason.

  1. Debug: Toggle driver debug logging on/off
  2. Configuration: After changing driver settings, click Save to save the changes to the configuration file. The saved values should be used when starting the driver again in the future. The configuration file is saved to the user home directory under .indi directory in an XML file.(e.g. ~/.indi/camera_name.xml)
  3. Snoop Device: The camera driver can listen to properties defined in other drivers. This can be used to store the relevant information in the FITS header (like the mount's RA and DE coordinates). The respective drivers (Telescope, Focuser..etc) are usually set by the client, but can be set directly if desired.
  4. Telescope: Toggle between Primary and Guide scope selection. This selection is required in order to calculate World-Coordinate-System (WCS) values like Field-Of-View (FOV). When WCS is enabled, the FITS header is populated with WCS keywords that enable clients to map the sources in the image to physical coordinates in the sky. Usually, you do not need to toggle this setting manually as it is usually set by the client automatically
  5. Upload: Selects how the captured image is saved/uploaded?
    • Client: The image is uploaded the client (i.e. Ekos or SkyCharts)
    • Local: The image is saved to local storage only.
    • Both: The image is saved to local storage and also uploaded to the client.
  6. Upload Settings: Sets the local desired directory and prefix used to save the image when either the Local or Both upload modes are active. The IMAGE_XXX is automatically replaced by the image name where the XXX is the image counter (i.e. M42_005.fits). The driver scan the local storage and increments the counter automatically when a new image is captured and stored.

Image Settings

Image Settings

NOTE! None of framing- or binning settings are actually used by the driver yet! Nor is compression supported.

In the Image Settings tab, you can configure the framing and binning of the captured image:

  • Frame: Set the desired Region-Of-Interest (ROI) by specifying the starting X and Y positions of the image and the desired width and height. It is recommended to set use even numbers only to enable binning if required. The ROI values are indenepdent of the binning used.
  • Binning: Set the desired binning.
  • The usually supported Image compression can be turned on in image settings to compress FITS images. This might require more processing but can reduce the size of the image by up to 70%. The uploaded image would have an extenstion of .fits.fz and it can be viewed in multiple clients like KStars.
  • The Frame Type property is used to mark the frame type in the FITS header which is useful information for some processing applications. If there an electronic or mechanical shutter, the driver closes it automatically when taking dark frames.
  • To restore the ROI to the default values, click on the Reset button.
  • The Gain value is the cameras analog gain value from 1 to 16.

Image Info

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the CCD (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. If the camera supports Bayer mask, then the bayer filter and offset can be set here. These are usually set automatically by the driver, but can be adjusted manually if needed.

Issues

There are some features currently in development:
  • User defined framing.
  • Exposures longer that 1 second.
  • Exposure abort is currently not implemented.
There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

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knro Thu, 25 Jun 2020 14:06:59 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-camera.html
Seletek Rotator https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/seletek-rotator.html

Installation

The Lunatico's Seletek Rotator driver as a 3rd party driver with INDI >= 1.8.6 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-armadillo-platypus

Features

The Seletek Aramadillo and Playtubus controllers support control for focuser, rotator, and filter wheels. Therefore, any stepper motor can be configured to act as a rotator. There is no primary difference between a focuser and a rotator when using the Seletek controller board, the difference is in the function it serves. For rotators, you are limited by a travel distance from +180 to -180 degrees. Zero degrees is defined as when the camera is pointing UP and completely level.

Connection

connection

Before connecting, specify the connection port (default /dev/ttyUSB0). You can select from the detected serial ports next to System Ports property. If you are using a network-enabled controller, click the Ethernet button and set the IP address and port accordingly. Finally, in the Main Control tab, set which controller port the rotator is connected to (Main, Exp, or Third).

Main Control

main control

Once connected the current rotator steps and firmware are detected. Upon connecting for the first time, you must first configure the Settings before commanding any motion.

You can control the rotator by setting the Angle in the Goto property or by directly specifying the steps in the Steps property at the bottom. Use Sync to synchronize the current position angle to the desired value. This does not move the rotator, it only sets its current angle.

The motion direction can be Reversed if desired, and the backlash compensation can be enabled after setting the desired backlash value in steps.

Presets

presets

You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.

Settings

settings

Configure the motion parameters and motor type in settings:

  • Speed: Set the minimum and maximum speeds in usec/step.
  • Limits: Set the minimum and maximum permitted rotation angle. By default, the rotator can rotate CCW to -179.5 degrees and the same for +179.5. Rotator will always take the shortest distance to the target but it would not cross over the limit. For example, if the rotator is a 170 degrees, and the next target was -170, then it would travel CCW 340 degrees until it rearched the target angle.
  • Steps/Degree: How many steps in one degree. Without this setting, angle control will not work.
  • Motor Type: Must select the correct motor type (Unipolar, Bipolar, DC, Step-Dir)
  • Half Step: Toggle on/off
  • Wiring: Select how the rotator is connected to the board.

Warning! All the settings must be correctly set before command any motor motion. Neglecting the settings may lead to permenant damage to the motor and/or controller.

Issues

 

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

 



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knro Thu, 14 May 2020 11:35:32 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/seletek-rotator.html
Celestron AUX https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/celestron/celestron-aux-driver.html

Installation

INDI Celestron AUX Driver is released with INDI Library >= v1.9.4 To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-celestronaux

BETA driver. Do not use unattended. For Alt-Az mode, you must adjust the PID parameters to achieve good tracking. This driver was not fully tested with an Equatorial mount. Use caution.

Supported Mounts

The driver supports control of all Celestron Alt-Az and Equatorial mounts that are controlled via the following methods:

  1. WiFi
  2. AUX Port
  3. PC Port (found on CPC and CGX mounts).

Aliases

While the primary driver name is Celestron AUX, several aliases or labels were created to faciliate the driver selection for user.

aliases

For example, selecting Evolution WiFi would start the driver in Alt-Az mode with the Network Type set to Network, while selecting Evolution WiFi Wedge would start the driver in Equatorial mode.

Features

The Celestron AUX driver provides GOTO and sky alignment functions of Celestron mounts which support AUX protocol and is designed to work over all available communication channels. It works directly with mount and axis controllers, without any help from the Hand Controller.

In fact the HC may interfere with the driver operation and is better left disconnected from the mount or not used. The only potential function left to the HC is working as a serial interface to the mount. In principle, it should support any Celestron mount using AUX command set (most of them) with SkyFi wireless module, additional or build-in or over any type of serial connection (PC/AUX port with proper level converter or Hand Controller serial port). The driver was tested with NexStar Evolution (Alt/Az) and CPC (EQ) mounts.

The driver supports the following features:

  • GOTO
  • Sync
  • Custom Parking
  • Track Modes (Sideral, Solar, Lunar) for Equatorial Mounts only
  • Track Rates
  • Slew Speeds
  • Slew Directional Control
  • Coord Wrap Management.
  • Active PID Tracking for Alt-Az mounts.
  • Guiding

Connectivity

USB/Serial

Celestron AUX driver can use any of the serial connections offered by Celestron scopes. The serial connections are listed below with their main characteristics.

connection

  1. HC: serial cable connected to hand controller serial port (less recent models).
    • 4 pins connector (RJ11).
    • 3 wires used: GND, TX, RX.
    • RS-232 serial voltage levels (+5V,-5V).
    • 9600 baud transmission speed.
    • No transmission flow handshake, no echo.
    • Command protocol: pass through (mostly AUX protocol encapsulated inside HC messages).
  2. HC: USB cable connected to hand controller USB port (most recent models) (alpha testing).
    • mini USB connector.
    • Command protocol: pass through (mostly AUX protocol encapsulated inside HC messages).
  3. AUX: serial cable connected to Celestron AUX port.
    • 6 pins connector (RJ12)
    • 5 wires used: GND, TX, RX, CTS, RTS
    • TTL serial voltage levels (+5V, 0V)
    • 19200 baud transmission speed
    • Half duplex CTS/RTS handshake with echo
    • Command protocol: AUX
  4. PC: serial cable connected to Celestron PC port
    • 8 pins connector (RJ45)
    • 5 wires used: GND, TX, RX, CTS, RTS
    • RS-232 serial voltage levels (+5V,-5V)
    • 19200 baud transmission speed
    • Half duplex CTS/RTS handshake with echo
    • Command protocol: AUX
  5. USB: USB cable connected to an USB port of telescope mount (alpha testing).
    • USB connector type A.
    • Command protocol: AUX.

As modern computers generally no longer have serial interfaces, a convenient way to make a serial connection to a Celestron scope is to use an USB to serial converter with the proper cable as mentioned in the previous list.

Beware of cheapest USB/serial converters, they have serial lines with TTL levels (+5V,0V). So, they work with AUX port only. Connections to HC and PC ports require a true USB/RS-232 serial converter with symmetric voltage levels (+5V,-5V).

On the other hand old standard RS-232 is symmetric +/-12V signalling should NEVER be connected to the AUX port. Nothing should be connected there without proper level converter. The AUX port is non-standard and connected directly to the bus between all motor controllers and main board. There is an oportunity to burn all scope electronics by connecting wrong signals there.

Network connection

This type of connection can be used with scopes with WiFi interface like NexStar Evolution or any other Celestron scope equipped with SkyFi Wi-Fi adapter. It is the driver's default connection mode, and by default set the Celestron WiFi Hotspot settings (out of the box it is IP:1.2.3.4, Port:2000).  If the mount WiFi is configured to join to your own WiFi network (Station mode) then you need to set the IP address there or enable LAN Search so that it automatically searching the subnet.

First time connection

Before establishing connection to the mount, you must set the following properties in the driver:

  • Mount Type: Equatorial Or Alt-Az
  • Connection Mode: Network or Serial
  • Port Type: If the connection is Serial, then which port to use? AUX/PC or USB/HC?
  • Network Information: If connection mode is Network, then you can set the mount IP address and port. By default, it's set 1.2.3.4 which is the Celestron WiFi Hotspot IP address.

Main Control Panel

From the main control panel, you can issue GOTOs, syncs, and park/unpark the mount. Depending on the mount model, it's possible to home the mount in Azimuth/Right Acension and possibly Altitude/Declination axis. Horizontal GOTOs are also supported. Parking position can be set in the Site Management tab.

Alignment

The Celestron AUX driver embeds the Alignment Subsystem module that comes with the INDI library. This module allows to align the pointing coordinates of the telescope with respect to the celestial frame. After module alignment, the telescope pointing coordinates read from the driver will coincide with the direction actually pointed in the sky, less than a small error. This operation is generally performed at each power up or when the telescope mount is moved or changed for some reason.

alignment

This alignment operation is not a substitute for a correct mount leveling and orientation to north meridian for altazimuth mounts or to north/south celestial pole for equatorial mounts. Indeed, they are a prerequisite. By default, the driver uses Nearest Alignment Plugin.

There is no need to directly interaction with the Alignment tab in the driver as it is managed by the client (e.g. Ekos).

Motion Control

motioncontrol

Move the mount using the selected slew rate in the N/S and W/E directions.

Site Management

sitemanagement

The mount time and location are set in this tab. It is usually automatically handled by your client, so no need to set it directly. You can move your mount to your desired park position and then click Current followed by Write Data. Then go back to the Main Control Panel and click Park. Once parked, the tracking is turned off and you can safely turn off power. If no custom parking is set, the mount would park to its home position.

Coord Wrap

To protect against cables snapping, enable the Cord Wrap protection. Select where you want the NCL (No Cross Line) to be.

coordwrap

Mount Info

Displays the Mount firmware and ecnoder positions and angles. You can set the absolute position of the encoder if desired. When using an Alt-Az mount, then the Axis1 & 2 PID (Propptional-Integral-Dervivate) controller is used to keep the mount tracking the target. After each second, the target horizontal coordinates (which are time dependent) are calculated from the target equatorial coordinates. This result is compared to the mount's current horizontal position, and the difference is then sent to the mount to compensate.

If you find that your mount is not tracking your target accurately, it's recommended to start by adjusting the Propotional gain for each axis first. This usually have the biggest impact on the result with no further adjustments required. By default, the integral and derivative terms are set to zero. It's not recommended to set derivative gain unless you know what you're doing. Integral gain can be adjusted to elliminate steady-state error but can result in any over-shoot as well.

PID control is NOT used for Equatorial mounts, it is exclusive to Alt-Az mount tracking.

mountinfo

Issues

There are no known basic functional bugs in this driver, but there are multiple missing features and it is still not as stable as it should. If you found a bug, please report it in (preferably) github issue tracker for the driver or a main INDI project issue tracker. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

 

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Jochym Thu, 30 Apr 2020 09:54:13 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/celestron/celestron-aux-driver.html
DragonFly Observatory Controller https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/dragonfly-observatory-controller.html

Installation

Lunatico's Dragonfly is an observatory controller that can be used for remotely controlling your roll off roof and more with easy powerful features including event scripting. The driver provides a simple control for roll-ff roof observatories. The Dragonfly can be used for whatever your imagination can be for your observatory to remotely control equipment, roof and more.

INDI Dragonfly driver is released can be downloaded separately and installed. It is also included in the latest Stellarmate OS download.

Documentation contributed by Mr. David Collins of Blue Ridge Observatory. Mr. Collings graciously provided unlimited access to the Blue Ridge Observatory system in order to develop and test numerous INDI state of the art drivers. Thank you for being an outstanding member of the INDI community!

The driver comes part of the Lunatico 3rd party drivers. It is compatible with libindi >= v1.8.5

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-armadillo-platypus

Features

The driver can completely control the Dragonfly’s relays and Sensors for customizing your observatory needs for remote control. The relays can be used for many things such as switching control voltages to open or close the roof, switching lights or equipment on and off, or monitor a Safe/Unsafe weather station condition from the AAG Cloudwatcher as an example.

The driver supports the Dragonfly Sensors so you could monitor mechanical or magnetic sensors for the status of the roof or perhaps laser beam switches for positions of the telescope. With 8 relays and 8 sensors in the Dragonfly, the INDI driver gives the user great flexibility for controlling and powering devices anywhere in your observatory. Script control is also available in Ekos if you wanted to run a particular personal script for powering up or powering down your observatory due to sessions starting or ending. The driver works with weather stations supported by INDI and can recognize when unsafe conditions are present instructing the Dragonfly to close the roof.

Requirements

In order to utilize the controller for your roof control, you need the following:

  • Motor: bi-directional Motor connected to a mechanism (gear, chain..etc) to open and close the roof.
  • Parked Limit Switch: Parked limit switch sensor. This is the sensor to inform the motor when the roof is fully closed and is therefore considered to be in Parked state.
  • Unparked Limit Switch: UnParked limit switch sensor. This is the sensor to inform the motor when the roof is fully opened and is therefore considered to be in UnParked state.

You assign two Relays for motor direction control. For example, you can use Relay #1 for motor Clock-Wise (CW) motion, whereas relay #2 can be assigned to the Counter-Clock-Wise (CCW) motion. Assuming the CW motion Opens the roof, then this relay is assigned as the open relay in the Relays tab, and vice versa. Similarly, the limit switch sensors must be connected to the controller and once they are high, the sensor is considered to be actuated (i.e. active).

Operation

connection

Connection

Before you establish connection with the controller, head to the connection tab and set the IP address and port of the DragonFly controller. Furthermore, in the Main Control Panel, select which port on the DragonFly the driver should utilize (Main, Exp, or Third).

Main Control panel

Once you are connected to the Dragonfly, you can control open or close motion and Park or Unpark features.

main control

The Open / Close commands are the same as Unpark / Park commands. Opening the roof fully results in an unparked roof. Closing the roof fully results in a parked roof. The roof parking state is unknown while it is opening or closing.

Options

In the options tab, you can select logging and debugging levels in case you need to troubleshoot an issue in the driver. The snoop devices property is used to listen to properties of interest in other drivers. Since the dome can be slaved to the telescope, it needs to learn the current telescope position and its target destination. Usually these devices are automatically by your client software. The weather device is used to close to the dome in case of advert weather conditions (e.g. rain).

options

Joystick support is available to rotate the dome and park/unpark it. You need a gamepad (e.g. Playstation controller) and need to add the joystick driver in your equipment profile before you can turn on this feature. A new tab named Joystick will appear where you can set what each button or axis can do.

Policies

  • Telescope Policy: Telescope policy can be either set to Ignore Telescope (default) or Telescope Locks. When the policy is set to Ignore Telescope then the dome can park/unpark regardless of the mount parking state. When it is set Telescope locks, this disallows the dome from parking when telescope is unparked, and can lead to damage to hardware if it rains.
  • Auto Park: When Auto park is enabled and If weather conditions are in the danger zone, the dome will be automatically parked. Only enable this option is parking the dome at any time will not cause damage to any equipment.

Relays

relays

All relays can be turned on and off individually. Here you can set which relays open and close the roof so Park / Unpark knows which relays to activate in the event of bad weather, session has ended, or when you manually click on Park or Unpark.

Sensors

sensor

All sensors can be monitored here including which sensors are used for roof fully open (Unparked) or roof fully closed (Parked). Other sensors could be used for mechanical or magnetic sensors as well as any other function you would like to monitor.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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knro Sat, 18 Apr 2020 19:52:19 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/dragonfly-observatory-controller.html
AstroLink 4 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/astrolink-4.html

Installation

INDI AstroLink 4 driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.5 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-astrolink4

Features

Astrolink4 INDI driver supports AstroLink 4 mini device. AstroLink 4.0 mini device was designed to make astroimaging easier. Contains two focuser controllers, regulated outputs for heaters, peltiers or fans, switchable power outputs, different sensors inputs, hand controller connector and many other options. Following funcitons are supported in INDI driver:

  • 1x stepper focuser motor output
  • 1x DC focuser motor output
  • 3x switchable 12V power outputs
  • 2x regulated PWM outputs
  • temperature / humidity / dew point readings
  • voltage, current, consumed energy monitoring

connection

Before establishing connection, go to Connection tab and select the port. Once connected, you can:

  • Move the focuser to a position relative to the current one - select "focus in" or "focus out" and specify the number of steps in the "relative position"
  • Move to an absolute position - just specify the step number.
  • Sync, that is, set a specific number as the current position of the motor.
  • Abort the focuser motion at any time.
  • Power
  • Environment (weather readings)
  • DC Focuser

Focuser

focuser

Set the absolute or relative position of the focuser, control backlash and temperature compensation.

Environment

environment

The environment group provides readings for the temperature, humidity, and dew point. Below them are the limit settings for each parameter that includes the minimum and maximum OK range for each reading along with the percentage when the reading is marked as warning. If the reading exceed the OK limit, it shall be marked as ALERT. If a Critical property is marked as ALERT, then it marks the complete observatory as unsafe and the client software might take precuations to protect the observatory such as automatic parking of mount and/or dome.

Power

power

Control the DC output ports and PWM output. Consolidated power data is displayed below the control.

Settings

settings

Set the controller parameters.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

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knro Sun, 05 Apr 2020 12:39:45 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/astrolink-4.html
TeenAstro Mount https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/teenastro-mount.html

Installation

The TeenAstro INDI Driver is released with INDI library. It is shipped with INDI Library v1.8.3+. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

The INDI TeenAstro driver interacts with a mount controller using the LX200 protocol through a serial link.

The TeenAstro mount controller can be used with many different mounts that use stepper motors, including SkyWatcher, Astro-Physics and Takahashi.

Main Control

Current features are:

  • GOTO, Sync
  • Slew Speeds: 0.5x, 1x, 2x, 4x, 16x, 32x, 64x, 0.5 Max, Max
  • Track Rates: Sideral, Lunar, Solar. Track Modes: Equatorial
  • Tracking can be disabled
  • Meridian Flip is not supported
  • One custom parking positions
  • Pulse-guiding is supported
  • Guide Rates: 0.25x, 0.5x, 1x
  • ST4 Guiding is supported

The driver has its own internal model and does not use the INDI Alignment subsystem to build a model for the sky.

It needs to be aligned before it can be used with the driver. The default home position is with the telescope pointing towards the pole

Connectivity

1. USB

The controller connects via USB with a standard A-B cable.

2. Network

It supports networked connections over TCP/IP, through Wifi only (with a firmware version 1.1 or above)

The IP address is determined by the network (or self-assigned in case of stand-alone operation). The port number is 9999. To connect the mount, select the option "One To One" in the hand controller Wifi menu

3. Bluetooth

TeenAstro does not support Bluetooth.

4. First Time Connection

Connection

Before starting the driver, power the mount and make sure it is looking at the celestial pole with the weights down.

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select the port to connect to. You can also try connecting directly and the driver shall automatically scan the system for candidate ports. You can select Ethernet mode and enter the IP address and port for TeenAstro. After making changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the settings.

Operation

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of TeenAstro takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

3 tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Lunar, and Solar. Tracking can be engaged and disengaged by toggling the Tracking property.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    Dome is not supported at this time.


    Options
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Joystick is not supported.

Motion Control

Motion Control

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above where 1x equals one sidereal rate.
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guiding Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. 0.3 means the mount shall move at 30% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.3x, the mount shall move 0.3*15.04 = 4.5 arcsecond per second. When receiving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoretical motion 4.5 arcseconds.
  • Track Default: Default tracking rate to be used on startup.
  • ST4 N/S/W/E: If the mount is receiving guiding pulses via ST4, apply this rate.

The Slew Rate dropdown is used to control the manual speeds when using the NSWE controls either directly or via a joystick. To set the GOTO speeds (when mount moves from one target to another via a GOTO command), you need to set it via the hand controller Mount Menu.

Site Management

Time, Location, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

Site Management

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking Position: Upon connection to the mount, Ekos loads these values into the mount's motor controller to initialize the (stepper) motor step values. The default values represent the home position where the mount points to the celestial pole - i.e. 0 deg RA, 90 deg DEC.
  • Parking: To set the parking position of the mount to the home position, click “Default”, then "Write Data " - this saves the home values as the parking values. To set the parking position of the mount to a custom position, slew the mount to the desired position and click “Current”, then "Write Data " - this saves the current motor step values as the parking values.
    • IMPORTANT: For the first time Ekos connects to the mount, or if for any reason the parking position has become incorrect. Make sure the mount is in the home position, power up the mount, connect Ekos and set the parking position to home by clicking “Default”, then "Write Data ".

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

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knro Thu, 16 Jan 2020 10:25:48 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/teenastro-mount.html
AOK Skywalker https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/aok-skywalker.html

Installation

The INDI AOK Skywalker driver is released as a 3rd party driver and requires INDI Library >= 1.8.2. To install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-aok

Features

The INDI AOK Skywalker driver interacts with the AOK Skywalker mount controller (DDM Skywalker) using the TCP/IP protocol over WiFi or a wired ethernet link.

The Herkules line of the AOK Skywalker mounts are produced by AOKSwiss & Magnetdrives AG. The equatorial models DDM Herkules V12, V24 and V48 are supported. The alt-azimuth mount Atlas should be handled as well.

Main Control

Current features are:

  • Sync & Goto
  • LX200 compatible slew rates (Guide, Centering, Find, Max)
  • Configureable slew speed
  • Sidereal and solar trackrates
  • Tracking On/Off switch
  • Mount Park/Unpark switch
  • Pulse-guiding (projected)
  • ST4 Guiding
  • Mount Locked/Unlocked switch
  • Indication of pierside
  • The driver does not implement an internal alignment model, as it uses the builtin pointing model of the controller (DDM Skywalker).
  • It also employes the builtin automatic meridian flip of the DDM Skywalker, which heavily relies on setting the correct location data! (see Connectivity, 3. First Time Connection)
  • The parking position can be set individually through the webserver. (see Connectivity, 2. Web Server)

Connectivity

The mount is operated via the DDM Skywalker by means of a WLAN or a wired connection over TCP/IP.

1. Control Server

The default IP address:port is [192.168.1.9:5004]. (Follow the information in the operation manual of the DDM Skywalker, if you want to change adress or port.)

2. Web Server

In addition to the control port, the DDM Skywalker features a website at the address [192.168.1.9:80], that gives supplemental controls and informations about the status of the controller. (Be sure to have a working internet connection, as the DDM Skywalker is loading the sitemask from the web!)

3. First Time Connection

Before starting the driver, power the mount. The drives of the mount will make a couple of minor movements about both axis for calibration. Wait until the mount is steady again.

Connection

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab, select [Ethernet] and enter the IP address and port for the controller . After having set the changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the settings. Now you should be able to establish a connection with the DDM Skywalker in the Main Control tab.

Operation

Main Control

The Main Control tab is where the primary control of the AOK Skywalker takes place. After a successful connection the mount will be automatically unparked. Align the telescope with a known stellar object and do a "sync". This way Mountlock and Tracking will be automatically engaged. To track another object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press [Set]. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to [Sidereal tracking]. [Slew mode] is different from [track mode] in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete.
Users will seldom use this interface directly however, since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and "sync" the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

At present two tracking modes are supported: Sidereal and Solar. Tracking can be engaged and disengaged by toggling the Tracking switch.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

Options

  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices the DDM Skywalker driver should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. The DDM Skywalker shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: You can connect to the DDM Skywalker without having connected the mount and test all commands. So there is no need to toggle this switch!
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy: If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount  before  parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.
    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in [Scope Name] property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and slew controls are configured.

Motion Control

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Guide, Centering, Find and Max.
  • Slew Target displays the coordinates of the current land target.

Site Management

Time and Location settings are configured in the Site Management tab. Please note that proper data is crucial for the correct working of the mount, especially the automatic flips. The DDM Skywalker itself does not retain time and location: So after having set the changes, go to Options tab and save the settings. This way the controller is receiving the correct data on startup of the driver. Most applications, like KStars, can update the driver with location and time (see INDI settings in KStars).

Site Management

  • UTC Time/UTC Offset: UTC Time and UTC offset must be set for proper operation of the mount. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the mount. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Elevation: Elevation is entered only for informational purpose. It will not be included in any calculations.

Information

On successful connection the DDM Skywalker firmware version is read out.

Information

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

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knro Sun, 13 Oct 2019 09:44:00 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/aok-skywalker.html
MyFocuser Pro 2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/myfocuser-pro-2.html

Homebrew myFocuserPro2

Installation

INDI myFocuserPro2 driver is included with libindi >= 1.8.2 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

myFocuserPro2 is a fully featured open source hardware and software focuser designed by Robert Brown, using an Arduino Nano and stepper motor. Multiple options and driver boards are supported, please see website for full feature list, it is fully open sourced.

Current features are:

  • Sync
  • Absolute and relative position
  • Preset positions
  • Temperature compensation
  • Coil power control
  • Display on or off
  • Reverse direction
  • Joystick control

Main Control

Main Control Panel

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count. Selecting this controls the direction of the Relative Position property below.
  • Speed: Set the stepper motor speed 0-Slow, 1-Medium, 2-Fast
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Sync: Set the current focus position as the entered position.
  • Max. movement: maximum position change in a single movement (in steps).

Connection

Connections Tab

  • Driver info: General driver's informations
  • Connection Mode: Serial only supported

Options

Options Tab

  • Debug: Activate the debug mode. It has to be used for bugs reporting
  • Polling: NOTE: Regardless of setting, polling is hard coded to 1000ms, as myFocuserPro2 does not like to polled any faster
  • Configuration: Manage the backup of the configuration
  • Joystick: If the indi_joystick drivers is loaded, activate the selected buttons to move the focuser « IN » or « OUT » from a selected amount of ticks. If Joystick is enable a new tab is visible where the buttons could be configured.
  • T.Settings: Number of steps / deg change to adjust focuser
  • Step Mode: Choose required step mode from Full , 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32 or 1/64
  • Display: Turn Display On or Off
  • Coil Power: Set the stepper motor hold coil power On or Off
  • Reverse Direction: Reverse direction of the motor, if focus in/focus out are reversed in relation to the focuser physical movement

Presets

Presets Tab

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

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knro Mon, 16 Sep 2019 15:16:46 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/myfocuser-pro-2.html
Pulsar Dome https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/pulsar-dome.html

Installation

Pular Dome is included with libindi > v1.8.2. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Pulsar Observatories domes utilize rigel controller for rotation and optionally shutter control. 

Features

The dome controller is powered via the supplied 240V/12V DC transformer or a 7AH lead-acid battery. Power to the unit is controlled via the main switch and a red LED indicates when power is turned on. Dome slewing at up to 400 x sidereal speed in either direction is manual (at the controller) or via remote operation using a laptop or similar. A microprocessor controls the automatic tracking by moving the dome in a stepwise fashion, each step being approximately 1.8". It is recommended that the unit is switched off when not in use.

Pulsar supports fully automatic observatory dome control system. It also has a variety of sensors and relays to control power to other devices. Link your dome to a computer for complete automation including telescope slaving and shutter control. It supports the following features:

  1. Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  2. Rotation-only and full shutter-and-rotation systems available.
  3. Direct confirmation of shutter open/closed state.

The driver can operate a dome with and without shutter control.

Operation

Connection

The driver communicates with the dome controller over USB serial connection. Make sure to select the correct port in the Connection tab. The driver would automatically scan all ports and attempt to connect to the dome controller if the initial handshake with the controller fails using the designated port.

connection

Main Control Panel

connection

In the main control panel, you can set the azimuth absolute position of the dome in degrees, or you can the relative position as well. If you click on Dome CW (Dome Clock-Wise) and Dome CCW (Counter clock-wise), it would move the dome in the selected direction for 5 degrees.

To set the dome controller to an arbitrary azimuth position, use the Sync property. Once synced, the current position will be updated to match the new synced position.

Two operations are supported by the driver:

  • Calibration: Once you start calibration, the dome would rotate at least twice until it hits the sensors.
  • Find Home: Go to home position.

Once started, they can be aborted at any time by click on the Abort button.

Custom Parking

site

You can set a custom parking position in the Site Management tab. You can either set the position directly and then clicking Set, or you can go to the desired parking position and then click Current under Park Options.

This only sets the parking position. To perform the actual parking, go to the Main Control tab and click Park.

Slaving

Once you are connected to the dome, you can move it in absolute or relative position. You can slave the dome to the mount by setting the required slaving parameters:

  1. Radius is for the radius of the dome in meters.
  2. Shutter width is the clearance of the shutter of the dome in meters
  3. N displacement is for North displacement. If telescope is not in its ideal central position this parameter allows to configure how much it is displaced from the center. Displacement to north are positive, and to south are negative.
  4. E displacement is for East displacement. Similar as the above, displacement to east are positive, and to west are negative.
  5. Up displacement is for displacement in the vertical axis. Up is positive, down is negative.
  6. OTA offset is for the distance of the optical axis to the crossing point of RA and DEC. In fork mount this is generally 0, but for German like mounts is the distance from mount axis cross to the center line of the telescope. West is positive, east is negative.

options

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions. You can also set the Autosync threshold which is the minimum distance autosync will move the dome. Any motion below this threshold will not be triggered. This is to prevent continuous dome motion during telescope tracking, unless the dome itself support sidereal tracking internally.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's issue tracking system at Github.

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knro Sun, 08 Sep 2019 09:03:52 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/pulsar-dome.html
Astromechanics Light Pollution Meter PRO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/astromechanics-light-pollution-meter-pro.html

Installation

INDI SQM driver is included with libindi v1.7.9+

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The Astromechanics Light Pollution Meter is a handheld / PC based monitoring tool to measure sky brightness in mag/arcsec2. Measurements are compatible with Unihedrons Sky Quality Meter (SQM). It features :

  • Measure sky brightness in mag/arcsec2
  • Store measurements in FITS-Header of your astro images
  • Store measurement logs for later analysis

Main Control Tab

  • Connection: Connect or Disconnect device
  • Readings: last measured sky brightness, its average, minimum, and maximum values. All measurements in mag/argsec2. NELM (naked eye limit measurement) based on the conversion formula found at http://unihedron.com/projects/darksky/NELM2BCalc.html.
  • Reset: Reset statistics of readings.
  • Record file: directory and filename to store measurement log of LPM.
  • Save and Discard readings.

Main Control Panel

Connection

The USB connection is made on the default port, or by autosearch. The device is recognized as a USB Serial converter. Baudrate at 9600 is mandatory.

Connection

Options

Polling period in ms.

No additional option as been implemented. Debug mode and configuration files are available.

Options

Unit

Unit factory calibration data.

Unit

Issues

There can be connection issues via a USB Hub. If such a case happen :

  • Make sure that the executable is stopped
  • Check on which port the device is connected
  • Adapt if necessary the default port value DEVICE_PORT in the configuration file .indi/Astromechanics_config.xml
  • Start the driver again

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 02 Jun 2019 12:53:40 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/astromechanics-light-pollution-meter-pro.html
Watchdog https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/watchdog.html

Installation

INDI Watchdog driver is included with libindi v1.0.0+

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

When operating a remote observatory, complete control of the devices rest with the remote INDI servers and drivers. In case of a communication loss, the observatory should be capable of performing a graceful shutdown until communication is established again by the client.

Since the actual shutdown procedure can be unique to each observatory, the user should be able to configure the exact required shutdown procedure. But for most users, the usual shutdown procedure involves parking the mount followed by parking the dome, if one exists. Using INDI WatchDog driver, the user can secure their remote observatory by setting a heart beat timeout threshold. A heart beat is a signal from the client to the watchdog driver to inform it that communication is OK. The user can configure the heart beat timeout in minutes in the WatchDog driver. If the driver does not receive the signal after the heart beat timeout threshold, it initiates the shutdown procedure. To disable the heart beat check, set it to zero.

Equipment Profile

The Watchdog driver is categorized as an Auxiliary driver. It can be found in the auxiliary category group in your favorite client.

Options

Options

Before establishing connection, set the Mount & Dome driver names in Options tab. Some clients (e.g. KStars) would do this step automatically. If your observatory does not have a dome, simply leave it as the Dome Simulator.

Main Control

Main Control

If the driver does not receive the Heartbeat signal from the client after the timeout threshold expired, it starts the shutdown procedure. The shutdown procedure is currently composed of the following steps in order:
  1. Park Mount: The mount driver specified under Options tab will be commanded to park. After parking is successful, the driver proceeds to the next step, otherwise it aborts the shutdown procedure.
  2. Park Dome:The dome driver specified under Options tab will be commanded to park.
  3. Execute Script:Execute a custom shutdown script as specified in the settings property. The script must be executable and exits successfully for this operation to be considered successful.

To park the mount and dome, the driver needs to act as a client as well in order to issue such commands. You need to specify the indiserver host and port where the dome and mount drivers are running. This is usually localhost at port 7624 which is the default value. The shutdown script can be used to perform any additional shutdown functions (e.g. turn off power, send email...etc). You can use Python INDI Client library to command devices, or INDI's built in scripting tools. All values can be saved in the config file by going to Options and clicking Save under the Configuration property. On subsequent runs, all values shall be loaded automatically on start up.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

]]>
knro Thu, 09 May 2019 07:40:25 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/watchdog.html
Omegon EQ500-X Equatorial Mount https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/omegon/omegon-eq500-x-equatorial-mount.html

Installation

The Omegon EQ500-X Equatorial Mount driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.8. Install with:

$ sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
$ sudo apt-get update
$ sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The Omegon EQ500-X Equatorial Mount driver supports:

  • 4 Slew Rates (max, find, center and guide)
  • Single sidereal tracking rate
  • Goto coordinates (via software adjustment)
  • Sync coordinates
  • Abort movement
  • Location configuration (used for initial sync)
  • Pier side
  • Simulation mode
  • Timed pulse guiding

Operation

  • Install the Omegon EQ500-X Equatorial Mount with its pad connected.
  • Orient the right ascension axis towards the pole using either visual alignment or an external alignment tool.
  • Rotate the right ascension axis so that the telescope is on top, and declination axis so that the telescope looks at the pole.
  • Lock axes firmly.
  • Power on the mount using the side button on the pad to select your hemisphere.
  • Plug the USB cable from the pad to the host computer.
  • By default, the pad is recognized as a serial adapter on port /dev/ttyUSB0 (9600 bauds, 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop bit).
  • Execute indiserver with driver `indi_eq500x_telescope` using the method of your choice.
  • When you connect the driver after powering up the mount, the initial position is synced to the local sidereal time of the location your client.

Warning: when moving manually, there is no safety preventing the mount from rotating in a dangerous position in which the optical tube may hit the mount support.

It is mandatory that both the geographical location and host time and date be properly configured for the driver to provide correct LST to the mount. An incorrect location and/or date and time will cause the driver to require a meridian flip at an unexpected right ascension, leading to a dangerous positioning of the optical tube.

1. Main Control tab

Manage the connection of your device using the "Connect" and "Disconnect" button.

You may change the local serial port used for the connection in the Connection tab (default is /dev/ttyUSB0).

You may enter go-to coordinates directly in the RA/DEC edit boxes. Use the "Abort" button to stop the mount from going to the target coordinates.

The mount will report pier side while moving.

2. Connection tab

You may find driver information in this tab.

If you know on which port the mount is plugged, you may enter the port path directly and disable auto search.

If you don't know on which port the mount is plugged, press "Scan Ports" and auto-search will attempt to read RA/DEC from each local port until successful.

3. Options tab

Unless you need a higher update rate while moving manually, leave the polling period to 1000ms (the Go-To feature will reset this period to 1000ms after moving or aborting).

When troubleshooting or reporting issues, you may enable debug mode and configure log level to "debug" in order to provide detailed logs to developers.

The driver also offers a mode that simulates the mount movement, that you can enable with the "Simulation" item before connecting the driver (in this mode the device is not used). This mode is used by unitary tests when developing.

Joystick mode allows you to control the movement of your mount with a Linux-compatible joystick connected to the same host.

4. Motion Control tab

Movement buttons "North", "South", "West" and "East" rotate the mount at the rate selected by the "Slew Rate" entry. Click to engage movement, click again to stop.

Warning: when moving manually, there is no safety preventing the mount from rotating in a dangerous position in which the optical tube may hit the mount support.

5. Site Management tab

If your client software will not, configure the geographical site in which the mount is set up. Save the configuration in the Options tab.

It is mandatory that both the geographical location and host time and date be properly configured for the driver to provide correct LST to the mount. An incorrect location and/or date and time will cause the driver to require a meridian flip at an unexpected right ascension, leading to a dangerous positioning of the optical tube.

6. Guide tab

You may enter timed pulse commands in this tab. This set of properties can be used by a guider such as KStars Ekos or PHD2 in an automated manner.

The mount does not support standard LX200 pulse commands.

Issues

  • To improve the precision of the goto feature, the driver provides software adjustment but the performance of the algorithm may suffer from high load on the host.
  • The mount does not offer pulse guiding through LX200 Mg commands, instead a software timed guide pulse is used.
  • Goto movements are expected to always go through the meridian opposite to the pole.
  • However, neither the mount nor the driver will prevent manual movement or tracking through the pole meridian.
  • The driver is unable to read the firmware version for compatibility verification.
]]>
TallFurryMan Tue, 07 May 2019 07:02:42 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/omegon/omegon-eq500-x-equatorial-mount.html
Astromechanics Canon Lens Controller https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/astromechanics-canon-lens-controller.html

Installation

INDI Astromechanics driver is available as a 3rd party INDI driver. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-astromechfoc

Features

Main Control Panel

The Astromechanics Canon Lens Controller is a Canon EF/EF-S compatible solution for external iris & focus drive. Tamron, Samyang, and Sigma lenses are also supported. It features :

  • GOTO function (absolute position) and relative position
  • Lens Apperture setting

Operation

Main Control Tab

  • Direction : inward or outward for relative position demand values
  • Relative position : demand offset to the actual position
  • Position absolute : demand absolute position, allowed if lower than maximum position
  • Maximum position : upload the limit to the focuser
  • Apperture : setting index of lens apperture (0: apperture fully opened e.g. f/2.8, 22: apperture closed e.g. f/22)

Connection

Connection

The USB connection is made on the default port, or by autosearch. The device is recognized as a USB Serial converter. Baudrate at 38400 is mandatory.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for all drivers that include polling (frequency of updates), logging, and debugging. No driver-specific options are available.

Presets

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's Issue Tracking System at Github.

]]>
knro Wed, 01 May 2019 13:07:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/astromechanics-canon-lens-controller.html
Weather Watcher https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-watcher.html

Installation

INDI WeatherWatcher driver is included with libindi.
Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Weather Watcher driver is a flexible tool for accessing weather data from different sources. Data can be collected from a local weather station or a remote weather provider, Weather Watcher just needs a key / value file to parse these data. For example the SOLO (the device that reads from the AAG CloudWatcher and broadcast to a network) prints temperature data in a web file (url) formatted as:
temp=18.100000
where 'temp' is the key, '18.1' the value and '=' the pair separator.

Version 1:

  1. Reads weather data from filesystems or url based resources
  2. Data parsed: rain / precipitation, wind average, wind gusts, temperature, forecast
  3. Critical parameter can trigger shutdown conditions for the observatory. Critical parameters used are: Rain, Temperature and Wind (avg).
  4. Customizable weather parameters ranges for operation.
  5. Customizable warnings for each weather parameter.

Operation

For the rest of this chapter we will assume that the following weather data are available (via filesystem or web based):
 
dataGMTTime=2019/03/16 13:13:40
clouds=-11.430000
temp=27.810000
wind=4
rain=2432
light=0
switch=0
safe=0
 
All data are treated as numeric, that is WeatherWatcher driver doesn't make assumption on unit of measurement. So your wind data can be in Kph or Mph, only the threshold has to be updated.

Options

Before connecting, in the option tab you have to set the correct data source.
For filesystem based file you have to specify the full path. E.g. /home/weather/data.txt.
For web based resources the full url has to be set. E.g. http://192.168.1.1:10800/cgi-bin/cgiLastData
 

ww option

Then the keywords name have to be matched correctly in the parameters fields:
  1. Rain, some weather stations use 'precipitation', 'precip'. But 'rain' is the most common one.
  2. Temperature, 'temp' or 'temperature´ are common keywords. No unit of measurements is required.
  3. Wind is meant to be an average of a period of time.
  4. Gust highest wind value over a period of time.
  5. Forecast not all weather station have this information.
  6. Separator the character separating the key from the value.
Please note that if some of the parameters are not matched they will be ignored and no error will be triggered.
In order to change the parameters, after setting the value in the option tab, save the configuration and restart the INDI driver.

Main control

Once the driver is correctly configured, save the configuration and move to Main Control tab where the overall current situation of weather data is shown.
 

ww main

  • Connection allows to connect / disconnect from the device.
  • Status shows the OK (green), WARNING (yellow) or DANGER (red) status for the three critical parameters: rain, wind and temperature.
  • Weather force reading from the device.
  • Update refresh reading period (in seconds) .

Parameters

Parameters tab is used to read all weather data (not just critical parameters) and to set weather alerts triggered by critical parameter ranges:

 

ww parameters

For each of the three critical parameters (rain, temperature and wind), firstly a range in which the observatory can safely operate is set (OK range, marked with a green color led in main control tab).
Outside of this range it is not safe to continue observatory operations (DANGER, red color led in main control tab).
Before reaching the danger zone, Weather Watcher can issue a WARNING (yellow color led in main control tab). Weather Watcher asks for a percentage (of the OK range) to define the warning zone. Remember that in warning zone we are still in the OK range so that a shutdown procedure is not triggered yet.
Refer to the image below as an example taking in account Temperature, where the safe operation range is -30 to +30 (obviously is meant to be Celsius degree in the example, but driver doesn't care about unit of measurement).
 

ww range

Note: if the minimum of the parameters is set to zero, a lower warning is not issued because the driver assumes that the parameter is positive only (e.g. Wind).
Critical parameters are queried by the scheduler, so if one of the parameters (Rain, Temp or Wind) is in the danger zone, the Scheduler will trigger the shutdown procedure. As of today (4/2019) the Scheduler will prevent observation to start but will not shutdown once it has started.
]]>
fenriques Mon, 22 Apr 2019 11:25:05 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-watcher.html
Toupcam Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/toupcam-cameras.html

Installation

INDI Toupcam cameras Driver currently supports all of Toupcam mono and color cameras.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-toupbase

Features

Main Control Panel

The driver supports the standard single-frame capture mode in addition to video streaming when supportted. Furthermore, it supports:

  • Guiding via ST4 port.
  • Color and Mono cameras.
  • 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 bit support. For 10,12 and 14bit cameras, the images are always stored using 16bit depth.
  • Temperature control if cooler is available.
  • Black and White balance adjustments.
  • USB Speed control: This is important when the camera is used on ARM architectures like the Raspberry PI3.
  • Gain, Brightness, Saturating, Gamma...etc controls.

Operation

Connecting to Toupcam Cameras

Simply connect the camera via USB to your PC or SBC (Single board computer). The camera can be connected to an external powered hub as well. You can connect multiple cameras

The camera is very sensitive to power fluctuations. Make sure to use a 3A power supply if the camera is connected to RPI3/StellarMate. The USB speed is automatically adjusted to lower values since USB bandwidth on RPI3 is limited and can cause the camera to indefnitely loop. If the camera gets stuck during exposure, change the cable, and check the power and USB speed settings.

General Info

General Info

This provides general information about the currently running driver and driver version.  It also lets you set the Observer and Object Information for the FITS Header.

Capture

To capture a signle-frame image, simple set the desired exposure time in seconds and click Set. After the capture is complete, it should be downloaded as a FITS image. If the camera is equipped with a cooler, target temperature can be set. To change the format and bit depth (if supported), select a different image format in the Controls tab.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging. The polling period for this driver should be kept as is unless you need to reduce it for a specific reason.

  1. Debug: Toggle driver debug logging on/off
  2. Configuration: After changing driver settings, click Save to save the changes to the configuration file. The saved values should be used when starting the driver again in the future. The configuration file is saved to the user home directory under .indi directory in an XML file.(e.g. ~/.indi/camera_name.xml)
  3. Snoop Device: The camera driver can listen to properties defined in other drivers. This can be used to store the relevant information in the FITS header (like the mount's RA and DE coordinates). The respective drivers (Telescope, Focuser..etc) are usually set by the client, but can be set directly if desired.
  4. Rapid Guide: Rapid Guide uses internal algorithm to automataically select guide stars.
  5. Telescope: Toggle between Primary and Guide scope selection. This selection is required in order to calculate World-Coordinate-System (WCS) values like Field-Of-View (FOV). When WCS is enabled, the FITS header is populated with WCS keywords that enable clients to map the sources in the image to physical coordinates in the sky. Usually, you do not need to toggle this setting manually as it is usually set by the client automatically
  6. Upload: Selects how the captured image is saved/uploaded?
    • Client: The image is uploaded the client (i.e. Ekos or SkyCharts)
    • Local: The image is saved to local storage only.
    • Both: The image is saved to local storage and also uploaded to the client.
  7. Upload Settings: Sets the local desired directory and prefix used to save the image when either the Local or Both upload modes are active. The IMAGE_XXX is automatically replaced by the image name where the XXX is the image counter (i.e. M42_005.fits). The driver scan the local storage and increments the counter automatically when a new image is captured and stored.

Image Settings

Image Settings

In the Image Settings tab, you can configure the framing and binning of the captured image:

    • Frame: Set the desired Region-Of-Interest (ROI) by specifying the starting X and Y positions of the image and the desired width and height. It is recommended to set use even numbers only to enable binning if required. The ROI values are indenepdent of the binning used.
    • Binning: Set the desired binning. The usually supported

Image compression can be turned on in image settings to compress FITS images. This might require more processing but can reduce the size of the image by up to 70%. The uploaded image would have an extenstion of .fits.fz and it can be viewed in multiple clients like KStars.

The Frame Type property is used to mark the frame type in the FITS header which is useful information for some processing applications. If there an electronic or mechanical shutter, the driver closes it automatically when taking dark frames.

To restore the ROI to the default values, click on the Reset button.

Image Info

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the CCD (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. If the camera supports Bayer mask, then the bayer filter and offset can be set here. These are usually set automatically by the driver, but can be adjusted manually if needed.

Controls

Controls

The controls tab provides settings to adjust common camera parameters such as gain, gamma, brightness, contrast..etc.

A very important parameter is the Speed setting. Setting it to maximum will fully utlize the USB bandwidth available on the device and will deliver images faster, but this is problematic on small embedded device like Raspberry PI. For such devices, the USB speed default to 0. You may expeiment with adjusting it until you achieve a good balance between performance and stability.

The Auto switches enable to automatically calibrate exposure and while/black balance using the camera own internal algorithms. For astronomy, it is usually recommended to set all controls manually to achieve the most level of control over the produced images.

Some cameras support higher bit depth rates such as 10, 12, and 14bits. However, the generated FITS file is either 8bit or 16bit, so any intermediate bit depths are automatically stored as 16bit.

The image resolution can be directly selected here, though it is prefreable to set the ROI in the Image Settings tab.

Dual Gain

Modern CMOS sensor often support Dual Conversion Gain with a Low and High Conversion Gain setting (LCG/HCG). When the camera supports Dual Gain, three additional parameters are displayed at the Control Tab. High Conversion Gain (HCG) multiplies the gain with an additional factor. This has a positive impact on the read noise. The regular Gain parameter has a continuous range taking the conversion gain setting into account.

The HCG Threshold is the gain setting at which the camera switches over to HCG. For example with IMX294 sensors this is usually set to 900. The HCG/LCG gain ratio is a fixed property of the camera and needs to be set to the design value. For the IMX294 the value is 4.5. For other camera's it is usually 2.0. The Dual Gain Mode parameter enables the special HDR mode of the camera, as well as overriding the HCG/LCG setting.

Dual Gain can be disabled by setting HCG/LCG gain ratio to 1.0. Dual Gain is disabled when HDR is selected.

Levels

Levels

Control the maximum and minimum ranges for all color channels. The RGB black levels can also be adjusted. By default, all levels are set to the maximum data range (0-255).

Firmware

Firmware

Display the camera firmware information.

Issues

      There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's

bug tracking system

      at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 14 Apr 2019 06:04:38 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/toupcam-cameras.html
Altair Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/altair-cameras.html

Installation

INDI Altair cameras Driver currently supports all of Altair Astro mono and color cameras.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-toupbase

Features

Main Control Panel

The driver supports the standard single-frame capture mode in addition to video streaming when supportted. Furthermore, it supports:

  • Guiding via ST4 port.
  • Color and Mono cameras.
  • 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 bit support. For 10, 12 and 14bit cameras, the images are always stored using 16bit depth.
  • Temperature control if cooler is available.
  • Black and White balance adjustments.
  • USB Speed control: This is important when the camera is used on ARM architectures like the Raspberry PI3.
  • Gain, Brightness, Saturating, Gamma...etc controls.

Operation

Connecting to Altair Cameras

Simply connect the camera via USB to your PC or SBC (Single board computer). The camera can be connected to an external powered hub as well. You can connect multiple cameras

The camera is very sensitive to power fluctuations. Make sure to use a 3A power supply if the camera is connected to StellarMate. The USB speed is automatically adjusted to lower values since USB bandwidth on RPI4 is limited and can cause the camera to indefnitely loop. If the camera gets stuck during exposure, change the cable, and check the power and USB speed settings.

General Info

General Info

This provides general information about the currently running driver and driver version.  It also lets you set the Observer and Object Information for the FITS Header.

Capture

To capture a signle-frame image, simple set the desired exposure time in seconds and click Set. After the capture is complete, it should be downloaded as a FITS image. If the camera is equipped with a cooler, target temperature can be set. To change the format and bit depth (if supported), select a different image format in the Controls tab.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging. The polling period for this driver should be kept as is unless you need to reduce it for a specific reason.

  1. Debug: Toggle driver debug logging on/off
  2. Configuration: After changing driver settings, click Save to save the changes to the configuration file. The saved values should be used when starting the driver again in the future. The configuration file is saved to the user home directory under .indi directory in an XML file.(e.g. ~/.indi/camera_name.xml)
  3. Snoop Device: The camera driver can listen to properties defined in other drivers. This can be used to store the relevant information in the FITS header (like the mount's RA and DE coordinates). The respective drivers (Telescope, Focuser..etc) are usually set by the client, but can be set directly if desired.
  4. Rapid Guide: Rapid Guide uses internal algorithm to automataically select guide stars.
  5. Telescope: Toggle between Primary and Guide scope selection. This selection is required in order to calculate World-Coordinate-System (WCS) values like Field-Of-View (FOV). When WCS is enabled, the FITS header is populated with WCS keywords that enable clients to map the sources in the image to physical coordinates in the sky. Usually, you do not need to toggle this setting manually as it is usually set by the client automatically
  6. Upload: Selects how the captured image is saved/uploaded?
    • Client: The image is uploaded the client (i.e. Ekos or SkyCharts)
    • Local: The image is saved to local storage only.
    • Both: The image is saved to local storage and also uploaded to the client.
  7. Upload Settings: Sets the local desired directory and prefix used to save the image when either the Local or Both upload modes are active. The IMAGE_XXX is automatically replaced by the image name where the XXX is the image counter (i.e. M42_005.fits). The driver scan the local storage and increments the counter automatically when a new image is captured and stored.

Image Settings

Image Settings

In the Image Settings tab, you can configure the framing and binning of the captured image:

    • Frame: Set the desired Region-Of-Interest (ROI) by specifying the starting X and Y positions of the image and the desired width and height. It is recommended to set use even numbers only to enable binning if required. The ROI values are indenepdent of the binning used.
    • Binning: Set the desired binning. The usually supported

Image compression can be turned on in image settings to compress FITS images. This might require more processing but can reduce the size of the image by up to 70%. The uploaded image would have an extenstion of .fits.fz and it can be viewed in multiple clients like KStars.

The Frame Type property is used to mark the frame type in the FITS header which is useful information for some processing applications. If there an electronic or mechanical shutter, the driver closes it automatically when taking dark frames.

To restore the ROI to the default values, click on the Reset button.

Image Info

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the CCD (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. If the camera supports Bayer mask, then the bayer filter and offset can be set here. These are usually set automatically by the driver, but can be adjusted manually if needed.

Controls

Controls

The controls tab provides settings to adjust common camera parameters such as gain, gamma, brightness, contrast..etc.

A very important parameter is the Speed setting. Setting it to maximum will fully utlize the USB bandwidth available on the device and will deliver images faster, but this is problematic on small embedded device like Raspberry PI. For such devices, the USB speed default to 0. You may expeiment with adjusting it until you achieve a good balance between performance and stability. Sometimes, even lower USB speed would not resolve image capture failures on embedded devices. Try selecting a lower resolution and then try again.

The Auto switches enable to automatically calibrate exposure and while/black balance using the camera own internal algorithms. For astronomy, it is usually recommended to set all controls manually to achieve the most level of control over the produced images.

Some cameras support higher bit depth rates such as 10, 12, and 14bits. However, the generated FITS file is either 8bit or 16bit, so any intermediate bit depths are automatically stored as 16bit.

For color camera, the formats are RGB and RAW. If RGB is selected, the FITS color image would be stored as an 8bit per channel color image. For RAW images, the FITS image is stored using higher bit depths if supported by the camera (10, 12..etc). Therefore, to capture images in high bit-depths, select the RAW format.

The image resolution can be directly selected here, though it is prefreable to set the ROI in the Image Settings tab.

Dual Gain

Modern CMOS sensor often support Dual Conversion Gain with a Low and High Conversion Gain setting (LCG/HCG). When the camera supports Dual Gain, three additional parameters are displayed at the Control Tab. High Conversion Gain (HCG) multiplies the gain with an additional factor. This has a positive impact on the read noise. The regular Gain parameter has a continuous range taking the conversion gain setting into account.

The HCG Threshold is the gain setting at which the camera switches over to HCG. For example with IMX294 sensors this is usually set to 900. The HCG/LCG gain ratio is a fixed property of the camera and needs to be set to the design value. For the IMX294 the value is 4.5. For other camera's it is usually 2.0. The Dual Gain Mode parameter enables the special HDR mode of the camera, as well as overriding the HCG/LCG setting.

Dual Gain can be disabled by setting HCG/LCG gain ratio to 1.0. Dual Gain is disabled when HDR is selected.

On embedded platforms (Raspberry Pi, Odroid..etc), the camera exposure can fail with Exposure Timeout messages due to limitations in the camera SDK as it does not properly handle USB bandwidth on embedded devices. As of 2020-02-18, the SDK is still not updated to fix the USB resolution issues. One way to resolve this issue is by reducing the resolution.

Levels

Levels

Control the maximum and minimum ranges for all color channels. The RGB black levels can also be adjusted. By default, all levels are set to the maximum data range (0-255).

Firmware

Firmware

Display the camera firmware information.

Issues

Frames may drop when running on embedded single board computers. Please adjust the USB speed and bandwidth accordingly to achieve best results.

]]>
knro Sun, 14 Apr 2019 06:04:38 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/altair-cameras.html
Astroberry Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/astroberry-focuser.html

Installation

Astroberry Focuser driver is part of Astroberry-DIY project. It is available on GitHub and needs to be compiled from sources. No binary packages are provided for installation via apt-get.

Features

Astroberry Focuser is an Open Source Software. It provides a stepper motor driver for Raspberry Pi with absolute and relative position capabilities.

  • Supports DRV8834 and A4988 stepper controllers
  • Absolute and relative position control
  • Standby mode for power saving
  • Absolute position is saved between runs
  • Supports 1/1 to 1/32 microstep resolution
  • Allows for setting maximum absolute position
  • Supports stepper motor reverse direction control
  • Provides backlash adjustment
  • Supports step delay control

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at GitHub.

]]>
Kaczorek Wed, 10 Apr 2019 10:47:04 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/astroberry-focuser.html
Weather Safety Proxy https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-safety-proxy.html

  Installation

The INDI Weather Safety Proxy driver is included with libindi v1.7.7+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-full

  Features

The Weather Safety Proxy (WSP) driver connects a Weather Safety Service (WSS) to INDI such that schedulers and observatory dome and roll-off-roof drivers can be told when it is safe to open and when they must close. The WSP driver differs from most other Weather Station drivers in that it does not deal with sensor readings itself, that is deferred to the WSS. The WSP driver proxies the safety state that the WSS determines and adds configurable hysteresis levels for soft errors when a safety reading update is missed so that the observatory does not immediately close down on a glitch. When on the other hand the WSS reads as UNSAFE the observatory is signalled to immediately close down. The WSS is expected to have hysteresis handling itself so to not cause the observatory to open/close too often.

Current features are:

  • Connect to Weather Safety Service via Script or URL
  • Configurable poll interval.
  • Configurable soft error hysteresis levels
  • Optional Safety Reasons text displayed as conveyed by the Weather Safety Service

  Setup

The Weather Safety Proxy polls a Weather Safety Service via either a local script or a curl URL call, configurable in the Options tab. The poll interval is configurable in the Main Control tab and defaults to 60 seconds.

The Weather Safety Service which the Weather Safety Proxy driver polls is expected to report its state in JSON format. Required fields are roof_status with open_ok integer (0 for UNSAFE and 1 for SAFE) and optionally a reasons text field. For instance :

{
    "timestamp_utc": "2019-03-24T23:26:02",
    "roof_status": {
        "open_ok": 0,
        "reasons": "Still not dry long enough"
    }
}

soft errors 1

In case the Script itself determines a soft error it can report so in an error field like this :

{"error": "Empty DB result"}

This will be logged :

2019-03-24T11:50:08: [ERROR] Error hint found in JSON [{"error": "Empty DB result"}] 

In case of SAFE conditions soft errors will be logged and counted until they reach the hysteresis treshold.

2019-03-23T22:41:58: [ERROR] curl_easy_perform failed with [Couldn't connect to server] 
2019-03-23T22:41:53: [WARNING] Soft error 4 occured during SAFE conditions, counting 

In case of UNSAFE conditions soft errors are logged and otherwise ignored

2019-03-24T11:47:02: [WARNING] Soft error occured during UNSAFE conditions, ignore 

Additional fields in the JSON like the timestamp_utc field in the above JSON are ignored.

soft errors 2

The Weather Safety Service is not included in this driver.

  Main Control tab

  • Connection switch is used to start and stop the driver.
  • The Status / Weather Safety light is red for UNSAFE and green for SAFE
  • Weather refresh can be used while debugging so you do not have to wait for the next poll interval
  • Update Weather Safety Service polling period in seconds. Defaults to 60 seconds.
  • Weather Safety Reasons show the optional Safety Status reasons, if any, as well as any Hysteresis state

main tab

  General Info tab

General Info tab just shows the driver's name and binary and version

general tab

  Options tab

The Options tab is used for initial setup and finetuning of the Hysteresis levels.

  • Debug can be enabled or disabled here. Note that in EKOS this must be done in EKOS Logs settings before connecting to INDI.
  • Configuration of all settings can be saved and loaded. On Linux this is in ~/.indi/Weather_Safety_Proxy_config.xml
  • Script is optional and the full path to an executable script that prints the Weather Safety Service status in JSON.
  • Url is optional and the full URL for curl to connect to a Weather Safety Service status that reports in JSON
  • Script or Url selects to use either the above Script or the Url
  • Soft error hysteresis levels. Max soft error level during SAFE state. If this level is reached the state becomes UNSAFE. A single poll lasts 5 seconds (hardcoded in indi_weather base class). Minimum soft error for recovery is intended to prevent flapping. This poll lasts the configured time each (which default 60 seconds).
  • The GPS snoop device is inherited from base class and not used.

options tab

  Parameters tab

The Weather Safety Proxy cannot set the needed WEATHER_STATUS state directly. Instead it sets a WEATHER_SAFETY 'sensor' to 0 for UNSAFE and 1 for SAFE and specifies a range for SAFE from 0.9 to 1.1

  • Parameters / Weather Safety just shows the current state. 0 for UNSAFE and 1 for SAFE.
  • Weather Safety / OK range min and OK range max are chosen just below and above 1.0 to have 1.0 being the OK value for Weather SAFE state. They default to 0.9 and 1.1.
  • Weather Safety / % for warning defaults to 0 as the Weather Safety Service is expected to be absolute and only report 0 and 1 so there is no need for the INDI weather subsystem to have a warning margin on it.

parameters tab

  Site Management tab

Site Management is not used. This tab is inherited from general Weather devices snooping on GPS.

  Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
H__ Sun, 24 Mar 2019 11:15:41 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-safety-proxy.html
Bee Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/bee-focuser.html

Installation

Bee Focuser driver is included as a 3rd party driver. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-beefocus

Features

Beefocused is an Open Source Hardware/ Software Telescope Focuser The goal of the project is to create a high quality DIY focuser that's relatively easy to build and modify. It is fully open sourced.

  • Beefocused talks to the INDI computer using WiFi. This is nice because it means there's one less wire on the telescope to worry about. It does mean that the telescope needs a WiFi hotspot, but that's becoming more common now that people are running telescopes from compute sticks and Raspberry Pis that are mounted directly onto the scope.
  • The default built uses a Nema 14 Stepper motor for positioning - these motors are widely used by 3D printers. The Motor's step rate is 1.8 degrees (200 steps / rotation), so it's reasonably accurate.
  • The electronic parts for a Beefocused will cost you about $25 on eBay. That includes the Nema 14 Stepper Motor.
  • Beefocus focusers operate as either Absolute or Relative focusers, depending on the build. The focuser supports either automatic homing at start up or manual syncing.

 Operation

The Beefocused Indi driver has a "Simulation" mode that's very close to what you'll see if you use the actual hardware. Simulation mode is selected by going to the BeeFocused connection tab and selecting a Simulated connection

alt text

You'll need to go to the Main focuser menu and "connect" to the Simulated Focuser, the way you'd connect to an actual focuser.

alt text

alt text

You can start moving the simulated focuser by pressing the Absolute Position Set Button. The Focuser Status message box will change from Ready to Moving, and the Absolute Position of the focuser will begin changing.

alt text

A move can be interrupted by pressing the Abort button. If you try to move the focuser past the Maximum Position the driver will generate an Error message

alt text

If the focuser's hardware supports a home switch the focuser will automatically move to it's home, or zero position, the first time INDI connects. The sync switch can also be used to set the Focuser's current absolute position. In this example the Sync switch is used to reset the absolute position to 2000.

alt text  alt text

The focuser can move relative to it's current position. In this mode the user changes the Relative Position field number to the number of positions they want the focuser to move (2000 in this example) and presses set. Pressing Set again will cause the focuser to move again.

alt text

The Focus In and Focus Out buttons control the direction of relative movements. In the last example the Focus Out switch was active. In the example the Focus In switch was active and then the Relative Position Set button was pressed twice. The Focuser moved by -2000 each time.

alt text

A game controller is a convenient way to manually operate the focuser. To use the game controller, set a relative focuser movement rate that works for setup (100 was good for me), turn on Joystick in the Options Tab

alt text

And set-up the Joystick Buttons in the Joystick TAB. I used the bottom buttons on my game controller to focus in and out (BUTTON_7 and BUTTON_8), and the "A" button to Abort (BUTTON_2).

alt text

I know that absolute position 28000 is close to my telescope's focal point, so I've added a 28000 entry to the Presets tab.

alt text

To connect to the actual focuser, switch the connection type to ethernet and enter the address of the focuser. The port is always 4999.

alt text

The main control tab of the actual focuser and simulated focuser are the same.

alt text

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Mon, 04 Mar 2019 07:40:51 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/bee-focuser.html
Talon6 Roll Off https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/talon6-roll-off.html

Installation

INDI Talon6 driver is released as a 3rd party driver in source and binary packages.
Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-talon6

Features

Talon6 is a roll off roof control system for observatories automation. It has been used by several observatiories like e.g. E-eye in Spain that hosts more than 55 observatories with Talon6 Roll Off Roof solutions.
INDI driver has been tested with Talon6 firmware version 3.07 only. Please report any issue with other firmware version.
 
Version 2.0 (03-05-2019):
  1. Better integration with Dome parent class. No additional features. 
Version 1.0 (21-04-2019):
  1. Enable / Disable Safety Conditions
  2. Sync absolute position (number of ticks)
  3. Roof Go To (open / close perc)
  4. Monitor Sensors and Conditions
Version 0.2 :
  1.  Added Firmware version
Version 0.1,  basic features only:
  1. Serial connection to the device
  2. Read Talon6 status data from device
  3. Park and UnPark the roof that corrisponds to Open and Close the roof.
  4. Stop roof motion
To Do:
  1. Roof control by snooped devices (mount / weather / scheduler)
  2. Internet down sensor
The Talon6 client application (currently available on Windows only) allows to set up the device e.g. manage timers and conditions for closing, motor setup, roof calibration etc.
This driver will not implement those features, you should use the client application for that.

Operation

There are four tabs to control your device:

Connection 

Talon6Connection

Talon6 connects through Serial port only. Also, use 9600 as connection speed.
In the image above, a persistent port mapping has been used even though standard tty link works fine.
Once you have entered the connection parameters, press Save under Options tab.

Main Control

 Talon6MainControl

You can open the roof by pressing UnPark and close the roof pressing Park. Note that Park behavior is affected by the Safety Conditions switch, see Options below.
Abort will stop the roof motion.
GoTo will open the roof to the percentage inserted. 0% corrisponds to a fully closed position (0 absolute ticks), and  100% to a fully open position.
A different behavior could be enforced setting the maximum ticks to a lower value. Before using GoTo, input the correct ticks value in  Roof Max Travel under Options tab. 
Read will force a read on the device status data otherwise they are regularly updated.
Device status data:
  1. Roof Status shows the actual roof status (OPEN, CLOSED, OPENING, CLOSING, ERROR).
  2. Last Action lists the last action performed by the roof (none, open by user, close by user, go to by user, calibrate by user, close due to cloud- rain condition, close due to power down, close due to communication lost, close due to internet lost, close due to timeout expired, close by management, close by automation, stop -- motor stalled, emergency stop, Order the mount to park).
  3. Current Position Ticks: is the absolute position in roof encoder ticks.
  4. Current position %: is the absolute position in percentage 0%-100%.
  5. Power supply is the tension supplied in Volts.
  6. Closing Timer. When the countdown reaches  zero value the controller will order to park the mount and close the roof (it has to be set on the client application).
  7. Power lost timer. If the power is not is restored before the time specified in the text window the controller will order to park the mount and close the roof. This feature works if you have a UPS system. Of course, the sensor has to be connected before the UPS
  8. Weather Condition Timer if a weather condition alert is triggered and remains active for the time specified, the controller will order to park the mount and close the roof. Waiting for the specified time can prevent a premature closing due to some momentary instability, as a group of loose clouds, etc..
  9. Firmware Version: the Talon6 firmware version read from the device. 

 Options

Talon6Options

In this tab you can find configuration features for your device.
Polling: time interval in ms to poll data from the device.
Max Roof Travel: allows to set the max travel of the roof as device encoder ticks. It is recommended that the first time you use this driver, you manually fully open the roof and read the ticks number corrisponding to that position and enter it here. This syncs the absolute encoder ticks to 100%. You can then use GoTo in Main Control to partially open the roof.
Only 100% is synced to a position. 0% always corrisponds to 0 ticks.
Safety Conditions: it is strongly recommended to always leave Safety Conditions enabled when using the observatory in automated or unattended mode! Also, test all conditions yourself before using.
Disabling Safety Conditions allows to control manually the roof. E.g. closing the roof without waiting for mount to park. This can obviously damage your equipment and you take full responsibility for using it.
Talon6 user manual describes how the Safety Condition affects the behavior of the roof motion, please refer to it for further information. 

 Sensor and Switches

Talon6Sensors

Sensors and Switches tab reports the status of sensors and switches from the device. 
As an example, in the image above, the mount is parked (MaP) and the roof is closed (RCL). 
Refer to the Talon6 user manual for a description of sensors, switches and conditions.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sat, 23 Feb 2019 12:30:43 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/talon6-roll-off.html
Lacerta MFOC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/lacerta-mfoc.html

  Installation

Lacerta MFOC driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.6 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

  Features

The LACERTA Motorfocus is a precision stepper motor with handbox and temperature sensor. It can be used in standalone or remotely. It features :

  • GOTO function (absolute position) and relative position
  • Automated temperature compensation
  • Backlash compensation

Lacerta MFOC Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Mode : Absolute position, relative position or both.
  • Temperature compensation direction : by continuous compensation of the temperature, allows inward, outward or both motions
  • Started at saved postion : moves to the last used position at start
  • Direction : inward or outward for relative position demand values
  • Relative position : demand offset to the actual position
  • Position absolute : demand absolute position, allowed if lower than maximum position
  • Maximum position : upload the limit to the focuser
  • Backlash : number of steps for backlash compensation
  • Temperature compensation : factor in number of steps for a change of 10°C

Presets

Lacerta MFOC Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

  Connection

Lacerta MFOC Connection

Connect to the focuser using a USB cable. The connection type is serial and by default the port is set to /dev/ttyUSB0. The default baud rate is 9600. If you change the default port, save the changes by going to the Options tab and click Save configuration.

  Operation

After establishing connection to the focuser, you can use the focuser control in the INDI control panel directly to move and sync the focuser. Alternatively, the focuser can be used in any INDI compatible autofocusing application.

  Options

Lacerta MFOC Options

The options tab includes parameters to enable/disable logging and debugging settings in addition to polling and joystick control.

The debugging and logging options should remain off unless you are to diagnose a problem with the driver.

Polling: How often should the driver read the device output signals? By default it is set to 500ms or twice per second.

Joystick: If a gamepad or joystick is connected, enable it to focus IN and OUT using the joystick. A new tab called Joystick is created. The INDI joystick driver must be running and connected to a supported joystick under Linux.

Issues

There can be connection issues via a USB Hub. If such a case happen :

  • Make sure that the executable is stopped
  • Check on which port the device is connected
  • Adapt if necessary the default port value DEVICE_PORT in the configuration file .indi/Lacerta MFOC_Config.xml
  • Start the driver again

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 17 Feb 2019 06:21:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/lacerta-mfoc.html
Rigel Systems nStep https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rigel-systems-nstep.html

  Installation

Rigel Systems nStep driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.6 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

  Features

The nStep controller is a small absolute-position stepper motor controller that can work on a variety of motor configurations. It connects to your PC/StellarMate either via Serial-to-USB cable or WiFi. It supports the following features:

  • Speed adjustments: 254 levels of speed adjustment controls.
  • Temperature Compnesation: Advanced temperature compensation algorithm to adjust the position of the focuser as the temperature changes. An external temperature probe can be used to record the temperature.
  • Stepping Controls: Control the motor stepping mode and wiring phase.
  • Sync: Set the focuser position to any arbitary values to reset the position to the desired value.

nStep Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count.
  • Speed: Set stepper motor speed. Lower is slower.
  • Timer: Moves the focuser in the set focus direction for this many milliseconds. Do not use directly.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the absolute position.
  • Max Position: Define an arbitrary maximum travel position. Any GOTOs beyond this position are rejected.
  • Sync: Set the current absolute position to this value. It is recommended when using the focuser for the first time to fully retract the focuser (focuser is closest to the OTA) and then Sync to zero as zero is defined as the fully retracted position.
  • Temperature: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe if any.
  • Temperature: If temperature probe is connected, the current temperature in Celcius shall be reported.

  Operation

Connection

nFocus Connectivity

The focuser can connected to the PC/StellarMate via either a serial-USB connection or WiFi. Use Serial to USB adapter and connect it to a USB port. By default, the driver would try to connect to all available systems ports until a successful connection is made. It is genereally recommend to employ the Serial Port Assistant tool to assign a permenant designation for the port. This would make connecting to the serial port reliable from the first time if there are multiple serial to usb devices being used at the same time by the system.

For WiFi nStep controllers, click on Ethernet button to switch to Networked connection. Refer to nStep documentation for configure the WiFi option. The IP address and port of the WiFi adapter is required to make the connection.

After making changes to the connection parameters, go to the Options tab and save the configuration.

Options

nFocus options

The options tab includes parameters to enable/disable logging and debugging settings in addition to polling and joystick control.

The debugging and logging options should remain off unless you are to diagnose a problem with the driver.

Polling: How often should the driver read the device output signals? By default it is set to 500ms or twice per second.

Joystick: If a gamepad or joystick is connected, enable it to focus IN and OUT using the joystick. A new tab called Joystick is created. The INDI joystick driver must be running and connected to a supported joystick under Linux.

Coil After Move: Set whether the stepper coils should be energized or de-energized after motion is complete.

Caution: When set to energized, watch the stepper motor temperature as it might get warm.

Temperature Compensation

nStep Temperature Compensation

Change the nStep temperature compensation settings. By default, the controller boots up with the temperature compensation disabled. If you switch configuration to Auto and then save INDI driver configuration, this setting will be applied the next time you use the driver.

  • Mode: Click One Shot to execute temperature compensation once. However, before activating One Shot mode, press Prime For Manual< first. When set to Auto, the controller algorithm shall decide when to make the temperature compensation adjustments as per the settings.
  • Delta T.: This is the temperature change x10 to trigger a compensation. The nSTEP uses a fixed point value here which is 10X the real temperature change desired. Examples: -005 = move in "-" direction when temp changes by 0.5C, +015 = +1.5C change must be detected before triggering a compensation. The values can range from -100 (-10.0C) to +100(+10.0C) in increments of 5(0.5C).
  • Steps Per Delta: Move this many steps for each Delta Temp change. Direction of movement controlled by sign of DeltaTemp
  • Backlash: Apply this number of steps in last move direction before reversing direction. Range 0 through 100 with 0 = no backlash takeup
  • Averaged Time: Temperature will be averaged over this number of seconds. Range 1 to 75 seconds. Set to a lower value for more immediate changes. A lower value may cause 'hunting' if the sensor is detecting a value that is just toggling slightly (e.g. from 17.5C to 18.0C to 17.5C).

Stepping Settings

Controls the stepping mode and phase.

    • Wave: Wave Stepping Mode.
    • Half: Energizes 1 or two coils at a time, doubling step resolution.
    • Full: Highest power mode, two coils always energized.
  • Phase Select: set to 0 for usb-nSTEP. Can be used for any possible the phase wirings. Allow a person to wire the phases in any order then chose one of 3 settings in software to drive them.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Wed, 13 Feb 2019 07:31:21 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rigel-systems-nstep.html
Rigel Systems nFocus https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rigel-nfocus.html

Installation

Rigel Systems nFocus driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.6 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The nFOCUS controller is a small DC focus controller that provides two directions at two speeds with only two buttons using a12V regulated output. Low speed is adjustable pulse width modulated (PWM) drive, providing full voltage torque for low speed operation. It is compatible with Van Slyke Engineering, JMI, Celestron, MEADE LX200GPS microfocuser, Moonlite and others.

The driver works in Relative Focuser mode where you can command the focuser specific number of steps INWARD or OUTWARD. Speed controls can be configured in the settings tab of the driver.

nFocus Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Temperature: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe if any.

Operation

Connection

nFocus Connectivity

The focuser is connected to the PC via serial connection. Use Serial to USB adapter and connect it to a USB port. By default, the driver would try to connect to all available systems ports until a successful connection is made. It is genereally recommend to employ the Serial Port Assistant tool to assign a permenant designation for the port. This would make connecting to the serial port reliable from the first time if there are multiple serial to usb devices being used at the same time by the system.

Ethernet/Networked connection option is available when using a Serial-To-Ethernet adapter. The IP address and port of the adapter is required to make the connection.

After making changes to the connection parameters, go to the Options tab and save the configuration.

Options

nFocus options

The options tab includes parameters to enable/disable logging and debugging settings in addition to polling and joystick control.

The debugging and logging options should remain off unless you are to diagnose a problem with the driver.

Polling: How often should the driver read the device output signals? By default it is set to 500ms or twice per second.

Joystick: If a gamepad or joystick is connected, enable it to focus IN and OUT using the joystick. A new tab called Joystick is created. The INDI joystick driver must be running and connected to a supported joystick under Linux.

Settings

nFocus Settings

The nFocus settings can be configured in the settings tab.

  • ON Waiting Time: Set focus ON time (# of 0.68ms to wait, default = 73 = 0.05sec)
  • OFF Waiting Time: Set focus OFF time (# of 0.68ms to wait, default = 15 = 0.01sec)
  • Fast Mode Delay: Set time to wait until second press if high speed requested

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Wed, 13 Feb 2019 06:35:23 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/rigel-nfocus.html
DeepSkyDad AF1 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/deepskydad-af1.html

  Installation

DeepSkyDad AF1 driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.6 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

  Features

DeepSkyDad AF1 is a budget-friendly belt driven autofocuser unit, intended primarily for astrophotography. As such, it does not include any kind of physical remote controller. It comes with stepper motor, MXL pulley, MXL belt, printed PCB circuit and very compact enclosure, which enables a lot of freedom when mounting. Mounting adapters are 3D printed and can be custom designed as per customer requirements. It is fully open sourced.

DeepSkyDad Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count. Selecting this controls the direction of the Relative Position property below.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Sync: Set the current focus position as the entered position.
  • Reverse Motion: reverse direction of the motor, if focus in/focus out are reversed in relation to the focuser physical movement(depends on how the autofocuser is mounted).
  • Max. movement: maximum position change in a single movement (in steps).

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

  Connection

Connect to the focuser using a USB cable. The connection type is serial and by default the port is set to /dev/ttyUSB0. The default baud rate is 9600. If you change the default port, save the changes by going to the Options tab and click Save configuration.

  Operation

After establishing connection to the focuser, you can use the focuser control in the INDI control panel directly to move and sync the focuser. Alternatively, the focuser can be used in any INDI compatible autofocusing application.

  Options

The options tab provides several settings to tune the operation and performance of the focuser:

  • Step mode:full (200 steps per revolution), half (400 steps per revolution), quarter (800 steps per revolution) and eight (1600 steps per revolution)
  • Settle buffer: if set, focuser returns "IsMoving" as TRUE for specified time (in ms) after focuser reaches target position, letting it to settle a bit. Useful if your focuser has any play.
  • Coils mode: Always on (recommended) - coils are powered at all times. Idle - off - coils are turned off when focuser is not moving. Idle - coils timeout (ms) - coils are turned off after a specified amount of time from the last move.
  • Idle - coils timeout: timeout period for Coils mode "Idle - coils timeout (ms)
  • Current - move: current used for moving the motor. More current results in bigger torque. 75% is recommended.
  • Current - hold: current used for holding the position when motor is not moving (Coils mode "Always on"). More current results in bigger torque. 75% is recommended.

Issues

Coils mode: there are some scenarios when coils can be turned off after a period of time (e.g. manual focusing via software). But generally, we recommend you to use Coils mode "Always on" for autofocusing procedures, as turning the coils off results in lost position of the motor. Additionally, if coils are turned on at all times, motor holds the focuser position and prevents slipping.

when coils are powered (e.g. Coils mode "Always on"), the stepper motor is producing a hissing noise, which is perfectly normal.

With holding current set to 100%, motor can get a little warm after a while.

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 10 Feb 2019 16:51:02 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/deepskydad-af1.html
DeepSkyDad AF2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/deepskydad-af2.html

Installation

DeepSkyDad AF2 driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.6 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Listening to your feedback we developed a next generation autofocusing unit with WiFi connectivity and optional accessories - wired hand remote controller and temperature probe. Now even manual focus changes using your mobile phone/tablet are so simple that even a toddler can do it (check our Youtube channel for a demonstration on a prototype unit). At the same time it is also retaining mounting compatiblity with our older units, so upgrading to AF2 is as simple as swaping the units - no need to change mount adapters or belts.

af2

Main Control Tab

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count. Selecting this controls the direction of the Relative Position property below.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Sync: Set the current focus position as the entered position.
  • Reverse Motion: reverse direction of the motor, if focus in/focus out are reversed in relation to the focuser physical movement(depends on how the autofocuser is mounted).
  • Max. movement: maximum position change in a single movement (in steps).

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Connection

Connect to the focuser using a USB cable. The connection type is serial and by default the port is set to /dev/ttyUSB0. The default baud rate is 9600. If you change the default port, save the changes by going to the Options tab and click Save configuration.

Operation

After establishing connection to the focuser, you can use the focuser control in the INDI control panel directly to move and sync the focuser. Alternatively, the focuser can be used in any INDI compatible autofocusing application.

Options

The options tab provides several settings to tune the operation and performance of the focuser:

  • Step mode:full (200 steps per revolution), half (400 steps per revolution), quarter (800 steps per revolution) and eight (1600 steps per revolution)
  • Settle buffer: if set, focuser returns "IsMoving" as TRUE for specified time (in ms) after focuser reaches target position, letting it to settle a bit. Useful if your focuser has any play.
  • Coils mode: Always on (recommended) - coils are powered at all times. Idle - off - coils are turned off when focuser is not moving. Idle - coils timeout (ms) - coils are turned off after a specified amount of time from the last move.
  • Idle - coils timeout: timeout period for Coils mode "Idle - coils timeout (ms)
  • Current - move: current used for moving the motor. More current results in bigger torque. 75% is recommended.
  • Current - hold: current used for holding the position when motor is not moving (Coils mode "Always on"). More current results in bigger torque. 75% is recommended.

Issues

Coils mode: there are some scenarios when coils can be turned off after a period of time (e.g. manual focusing via software). But generally, we recommend you to use Coils mode "Always on" for autofocusing procedures, as turning the coils off results in lost position of the motor. Additionally, if coils are turned on at all times, motor holds the focuser position and prevents slipping.

With holding current set to 100%, motor can get a little warm after a while.

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 10 Feb 2019 16:51:02 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/deepskydad-af2.html
ScopeDome https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/scopedome.html

Installation

ScopeDome is included with libindi > v1.7.6. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-full

ScopeDome controller can be used with a classic observatory dome and also roll-off roof, but the driver has only been tested with a dome so far.

Features

ScopeDome is a fully automatic observatory dome control system. It also has a variety of sensors and relays to control power to other devices. Link your dome to a computer for complete automation including telescope slaving and shutter control. It supports the following features:

  1. Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  2. Rotation-only and full shutter-and-rotation systems available.
  3. Direct confirmation of shutter open/closed state.
  4. Safety interlocks automatically close dome upon loss of data from PC.
  5. Park-before-close option to avoid mechanical interferences.
  6. Manual override controls for shutter and rotation control
  7. Field-upgradable firmware

The driver supports USB Card controller version 2.1 and since driver version 2.0 (included in INDI 1.9.1) also the new Arduino cards and has been tested with firmware versions 3.52 and 3.70 for USB Card and versions 5.4 and 5.7 for Arduino card. Currently the driver does have function to calibrate steps per revolution of the dome, but it is strongly recommended to generate an inertia table which has to be done with the Windows driver setup software and copy it to ~/.indi/ScopeDome_DomeInertia_Table.txt

Operation

Before connecting you should select the card type, either USB Card 2.1 or Arduino card. If connecting via USB the baud rate needs to be set to 115200 for USB Card and 9600 for Arduino card. Network connection is supported for Arduino card only. Once you are connected to the dome, you can move it in absolute or relative position. You can slave the dome to the mount by setting the required slaving parameters:

  1. Radius is for the radius of the dome in meters.
  2. Shutter width is the clearance of the shutter of the dome in meters
  3. N displacement is for North displacement. If telescope is not in its ideal central position this parameter allows to configure how much it is displaced from the center. Displacement to north are positive, and to south are negative.
  4. E displacement is for East displacement. Similar as the above, displacement to east are positive, and to west are negative.
  5. Up displacement is for displacement in the vertical axis. Up is positive, down is negative.
  6. OTA offset is for the distance of the optical axis to the crossing point of RA and DEC. In fork mount this is generally 0, but for German like mounts is the distance from mount axis cross to the center line of the telescope. West is positive, east is negative.

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions. You can also set the Autosync threshold which is the minimum distance autosync will move the dome. Any motion below this threshold will not be triggered. This is to prevent continuous dome moving during telescope tracking.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
jpaana Sun, 27 Jan 2019 14:33:54 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/scopedome.html
Vixen Starbook https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/vixen/vixen-starbook.html

Installation

INDI Vixen Starbook Driver is released as a 3rd party driver and requires INDI Library >= v1.7.4. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/indinightly
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-starbook

This is article stub, and still needs update, for more actuall guide head to https://github.com/indilib/indi/tree/master/3rdparty/indi-starbook

Features

TODO

eqmod main

Current features are:

  • Goto/Slew

Connectivity

TODO

4. First Time Connection

eqmod connection

Before starting the driver, power the mount and make sure it is looking at the celestial pole with the weights down.

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select the port to connect to. You can also try connecting directly and the driver shall automatically scan the system for candidate ports. If Vixen Starbook is connected the network via a Serial-TCP (Ethernet or WiFi) adapter, then you can select Ethernet mode and enter the IP address and port for the adapter connected to the mount. After making changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the settings.

Operation

Once Vixen Starbook is online, it loads mount, alignment, parking, and horizontal limits settings if they exist. Its location defaults to the celestial pole unless a custom parking position is set previously.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of Vixen Starbook takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Lunar, Solar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used. Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices Vixen Starbook should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. Vixen Starbook shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.

    eqmod options
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.
  • Backlash: Set RA & DEC backlash in microsteps.

Motion Control

eqmod motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guiding Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. 0.3 means the mount shall move at 30% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.3x, the mount shall move 0.3*15.04 = 4.5 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 4.5 arcseconds.
  • Custom Speeds: Customs speeds in RA & DEC axis when performing slew motion.
  • Track Default: Default tracking rate to be used on startup.
  • ST4 N/S/W/E: If the mount is receiving guiding pulses via ST4, apply this rate.

Site Management

Time, Locaiton, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

eqmod site

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking Position: Upon connection to the mount, Ekos loads these values into the mount's motor controller to initialize the (stepper) motor step values. The default values represent the home position where the mount points to the celestial pole - i.e. 0 deg RA, 90 deg DEC.
  • Parking: To set the parking position of the mount to the home position, click “Default”, then "Write Data" - this saves the home values as the parking values. To set the parking position of the mount to a custom position, slew the mount to the desired position and click “Current”, then "Write Data" - this saves the current motor step values as the parking values.
    • IMPORTANT: For the first time Ekos connects to the mount, or if for any reason the parking position has become incorrect. Make sure the mount is in the home position, power up the mount, connect Ekos and set the parking position to home by clicking “Default”, then "Write Data".

Firmware

Firmware tab displays information on the detected mount type and firmware version. Furthermore, the RA/DE steps, frequencies, and gear ratios are displayed.

eqmod firmware

Motor Status

The stepper motors positions and work periods are displayed in addition to the status of each motor. If the mount is equipment with auxiliary encoders, then their position shall be displayed

eqmod motor status

Alignment 

By default the alignment mode is set to N-Star, every time you perform a sync, a new sync point is added to the model. You need to save the alignment points file if you want the driver to utilize them on the next startup. You can perform all these operations in the Align tab. The Vixen Starbook driver is currently transition to the INDI Alignment Subsystem and this section shall be updated when the transition is over to avoid duplicate information.

Under Options, you can select to utilize INDI's Alignment Subsystem instead of Vixen Starbook's own alignment system. However, the Alignment Subsystem is currently not stable so it is recommended to use Vixen Starbook alignment system which is on by default.

PEC

PEC training works the same way as with the handcontroller. Guide on a star, engage PEC training and the firmware will wait for the mount pass the worm indexer and then records the resulting speeds in the EEPROM of the motor microcontroller. When it has finished (worm indexer) it toggles a status bit and you can see in the INDI Control panel the status of PEC training becoming green (whereas it remains busy/yellow while training).

PEC/PEC training is enabled in INDI Vixen Starbook for mounts which supports it, EQ8, AZEQ5/6, EQ6R too apparently. It is a motor controller firmware feature, the INDI driver just sends the corresponding commands to start/stop PEC/PEC training and do not then bother about it. Please note that the firmware PEC+guiding may not be a good idea as the firmware changes the motor speed unconditionnally, so some guide commands may be lost.

Horizon Limits

For horizon limit just slew to the points along the horizon you want to set and hit the Add current button. The order of points is significant as Horizon uses a linear approximation between them. When you have finished hit the Write File button (saved in ~/.indi/HorizonData.txt which you can manually edit also).

Issues

Issue

All issues should be listed here

. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

]]>
knro Mon, 07 Jan 2019 13:49:37 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/vixen/vixen-starbook.html
Avalon https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/avalon.html

Installation

The INDI Avalon StarGO driver is released as a 3rd party driver and requires INDI Library >= v1.7.5. To install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-avalon

Features

This INDI driver interacts with the StarGO GoTo Control System from Avalon Instruments through a USB connection. It can directly drive Avalon mounts and other mounts that are controlled by StarGO.

Current features are:

  • Goto/Slew
  • Slewing speeds ...
  • Sidereal, lunar and solar trackrates
  • Configurable custom parking positions
  • Pulse-guiding
  • ST4 Guiding
  • Focussing

The StarGO device also contains support for up to two stepper motors like focusers. The implementation herefore is at a very early stage.

Connectivity

Currently, the INDI driver only supports connections to the StarGO Control System through a USB cable. Please connect the computer running the INDI driver via USB to the StarGO device of your mount.

Operation

Connecting the StarGO Device

In order to establish the connection to the StarGO device, switch to the Connection tab and select the appropriate USB connection:

avalon connection tab

Select the appropriate USB device where StarGO is connected to. In case the device is not visible, press Scan Ports. The Baud rate can be left untouched as long as Auto select is set to Enabled, which leads to a automatic detection of the right baud rate. Please leave the Connection mode to Serial, changing to Ethernet has no effect.

Then switch to the Main Control tab and press Connect:

2019 04 20 064454 972x775 scrot

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control takes place. As soon as Connect has been pressed, the entire set of option unfolds.

As you may know from the Windows/ASCOM client, you need to press Sync home before the mount reacts to slewing etc. The other controls on this tab are more or less straight forward:

  • Abort motion: stops the motion of the scope
  • Track mode: set to sideral (star tracking), solar (sun tracking), lunar (moon tracking) or none (no tracking at all)
  • Tracking: turn tracking on and off
  • Parking: slew to the (predefined) parking position and park the scope. Remember, that you need to unpark the scope before you can slew it somewhere
  • Pier side: read only information on which pier side the scope is currently placed
  • Use pulse guiding: in case that you want to guide through pulse guiding instead of ST4, turn this option on
  • Aux1 Focuser: Enable or disable a focuser connected on the AUX1 port of the StarGO device. Please set to disabled as long as no focuser is present.
  • Home position: sync the current position as the home position. At the same time, the pointing model is initialized
  • Goto home: slew to the home position defined above and turn off tracking
  • Set park: set the current scope position as park position

Alignment

Position the mount in its home position and press Sync Home on the Main Control tab. Now the tracking mode is enabled and the mount can be slewed to arbitrary positions. StarGO manages its own pointing model. Each time a Sync is called, StarGO adds a new entry in its pointing model.

The best results can be achieved, when plate solving is used for building up an appropriate pointing model.

Options

On the options tab, you can setup various debugging options and scope properties.

avalon options

Most of them are straight forward and general INDI functions. Maybe some need explanation:

  • Polling: here you define the frequency, how often the INDI client asks the INDI server for updates. 1sec is a typical value
  • Scope Properties: set here the right parameters of your main scope and the guiding scope. Hint: if you have problems with plate solving, check here, if the values are correct.

Motion Control

With this tab you can manually slew the mount in all directions at different slewing speeds.

avalon motion control

Site Management

On the Site Management tab you can configure the location of your scope. If you are using KStars, it is recommended to set it through the Geographic Location of KStars and configure KStars such that it updates time and site for INDI. 

avalon site management

Guiding

Don't change anything here unless you know what you are doing.

avalon guide

RA/DEC

This tab is dedicated to guiding options.

avalon ra dec

  • Autoguiding: set the guiding speeds. For Avalon mounts, please follow the recommendations of Avalon Instruments
  • ST4: enable or disable guiding through the ST4 port of your guiding camera. In case you set it to enabled, do not forget to connect your guiding camera with the ST4 port of the StarGO device
  • Meridian flip: set the behaviour of the next slew command. If set to auto, the mount executes a meridian flip automatically. In case of disabled, no meridan flip takes place. And inversly, for forced a meridian flip is executed although it was not necessary from the scope position. If you do not know what you are doing, please leave it on auto!

General Info

This tab displays the current firmware version.

avalon general info

AUX1 Focuser

Here you can control a focuser connected to the AUX 1 port of the StarGO device.

2019 04 20 064508 972x775 scrot

With this tab you can control a focuser connected to the AUX1 port of the StarGO device:

  • Direction: The direction in which the focuser moves when a relative position is set.
  • Speed: Speed of the focuser moves (not appropriately tested yet).
  • Timer: Update interval of the tab.
  • Absolute Postion: Move the focuser to an absolute position.
  • Relative Position: Move the focuser in or out by a given number of steps according to the direction selected above.
  • Abort: Stop the movement of the focuser.
  • Sync: Set the current focuser position to a defined value (e.g. set it to 0 if the focuser is entirely drawn in).
  • Direction: Here you can switch the directions if your focuser operates the other way round.

 

]]>
knro Wed, 02 Jan 2019 06:41:14 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/avalon.html
Pegasus Ultimate Power Box https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-ultimate-power-box.html

Installation

Pegasus Ultimate Power Box (UPB) driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.7. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

INDI Pegasus UPB driver provides complete control over the Pegasus power box including:

  • Power Port Control
  • Power Monitoring
  • USB Hub Control
  • Focus Control
  • Dew Control
  • Environment Monitoring

Please make sure the power box is updated to the latest firmware before using it with the INDI driver.

Connect

connection

Connect UPB to the PC/StellarMate via the USB cable. The operating system assigns a serial port to the device (e.g. /dev/ttyUSB0). If the device cannot establish connection to the default port, it starts a process to scan the entire systems for additional serial ports to connect to.

Operation

Main Control

main control

To establish connection to Pegasus UPB, press the Connect button.

Once connection is established, addiotnal tabs for the different control categories are created accordingly.

The main control provides displays for the voltage, current, and power sensors. The average consumption of current and power is also displayed. You can turn on or off all the ports at once if desired. Finally, you can reboot the device.

Options

Options

The INDI generic Options tab provides controls for debugging and logging in addition to polling period. It is best not to change any setting here

Power

power

The power tab provides all controls to manage the four 12v power ports on the UPB. The first property controls which ports are on or off. To change the name of the ports from the generic Port 1, Port 2..etc to more meaningful names of the actual devices (e.g. camera), edit the Power Labels to set the label of each port. Once set, you need to restart the driver to see the changes.

The Power On Boot property sets which ports are powered when the device boots up. By default, all the ports are powered.

In case of an over-current, the LEDs for each port in the Over Current property will turn from green to red to indicate a problem

To turn on or off the small LED on the UPB box, click on the LED property settings.

Dew

Dew Control

UPB can control up to two Dew heaters using Pulse-Width-Modulation (0 to 100%). Once PWM is set, the current drew should also reflect how much current each dew is consuming.

To activate the Dew heating automatically based on the measured Dew point, turn it on from the Auto Dew property.

USB

Enable or disable the USB hub. This can only control ports 1-5 since port 6 is always on.

Focuser

Focuser Control

If a focuser is connected, it can be controlled directly from the focuser tab.

To move the focuser specific number of steps inward or outward, select the Direction and then set the Relative Position property.

For absolute position, enter the desired position in the Absolute Position property. The postition must be within the maximum position as can be configured by the Max. Position property.

Sync is used to set the current focuser position to any arbitrary value.

The focuser settings include the following:

  • Direction Reverse
  • Backlash (in steps)
  • Backlash Enable and Disable
  • Max Focuser Speed (in %)

Environment

Environment Monitoring

The weather information, measured and calculated, is displayed in this tab. Three parameters are listed:

  • Temperature (C)
  • Humidity (%)
  • Dew Point (C)

The temperature parameter is considered the Critical parameter and if the range is out of normal range, the overall weather status indicator shall reflect that.

Each environment variable range is controlled by the following:

  1. OK range Min: This is the Minimum range at which the status of the property is considered OK (Green LED). Anything below this would be Alert (Red LED)
  2. OK range Max: This is the Maximum range at which the status of the property is considered OK (Green LED). Anything above this would be Alert (Red LED)
  3. % for warning: At what percentage of the OK range should a warning indicator activates?

For example, if the range as illustrated above is Min: -15 and Max: 40, then the warning range is from Min: -15 + -15*0.15 = -12.75C

Similary, the warning zone max: 40 - 40*.15 = 34C. If the temperature is 27.80 then it is within the OK range and not within the Warning zone. Once the temperature reaches 34C, the temperature indicates turns yellow to Warning. If it continues climbing, the state remains Warning unitl it hits and exceeds 40C in which case the state become Alert.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

]]>
knro Tue, 11 Dec 2018 14:57:48 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/pegasus-ultimate-power-box.html
Web Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/indi-webcam.html

Installation

INDI Webcam driver supports many types of webcam devices on both Mac OS X and Linux.  Since it is built on FFMPEG libraries, a widely-used multimedia plaform available on most operating systems, it can support a wide range of devices on many different operating systems.  The driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page.  For OS X, it will come bundled with KStars and other INDI Server applications. Under Linux, this driver requires Ubuntu 18.04+. You can install it via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-webcam

Features

The INDI Webcam driver should support many different types of devices including:

  • AV Foundation Cameras on OS X
  • V4L2 Cameras on LInux
  • DC 1394 Cameras on Linux
  • IP Cameras over Ethernet and Wifi
  • Cell Phone and Mobile Device Cameras over Wifi using IP camera apps
  • Screen Capture on OS X and LInux
  • And any other devices supported by FFMPEG and the software libraries you have installed on your computer

The INDI Webcam driver has a number of interesting features:

  • Supports both Live Streaming and Single Image Capture
  • Can use a Webcam or Cell Phone Camera like an astrophotography camera
  • Can do rapid stacking in integration mode to add many frames in the set exposure time to increase signal
  • Can do rapid stacking in averaging mode to average many frames in the exposure time to reduce noise
  • Can take 8 bit RGB, 16 bit RGB, and 16 bit Grayscale images.
  • Supports ROI subframing

Before connecting

Before you can connect to your webcam and use it in an INDI client, you should do the following:

  • Configure your profile in KStars or other client program
  • Plug in your webcam (or on a mobile phone, start up the IP camera Server)
  • Turn on your webcam (if required)
  • Start or Connect to the INDI Server from the client
  • Select your Video Device, Video Source, Frame Rate, and Video Size

Configuring a Profile in KStars

In order to use your Webcam in KStars, the first step is to configure the CCD setting in a new profile or editing and existing one. Here is a new profile where we are selecting our CCD as an INDI Webcam CCD.  Other software may have similar configuration steps.

Profile

Note that it is not a good idea to have "Autoconnect" selected in this driver before you configure your connection settings and save your configuration file.

Connecting to a Webcam's Video Stream

Connection Webcam

To connect to the Video Stream of your webcam, you need to first select the Capture Device, the Capture Source, the Frame Rate, and the Video Size.  If there is not a stream currently connected, your settings will be changed and then tested when you press the connect button.  Since FFMPEG requires this information in order to connect to a video stream, these settings must be correct first.  

After you have already connected to a working video stream, you can try changing these settings at any time while the driver is up and running and even while live streaming, but note that any time you change these 4 settings, it will cause FFMPEG to disconnect from the current video stream and try to reconnect to your new video stream.  If it fails to connect to the new stream and a video stream was already running, it will switch back to the old working video stream.  

You can change the settings for the Capture Device, the Capture Source, the Frame Rate, and the Video Size by either clicking their buttons or by typing the new information into the "Input Options" and clicking the set button.  The current connection information is always displayed under the Input Options.  If the attempt to change the connection was successful, the LED next to that option should turn green, if it was not successful, it will stay yellow.

Capture Device

This setting is not the camera you are connecting to, but the "device" being used to make the connection.  On Mac OS X, most webcam cameras supported by this driver will use the AV Foundation Device.  On Linux, most of them will either be supported by V4L2 or lbdc1394.  There are many more device types supported by FFMPEG, so the others might be useful too.  

NOTE:  Changing the device type will cause the driver to disconnect because you need to select the source in order to test the connection and the source list is invalid once you change devices.  You will need to reconnect if you change this.

Capture Source

This setting is the camera or source you are trying to connect to.   The V4L2 device on Linux and the AV Foundation device on Macs support enumerating and listing all the sources the device supports, so that when you select these devices they will populate the source list with all the available selections.  Other devices might not support this function, so you might need to look up what the source will be called.  For example, on Linux, a camera source might be called "/dev/video0." If you need a custom source name, you can type it in the Input Options.

NOTE: Changing the Video Source will cause the driver to immediately try the new connection.

Frame Rate

This setting is the frame rate you are requesting that the camera be set to.  Many cameras support various frame rates, but not all cameras support all rates.  You can try the rates that are in the drop down list and if you want one that is not listed, you can type it in the Input Options.  Usually, camera manufacturers will tell you what frame rates the camera can handle.  Please note that changing the Exposure time will NOT change the Frame Rate of the camera.

NOTE: Changing the Frame Rate will cause the driver to immediately try the new connection.

Video Size (Resolution)

This setting is the Video Size or resolution you are requesting that the camera be set to.  Many cameras support various resolutions, but not all cameras support all sizes listed.  You can try the sizes that are in the drop down list and if you want one that is not listed, you can type it in the Input Options. Usually, camera manufacturers will tell you what video sizes the camera can handle.

NOTE: Changing the Video Size will cause the driver to immediately try the new connection.

NOTE:  Changing the video size may cause the subframe information to be incorrect at first in clients such as KStars.  You will need to click the "Reset" Button to reset the frame to the new resolution.

Connecting to an IP Camera or Cell Phone Stream

Connection IP Camera

To connect to a video stream coming from a cell phone's camera, first you need to to be sure to have an IP camera server app running on your cell phone that serves up the video stream for the driver to obtain.  These apps are available for most mobile phones.  This video stream is usually protected by a user name and password so that it is more secure.    In most of these apps, they include a screen that makes it easy for you to get the IP Address and port number the IP server app is currently using.  The user name and password is usually set in the settings of the app.  Just type all of this information into the IP Camera settings boxes and assuming all of it is correct, you should be able to connect.  

If you have trouble connecting, please make sure that both your computer and your cellphone are on the network.  Then make sure your IP Camera connection settings are correct. Also, you might want to change the FFMPEG timeout in the Options tab if it is timing out before it has a chance to connect.

Using the webcam with an INDI client

The INDI Webcam driver not only supports using the webcam for live streaming, but also for regular FITS exposures.  So you can use your webcam just like you use all of your astronomy cameras in clients such as KStars.  You can use them for all astronomy tasks such as imaging, focusing, plate solving, and guiding.  

Subframes

Even though webcams typically do not support ROI or subframing, the driver does support this in the software.  This will mean less data transferred over the network and less hard disk space for storage of images.  Subframes are supported in both the live stream and in regular exposure capture.

Exposure Time

Changing the requested exposure time will NOT change the frame rate or exposure time of the camera because it is a webcam.  However, changing the exposure time will have an effect if you select one of the rapid stacking options.  

If you want to change the framerate/exposure time of the actual images, you can change that in the "Frame Rate" setting in the driver options.  

If you have one of the rapid stacking options selected, the driver will attempt to take as many images as it can in the exposure time selected.  Then depending on which rapid stacking option you selected, it will either average or add the exposures together.  It will then return the resulting stack as the final exposure requested.  This can possibly make a webcam perform much better, reducing the noise in the exposure through averaging or increasing the signal for faint objects.

Special Features

Rapid Stacking

This driver includes a special rapid stacking feature that enables a webcam to be used more like a regular astronomy camera.  Webcams are typically limited in astronomy to being used for imaging the moon and bright planets due to the short exposure times they are capable of and high noise.  In one of the rapid stacking modes, the webcam's flaw is turned into a feature when it is used to rapidly capture as many frames as possible in the "exposure time" and then to either average or stack the frames depending upon the user's selection.

Input and Output Formats

FFMPEG provides support for a wide range of different input and output formats.  Because of this, the INDI Webcam Driver can take just about any input format from the camera and turn it into a usable video stream in a compatible format for INDI.  Also because of this, the driver could be capable of supporting a large number of output formats as well.  As of now, the driver is currently setup to allow the user to select between 16 bit Grayscale, 16 bit RGB, and 8 bit RGB.  Please note that while all of these are supported by the regular exposure mode, in Live Video Streaming, it must have 8 bit images.  Thus, when live streaming, if either RGB mode is selected, 8 bit RGB will be used for Streaming and if 16 bit Grayscale is selected, 8 bit Grayscale will be used for Streaming.

Screen Capture

Since FFMPEG supports screen capture devices as a input, screen capture is supported by this driver.  You might think at first that this is useless for an astronomical device driver, but it can also be very useful for testing purposes.  it could be used for testing guiding algorithms, for testing plate solving, and other items.  To use screen capture on Macs, it is provided by the AV Foundation device with a source like "Capture Screen 0".  To use screen capture on LInux, you can use the x11grab device with a source string something like this ":0.0+100,200" which means to capture the main display screen with the upper left corner of your source at pixel position 100, 200.  It then uses the width and height that are set in your Video Size parameter.  Note that with the screen capture sources, you can still subrame and do everything you can with the webcam sources.

Integrated Webcams

As with Screen Capture, you might think a webcam integrated into your device might have a limited use in astonomy.  But it is great for testing out software and for learning how to use KStars or other INDI clients' features.  It is also the only camera that is permanently attached to you computer and ready for you to use immediately.

IP Cameras

There are a number of cameras out there that are accessed via their IP address where video is streamed over the network as opposed to webcams that are directly connected to a computer.  These video streams need to be accessed in a different way and the INDI Webcam driver now supports that.  To use this feature, it is important to have the camera on the network, either connected over wifi or ethernet.  It is also vital that you know the current IP address of the camera, the port number it is using, and the user name and password used to access the stream.

Cell Phone Cameras

Many people have actually thought about using their cell phones for astrophotography.  At many astronomy events, I have had people look through the eyepiece of my telescope and almost immediately they want to take a photo with their phone.  This driver should enable the usage of that cell phone camera for more serious astrophotography applications as well.  You could use your phone for imaging planets and other bright astronomical objects using rapid stacking or "lucky imaging" techniques.  You could also use the phone for guiding, although it is a really expensive guide camera unless you are using an old phone that you have no other use for.  In my testing, I was getting up to 20 frames per second full HD video from my phone on my home network, which is more than adequate for these purposes.  

Driver Settings Tabs

Main Control

The main control tab handles the Connect and Disconnect functions of the driver.   Please see the Connection Settings tab for setting the options for which sources/cameras to connect to.  Also in the Main Control Tab, you can Select the Rapid Stacking Options, the Output Format of the Images taken, and set the exposure time.

 Main Control

General Info

This provides general information about the currently running driver and driver version.  It also lets you set the Observer and Object Information for the FITS Header.

General Info

Options Tab

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging.   The polling period for this driver should be set as short as possible if you are using the rapid stacking features since you don't want a delay before it starts imaging.  

The FFMPEG time out is extremely important for two reasons.  First, when the driver first attempts to connect to a video stream, this setting determines how long it waits before determining that the source is not available.  Second, this setting determines how long it waits while attempting to download a video frame before deciding that the source is disconnected and attempting to reconnect. This may need to be adjusted depending upon the speed of your connection.  This setting is in micro seconds, so that 1,000,000 is one second, which is the default setting.

The Buffer time out is vital for flushing the frame buffer before taking images or streaming live video.  This attempts to ensure there are no stale images in the frame buffer.  When FFMPEG grabs a video frame from the buffer to read it, if it takes less time than this time out, then we assume it was a stale image already in the buffer.  If it takes more time than the timeout, then we assume this a fresh frame.  This may need to be adjusted depending upon the speed of your computer and your connection.  This setting is also in microseconds and the default is 10,000 which is 10 milliseconds.

 

Options2

Connection Tab

The connection tab is how you select the connection options in order to connect to your webcam, IP Camera, or Cell Phone.  All of these settings are important because FFMPEG will not connect to a video stream if these settings are incorrect.  Please see the sections above for details on what these settings mean and how to use them.

Connection Webcam

Connection IP Camera

Image Settings

In the Image setting Tab, you can set the Frame type and Region of Interest (subframe) of your image.

Image Settings

Image Info

This provides information about the currently connected webcam including the width and height, and the bits per pixel for the stream.  Please note that the pixel size is probably not correct since that is not reported by webcams.  This will be corrected in a future release.

Image Info

WCS

The WCS paneh will be used for adding WCS information to your images if enabled in the client.

WCS

Stream

The Stream Tab provides settings for configuring the live video streaming options for live video of planets or other objects.  It is identical to the Stream tab in other drivers.

Streaming

 

Issues

One known issue with this driver is that sometimes stale frames will be left in the buffer when starting a new image or a new live video stream.  I added a buffer flushing method based on the buffer timeout to try to combat this issue, but it can still happen sometimes.  Try setting the buffer timeout to change how stale frames are detected.

Another known issue is that sometimes FFMPEG randomly disconnects from the device.  This could be due to a network interruption, error in the stream, or other issue.  I have written the driver to try to detect these disconnections and then reconnect so that there is little to no interruption in imaging, but sometimes it does mess up an image or two.  You can also hit the connect button to reconnect as well.

Another possible issue when this driver is used with KStars in particular, is that when an image is first loaded, sometimes it is not displayed with the correct histogram stretch.  We have not yet determined if this is an issue with the driver or KStars or both.  But the image is NOT ruined, it is in fact perfectly fine.  There is an easy fix.  In each module of Ekos, there is a "Filter" selection.  If you select the "Auto Stretch" filter, your images will look correct as soon as you can see them.  You can also click the Auto Stretch button if you forgot to use the filter.

If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
rlancaste Sun, 15 Jul 2018 17:54:11 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/indi-webcam.html
Celestron Nightscape 8300 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/celestron-nightscape-8300.html

Installation

INDI Nightscape driver supports the Celestron Nightscape 8300 only. It may be possible to make it work with the KAI-10100  based nighscape but it will need quite a bit of adjusting to the different sensor. The driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-nightscape

Features

The Nightscape driver should support all features of the Alta and Aspen cameras including

  • USB connection
  • Temperature setpoint
  • Hardware binning (vertical only. horizontal binning is implemented in software)
  • Frame sub-selection
  • Shutter capture mode; Dark, Bias, Light (this keeps shutter closed for dark and bias frames).
  • Fan speed
  • Selectable USB Libray (libftdi1 or FTDI D2XX).
  • Selecatbale camera number (for multiple cameras).

Configuration

In order to use your Nightscape 8300 camera in INDI the first step is to configure the CCD setting in a new profile or editing and existing one. Here is a new profile where we are selecting our CCD as a Nightscape CCD. 

Operation

After configuring your profile to use an Nighscape 8300 camera, connecting to INDI will create new tabs for your camera that contain your camera's detailed specifics. The driver only supports the Nighscape 8300 which uses a  Kodak KAF-8300 chip via USB. 

config

Main Control

maincontrol

Options

The Options tab contains various settings for simulation, default file locations, upload behavior and debugging.

options

Image Settings

The Image Settings tab contains default settings for binning, sub framing, compression and frame type. Frame type controls the shutter such that you can take dark and bias frames with the shutter closed. All these options are available in the Ekos CCD application, you could change them here to establish different start up defaults.

imagesettings

Image Info

The Image Info tab contains the read only details of the underlying CCD's dimensions, pixel size and bit depth.

imageinfo

Special Features

If you have both D2XX and libftdi1 installed, the driver will let you choose which  one to use at runtime. This is under the 'USB Library' tab.

Issues

The nightscape driver is very sensitive to USB performance, and will drop packets during download occasionally. This will corrupt the downloaded images. If you get fewer than 2506 ines for a full frame download you will probably have some image corruption, or at least missing lines. This behaviour is much better with D2XX insted of libftdi libraries.

Make sure you don't have anything else using your USB bus, use a 'good' USB port and don't run CPU intensive background programs, especially video playback.
The USB performance of older Raspberry Pi models is not sufficient to run this driver.

If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 15 Jul 2018 12:02:28 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/celestron-nightscape-8300.html
Astrophysics GTOCP2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-gtocp2.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.6+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi

Features

This driver supports Astro-Physics mounts with GTOCP2 controller (Firmware version E or later) over a serial connection.

Current features of the driver:

  • Goto/Slew 
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom track rates
  • PEM control (ON/OFF)
  • Custom parking positions
  • Pulse-guiding
  • ST4 Guiding
  • Full joystick support 

Operation

First Time

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the correct port under the Connections tab. The primary and secondary telescope (if exists) aperture and focal lengths must also be set in the Options tab. If you do not have a secondary telescope, just put the same numbers as the primary there and click Set.

connections

It is also necessary to set the geographic location and park position in the Site Management tab.

Do not try parking the mount until this position is defined!

Use a park azimuth of "0" and a park altitude equal to your latitude.

The "Default" button should pre-populate these fields with the proper values based on the geographic location you have specified.

Be sure to save these options using the "Save"  button on the Options tab or else the changes will be loss when the driver is closed.

Operation

Main Control 

main control panel

The main control tab is where the primary control takes place.

To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

The Abort Motion button can be used to stop the mount at any time.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Solar, Lunar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used.

Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Mount parking and unparking is controlled by the Parking property.

The Use Pulse Cmd property can be enabled to guide the mount through the communications interface and eliminates the requirement of using an ST-4 cable to guide the mount.

The Firmware property shows the detected firmware version of the mount controller.

Options

astrophysics options

The Options tab is used to set debugging and other configuration options, as well as being able to load and save configurations.

  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices the driver should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

astrophysics motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • PEC Playback: Controls whether PEC correction are enabled.
  • GOTO Rate: Rate of motion for GOTO operations.
  • Swap Buttons: Reverse direction mount moves.
  • Sync: Controls whether SYNC or RECAL is used for syncs.  The recommended setting is :CMR# to use RECAL!

Site Management

astrophysics site

Time, Location, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking: By default, the parking position is when the OTA to be looking directly at the celestial pole. To restore parking position to the default value, please Default under Park option. You can set a custom parking position using two methods. The mount must be unparked before you can set a new position:
    • Enter the desired AZ & ALT values for the custom parking position, then press Set and then press Write Data to save the new parking position.
    • Slew the mount to the desired parking position, then press Current to sync the encoders position to this value, and then Write Data to save.

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park on the Main Control tab. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

Guide

astrophysics guide

 

Guide related option:

  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guide Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. Example: 0.25 means the mount shall move at 25% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.25x, the mount shall move 0.25*15.04 = 3.76 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 3.76 arcseconds.  The recommended value is 1.0x.

Issues

  • When you park the mount it is recommended to disconnect the driver from the mount and power the mount down as well before connecting again.

If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
knro Sat, 05 May 2018 12:21:09 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-gtocp2.html
Astrophysics Legacy https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-legacy.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.6+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi

Features

This driver supports older Astro-Physics mounts (GTOCP2 or before). It can work for later mount models, but for such models, it's better to use other drivers with more functionality.

Current features of the driver:

  • Goto/Slew 
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom track rates
  • Custom parking positions
  • Pulse-guiding
  • Full joystick support 

Operation

First Time

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the correct port under the Connections tab. The primary and secondary telescope (if exists) aperture and focal lengths must also be set in the Options tab. If you do not have a secondary telescope, just put the same numbers as the primary there and click Set.

connections

It is also necessary to set the geographic location and park position in the Site Management tab.

Do not try parking the mount until this position is defined!

Use a park azimuth of "0" and a park altitude equal to your latitude.

The "Default" button should pre-populate these fields with the proper values based on the geographic location you have specified.

Be sure to save these options using the "Save"  button on the Options tab or else the changes will be loss when the driver is closed.

Initialization 

On connection, the mount must be initialized to set values for the date, time, location, etc.

There are two types of initialization:

  • COLD
  • WARM

When connected to the mount for the first time after powering on the mount use the COLD initialization option.

Use a WARM initialization if connecting to a mount which has already been initialized once using the COLD initialization and has NOT been powered down.

The mount will assume it is starting in the PARK3 park orientation - this is with the scope pointing at the pole and the counterweight straight down.

These are defined in this document from Astro-Physics: PARK POSITIONS

 You must put the scope in this position when connecting to the mount!

Operation

Main Control 

main control panel

The main control tab is where the primary control takes place.

To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

The Abort Motion button can be used to stop the mount at any time.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Solar, Lunar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used.

Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Mount parking and unparking is controlled by the Parking property.

The Use Pulse Cmd property can be enabled to guide the mount through the communications interface and eliminates the requirement of using an ST-4 cable to guide the mount.

The Firmware property shows the detected firmware version of the mount controller.

Options

astrophysics options

The Options tab is used to set debugging and other configuration options, as well as being able to load and save configurations.

  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices the driver should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

astrophysics motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • PEC Playback: Controls whether PEC correction are enabled.
  • GOTO Rate: Rate of motion for GOTO operations.
  • Swap Buttons: Reverse direction mount moves.
  • Sync: Controls whether SYNC or RECAL is used for syncs.  The recommended setting is :CMR# to use RECAL!

Site Management

astrophysics site

Time, Location, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking: By default, the parking position is when the OTA to be looking directly at the celestial pole. To restore parking position to the default value, please Default under Park option. You can set a custom parking position using two methods. The mount must be unparked before you can set a new position:
    • Enter the desired AZ & ALT values for the custom parking position, then press Set and then press Write Data to save the new parking position.
    • Slew the mount to the desired parking position, then press Current to sync the encoders position to this value, and then Write Data to save.

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park on the Main Control tab. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

Guide

astrophysics guide

 

Guide related option:

  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guide Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. Example: 0.25 means the mount shall move at 25% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.25x, the mount shall move 0.25*15.04 = 3.76 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 3.76 arcseconds.  The recommended value is 1.0x.

Mount

astrophysics mount

Slew Accuracy: Since legacry driver cannot know from the controller when the slew operation completed successfully, the driver employs another approach to determine when the slew is complete. By default, the drivers calculates the difference between the current mount position versus the target position. When the difference is within the Slew Accuracy threshold (default 3 arcminutes), it considers the slew to be complete. It is recommended to leave the value as-is.

Issues

  • When you park the mount it is recommended to disconnect the driver from the mount and power the mount down as well before connecting again.

If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
knro Sat, 05 May 2018 12:21:09 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-legacy.html
StellarMate OS https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/stellarmate-os.html

For experienced users who already own a Raspberry PI 3 unit, StellarMate OS is a complete software package ready for deployment on your RPI3. It is provided as an OS Image file (.img) that you can burn to an SD card and fire it up immediately to enjoy the full benefit of StellarMate software stack. The following packages are included in addition to the base OS:

  • INDI
  • KStars/Ekos
  • Astrometry.net with index files.
  • StellarMate Web Manager.
  • StellarMate Network Manager.
  • StellarMate Serial Port Assistant.

Find out more in the Features Tour section.

]]>
knro Thu, 03 May 2018 12:37:34 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/stellarmate-os.html
CEM120 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/cem120.html

Installation

INDI iOptron CEM120 Driver is released as a 3rd party driver and requires INDI Library >= v1.6.5. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

This INDI driver is not limited to CEM120 as it supports the following iOptron mounts:

  • CEM120-EC2 with firmware 20171001 and later
  • CEM120-EC with firmware 20171001 and later
  • CEM120 with firmware 20171001 and later
  • CEM60-EC with firmware 20171001 and later
  • CEM60 with firmware 20171001 and later
  • iEQ45 Pro (EQ and AA mode) with firmware 20171001 and later
  • iEQ30 Pro with firmware 20171001 and later
  • CEM25-EC with firmware 20171001 and later
  • CEM25(/P) with firmware 20171001 and later
  • SmartEQ Pro+ with firmware 20171001 and later
  • AZ Mount Pro with firmware 20171001 and later
  • Cube Pro with 8408 (EQ and AA mode) with firmware 20171001 and later
  • Cube II (EQ and AA mode) with firmware 20171001 and later

Current features are:

  • Goto/Slew at user-selectable rates.
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar, king, and custom track rates.
  • Configurable custom parking positions.
  • Normal Slews and Counterweight up slews.
  • Home search & gogo.
  • Pulse-guiding.
  • Full joystick support.

The mount must be aligned first before establishing connection with INDI. Further enhancement to the GOTO operation can be done by using an astrometry solver.

Connectivity

1. USB

To connect to iOptronV3 mount from a PC or a device like Raspberry PI, you need a USB to RS232 RJ9/DB9 adapters. You connect the USB to your computer or embedded device running INDI and then use the driver to control the mount.

The default baud rate is set to 9600. If the connection fails to communicate with your mount, make sure the baud rate is set to the value indicated in the hand-controller. Some users reported using baud rate of 230400 to successfully communication with CEM120.

2. Network

If iOptron is available over the network via RS232-to-Ethernet adapter or WiFi for example, you can Ethernet connection mode and enter the corresponding IP address and port where the remote server is located.

4. First Time Connection

connections

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select the port to connect to. You can also try connecting directly and the driver shall automatically scan the system for candidate ports. If CEM120 is connected the network via a Serial-TCP (Ethernet or WiFi) adapter, then you can select Ethernet mode and enter the IP address and port for the adapter connected to the mount. After making changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the settings.

Operation

Once CEM120/iOptronV3 is online, it loads mount settings if they exist. Its location defaults to the celestial pole unless a custom parking position is set previously.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of CEM120 takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

main control

Five tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Lunar, Solar, King, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used. Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

You can search for home position, or set current position as the home position, or simply go to the home position. Please note that the home position is NOT the same as parking position. Only a subset of mount support parking & unparking operation as the mount internal alignment data is not lost when the mount is parked and the power is cycled.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices CEM120 should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. CEM120 shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.

    options
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.
  • Backlash: Set RA & DEC backlash in microsteps.

Motion Control

motion control

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guiding Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. 0.3 means the mount shall move at 30% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.3x, the mount shall move 0.3*15.04 = 4.5 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 4.5 arcseconds.
  • Slew Type: By default slew operation are done using the Normal position (i.e. counterweight are down), but you can change the behavior so that it can slew with the counterweight up position.

Caution: Changing slew type to counterweight up can cause damage to your equipment it not used carefully and with a specific goal in mind.

  • Counter weights: Indicates the current countweight status in the mount. Normal indicates that counterweights are currently down.

Site Management

Time, Locaiton, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

site management

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking: By default, the parking position is when the OTA to be looking directly at the celestial pole. To restore parking position to the default value, please Default under Park option. You can set a custom parking position using two methods. The mount must be unparked before you can set a new position:
    • Enter the desired Azimuth & Altitude values for the custom parking position, then press Set and then press Write Data to save the new parking position.
    • In KStars, you can right-click on the desired position in the Sky map, and then from the mount menu, select Set As Parking Position.
  • Daylight Savings: You can change daylight savings. It is recommended to keep this value OFF all year around and just rely on the UTC value.

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

Mount Info

Mount info tab displays information on the detected mount type and firmware version. Furthermore, GPS status, time source, and current hemisphere values are shown.

mount info

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

]]>
knro Thu, 22 Mar 2018 09:22:58 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/cem120.html
Bisque Paramount https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/bisque-paramount.html

Installation

INDI Paramount Driver is released with INDI Library >= v1.6.0 To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi

Features

This INDI paramount driver interacts with Paramount mounts via TheSkyX TCP Server either locally on the same computer or across a network connection. Bisque does not permit a direct control of the mount and so TheSkyX must be started and configured first. To connect to TSX, the TCP server needs to be enabled. In TSX go to Tools->TCP Server. A pop up window will open. Click the check box Listening For Connections. This option will stay enabled and persist across TSX restarts.

When running on the same computer as TSX, connect to the loopback address of your computer (127.0.0.1). If TSX is on a separate computer, obtain the IP address of the TSX server. The port should be 3040 by default.

Current features are:

  • Goto/Slew/Sync.
  • Park/Unpark with configurable custom parking positions.
  • Slew Rates adjustment
  • Jog Rates adjustment
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom trackrates
  • Guide rate adjustment
  • Pulse-guiding.
  • Full joystick support
  • Ability to take advantage of TSX Tpoint pointing models for accurate pointing
  • Differential slews to target with the Alignment module in Ekos (identical to TSX Closed Loop Slew)

TSX Preferences

In TheSkyX preferences, make sure to turn off TCP Responses close socket.

theskyx config

Connectivity

When the INDI Paramount driver is used for the first time, you must set the TSX IP address and port. Go to Connection tab and see the values, then press set. Then go to Options tab and click Save next to Configuration property so that the IP & Port values are saved across sessions.

 paramount connection

Operation

Once Paramount is online, you can control it from your favorite client software just like any other INDI mount driver.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of Paramount takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

paramount main

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Lunar, Solar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used. Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

paramount options

  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices Paramount should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

paramount motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • Jog Rate: Jogging rate of N/S/W/E motion in arcmins.
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guiding Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. 0.3 means the mount shall move at 30% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.3x, the mount shall move 0.3*15.04 = 4.5 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 4.5 arcseconds.

Site Management

Time, Locaiton, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

 paramount site management

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking: By default, the parking position is when the OTA to be looking directly at the celestial pole. To restore parking position to the default value, please Default under Park option. You can set a custom parking position using two methods. The mount must be unparked before you can set a new position:
    • Enter the desired RA & DE values for the custom parking position, then press Set and then press Write Data to save the new parking position.
    • Slew the mount to the desired parking position, then press Current to sync the encoders position to this value, and then Write Data to save.

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

If you are using KStars as your INDI client, you can click on any object or location on the Sky Map and then set it as the desired parking position as illustrated below:

paramount set parking position

Alignment 

Most users of TSX use TPoint to build and maintain the mount model. When using Ekos Alignment Module to perform mount alignment, using the default Slew then Sync behavior might adversely influence the T-Point model. Therefore, it is recommended to turn on Differential Slewing. When differential slewing is used, no syncs are sent to Paramount. The different between actual vs. reported mount position is used to correct for the discrepency. Enable this option in Ekos Alignment Options.

differential slewing

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

]]>
knro Fri, 26 Jan 2018 08:09:52 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/bisque-paramount.html
Explore Scientific PMC-Eight https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/explore-scientific-pmc-eight.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.7+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

Beta Note

This driver operates the following mounts:

  • Losmandy G11
  • Explore Scientific EXOS2
  • Explore Scientific iEXOS100

Be sure the correct mount type is selected when using the driver for the first time. The driver defauls to EXOS2.

Requirements

This driver supports both Ethernet and Serial connections.  However, a serial connection is recommended for stability. 

For mounts that require a Serial to USB FTDI adapter (typically used for the EXOS2 and G11), previous versions of this driver required you to reprogram the adapter as outlined in this post.  Reprogramming is no longer necessary.  However, there is still some benefit to using a reprogrammed cable (faster connection time, no need to reset upon reconnect).  Note that you will need to undo the reprogramming if you ever want to use the same cable for updating firmware, connecting to the mount with the ASCOM driver, or other purposes.

For older mount firmware, in order to make the mount controllable through USB/Serial, some commands need to be run in order to switch the internal state of the mount. The process is described in detail in this file Switching Between the WiFi Interface and the Serial Interfaceon the iEXOS 100™Mount Controller

First Time 

This driver supports Explore Scientific G11, EXOS2 and iEXOS 100 PMC-Eight mounts over a Serial or Ethernet connection.

Current features of the PMC-Eight driver:

  • Goto/Slew 
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom track rates
  • Pulse-guiding
  • ST4 Guiding
  • Full joystick support

Operation

First Time 

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.

It is also necessary to set the geographic location and park position in the Site Management tab.

Do not try parking the mount until this position is defined!

Initialization 

The telescope must start in the park position - this is with the scope pointing towards the pole and the counterweight straight down.

Main Control 

PMC8 Main

The main control tab is where the primary control takes place.

To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

The Abort Motion button can be used to stop the mount at any time.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Solar, Lunar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used.

Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Mount parking and unparking is controlled by the Parking property.

The Firmware property shows the detected firmware version of the mount controller.

Options

PMC8 Options

The Options tab is used to set debugging and other configuration options, as well as being able to load and save configurations.

  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices the driver should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

PMC8 Motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.

Site Management

PMC8 Site

Location settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.

Issues

  • The PMC-Eight driver is under development and needs testing - please be aware and always be observant of the mount when doing slews and parking.
  • When you park the mount it is recommended to disconnect the driver from the mount and power the mount down as well before connecting again.

If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
mikefulb Thu, 11 Jan 2018 20:42:45 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/explore-scientific-pmc-eight.html
Armadillo and Platypus Controllers https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/armadillo-and-platypus-controllers.html

Installation

INDI armadillo-platypus driver is included with libindi >= 1.6.0 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-armadillo-platypus

Features

Both the Armadillo and Platypus are advanced programmable controllers that can drive many different motors, attached to a variety of focusers. With this driver you can automate your focusing in a very accurate and customizable way, being able to drive almost any motor out there, from small and inexpensive dc motors to huge, power hungry motors.
For accurate focusing recycled stepper motors from old mounts, printers, etc, can be successfully used and driven with these controllers.

maincontrol

Operation

Connection

Apart from information on the driver, you can select the connection mode (for the moment only serial - that is, via USB - is developed). The baud rate is 115200, and the "autosearch" feature usually finds the correct port.

connection

Once connected, you can:

  • Move the focuser to a position relative to the current one - select "focus in" or "focus out" and specify the number of steps in the "relative position"
  • Move to an absolute position - just specify the step number.
  • Sync, that is, set a specific number as the current position of the motor.
  • Abort the motion at any time.

You will also get information on the current temperature reading (using the internal or external sensor, you can configure this in the Settings tab), and the firmware version of your controller.

Presets

You can save up to 3 motor positions in the "presets" tab to quick and easily perform goto to any of them later. Usually the "fully racked in", and "approximate focus" positions are good candidates to store here.

presets

Settings

Here is the configuration of the motor and controller. Port: select which port the motor is attached to. Just one port for the moment.

  • Max speed: speed at which the motor will turn. At the default value of 9800, good for our stock motors, the motor will take 36 seconds to perform a full turn - that is 10 miliseconds per step, and 3600 steps / turn. This value works fine for many motors. If you are tuning a different motor, in general faster speeds work better in smaller steppers.
  • Temperature sensor: just select the external one if connected, the internal otherwise.
  • Backlash: if enabled, you can input the value (in steps) in the field and click "set". The backlash will be applied in every change of direction of the motor.
  • Halfstep: if you find your motor is not precise enough for your setup, you can double the effective steps by selecting halfstep. Please note this also halves the speed!
  • Motor type: just select your current motor type. Lunatico's stock motor (as well as many others, Robofocus, Moonlite, Lakeside...) is Unipolar. With "bipolar" you can also drive most unipolar motors but with increased torque, if needed, apart of course of driving true bipolar motors (such as the ones mounted in Feathertouch focusers). "DC" motors are the ones used in inexpensive motofocusers, as sold by Orion, Skywatcher and others. You can control it simulating stepper behaviour (choose a very slow speed!), but their accuracy won't be too good
    in any case.Last, "Step-dir" is used to control 3rd party motor drivers, which can be used with very big or very exotic motors. With this option, you can effectively drive any motor in the market.
  • Wiring: so you don't have to mess with the cables. For this kind of motors, with 4 wires, only 2 types or wiring are commonly used, A B A' B' (which is
    Lunatico normal wiring) or A A' B B' (RF/Moonlite wiring). Select reverse if the motor moves in the wrong direction (it should rack in the focuser
    when the steps get smaller).

settings

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

]]>
knro Mon, 04 Dec 2017 10:51:32 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/armadillo-and-platypus-controllers.html
GTD Integra85 Focusing Rotator https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/gtd-integra85-focusing-rotator.html

Installation

The GTD Integra85 Focusing Rotator is included with libindi >= 1.6.0 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The Integra 85 is a focusing rotator. It has a clear aperture of 85 mm, a backfocus of 69 mm, and a travel of 10 mm. The focusing function of the Integra85 is based on 3 fine pitch leadscrews running in special low friction nuts that provide high loading capacity up to 8 kg with a travel of 10 mm in 188600 0.05 micron steps. The rotator is using a traditional wormwheel, the 360 degrees is divided up in 61802 steps. The focuser has an autocalibration feature.

 

20171120 screen1

 

Main Control tab

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Abort Motion: Stop any focus motor movement.
  • Sensors: Reading of the focuser temperature sensor.

Presets tab

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Settings tab

  • Max position: The focuser and rotator maximum travel in steps.
  • Home at Center: This autocalibrates the focuser using a homing sensor and places the focuser in the center position at 94300 steps.

 

20171120 screen6

 

Rotator tab

The rotator position can be controlled via either setting the absolute ticks count or angle. To change the current absolute position to a new position without moving the rotator, use Sync to set the new desired position. Once Sync is set, the current absolute position shall report the synced ticks.

  • Goto (Angle): Rotate to the specified angle.
  • Abort Motion: Stop any rotator motor movement.
  • Sync: Synchronise the current position as the specified angle.
  • Reverse: Reverse angle direction.
  • Goto (Ticks): Rotate to the specified tick count.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

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H__ Fri, 24 Nov 2017 20:24:48 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/gtd-integra85-focusing-rotator.html
AstroPi3 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/astropi3.html The script is meant to automate the many setup steps involved with configuring a Raspberry Pi 3 so that it can be an Astrophotography hub using INDI, KStars, and Ekos.

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Kaczorek Mon, 06 Nov 2017 20:33:00 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/astropi3.html
TinyAstro https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/tinyastro.html Scripts to build TinyAstro image. TinyAstro is a ARM Linux system with Kstars and INDI libs. With your mobile phone or tablet, you can control your gears without a computer.

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Kaczorek Mon, 06 Nov 2017 20:30:27 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/tinyastro.html
Astroberry Server https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/astroberry-server.html

Astroberry Server is a ready to use system for Raspberry Pi for controlling all your astronomy equipment. It handles all astronomy equipment supported by INDI server.

 sneakpreview

Features

Astroberry Server features:

  • Raspbian Buster Desktop
  • Support for Raspberry Pi 3 and 4, Pi Zero and... probably any other Raspberry Pi version released so far
  • APT repository for Raspbian Buster (yes, now any Raspbian Buster user can install Astroberry Server with 'apt install')
  • Web interface featuring GPS Panel and Astro Panel (celestial almanac for your localization)
  • Astroberry Wireless Hotspot allowing to access the system directly i.e. without external wireless network eg. in the field
  • Remote desktop accessible over VNC at astroberry.local:5900 or a web browser at http://astroberry.local/desktop
  • KStars planetarium software and Ekos with all available device drivers plus custom astroberry drivers
  • SkyChart / Cartes du Ciel planetarium program (only in precooked image)
  • Hallo Northern SKY planetarium program (only in precooked image)
  • CCDciel capture software (only in precooked image)
  • Astrometry for field solving
  • ASTAP, the Astrometric STAcking Program (only in precooked image)
  • PHD2 for autoguiding
  • Gnome Predict for satellite tracking
  • Firecapture for planetary imaging
  • oaCapture for planetary imaging
  • SER Player for watching captured video streams (only in precooked image)
  • Astroberry DIY drivers for focuser and relay board
  • Astroberry PiFace drivers for focuser and relay board
  • Astroberry Motor HAT for focuser based on Adafruit Motor HAT
  • File sharing server allowing for network access to captured images
  • Support for raspi-config (console) and rc_gui (graphical UI) for easy configuration of Raspberry Pi options

Installation

Download Astroberry Server image and flash your microSD card with it. You're ready to go right after the first boot!

You can flash your microSD card (minimum 16GB required) using etcher.io or running the below commands in your terminal:

unzip astroberry-server_2.0.1.img.zip
sudo dd if=astroberry-server_2.0.1.img of=/dev/sdX bs=8M status=progress

Note: Replace sdX with your microSD card identifier. Make sure it is correct before running the above command!

After flashing your microSD card, boot your Raspberry Pi and enjoy! It is recommended to update your system after first boot. Run 'sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade' to keep your system up to date.

Visit www.astroberry.io or https://github.com/rkaczorek/astroberry-server for detailed instructions and FAQ.

How to use it?

It's as simple as this:

  • Start your Raspberry Pi with the flashed microSD card.
  • Connect to an Astroberry Wireless Hotspot (default password is astroberry)
  • Point your browser to http://astroberry.local or http://IP_ADDRESS
  • Click Connect button to access Astroberry Server
  • Connect to Astroberry desktop (default password is astroberry)

Note 1: If you connect via Hotspot default IP_ADDRESS is 10.42.0.1, if you connect via wire or your home wireless network, IP_ADDRESS will be assigned by your router/access point.

Note 2: Astroberry Server is accessible via insecure at http://astroberry.local or http://IP_ADDRESS or secure https://astroberry.local or https://IP_ADDRESS. If you use the latter you need to trust provided certificate or install your own. Otherwise your browser will warn you of security risk.

Issues

If you found a bug, please report it at GitHub

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Kaczorek Mon, 06 Nov 2017 20:24:53 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/astroberry-server.html
StellarMate https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/stellarmate.html

StellarMate is the Next Generation Internet-Of-Things (IoT) astrophotography gadget!

StellarMate is powered by Open Astronomy Instrumentation protocols (INDI), and Ekos, a cross-platform astrophotography suite for Windows, MacOS, and Linux. It supports highly accurate GOTOs, autofocus and autoguide capabilities, in addition to powerful image aquisition features and support for numerous mounts, CCDs, DSLRs, focusers, and much more.

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Kaczorek Mon, 06 Nov 2017 20:18:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/raspberry-pi/stellarmate.html
Gemini SnapCap https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/gemini-snapcap.html

Installation

INDI Gemini SnapCap driver is included with libindi v1.5.0+

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Gemini SnapCap is used for dust protection and also to provide a source for evenly illuminated flat light source. INDI SnapCap driver controls parking and unparking of the cap, in addition to controlling the flat light source which are primarily used for automation of Flat Field captures.

Operation

Connection options

Gemini SnapCap communicates via serial port at 38400 bauds. Unfortunately the device is Arduino based and uses the same USB device ids as any other Arduino Uno so specific udev-rules are not possible, but if you don't have any other Arduinos connected you use this udev-rule to create the symlink:

SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="2a03", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0043", SYMLINK+="snapcap", ENV{ID_MM_DEVICE_IGNORE}="1"
The above udev rules file is useful but not strictly necessary for the operation of SnapCap. You can still connect to /dev/ttyACM0..etc. Furtermore, the controller also has built-in bluetooth serial controller that can be used instead of USB cable after binding the rfcomm serial port. Once the pairing between your computer and the controller is complete, you should see /dev/rfcomm0 in the list of available ports and this can be used to communicate with the controller over Bluetooth.

Main controls

Main controls show information about current device status and allow control of the dust cover and flat light. Light can only be enabled when the cap is parked (closed), its brightness can be selected from 25-255. Abort button aborts any movement in progress and force movement option can be used to initiate movement when the device thinks it already is in the required position. This shouldn't be necessary though.

Options

The controller can be configured to read Filter names from other drivers such as a Filter Wheel or a CCD driver with a built-in Filter Wheel (e.g. QSI 583). The Filter device name is set in the options so that the driver can enumerate all the available filters. Some clients automatically fill this field depending on your equipment profile. This can be used to set default light brightness per filter for flats as shown in the next screen.

Preset

This tab allows setting default light brightness per filter for flats. For example my camera has mechanical shutter so I prefer to have exposure times around 3s for flats to avoid shutter shadow so I have low brightness for broadband filters like Luminance, but maximum brightness for narrow band filters.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI Bug Tracking system at Github.

 

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knro Fri, 27 Oct 2017 14:34:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/gemini-snapcap.html
GPS NMEA https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/gps-nmea.html

Installation

GPS NMEA driver is included with libindi >= 1.5.0. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-gpsnmea

Features

INDI GPS NMEA driver is designed to parse GPS NMEA streams to provide location and time updates. Usually, the driver is running on a device like Raspberry PI while the GPS NMEA server is running on a remote device like a phone that resides on the same network on the Rasbperry PI. The driver can be configured to monitor GPS data streams from the phone and then synchronize INDI drivers and clients accordingly. This is especially handy when you the RPi3 is used for mobile observatories on the go.

Any App that provides NMEA streams as a server are supported. For Android, ShareGPS has been successfully tested with the driver. For iOS, GPS 2 IP provides the same functionality.

The driver can also change the system time. But since operation requires administrative privileges, you need to set CAP_SYS_TIME capabilities first by running this command:

sudo setcap cap_sys_time=ep /bin/date

There is no need to run the above command on StellarMate.

Operation

Connection

gps connection

Before you connect, you must set the IP address of the GPS NMEA server. If you're using a phone to stream GPS data, find out the IP address of the phone and enter it in the Address field. Furthermore, enter the port used by your App to stream the data. The device where the driver is is running (StellarMate, RPI3..etc) must be on the same network as the phone you are trying to stream from. After you set the TCP information, go to Options and click Save under Configuration. Please note that phone IP addresses are usually subject to change so on your next connection you must reset the address field to whatever IP address currently used by your phone. After all data is set, and assuming your App is already running on your phone, click Connect to establish connection.

Main Control

GPS NMEA Fix

When you first connect, a GPS fix is taken and it might take a while before the driver is synchronized to the GPS stream. If the driver remains in NO FIX busy mode for more than 30 seconds, click the GPS Refresh button to force a refresh.

gps main control

After a GPS fix is captured, the driver shall update the Location & Time properties. Depending on your client, you may need to configure your drivers and clients to synchronize with the GPS data. For KStars/Ekos, no additional action is necessary. After the fix is taken and Location/Time updated, the driver is no longer deemed necessary and can be disconnected for the current session.

Optionally, you can set the driver to periodically update the GPS data to the clients. This is usually not necessary, but it can be enabled by changing the Refresh Period property to the desired period in seconds. To disable the periodic refresh, set the period to zero.

What's difference between INDI GPSD and INDI GPS NMEA drivers?

INDI GPS NMEA driver fills the gap for people who use mobile phone's gps for setting location and time in KStars/Ekos. indi-gpsd does pretty much the same, however it is based on different approach. Both of the drivers set time and location (over INDI server) to other INDI drivers (e.g. mount) and clients (e.g. KStars), but:

indi-gpsnmea:

  • reads gps data stream from mobile phone's gps
  • requires network connection of the source of gps data stream i.e. phone running app, which enables gps sharing
  • it is operating system independent

indi-gpsd:

  • reads gps data stream from gpsd service
  • requires gpsd service is running and properly configured as a systemwide service
  • ntpd service can read from gpsd service to synchronize operating system time/date to gps source
  • it is operating system dependent and can be used only on linux

There's no conflict between the two - NTP gets time from GPSD to set operating system time/date, not INDI drivers' and clients' time/date.
We can consider merging these drivers at some point in time, but for now you should run either indi-gpsnmea or indi-gpsd. Using both drivers at the same time makes no sense.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

 

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knro Thu, 26 Oct 2017 08:28:26 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/gps-nmea.html
GPS https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/gps.html

Installation

INDI GPS driver is included available as 3rd party driver. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-gpsd

Features

INDI GPS driver requires Linux GPSD service to be running. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-get install gpsd
sudo systemctl enable gpsd
sudo systemctl restart gpsd

Tip: StellarMate users can simply follow the GPS video tutorial.

A GPS device is also required. Many devices are support, please check the hardware compatiblity page before purchasing a GPS device and make sure the GPS device is supported under Linux. The U-Plox AG GPS available from Odroid is one example of a comptabile device. Depending on the device, you might need to edit /etc/default/gpsd file and edit the DEVICES= section to add the serial port for your GPS device there (e.g. /dev/ttyACM0).

Make sure GPS is receiving data by running gpsmon

Operation

gpsd main controlUpon connection, it should take a few seconds before the GPS fixed is usually obtained. Depending on your client, you might need to configure it to synchronize it with GPS data with the mount and other devices. KStars performs this synchronization automatically without requiring any further action from the user.

What's difference between INDI GPSD (this driver) and INDI GPS NMEA drivers?

INDI GPS NMEA driver fills the gap for people who use mobile phone's gps for setting location and time in KStars/Ekos. indi-gpsd does pretty much the same, however it is based on different approach. Both of the drivers set time and location (over INDI server) to other INDI drivers (e.g. mount) and clients (e.g. KStars), but:

indi-gpsnmea:

  • reads gps data stream from mobile phone's gps
  • requires network connection of the source of gps data stream i.e. phone running app, which enables gps sharing
  • does not set operating system time/date based on gps source
  • it is operating system independent

indi-gpsd:

  • reads gps data stream from gpsd service
  • requires gpsd service is running and properly configured as a systemwide service
  • ntpd service can read from gpsd service to synchronize operating system time/date to gps source
  • it is operating system dependent and can be used on Linux and OS X, but not Windows

There's no conflict between the two - NTP gets time from GPSD to set operating system time/date, not INDI drivers' and clients' time/date.
We can consider merging these drivers at some point in time, but for now you should run either indi-gpsnmea or indi-gpsd. Using both drivers at the same time makes no sense.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

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knro Sat, 21 Oct 2017 12:23:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/gps.html
USB Dew Point https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/usb-dew-point.html

Installation

USB Dew Point driver is included with libindi >= 1.5.0. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

USB_Dewpoint calculates in real time the Dewpoint, thanks to ambiant humidity probe close to your instrument. It also connects to 2 external temperature probes (attached to tube or mirrors) and compares these temperatures to the Dewpoint. If temperatures too close to dewpoint it heats in a smooth or aggressive maner. We can also call it a heating regulator.

Second, if no heat required, USB_Dewpoint only uses 0.05W to run. It connects to computer USB (or HUB 2.0 / 1.1) to operate remotely and can be operated  manually or in autonomy.

Main controls

Main controls show information about current device state and allow for manual control of the power to the three output channels (0-100%). In automatic operating mode the values are essentially read-only as the device controls them itself based on temperature readings. Temperatures and humidity are read from the device every 10 seconds.

Options

Values shown here are the device defaults which are restored if "Reset" button is pressed. All settings are automatically written to the device EEPROM so they are retained even if the device is used completely autonomously without computer.

Individual options do:

  • Calibrations (range 0-9) are added to the temperature values in the device and can be used to equalize readings from all the temperature sensors
  • Thresholds (range 0-9) determine when the device starts applying power to the channels
  • Aggressivity (range 1-4) determines how quickly the device starts applying more power
  • Channel 3 is normally manual control only (as there are only two temperature sensors), but can be linked to channel 2 for more power or using two dew heaters
  • Reset button resets all values to device defaults shown here

In automatic mode the device tries to keep channel temperature above dew point plus threshold like shown in this picture from the Windows driver manual (I think the equations are wrong way around, they should be Temp1-Dewpoint, but the idea is clear):

Operation

Before connection, you need to select the port. Usually, the port is like /dev/ttyACM0. USB_Dewpoint communicates via serial port at 9600 bauds, nothing special there. you can use udev-rule to create a pemement symlink:

$ sudoedit /etc/udev/rules.d/99-usbfocus.rules

Then write the following inside the file:

SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{product}=="USB_Dewpoint", SYMLINK+="usb_dewpoint", ENV{ID_MM_DEVICE_IGNORE}="1"

Similar rule for USB_Focus would be:
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{product}=="USB_Focus", SYMLINK+="focuser", ENV{ID_MM_DEVICE_IGNORE}="1"

Then save the file, and restart your RPI3 or Computer and you should have symbolic links to your devices. For if USB_Dewpoint device is attached via USB, then you can use /dev/usb_dewpoint in your INDI driver.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

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knro Sat, 21 Oct 2017 08:03:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/usb-dew-point.html
MBox Meteostation https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/mbox-meteostation.html

Installation

MBox driver is included with libindi v1.5+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

MBox is a small, self-contained weather sensing device that delivers barometric pressure, temperature, humidity and dew point information with high accuracy. It features a Micro-USB port and comes in a handy, small enclosure.

The driver supports reading the following sensor data: 

  • Temperature (C): Inside temperature in Celcuis.
  • Humidity (C): Relative Humidity %
  • Barometer (millibars): Barometer pressure value.
  • Dew Point: Dew point in Celcius.

MBox Main Control

All parameter values have an OkWarning, and Alert ranges that can be specified by the user in the Parameters tab. Temperature is considered a Critical Paramter. Critical paramters are listed in the main control tab in the Weather status property. The user can specify the minimum and maximum range for each zone. Any value outside the Warning zone is automatically considered Alert. The overall weather status property reflects the worse state of the individual critical parameters. If one critical paramter status is Warning while another is Alert then the overall weather status property is Alert. The weather status property may be used for decision making by clients application. For example, when the weather status is Alert, the client application may commence a precautionary shutdown of the observatory to protect its equipment from adverse weather conditions.

Operation

Before you connect, check that the port and baud rate settings in the Options tab are correct. By default, the port is /dev/ttyUSB0 and the baud rate is 38400. You can specify the update period is seconds (default 60) in the main control panel. To update weather data manually, press the Refresh button. If you change the paramter ranges under the Paramters tab, save the ranges in the configuratio file by clicking on Save in the Options tab.

You can set Offsets for each sensor to adjust its reported value in the Main Control Panel.

MBox Parameters

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github. 

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knro Tue, 17 Oct 2017 19:12:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/mbox-meteostation.html
Sesto Senso https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/sesto-senso.html

Installation

Sesto Sensor driver is included with libindi >= 1.5.0. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

SESTO SENSO is a robotic focusing motor for telescopes and compatible with most focusers. Install it in place of the micrometer knob and connect it to USB port to remotely control without vibration and with high precision your telescope's focuser! Thanks to the precise control motor with integrated electronics, SESTO SENSO achieves incredible precision of just 0.7 microns.

Sesto Senso

Main Control Tab

  • Direction: Select focus direction.
  • Relative Position: Move the focus by a relative amount in the direction specified above.
  • Absolute Position: Move focuser to an absolute position in ticks.
  • Sync: Set current position as the supplied offset without moving the focuser.
  • Temperature: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe.

Connection

  • Select connection port, by default, it's set to /dev/ttyUSB0.
  • Select Auto-search parameters.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

Set the focuser connection port under the Connections tab. Click connect in the Main Control Tab to establish connection. The INDI SestoSenso driver provides basic functionality that includes settings of absolute and relative position. Use Sync to set the current position to any desired value. It can be used by autofocus software such as Ekos.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at Github.

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knro Tue, 17 Oct 2017 18:46:32 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/sesto-senso.html
NexDome https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/nexdome.html

Installation

NexDome is a classic observatory dome with more than 100 degrees of shutter opening, allowing you to point your telescope to the zenith while remaining shielded from stray light and wind. The 2.2 meter inside diameter provides plenty of space to operate up to a 14” Schmidt Cass or a refractor 1400mm long.

The driver is only compatible with firmware version 3.1.0 or higher. Please update the firmware for the Azimuth & Shutter controllers before using this driver.

INDI NexDome driver is released as a 3rd party driver in source and binary packages. It is compatible with libindi >= v1.8.2

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-nexdome

Features

NexDome is a fully automatic observatory dome control system. Link your dome to a computer for complete automation including telescope slaving and shutter control. It supports the following features:

  1. Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  2. Rotation-only and full shutter-and-rotation systems available
  3. Direct confirmation of shutter open/closed state
  4. Safety interlocks automatically close dome upon loss of data from PC
  5. Park-before-close option to avoid mechanical interferences
  6. Manual override controls for shutter and rotation control
  7. Field-upgradable firmware

Operation

connection

Connection

Connecting to the dome is done via the serial port. If you have multiple serial ports on your system, you might need to select which port to connect it. The driver also offer the ability to use a TCP/IP connection however this requires the use of a USB/serial to IP transport such as ser2net.

Main Control panel

Once you are connected to the dome, you can move it to any azimuth position and control the shutter (if connected).

main control

Clicking the dome CW (Clock-Wise) and CCW (Counter Clock-Wise) buttons would move the dome in the respective directions by 5 degrees. Use the Sync property to set the azimuth position to any arbitrary value. The current azimuth position is then set to whatever value is enter in the Sync property.

To find the home position, click Go next to the Home property. The dome will rotate until it finds the home index switch and then it will synchronize the azimuth position.

Options

In the options tab, you can select logging and debugging levels in case you need to troubleshoot an issue in the driver. The snoop devices property is used to listen to properties of interest in other drivers. Since the dome can be slaved to the telescope, it needs to obtain the current telescope position and its target destination. Usually these devices are automatically snooped by your client software. The weather device is used to close to the dome in case of adverse weather conditions (e.g. rain).

options

Joystick support is available to rotate the dome and park/unpark it. You need a gamepad (e.g. Playstation controller) and need to add the joystick driver in your equipment profile before you can turn on this feature. A new tab named Joystick will appear where you can set what each button or axis can do.

Policies

  • Telescope Policy: Telescope policy can be either set to Ignore Telescope (default) or Telescope Locks. When the policy is set to Ignore Telescope then the dome can park/unpark regardless of the mount parking state. When it is set Telescope locks, this disallows the dome from parking when telescope is unparked, and can lead to damage to hardware if it rains.
  • Auto Park: When Auto park is enabled and If weather conditions are in the danger zone, the dome will be automatically parked. Only enable this option is parking the dome at any time will not cause damage to any equipment.

Rotator Settings

rotator

In the rotator tab, you can set rotator settings:

  • Acceleration Ramp: The acceleration time in milliseconds.
  • Velocity: Set the velocity in units of steps per second.
  • Dead Zone: Update the dead zone range (default 300 steps). It the smallest allowed move.
  • Travel Range: Maximum allowable step size. Probably better no to change this setting at all.

After changing the settings, you can save them to firmware by clicking on Save. If you click Load, setting will be loaded from firmware (but not saved). Clicking Default will reset all settings to default factory settings.

Shutter

shutter

In the rotator tab, you can set rotator settings:

  • Acceleration Ramp: The acceleration time in milliseconds.
  • Velocity: Set the velocity in units of steps per second.

After changing the settings, you can save them to firmware by clicking on Save. If you click Load, setting will be loaded from firmware (but not saved). Clicking Default will reset all settings to default factory settings.

You can enable or disable automatic shutter opening and closing when dome goes to into or out of the Park position. After changing these settings, go to the Options tabs and click Save configuration to save the driver settings.

Note that in order for the Open On Unpark feature to work correctly the shutter must be configured to open sufficiently that it triggers the limit switch. This may require the number of shutter steps to be increased beyond the default setting of 46000.   

Site Management

site management

You can set a custom parking position in the Site Management tab. You can either set the position directly and then clicking Set, or you can go to the desired parking position and then click Current under Park Options.

This only sets the parking position. To perform the actual parking, go to the Main Control tab and click Park.

 Slaving

slaving

You can slave the dome to the mount by setting the required slaving parameters (by convention the units are in meters);

  1. Radius is for the radius of the dome (typically 1.05 for a Nexdome)
  2. Shutter width is the aperture of the shutter of the dome in meters (0.6m in current models)
  3. N displacement is for north-south displacement of the intersection of the RA & DEC axis as measured from the center of the dome. Displacement to north is positive, and to south is negative.
  4. E displacement is for east-west displacement. Similar as the above, displacement to east are positive, and to west are negative.
  5. Up displacement is for displacement of the RA/DEC intersection in the vertical axis as measured from the origin of the dome (not the walls). Up is positive, down is negative.
  6. OTA offset is for the distance of the optical axis to the RA/DEC intersection. In fork mount this is generally 0, but for German like mounts is the distance from mount axis cross to the center line of the telescope. West is positive, east is negative.

After settings the parameters above, go to Options tab and click Save in Configurations so that the parameters are used in future sessions. You can also set the Autosync threshold which is the minimum distance autosync will move the dome. Any motion below this threshold will not be triggered. This is to prevent continuous dome moving during telescope tracking.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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knro Thu, 14 Sep 2017 08:42:27 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/nexdome.html
Pegasus DMFC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-dmfc.html

Installation

Pegasus DMFC driver is included with libindi >= 1.5.1. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Pegasus Dual Motor Focus Controller (DMFC) is a Dual-Motor Focus Controller that supports two kind of motor types.

  • High Resolution Stepper motors for absolute position focusing.
  • DC motors by its Pulse Width Modulation duty cycle control.

Controller can switch motor mode from its software, Mode can be instantly changed from Stepper to DC motor and saved in controller’s EEPROM memory.

The driver supports all the capabilities of the controller including temperature readout, backlash settings, led and reversibility controls.

Pegasus INDI Control Panel

Main Control Tab

From the main control panel, the focuser can be moved in absolute steps using the controls shown above. Set the desired position in the Absolute Position control and then press Set to start the motion.

Alternatively, focuser can be moved in Relative steps Inward or Outward.

When the focuser is closest to the back of the OTA, it is considered fully retracted. Focus IN motion is always from larger steps to smaller steps (e.g. 4000 to 3000), while focus OUT is the opposite (e.g. 3000 to 4000). Therefore, when fully retracted, the focus position should generally indicate zero. Fortunately, even if the current position does not match what you expect, you can sync the focuser position to any arbitrary ticks position by setting the sync control in the main control panel.

Settings

Pegasus Settings

All primary settings can be set in the Settings tab. All the settings can be saved by going to the Options tab and clicking Save under configuration.

  1. Reverse: Switch direction of motion.
  2. Backlash: Set whether backlash compensation is enabled or disabled. Set the desired backlash value in ticks.
  3. Encoders: Encoders are enabled by default. Disable them to manually change the position of the focuser without affecting the current position ticks count.
  4. Motor Type: Set appropriate motor type for the focuser.
  5. Max Speed: Set Maximum stepper speed. It is recommended to use the default value of 400 for stable and smooth motion.
  6. LED: Turn On/Off LED

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

The INDI Pegasus DMFC driver provides complete functionality for all the features supported by Pegasus including relative and absolute positioning, temperature readout, preset and configuration parameters.

It can be controlled from any INDI-compatible client. Illustrated below is the focus control with Ekos:

Pegasus DMFC in Ekos

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 13 Sep 2017 19:37:39 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/pegasus-dmfc.html Optec Gemini Focusing Rotator https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/optec-gemini-focusing-rotater.html

Installation

The Optec Gemini driver is included with libindi >= 1.5.0 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

Optec's Gemini Focusing Rotator is a low-profile yet heavy duty focuser/rotator that operates by way of a rotating drawtube. It operates as both a focuser and rotator as an absolute device to guarantee repeatability of positioning. Very fine-grained control is possible, with the focuser providing a resolution of 0.11 microns per step and the rotator operating at 600 steps per degree. The integrated temperture compensation capability allows the user to account for temperture varation during the imaging session without a need to focus. The Gemini can be operated over IP via ethernet connection or through a serial port.

More information is available on the Optec website here.

Main Control Tab (Focuser)

  • Connection: Controls the driver connection to the Gemini.
  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count. 
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move. Click "Set" to apply the change.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps. Click "Set" to apply the change.
  • Abort Motion: Aborts movement of the focuser (not the rotator).
  • Temperature: Current temperature measured by the Gemini temperture compensation probe.
  • Goto: Causes the focuser to go to the center of travel or home itself. Center of travel for the Gemini is 57600 ticks. If homing the Gemini focuser home itself then return to the position from which it started (e.g. 41000 ticks).

gemini main control

Presets Tab (Focuser)

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

gemini presets

Rotator Tab

  • Goto: Allows control of the rotator postion by setting the position in absolute ticks. Home is 45000 ticks. Click "Set" to apply the change.
  • Angle: Allows setting the rotator position by setting the desired position angle. 360.00 degrees is home. Click "Set" to apply the change.
  • Abort Motion: Aborts movement of the rotator (not the focuser).
  • Goto: Causes the rotator to go to the center of travel or home itself. Center of travel for the Gemini rotator is 107999 ticks. If homing the Gemini rotator home itself to 45000 ticks (360.00 degrees) and stay there.
  • Backlash Compensation Settings: Allows for control of the backlash compensation capability in the rotator.
  • Reverse: Reverses the direction of position angle change requests. 
gemini rotator

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Tue, 08 Aug 2017 05:52:01 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/optec-gemini-focusing-rotater.html
GotoNova Upgrade Kit 8400 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/ioptron-gotonova-upgrade-kit-8400.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.4.2+. To install it under Ubuntu:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports the following Gotonova 8400 based controllers

Functions such as Track, Sync (Regular and CMR), and Park are supported.

Operation

On connection, the mount retrieves the controller time and location and updates the client accordingly.

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> kbahey Tue, 04 Jul 2017 16:39:22 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/ioptron-gotonova-upgrade-kit-8400.html NightCrawler Rotator and Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/nightcrawer-rotator-and-focuser.html

Installation

MoonLite driver is included with libindi >= 1.4.2 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

MoonLite’s NiteCrawler models are a fully electronic focuser that uses fly by wire control technology for very accurate positioning in both focus and rotation. The patented design is intended for remote automation of large heavy imaging instruments providing extreme position accuracy that is repeatable down to .26 Microns. You can control the focuser absolute & relative position, in addition to the rotator position and angle and auxiliary focuser, if one is attached. All motors are fully controllable from within the driver.

NightCrawler Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT. IN decreases ticks count, OUT increases ticks count.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Sync: Set the current focus position as the entered position.
  • Temperature & Voltage: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

The INDI NightCrawer driver provides complete functionality for all the features supported by MoonLite including relative and absolute positioning, temperature readout, rotator control, auxiliary control, preset and configuration parameters.

NightCrawler Rotator

Rotator Control

The rotator position can be controlled via either setting the absolute ticks count or angle. To change the current absolute position to a new position without moving the rotator, use Sync to set the new desired position. Once Sync is set, the current absolute position shall report the synced ticks. Depending on your specific NightCrawler model, each has specific maximum steps (ticks):

  • WR25 374,920 steps per revolution
  • WR30 444,080 steps per revolution
  • WR35 505,960 steps per revolution

NightCrawler Settings

Limit Switches

Limit switches indicate when you close to the limit to motors range of motion. When the limit switch state is Green, then the motor is not close to the limit switch, and when it turns Red, then it is close to the switch limit:

  • Rotator Home: Switch actuated when rotator is close to the home position.
  • Focus Out Limit: Switch actuated when focuser is nearly fully extended out.
  • Focus In Limit: Switch actuated when focuser is nearly fully retracted.

Homing

Nightcrawler supports homing the focuser, rotator, and auxiliary axis in the Settings tab. To select which axis to home, check the desired axes in the Home Select property. Once done, click Start to initiate the process. Homing returns all motors to their zero home position. Depending on the current position of the rotator and focuser, it might take up to 10 minutes before such process is complete. While homing is active, you cannot issue any commands and must wait until the process is over.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Wed, 14 Jun 2017 11:43:58 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/nightcrawer-rotator-and-focuser.html
SkySafari https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skysafari.html

Installation

INDI SkySafari Middleware Driver is included with INDI Library v1.5+. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

This driver is no longer needed when using SkySafari 7 or later. Connect to INDI server directly and do not add this driver to your equipment profile. Only use this driver when using SkySafari 6 or earilar

SkySafari is an astronomy application for Mac, iOS, and Android. Using either SkySafari Pro or Plus versions, you can control yours mounts. Since SkySafari currently does not support INDI mounts directly, a middleware drivers was develop to sit between SkySafari and INDI mount. It would allow you to use SkySafari to control and monitor your mount while at the same time use other INDI clients like Ekos to control it.

Current features are:

  • Goto
  • Align
  • Slew Speeds
  • Abort
  • Setting of Latitude/Longitude

Operation

Add the auxiliary SkySafari driver to your equipment profile. The driver is available under the auxiliary dropdown in Ekos.

SkySafari in Ekos

 

When you start the profile, you only need to update what mount the SkySafari drivers listens to. By default, it is set to Telescope Simulator. In the example below, since the mount we selected in our example Equipment Profile is EQMod, we change the mount to EQMod Mount.

EQMod Mount is just an example, select the mount driver suitable for your mount in the Equipment Profile.

You must do this before you click connect and establish the server. If you are already connected, click Disconnect, update the mount name, then click Connect again.

SkySafari Options

 

After you change the mount name to your active mount, please save the configuration by clicking Save so that your mount name is used the next time you connect to the driver.

In the unlikely event your INDI mount is NOT running on the same machine as the SkySafari INDI driver, you can change the INDI server hostname and port. Otherwise, leave this settings without any changes. By default, the SkySafari INDI server is started on port 9624. You can change this value if necessary but it is recommended to leave it as it

Now are you ready to connect, simply connect all your drivers and the SkySafari driver shall establish a server that your iOS/Android SkySafari app can connect to. When everything is OK, you shall see a message indicating that server is established:

SkySafari Server Online

 

Now open your SkySafari app and setup your mount. By default, the INDI SkySafari servers starts on port 9624. You need to know the IP address of the machine running INDI server, whether it's a desktop machine or embedded like Raspberry PI.

If you are connecting to StellarMate directly over HotSpot mode, enter 10.250.250.1 as the IP address in SkySafari. If StellarMate is joined to home WiFi network, enter stellarmate.local or StellarMate IP address directly.

Go the mount setup page in your App and set the IP address and port of the INDI SkySafari server:

SkySafari Mount Settings

 

You're set! Now simply connect to the telescope by clicking the telescope icon in SkySafari and it should connect in a few seconds if there are no issues in communication. Then you can control your mount as your would normally would under SkySafari while at the same being able to use it at the same time in any INDI compatible client.

SkySafari Mount Online

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Tue, 25 Apr 2017 19:27:34 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skysafari.html
Skywatcher Virtuoso (Alt/Az) https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/skywatcher-virtuoso-alt-az.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.4.1 or later. To install it under Ubuntu:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-full

Note: the old name of the driver is Skywatcher API Mount (executable: indi_skywatcherAPIMount).

Features

This driver supports Alt-Az mounts, but it was tested with Skywatcher Virtuoso.

Basic functions such as Track, Sync, and Park/Unpark are supported.

General Considerations

How to start with a Virtuoso mount:

1. Before connecting, the telescope or the DSLR on the Virtuoso mount should roughly point to Polaris (use the Sync method later to finetune the position). In practice, align the mount to true North-South and point a pin to the local latitude. The manual latitude setting of the mount with buttons 2+3 are NOT needed, INDI works independently from the manual mount settings.
2. The driver assumes by default that the telescope/DSLR is parked. Set the desired unpark position in the settings and click on Unpark button (Main Control tab) to move the telescope to a starting (unparked) position. The telescope motion control will be fully operational after unparking.
3. There are two slewing modes for the telescope: Silent (slower-and-silent) and Normal (quick-and-loud). It is configurable, the Silent mode is the default.

On connection, the mount sets the controller time and location.

Before syncing the mount make sure that the correct side of the pier is selected in the Main Control tab.

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab. 

Software PEC

The Skywatcher Virtuoso mount does not have PEC implementation to learn and correct the mechanical errors, but the mount has a constant drift on the Alt axis downwards in tracking mode. This error makes impossible to keep the target in smaller FOVs (e.g. 40x30 arcmin with the shipped Heritage 114p telescope+CCD camera). The drift was checked and was found about 0.009 degree/minute. Support was added to the driver for this static compensation and it was named SoftPEC (software PEC). This feature is enabled by default for Virtuoso mounts in the driver.

How does it work?

- It should just work transparently out-of-the-box.

- The software PEC is enabled only if the mount is in Track mode. Over time, the mount driver correct the vertical drift with the SoftPEC value. The software correction does not change the position of the red mount cross-hairs in KStars during Track mode.

- When the Track mode is stopped, the SoftPEC is switched off and drift correction is reset. The red mount cross-hairs will jump position according to the real position of the axis encoders in KStars while the mount will not really move anywhere.

- If you have a small FOV (<= 1°-2°) because a DSLR or CCD camera is attached to a main telescope: the Virtuoso mount will be misaligned too much just by moving to a new not-near position. Do an "Capture & Align" with Sync "Solver Action" all the time before start a target tracking. When the target is locked well in the FOV by the beginning, the standard tracking with SoftPEC enabled in INDI will do a great job.

How to calculate custom SoftPEC value?

1. Start the mount according to the General Considerations.

2. Disable the SoftPEC in the mount configuration.

3. To calculate the vertical drift repeated alignment calculation will be done in the following steps.

4. Start track a target for alignment where the vertical Azimuth axis is mostly parallel with RA axis on the sky. You can check this in Stellarium, by switching on both with keys E and Z. Check where the vertical blue and orange lines are mosly parallel and start to track a target there. This is needed because the mount drifts on the vertical axis and we need to get this vertical (Alt) component during tracking for the SoftPEC.

5. Run an alignment on the Alignment tab with Capture & Solve. The first dRA and dDE will be quite high.

6. Wait until the mount syncs and goes back to the original target. Select Nothing for Solver Action and run a Capture & Solve again immediately. The dRA and dDE values should be minimal (a few arcsecs).

7. Wait 5 or 10 minutes and run a Capture & Solve again. Inspect the dRA and dDE values. dRA should be quite minimal, but dDE will be _negative_ and several arcmins (<= -5 arcmin). Get the absolute value of dDE, convert to degrees and divide by the minutes how much you waited to run "Capture & Solve". For example, if you waited 5 minutes and dDE was -03' arcmin: |-3'| = 3' -> 0.05°, 0.05° / 5 min => SoftPEC Value = 0.01.

8. Just set your custom SoftPEC Value in the mount driver configuration page, enable SoftPEC and test it. It can be finetuned if it was a bit over- or underestimated.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's github page:
https://github.com/indilib/indi

]]>
kecsap Wed, 15 Mar 2017 23:25:41 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/skywatcher-virtuoso-alt-az.html
Astrophysics Experimental https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-experimental.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.7+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi

Features

This driver supports Astro-Physics mounts over a serial connection with a firmware version of 'V' or newer.

Current features of the driver:

  • Goto/Slew 
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom track rates
  • PEM control (ON/OFF)
  • Custom parking positions
  • Pulse-guiding
  • ST4 Guiding
  • Full joystick support
  • Meridian Delay (Experimental).

The experimental driver adds new capabilities only available using the latest mount firmware.   Since it is under development care must be taken when using it (not recommended to use the mount unattended, for example) but if you are interested in helping test this new code it would be a great help.

The experimental driver adds these features:

  • Use predefined park positions (PARK1/PARK2/PARK3/PARK4) for unpark and park operation.
  • Ability to unpark from 'Last park position'.
  • Improved mount initialization without user intervention.

Operation

PLEASE READ!

This driver is under development and as such should be considered in a BETA state.  This means you are testing the driver as much as using it.

That said it has been used for imaging and appears to operate correctly.  Use common sense when testing this driver - be near the mount whenever slewing or parking just in case!  

Any feedback on this driver is greatly desired and will help it progress more quickly from the developmental state.

First Time 

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.

It is also necessary to set the geographic location and park position in the Site Management tab.

Do not try parking the mount until this position is defined!

It is best to use one of the predefined park positions of PARK1/PARK2/PARK3/PARk4.

These are defined in this document from Astro-Physics: PARK POSITIONS

Also make sure the "Unpark From" option on the Main is set to "Last Parked".  This is the safest option since it will let the mount determine its position based on where it was last parked.  The only reason to use a different setting is if the mount seems to have lost sense of where it is and you want to start from a predefined position.

astrophysics last park

Be sure to save these options using the "Save"  button on the Options tab or else the changes will be loss when the driver is closed.

Initialization 

The mount will automatically be initialized by the driver - the user is not required to do anything extra.

Operation

Main Control 

astrophysics main

The main control tab is where the primary control takes place.

You will need to verify the Unpark From? property before connecting to the mount for the first time.  Normally the default of "Last Parked" will work and should usually not be changed.  If for some reason the mount seems to not slew properly it can help to put the mount in a known park position (PARK1/PARK2/PARK3/PARK4) and set the Unpark From? property to the corresponding park position and connect to the mount.  This will properly initialize the mount position.  Then you can set it back to "Last Parked".  Be sure to save the options!

WARNING - Leave this option at "Last Parked" unless you know what you are doing.  If you start the driver up and it is set to something besides "Last Parked" and the mount is not actually in the configured PARK position it will be very confused about where it is really pointing and lead to improper slews that may cause a pier strike!

To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

The Abort Motion button can be used to stop the mount at any time.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Solar, Lunar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used.

Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Mount parking and unparking is controlled by the Parking property.

The Use Pulse Cmd property can be enabled to guide the mount through the communications interface and eliminates the requirement of using an ST-4 cable to guide the mount.

The Firmware property shows the detected firmware version of the mount controller.

Options

astrophysics options

The Options tab is used to set debugging and other configuration options, as well as being able to load and save configurations.

  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices the driver should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

astrophysics motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • PEC Playback: Controls whether PEC correction are enabled.
  • GOTO Rate: Rate of motion for GOTO operations.
  • Swap Buttons: Reverse direction mount moves.
  • Sync: Controls whether SYNC or RECAL is used for syncs.  The recommended setting is :CMR# to use RECAL!

Site Management

astrophysics site

Time, Location, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking: By default, the parking position is when the OTA to be looking directly at the celestial pole. To restore parking position to the default value, please Default under Park option. You can set a custom parking position using two methods. The mount must be unparked before you can set a new position:
    • Enter the desired AZ & ALT values for the custom parking position, then press Set and then press Write Data to save the new parking position.
    • Slew the mount to the desired parking position, then press Current to sync the encoders position to this value, and then Write Data to save.
  • Park To?: Choose one of the predefined parking locations with the Park To? property. 
    • These are defined in this document from Astro-Physics: PARK POSITIONS 

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park on the Main Control tab. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

Guide

astrophysics guide 

Guide related option:

  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guide Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. Example: 0.25 means the mount shall move at 25% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.25x, the mount shall move 0.25*15.04 = 3.76 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 3.76 arcseconds.  The recommended value is 1.0x.

Issues

  • The lx200ap_experimental driver is under development and needs testing - please be aware and always be observant of the mount when doing slews and parking.
  • When you park the mount it is recommended to disconnect the driver from the mount and power the mount down as well before connecting again.

If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
knro Mon, 13 Mar 2017 10:39:23 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/astrophysics/astrophysics-experimental.html
Quantum Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/quantum-filter-wheel.html

Installation

Quantum Electronic Filter Wheel driver is included with libindi v1.3+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports Quantum Electronic Filter Wheel 7 x 1.25" / 2". It provides filter position control, assigning unique names for each filter and joystick control.

Operation

The filter wheel uses USB serial port, which is /dev/ttyACM0 serial device. After connecting the filter wheel set your filter names and save the configuration under Options tab so they get loaded automatically on subsequent startups. Change the filter wheel position by changing the filter slot property.
quantum wheel indi panel

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
Kaczorek Sat, 11 Mar 2017 18:33:35 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/quantum-filter-wheel.html
Celestron NexStar Evolution https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/celestron/celestron-nexstar-evolution.html

This is an outdated legacy driver. Please use new Celestron AUX driver.

 

Installation

indi_nexstarevo in included with indi-full by default. It is a separate driver and can be installed from the indi-nexstarevo package. You can install release version of the driver from the main INDI PPA, and the development version of the driver from the alternative PPA.
Warning: This is a beta-quality driver and should be treated as such. There are no known functional issues with it and only one long-stability issue. The driver should not be left operational unattended.

Features

The Celestron Nextstar supports all GOTO and sky alignment functions of NexStar Evolution telescopes. In principle it should support any Celestron scope using AUX command set (most of them) with SkyFi wireless module. It was never tested with equatorial mount but should in principle work with it using sky alignment framework.

Operation

The driver auto-detects the scope on the network so the operation should be similar to other telescope drivers. You do not need to set anything in communication setup. Let me know if you have any problems with connections. Serial communication is not implemented yet. It is on the list, but quite low on it.

Issues

There are no known functional bugs for this driver, but still it is not as stable as it should be and it is not fully polished yet. If you found a bug, please report it in (preferably) github issue tracker for the driver or a main INDI project issue tracker. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
Jochym Sun, 12 Feb 2017 10:50:08 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/celestron/celestron-nexstar-evolution.html
10 Micron https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/10-micron.html

Installation

The INDI 10Micron driver is included with libindi v1.3+. For Ubuntu it is recommended to install the latest development version:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-full

Features

This driver supports the 10 Micron HPS and QCI models. All basic LX200 functions as well as some 10 Micron extensions are supported like goto, park, pier side, ultra precision and pressure and temperature for the refraction model and satellite tracking.

The driver ideally connects to the mount via ethernet but wifi or serial port support is available as well.

New features will still be added to the driver over time as not everything that the 10Micron API offers has been exposed.

20190208 10micron main control

Current features are:

  • Goto/Slew at 10 Micron Ultra Precision Mode
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom trackrates
  • Parking
  • Pier side
  • Pulse guiding

Connectivity

For connecting to the mount Serial and Network (Ethernet and WIFI) connections are supported. Ethernet is recommended for reliability and it frees up the serial port for an optional GPS receiver. For a Network connection the Address can be an IP address or a DNS name. The mount listens to ports 3490 and 3492, either works. For Network the connection type needs to be TCP.

20190208 10micron connection

First Time Connection and Options

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select the desired connection mode and depending on that choice the serial port or the network address (IP address or DNS name) and network port to connect to. After making changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the Configuration settings.

Next set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab and save these settings too.

20190208 10micron options

Alignment

The Alignment tab can be used to manually create pointing models. While this works it is also very tedious and a much faster and better approach is to use MountWizzard v4 together with Plate Solving. This can be either StellarSolver or the online Nova Astrometry.net for plate solving, or a local installation of Astrometry.net together with Astrometry.net API Lite.

20190208 10micron alignment

Motion Control

The Motion Control tab shows North/South and East/West motion as well as the slew target coordinates. This part is just informative.

The tracking frequency can be changed. This value is computed by the 10Micron mount in order to emulate the corresponding LX200 command. It is typically not used or altered.

The Unattended Flip setting can be enabled or disabled. When this option is enabled, the mount will not stop when reaching the tracking limit, but it will begin an UNATTENDED slew to the other side of the meridian in order to continue to track the object. WARNING: use this option with extreme care, because it renders the mount able to start a slew operation without a specific instruction by the operator or by the controlling software.

20190208 10micron motion control

Site Management

The Site Management tab allows you to manually set the time and location of the mount. Time is better set automatically by either a GPS unit that is connected to the mount, or by the computer running the INDI server if it has some sort of network time synchronization. Location is also best set automatically by a GPS unit that is connected to the mount, or a GPS unit that is connected to the INDI. If you have a GPS unit connected directly to the mount then disable client programs such as KStars/EKOS to set the mounts time and location because these settings will fight those coming from the GPS unit.

Scope location Latitude and Longitude can be entered in the 10Micron ultra precision format of dd:mm:ss.s . The longitude polarity follows carthographic format where positive longitudes are east of the prime meridian (which passes near the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, England), and negative ones are west. (The driver internally reverses this polarity as per LX200 API standard.)

20210101 10micron site management

Satellite

The Satellite tab allows you to track a satellite given its satellite orbital elements in Two-Line Element format (TLE). The TLE format is described at www.celestrak.com/NORAD/documentation/tle-fmt.php and can be entered in the Orbit Params TLE field. The Pass Window field then displays the beginning and the end timestamp of the next satellite pass. The Sat Tracking switch can be set from Halt to Track to make it all work. The TLE are stored in a database on the mount and previous entries can be selected by the Database TLE field so that they do not have to be typed again.

20210101 10micron satellite

Guide

The Guide tab allows for very simple manual guide commands.

20190208 10micron guide

Product

The Product tab lists mount specifics like the Product Name, Control Box type and Firmware version and release date.

20190208 10micron product

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
H__ Sun, 05 Feb 2017 16:58:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/10-micron.html
Sky Quality Meter https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/sky-quality-meter.html

Installation

INDI SQM driver is included with libindi v1.3.2+

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

INDI SQM driver support Ethernet-enabled SQM-LE. The driver provides basic averaged readings from the unit including sky brightness and temperature.

Operation

Before establishing connection, set the IP address of the SQM-LE unit in the main control panel. By default, the port is 10001 so only change it if necessary.

Main Control Panel

Once connected, the driver will query the unit every second for the readings. The most important reading is the sky brightness measured as Magnitudes per Squared Arcsecond (MPSAS). The INDI CCD driver is configured by default to listen to SQM and will append the MPSAS value to the FITS header once an image is captured.

To configure the unit and set calibration options, please refer to Uniherdon provided cross-platform software.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 16 Nov 2016 10:43:12 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/sky-quality-meter.html Optec IFW Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/optec-ifw-filter-wheel.html

Installation

OptecInc IFW filter wheel driver is included with libindi v1.3+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The OptecInc Intelligent Filter Wheel (IFW) is a system able to manage a lot of filters within different wheels:

  • IFW:
    • Wheels with 5 filters of 2”
    • Wheels with 8 filters of 1.25” for industrial application
  • IFW-3
    • Wheels with 5 square filters of 58mm
    • Wheels with 6 square filters of 50mm
    • Wheels with 9 round filters of 50mm

The purpose of usage is to have more than one wheel of the same model but with different filters on these. For example the IFW can recognize 5 different wheels of 2” filters to a total of 25 filters. This driver is able to manage IFW and IFW-3. The different wheels for each model are identified by one letter from A to E.

The identification is done via reed sensors and small magnets placed on the wheels. These magnets provide the wheel’s ID and filters position. The name of the active filter is display on a small 8 digits display on the interface box of the IFW.

By default, the names are a concatenation of the WheelID and the filter number. (A1, A2..A9, B1..E9). These names can be changed by the user throught the serial connection.

More information in this document from Optec.

When connected three tabs are available:

Main Control

INDI Main Control Panel

Once connected the driver initialize the IFW. It tooks about 10 second (Even in Simulation !) The IFW move the wheel to find the first filter position and get the identification of the wheel in the unit. You get a new button to send manually the HOME command to the IFW too.

INDI Main Control Panel

When the IFW is ready you get the Home state green otherwise it turns red (ALERT) and a message ask to check the IFW and press on Home button to try again.

Options

INDI Options Tab
  1. Driver info : General driver's information
  2. Debug : Activate the debug mode. It has to be used for bugs reporting
  3. Simulation : Activate the driver's simulation mode to test it without IFW connected.
  4. Configuration: Manage the backup of the configuration
  5. Ports : You could configure the correct serial port to connect to the IFW.
  6. Joystick : If the indi_joystick drivers is loaded, activate the selected buttons to move to the previous filter, to the next one or to reset to the first one. If the Joystick is enabled a new tab is visible where the buttons could be configured.

Filter Wheel

Filter Tab

This tab provide information related to the wheel in place in the IFW and the filters names for this wheel.

  • IFW Firmware shows the firmware of the IFW if this information is available.
  • Wheel ID shows the letter of the identified wheel
  • Filter Slot shows the active filter position. We can change the filter in place within the slider or the selector and click on “Set”.
  • Chars allowed is used to restricted (by default) the char accepted to be written in the EEPROM of the IFW. When restriction is active only the following chars are valid: {0123456789ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ=.#/-%} and {space} These are the only ones the IFW box controller is able to display.
DRO

If All is selected, then any char could be written in the EEPROM. That could provide strange results on IFW box controller, but it would be displayed correctly via the PC interface, then by INDI and Ekos.

Filter n°1..n°5(..n°9) show filters names and could be changed and stored in the EEPROM of the IFW box controller when click on “Set” button. When Simulator is active, some other swithes are visible to change the wheel format. We could select the default one with 5 filters or the 6, 8 and 9 ones.

Filter Tab

Operation

The INDI Optec IFW driver provides complete functionality for all majors features supported by the wheel unit.

These instructions cover the use of IFW unit.

  1. Initialization of the unit
  2. Change the wheel to use another filters set
  3. Change filters names for a wheel
  4. Backup configuration

Initialization of the unit

By sending a Home command when connected, the diver initializes the unit. It tries to get the firmware version of the IFW, identify the wheel ID and load from EEPROM the filters names. If an error occur the driver shows the error code and a short explanation. In this case you have to :

  • Go to Main tab and disconnect the unit
  • Check if the wheel is in the correct position.
  • Check if the wheel is correctly fixed in the unit
  • Make a power cycle of the IFW to reset the error
  • Reconnect to the IFW from the Main tab

Change the wheel to use another filters set

When the wheel is not moving, Open the cover of the unit, release the axis of the wheel, Take the other wheel in place, tight the axis back and close the cover.

Click on the Home button at the Main tab to identified the wheel in place and load the filters names from EEPROM.

Change filters names for a wheel

With the INDI driver we could change the filters names and store them in the IFW’s EEPROM.

  • To do that go on ‘Filter Wheel’ tab
  • Select if the filters names could be readable on the IFW’s box by select ‘Restrict’ (by default) or ‘All’.
  • Warning: only the 8 first chars would be register, if a name is longer the extra letters are ignored.
  • Change the name for one or more filters in box. Press ‘Set’ to store the new values. The rules against the name are check only when you click on ‘Set’.
  • The names are stored to the IFW and an initialisation of the unit takes place to load the new names from the EEPROM.

Backup configuration

To backup your actual configuration goes to the Options tab and click on Save button.

The configuration you have saved could be recall by different ways. One is to click on load’ button, other one is to configure on EKOS the ‘Load Device Configuration’ to ‘On connection’. With this selection the configuration is self-loaded when we initiate the connection to the unit from EKOS.

To configure goes to KStars, Settings menu then Configure Kstars...
Ekos Configuration
NOTE: - As indicate before, filters names are stored in the IFW itself. The driver reads those values immediately after device connection, not from the backup file. - The configuration is saved in ~/.indi/Optec\ IFW_config.xml on the PC running indiserver. Typical on raspberry PI unit. - The IFW-3 hasn’t been tested yet.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Sun, 30 Oct 2016 10:20:32 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/optec-ifw-filter-wheel.html Takahashi Temma https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/takahashi-temma.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.6+. To install it under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports Takahashi Temma mounts. Basic functions such as Track, Sync, and Park are supported. Select Temma Takahasi from your client. For example, if using Ekos, you can select the driver from telescope dropdown in the Profile Editor.

ekos profile

Operation

Before establishing connection to the mount, make sure to select the appropiate serial port from the connections tab. You can either select from the available auto-detected ports (e.g. /dev/ttyUSB0) or enter a port manually.

By default, the mount assumes it is looking toward the celestial pole with the weights down. From this startup home position, you can slew the mount anywhere above the horizon. Depending on your client, you can either control the mount from your client's skymap or via the INDI control panel.

Main Control Panel

Since the mount is not aligned, GOTO is not expected to be accurate. To improve the mount accuracy, use an alignment program (e.g. Ekos Alignment) or center the target star or object within the camera/eyepiece and then use Sync to synchronize the mount position. On the next GOTO, the mount should be more accurate. When slewing to an object on the other side of the meridian, it's recommended to double-check the position again and synchronize when necessary.

Parking position can be set to any arbitrary location above the right. It is managed from the Site Management tab or directly via the Skymap Set As Parking Position option.

Issues

If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at GitHub.

]]>
knro Thu, 05 May 2016 11:42:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/takahashi-temma.html
Moravian CCDs & Filter Wheels https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/moravian-ccds-filter-wheels.html

Installation

INDI MI driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-mi

Features

INDI Moravian driver supports all Moravian Instruments (MI) family of cameras & filter wheels.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera, control temperature, and set image binning and frame subset. The driver will automatically upload these images to the client in FITS format. If your camera is equipped with a filter wheel, you can control the position of the wheels and designate a name to each filter.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Sun, 03 Apr 2016 13:18:37 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/moravian-ccds-filter-wheels.html I-Nova CCD https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/i-nova-ccd.html

Installation

I-Nova provides INDI drivers for I-Nova CCDs for 32 bit, 64 bit, and ARM architectures (For SBCs such as Raspberry PI) in their download page. After downloading the package appropriate for your architecture, install it using your favorite package manager. Only Debian packages are available which can be installed on any Debian derivative distribution such as Ubuntu or Raspian.

Features

The I-Nova driver support all of I-Nova CCDs. Subframing and binning is supported in software. Both gray scale and color modes are supported.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera, or use video streaming if supported by your client.

Issues

Some users bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 08 Mar 2016 10:10:00 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/i-nova-ccd.html USB_Focus v3 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/usb-focus-v3.html

Installation

USB Focus v3 driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.9 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

USB_Focus is a robotic focusing system, It connects to your computer USB port (or USB Hub 2.0), and depending on the motor you can add a 8-12v power supply. It connects to an external digital temperature probe, 0.1°C accuracy and can automatically follow best focus for the all night (temperature compensation). It comes with a handpad for manual electronic focusing. It pilots a custom motor and reducer providing high accuracy (8000 positions per turn) and high torque (more than 85 oz.inch). It is backlash compensated.

You can use other motors but only bipolar.

 

Main Control Tab

usbfocusv3 main

Control the focuser position. Before use, set the 0 position with the focuser fully in, then move fully out and the set value for Max. Position.

Connection

usbfocusv3 connection

Connect to the focuser using a USB cable. The connection type is serial and it use the port /dev/ttyACM0. The default baud rate is 9600. After changing the default port, save the changes by going to the Options tab and click Save configuration.

If you have difficulties to connect, it is possible the device is taken by ModemManager that lock the port in exclusive mode. The simplest solution for this problem is to remove ModemManager because you hardly want to use a serial modem this days.

sudo apt-get remove modemmanager

If you need to keep ModemManager the other solution is to add a udev rule to prevent it take the usbfocus.
Create a file /etc/udev/rules.d/80-usbfocuser.rules with the following content:

ATTRS{idVendor}=="0461", ATTRS{idProduct}=="0033", ENV{ID_MM_DEVICE_IGNORE}="1"

 

Operation

After establishing connection to the focuser, you can use the focuser control in the INDI control panel directly to move and sync the focuser. Alternatively, the focuser can be used in any INDI compatible autofocusing application.

Options

The options tab provides several settings to tune the operation and performance of the focuser:

usbfocusv3 options

 

Issues

Sometime the communication is unreliable because the protocol do not include an easy way to synchronize the data. In this case you can try to increase the Pooling Period to 1000.

 

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
polakovic Thu, 07 Jan 2016 19:37:10 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/usb-focus-v3.html
Alnitak Flip-Flat & Flat-Man https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/alnitak-flip-flat-flat-man.html

Installation

INDI FlipFlat driver is included with libindi v1.2.0+

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

INDI FlipFlat driver support both Flip-Flat and Flat-Man devices. Under Flip-Flat, the driver provides control to open/close the dust cap and to control and light and its brightness level. For Flat-Man, only the light control is available.

Operation

Before establishing connection, set the device port in the Options tab. After connection, you can Park (Close) or UnPark (Open) the panel and set the light level and turn on/off the light source. For Flat-Man, only the light control is available.

Main Control Panel

Under the options tab, you can optionally set the INDI Filter Wheel device (whether embedded within a CCD or a standalone filter device). Make sure to save the config so that it is loaded on next start up.

Once the driver receives filter information, it shall constructions the Presets tab where you can set the desired brightness level for each filter accordingly. Therefore, whenever the filter wheel changes, the brightness level for the new filter slot is updated accordingly. This feature is very useful when taking flats via narrowband filter as they require higher brightness settings to obtain flats at a desirable ADU level. The filter-adjusted brightness settings are saved for future sessions after you save the driver configuration in the driver's tab

Filter Presets

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 05 Jan 2016 08:26:58 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/covers-light-sources/alnitak-flip-flat-flat-man.html SkySensor2000PC https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skysensor2000pc.html

Installation

INDI SkySensor2000PC telescope driver is included with INDI v1.2+

Features

This driver supports the SkySensor2000PC telescope contoller using the LX200 compatible protocol. The driver is similar to the LX200 driver but the features that are not supported by the SkySensor2000PC have been removed. There are no extra features for this driver.

Operation

Using any INDI client, you can issue GOTO and Sync commands. The driver is known to work with firmware version 2.06. Since no features specific to this firmware version are used, the driver should also work with other firmware versions. If you are facing permission issues, add your user to the dialout group. After executing the following commands, please restart your PC for it to take effect.

sudo adduser $USER dialout

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 05 Jan 2016 07:14:40 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skysensor2000pc.html Weather Meta https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-meta.html Installation

INDI Weather Meta driver is included with libindi v1.2+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

INDI Weather Meta driver is a virtual driver that aggregates weather status from multiple stations. Since each station driver can represent overall status as either Ok, Warning, or Alert, the meta drivers queries each station status and presents a unified status to the client. Therefore, if one station is Ok, while another station is in Warning state, then the meta driver will report an overall Warning state. The unified driver shall always report the worst weather station in all the stations.

WeatherMeta Main Tab

Operation

Before you connect, you need to set the names of the weather stations to monitor. You can monitor up to 4 weather stations. After you connect, the driver shall listen to and update the status of each station and update the overall meta state accordingly. An update period property is defined and reflects the fastest updating station being monitored. For example, if Station #1 is updating every 5 minutes, while station #2 is updating every 20 seconds, then the update period is set to 20 seconds. This serves as a hint to the client to check the meta weather status every 20 seconds to ensure proper action is taken by the client in case the status changes to an undesirable state.

WeatherMeta Options

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Wed, 16 Dec 2015 10:39:34 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/weather-meta.html
JMI SmartFocus https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/jmi-smartfocus.html

Installation

Baader SteelDrive driver is included with libindi >= 0.9.9. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The JMI SmartFocus focuser control unit allows remote operation of JMI focusers. You can control the focuser absolute and relative positions and motions can be interrupted.

The figure below shows the Main Control panel of the SmartFocus driver.

SmartFocus INDI Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Connection: Connect to or disconnect from the SmartFocus unit. The RS232 port to be used is specified in the Options panel.
  • Direction: Sets the direction of relative focuser motions, either inward or outward.
  • Relative Position: Sets the number of steps from the current absolute position to move and starts the repositioning of the focuser.
  • Absolute Position: Sets a new absolute position of the focuser and starts the repositioning.
  • Abort: Interrupts the current motion.
  • Status: The status flags of the SmartFocus unit. Normally, only the flags indicating that the focuser has reached its zero or maximum position should light up.

Options

The figure below shows the Options panel of the SmartFocus driver.

SmartFocus Options

The following two properties can be set.

  • Ports: Sets the name of the RS 232 port. Both baudrates that are supported by the SmartFocus unit, 2400 and 9600, are tried.
  • Max. position: Sets the maximum position that the focuser can reach. This property must be set by the user because the SmartFocus unit does not allow it to be read. The value of this property is specific for each focuser model. It can be found at the top of the configuration tab of the JMI SmartFocus software. It is important to note that, in contrast to the JMI software, the INDI SmartFocus driver does not write this value to the SmartFocus unit. The driver only uses it to check the relative and absolute positions specified in the main control panel.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

The INDI JMI SmartFocus driver provides functionality for relative and absolute positioning of JMI focusers that are controlled via a JMI SmartFocus unit.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Mon, 07 Dec 2015 10:13:06 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/jmi-smartfocus.html Pulsar2 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/pulsar2.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.2+. To install it under Ubuntu:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports the Gemini Pulsar 2 and the Pulsar controllers. Basic functions such as Track, Sync, and Park/Unpark are supported as well as enabling/disabling of periodic error correction, pole crossing and refraction correction. This driver is in beta version and is under development to add more features.

Operation

On connection, the mount sets the controller time and location.

Before syncing the mount make sure that the correct side of the pier is selected in the Main Control tab.

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Thu, 26 Nov 2015 08:39:00 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/pulsar2.html Davis Instruments Vantage Pro/Pro2/Vue https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/davis-instruments-vantage-pro-pro2-vue.html

Installation

Davis Instruments Vantage Pro/Pro2/Vue driver is included with libindi v1.2+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports all Davis Instruments line of Vantage weather stations that are connected using the USB Data Logger connecter. The driver displays data for the following parameters in metric units:

  • Weather: Weather forecast (clear, cloudy, rainy...etc). 0 for Clear/Sunny, 1 for partly cloudy or light haze, 2 for everything else.
  • Temperature (C): Inside temperature in Celcuis.
  • Humidity (C): Relative Humidity %
  • Barometer (millibars): Barometer pressure value.
  • Wind Speed: Wind speed in kilometers per hour.
  • Wind Direction: 0 is for no data. 90 East, 180 South, 270 South, 360 North.
  • Rain Rate: Rain rate in mm/hour.
  • Solar Radiation: Solar Radiation in watt/meter^2

Vantage Paramter Tab

All parameter values have an Ok, Warning, and Alert ranges that can be specified by the user in the Parameters tab. Weather, temperature, wind speed, and rain rate are considered Critical Paramters. Critical paramters are listed in the main control tab in the Weather status property. The user can specify the minimum and maximum range for each zone. Any value outside the Warning zone is automatically considered Alert. The overall weather status property reflects the worse state of the individual critical parameters. If one critical paramter status is Warning while another is Alert then the overall weather status property is Alert.

Operation

Before you connect, check that the port and baud rate settings in the Options tab are correct. By default, the port is /dev/vantage which is selected automatically by the udev rules file once you connect the station to the PC. You can specify the update period is seconds (default 60) in the main control panel. To update weather data manually, press the Refresh button. If you change the paramter ranges under the Paramters tab, save the ranges in the configuratio file by clicking on Save in the Options tab.

Davis INDI Control Panel

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Fri, 30 Oct 2015 15:48:23 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/davis-instruments-vantage-pro-pro2-vue.html Xagyl Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/xagyl-filter-wheel.html

Installation

XAGYL filter wheel driver is included with libindi v1.2+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports all Xagyl filter wheels. Besides filter position control, the driver enables the user to adjust each filter offset and assign unique names for each filter. Joystick control is supported and with joystick you can change filter positions CW and CCW. The driver provides settings for maximum speed, jitter, threshold, and pulse width values. For a complete description on the role of each setting, please refer to your filter wheel manual.

Operation

Before you connect, you must specify the filter wheel serial port. By default, it is set to /dev/ttyUSB0. After verifying the port, it is recommended to save configuration under Options tab so that it gets loaded automatically on subsequent startups.

Once you're connected you can read or set filter wheel position in the Filter Wheel tab. The filter wheel tab also enables setting a unique name and focus offset to each filter position.

Xagyl INDI Control Panel

Change the filter wheel position by changing the filter slot property.

The Main Control Panel offers simple commands for the following functions:

  • Hard Reset
  • Reset filter position to 1
  • Perform calibration. Please refer to your filter wheel manual for details on calibration procedure.
  • Reset calibration values.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 27 Oct 2015 09:54:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/xagyl-filter-wheel.html FocusLynx https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/focuslynx.html

Installation

FocusLynx driver is included with libindi >= 1.1.0 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Acknowledgment: Mr. Philippe Besson offered exntesive testing of the INDI driver in addition to patches and improvements. Furthermore, Mr. Besson wrote the detailed manual below. Thank you, Mr. Besson!

Jasem Mutlaq

Features

The FocusLynx/Focus Boss II hub allows precise remote operation of the motorized focuser. Different type of motor could be controlled by this hub.

    • Optec TCF-Lynx focusers are Absolute focusers that will automatically home upon power-up. The TCF-Lynx focusers have a fixed travel and known step resolutions.
    • Optec Fast Focus focusers are Absolute focuses that will home automatically with a limit switch setting the full IN or 00000 position. The Fast Focus have a fixed travel and known step resolutions.
    • QuickSync / HSM Hi-Speed focusers include the Optec QuickSync FT series and Starlight Instruments HSM Handy Motor add-ons for FeatherTouch focusers. The FeatherTouch focusers are non-homing Absolute focusers with varying step resolutions and no fixed travel limits.

NOTE:

      Select the QuickSync / HSM Hi-Torque if you experience any slipping or motor stall with the FeatherTouch focuser with this option selected.
    • QuickSync / HSM Hi-Torque focusers include the Optec QuickSync add-on motor and the Starlight Instruments HSM Handy Stepper Motor add-on for FeatherTouch focusers. The FeatherTouch focusers are non-homing Absolute focusers with varying step resolutions and no fixed travel limits.
    • FeatherTouch / MicroTouch Hi-Speed focusers include the original Micro-Touch motor and the current Starlight Instruments MSM series uni-polar motors for Feather Touch. The FeatherTouch focusers are non-homing Absolute focusers with varying step resolutions and no fixed travel limits.
    • FocusBoss II: Select FeatureTouch HSM Hi-Speed from the list when using this focuser.

NOTE:

      Select the FeatherTouch / MicroTouch Hi-Torque if you experience any slipping or motor stall with the FeatherTouch focuser with this option selected.
    • FeatherTouch / MicroTouch Hi-Torque focusers include the original Micro-Touch motor and the current Starlight Instruments MSM series uni-polar motors for FeatherTouch. The FeatherTouch focusers are Relative focusers with varying step resolutions and no fixed travel limits.
    • DirectSync TEC focusers include the DirectSync TEC direct-drive motor for the TEC Large Focusers. This DirectSync TEC focuser is a non-homing Absolute focuser with fixed step resolution of 1.25 micron and no fixed travel limits. The focuser can be synchronized anywhere within the range of travel to any step position between 00000 and 65,535.
    • Stellarvue Focuser option should be selected when using the Optec QuickSync FT High-Speed motor option with a Stellarvue focuser. The Stellarvue Focusers are Relative focusers with varying step resolutions and no fixed travel limits.
    • TeleVue Focuser option should be selected when using the Optec QuickSync TV motor option with a TeleVue focuser. The TeleVue Focusers are Relative focusers with varying step resolutions and no fixed travel limits.
    • More information in this

document

      from Optec.

Once connected five tabs are available:

Main Control

      First one, to be able to connect to the driver you have to select the « Model » focuser from the drop-down list. You could select the correct port in this tab too.

WARNING: Take care to choice the correct focuser/motor from the list. In case of wrong choice the motor could be damaged. The driver is not able to detect which kind of focuser/motor is connected and the drivers' developer couldn't be responsible in case of any damages due to a wrong selection.

When connected all mains’ functions are available to send commands to the focuser.

  • Direction: These buttons are used with relative travel to determine in which way the focuser will move.
  • Relative position: Number of ticks to move when click on « Set » or when we use the joystick's knob, if the joystick is activated one tab “Options”.
  • Absolute position: absolute value of the number of ticks where to move the focuser.
  • Abort Motion: stop moving the focuser.
  • Sync: Set the driver to the actual position of the focuser (For relative focuser)
  • Temperature: Information only! Show the actual temperature from the motor unit, the focuser or the optional external probe.
  • Goto: Move to the Center position from the full range of the connected motor/focuser. Could be different from the physical center position of the focuser.

Options

  • Driver info: General driver's informations
  • Debug: Activate the debug mode. It has to be used for bugs reporting
  • Simulation: Activate the driver's simulation mode to test it without focuser connected.
  • Configuration: Manage the backup of the configuration
  • Joystick: If the indi_joystick drivers is loaded, activate the selected buttons to move the focuser « IN » or « OUT » from a selected amount of ticks. If Joystick is enable a new tab is visible where the buttons could be configured.

Presets

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values could be saved in the driver's configuration file.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Settings

  • Temperature Coefficient: The hub could be set with five different coefficients.
  • Compensation mode: Selection of the active compensation coefficients.
  • T. Coefficient Compensation: Active the temperature compensation
  • T. Coefficient at Start: Enable or disable the temperature compensation when starting the hub.
  • Backlash activation: Active or disable the backlash compensation by the hub.
  • Backlash: Set the hub with the number of ticks of the focuser's lash
  • Max Travel: Set the number of ticks of the total travel range of the focuser.
  • Reset: Reset all hub's parameters to factory state.
  • Reverse: Active the reverse mode of the focuser (Depend of the mechanical mounting of the motor). This option would invert « IN » and « OUT » direction in the hub it-self.

Status

Show the actual status of the focuser. Not all status are operational for all focuser type, relative or absolute one have different functionalities.

Operation

The INDI FocuserLynx / Focuser BossII driver provides complete functionality for all major features supported by the hub, including relative and absolute positioning, temperature readout, temperature compensation, preset and configuration parameters.

The hub could drive different focusers/motors. The main differences are:

    • Absolute / Relative
    • Fix / Variable travel range
    • Standard / Reverse direction

These instructions cover the use of this hub with an Absolute focuser with Variable travel range. It would be explain to set it in Reverse mode too.

      1. Check if the motor run in standard direction or reverse one
      2. Find the number of ticks of the full travel range of the focuser
      3. Set the actual position (usually the 0 position)
      4. Find the backlash value
      5. Set the pre-set value
      6. Save the configuration for future use
      7. Miscellaneous

This setting to work is one of many and other procedures could be apply too.

1. Direction

Disengage the motor from the focuser and move it manually to about the middle of the travel range, then re-engage the motor.

      • On “main” tab set the Sync value to about 32,500.
      • Activate the « Focus IN » button.
      • Change the Relative position value to 5000 as example.
      • Click on « Set » of Relative Position and look in which direction the focuser is moving.

If the focuser is reducing the focus length that means the configuration is NOT reverse, if it's increasing the focus length then the configuration IS Reverse.

      • Select the correct mode on the “Settings” tab, to the Reverse selection parameter.

NOTE: The Reverse function is set in the hub and it will keep saved in the hub's memory. The direction will be applied at switch on.

2. Travel range

      • Disengage the motor from the focuser. For normal direction move the focuser to the shortest length of focus. For Reverse one, move to the longest focus length.
      • Re-engage the motor to the focuser.
      • Set the Sync position to 0 and click to “Set”
      • For normal focuser set direction to “Focus OUT”, and for Reverse one set it to “Focus IN”
      • Set relative value to about 20,000 ticks and click to “Set” to start moving the focuser.
      • When it stop, estimate the ratio between the travel who has been done and the rest of it. Set a new relative value from this estimation, for example 8000 and click to “Set”
      • Make a new estimation and continue till you reach the end of the movement.
      • If the motor slip on the focuser when it reach the mechanical stop, repeat the complete procedure from 0 till you find a value will stop the motor as close as possible of the travel's end
      • When you are satisfied with the value you've found, set it on the tab “Settings” on the Max Travel parameter. This value is not stored in the hub, but could be saved with the backup function of the driver. The accuracy of this method is enough to have a correct setting of the driver and no issue when use it with Ekos. If you want to be more accurate you could use a dial indicator to find exactly when the focuser stop to move due to mechanical end.

NOTE: Keep this value in mind, you're going to use it for synchronization if you have selected the reverse mode.

3. Synchronize the driver to the hardware position.

Under the “main” tab of the driver you find the Sync value to set. This is valid for relative or absolute focuser which are not auto calibrated at switching on. (The biggest part of the focuser supported by the hub).

For relative focuser we have to set the Sync position after switching on, or if you've got some important slipping from the focuser.

For Reverse direction:

To Sync it easily, first one you have to know the value of number of ticks on the shortest focuser's position. This value is the one you have found as Max Travel setting step. As example a value of 44,500 ticks.

Then replace in the instruction below for the normal direction the value 0 by the one you've found! In our example use 44,500 instead of 0.

For Normal direction:

      • If your focuser is already in park position in shortest focus length (Focus IN), set the Sync value to 0. (ex. 44,500 in case of Reverse focuser).
      • If your focuser is anywhere on the range, first move it manually to the shortest position and then set the Sync value to 0 (ex. 44,500 in case of Reverse focuser).

If you prefer use any other position you could do it too. For that you need to have a known position and it ticks value to set it for synchronization.

NOTE: When the driver is synchronized with a relative focuser then it works as an absolute one.

4. Backlash value

For this value we recommend to use a dial indicator to be accurate as much as possible.

When your indicator is installed, move the focuser till the indicator move to any value then stop

      • Move the dial ring to 0 or take any other method to get a reference.
      • change the direction on the “main” tab
      • change the relative value to a short one, 5 or less ticks.
      • Start to move step by step with the relative movement, and count the number of steps till the needle begin to move back. Multiply the number of step you've done by the number of ticks you've set will give you the backlash value to configure in the driver on the “Settings” tab.
      • Enable or disable the Backlash compensation by the hub on “Backlash activation” parameter. This value is keep in the hub's memory and will be applied by default at switch on.

5. Preset value

On the “Presets” tab, set till three value as you want, as close as possible of the back focus position of your camera for future use.

6. Backup configuration

To backup your actual configuration goes to the “Options” tab and click on “Save” button.

The configuration you have saved could be recall by different ways. One is to click on “load” button, other one is to configure on EKOS the “Load Device Configuration” to “On connection”. With this selection the configuration will self-loaded on the device connection.

NOTE:

      • As indicated before, some setting are store in the hub itself. The driver reads those values on the device connection.
      • The configuration is saved in ~/.indi/FocusLynx_config.xml on the PC running indiserver. Typical on raspberry PI unit.

5. Miscellaneous

Temperature compensation:

      • Please read the user manual provided with the hub to calibrate and set this function.
      • You could configured till 5 coefficients
      • These are stored in the hub's memory

Debugging:

On the tab “Options” the debug mode could be activated in case of trouble. Please read these instructions before send any support requests to the developers.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Mon, 29 Jun 2015 14:52:10 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/focuslynx.html
UVC Web Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/web-cameras.html

Installation

INDI can control any Video4Linux compatible web cam. This includes support for long exposures in addition to video streaming. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver constructs all the controls provided by the underlying Video4Linux device such as brightness, gamma, contrast...etc in addition to any device-specific properties. Subframing and binning is supported in software. Both gray scale and color modes are supported. Pleas note that due to limitation in V4L2 framework, you cannot change the camera resolution unless you disconnect and reconnect again. Video streaming is supported as well as recording files in .SER format (Astronomy video format supported by many astronomy image processing software such as Registax and Siril). The driver also supports simple stacking.

Supported Cameras

 Any UVC class camera is supported. These include many general-purpose web cameras and astronomy web cameras such as:

  • NexImage
  • Logitech
  • SVBONY
  • Skyris
  • iOptron iPolar

Depending on the camera capabilities, the driver would generate controls for image adjustments, exposure, and resolution controls accordingly.

Operation

Once you're connected (default video port is /dev/video0), you can capture images as FITS from the camera, or use video streaming if supported by your client.

INDI will detect any extra options that your device may support and if found, INDI shall construct dynamic controls (knobs & switches) to control these features.

Connecting to Camera

If you plugin a UVC class camera, the operating system would automatically assign it a video port starting with /dev/video0 for the first camera, and /dev/video1 for the second camera and so on.

Therefore, if you have one camera, there is no further action required to connect to the camera.

Main Control Panel

main control

You can specify the exposure in seconds. Many UVC cameras have limited exposures up to 1 second usually. Unless you camera supports long exposures, you would be limited to subsecond exposures.

To simulate longer exposures, you can use Stacking as explained below.

Stacking:

  1. Connect camera and choose capture format (use YUV formats if any).
  2. Be sure to use GRAY images (linearization is not handled and crashes when used with COLOR images).
  3. You may start streaming to adjust focus (I usually augment brightness to 200 here). You may check quantization (dealing with limited range colorspace quantization) and linearization buttons in the Capture tab to see the effects of those processings.
  4. Readjust your brightness to a middle value (I use default 128) and take a series of stacked exposures to determine the best exposure time which will suit your needs. Before using a stack mode, be sure to check linearization in the Capture Tab. It is made internally but as linear/stacked exposures are 16bit depth, checking this button sets buffer sizes as required(not yet automatic). Using my setup I use 1.8 second exposure (yielding in ~15 stacked frames, startup time is quite high).
  5. You may take a dark frame now using the corresponding stack mode and your desired exposure time. Don't forget to close your tube, select Take dark and start an exposure. This will create a dark frame which will be subtracted to all subsequent stacked exposures. You may reset this dark frame or take another one as needed.
  6. Use additive stack mode to perform subsequent exposures.

Image Settings

image settings

Under image settings, you can select the Region-Of-Interest (ROI) or Frame for your image. Most clients (e.g. Ekos) already set this automatically for you, but it can be set here directly as well. By default, the image is sent uncompressed, you can select to compress it to test if capture or streaming performance can be improved. It is recommended to leave it to Raw.

The camera frame is transferred by default as a Gray scale image. To switch to RGB, click Color switch. Gray scale images would be more suitable for guiding applications.

Image Info

image info

The camera information is available under the Image Info Tab. It is very important to have all the information correct in the CCD Information property. Since UVC cameras do not share Pixel Size information (which is important to calculate the Field of View (FOV) of the camera), it is set manually depending on the detected camera model. If the camera model is recognized, it would be set automatically. Otherwise, you would get a message advising you to report the camera name and model to an INDI Forum thread so that the pixel information can be added to the driver in future driver releases. 

Streaming & Recording

Almost all UVC cameras support video streaming. The INDI driver supports recording to the following file formats:

  • SER: LuCam Recorder file. SER files are used for planetary, lunar, and solar captures. It a lossless format so it reserves all the information in the image as-is. To view SER files, it is recommended to use the excellent SER Player. Beware that SER file sizes can grow very big quite rapidly if the camera resolution and FPS are high.
  • OGV: OGV is a video container format which encodes video using Theora codecs. Unlike lossless SER, OGV Theora is a lossy format. Therefore, video frame details are inexact approximiation of the data in order to save size. This means you can get higher throughput (FPS) on limited hardware such as the raspberry pi, but with slightly less detail than a SER file.

You can think of SER vs OGV the same as PNG vs JPG. The former produces high quality images but very large file sizes, while the latter produces excellent images at a much lower size. The decision to use which format depends on your requirements and goals.

The Expose property controls the streaming exposure parameters:

  • Duration: Specifies duration for 1 frame which is by default 1/10 seconds or 100 milliseconds (10 FPS). Please note that this only works for cameras that explicitly support manual exposure settings. On many cameras it is not possible to control the exact video streaming exposure duration and this setting is completely ignored.
  • Divisor: If the frame rate is high and the network bandwidth is limited, you can opt to skip frames. By default it is set to 1 which means no frames are skipped. Setting it to 2 means every other frame is skipped (30 FPS would then become 15FPS). Setting to 3 means a frame is skipped for every 3 frames and so on.

Streaming

streaming

By clickong on Stream On, video streaming begins at the specified settings. If the image is gray scale, you can change it to Color in the Image Settings tab. The client must explicitly support video streaming, otherwise, you would end up with many files cluttering up the disk space. Supported clients include Ekos.

The Encoder property sets the video streaming encoding type. By default, all frames are sent as lossless RAW files. This reserves all the information, but at the expsene of lower FPS. On the otherhand, some cameras can support Motion JPEG video streaming which may significantly increases streaming performance.

Recording

Do not stream and record at the same time as this would significantly degrate the recording performance. Only record with streaming turned off

INDI supports recording video frames to the SER and OGV file formats. The recorded file name is dictacted by the Record File property.

  • Dir: Specify directory name. By default, it is stored in the user home directory with the prefix indi_D_ whereas D is the current date.
  • Name: Specificy file name. By default it is set as indi_record__T_ whereas T is the current time.

You can mix and match _D_ and _T_ in the file name template as desired.

Video recording can be specified using three options:

  1. Record On: This starts the video recording without any limits. To end recording, press Record Off.
  2. Record (Duration): Record video for this many seconds specificed in the Record Options property then stop.
  3. Record (Frames): Record video for this many frames specificed in the Record Options property then stop.

V4L2 Control

v4l2 control

Set image adjustments for the video. Streaming and recording must be OFF when making the adjustments otherwise the changes will fail.

Do not adjust the Absolute Exposure property unless you want to manually control exposure directly yourself overriding the exposure duration property.

V42L Options

v4l2 options

Exposure and Focus settings include White balance automatic adjustments.

Capture Options

 capture options

Adjust the capture format and resolution. After changing the Capture size, make sure to Reset the frame so that the new resolution size is reflected in the settings. You should only change these settings when streaming and recording are OFF.

Issues

Some users reported problems using the driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sun, 22 Mar 2015 05:47:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/web-cameras.html
Baader Dome https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/baader-dome.html

Installation

indi_baader_dome is included with INDI Library >= v1.0.0 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver can control the dome's relative and absolute position and calibrate the dome until it reports a valid azimuth position. The user can setup home and park positions in addition to dome slaving parameters. Furthermore, the user can set up to three custom presets for GOTO operations. Joystick control is supported and the user may move the dome in CW or CCW fashion. The driver can control both the shutter and flaps.

Operation

Once you connect to the dome, it will check if the dome is already synchronized. If it is not synchronized, click the Start button in the Cablirate property and it will command the dome to rotate by roughly 180 degreees in order to hit the limit switch and becomes synchronized in absolute azimuth position.

To enable dome slaving, click Enable in the Slaving property and ensure that all parameters are filled correctly in the Measurements group. Make sure that the telescope name is set correctly in the Options group as the mount's RA/DEC coordinates can only be read if the telescope name is correct.

In dome slaving mode, once the telescope complete slewing, the dome new azimuth position will be based on the current telescope position and the dome will be commanded to move to the new calculated azimuth position.

To enable joystick control, simply click the Enable button in the Joystick property under the Options group and then you may configure the button on your joystick for CW or CCW motion. You have to run the Joystick driver along with the dome driver, i.e.

indiserver -v indi_baader_dome indi_joystick

If you're using Ekos, you can simply select Joystick from the auxiliary devices drop down combo

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 17 Feb 2015 05:59:15 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/baader-dome.html Meade https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/meade-drivers.html

Installation

INDI can control the following Meade CCD drivers:

  • Meade DSI Pro I/II
  • Meade DSI IV Mono and Color
  • Meade LPI-GM and LPI-GC
  • Meade LPI-GM Advanced and LPI-GC Advanced

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-dsi

Features

The driver support basic capture and adjustment of gain.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera.

Issues

Some users reported problems using the driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Sat, 14 Feb 2015 21:53:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/meade-drivers.html
Baader SteelDrive https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/baader-steeldrive.html

Installation

Baader SteelDrive driver is included with libindi >= 0.9.9. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The Baader Steeldrive motorfocus allows precise remote operation of the Steeltrack focuser. The transmission is performed by a belt system. You can control the focuser absolute & relative positions. You can set the temperature calibration and coefficient settings and enable/disable temperature compensation accordingly.

Baader SteelDrive INDI Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Port: Set the name of the RS 232 port. The speed is fixed to 9600 baud.
  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT.
  • Focus Speed: Set Focus speed 350 to 1000.
  • Focus Timer: Move the focuser at the current speed in the current direction for the specified time in milliseconds.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Temperature: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe.

Options

  • Acceleration Ramp.
  • Temperature Settings: Set # of samples and coefficient.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

The INDI Baader SteelDrive driver provides complete functionality for all the features supported by Baader SteelDrive including relative and absolute positioning, temperature readout, preset and configuration parameters.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Fri, 02 Jan 2015 15:18:44 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/baader-steeldrive.html ZWO ASI Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/zwo-optics-asi-cameras.html

Installation

ZWO ASI Electronic Filter Wheels (EFW) use the ASI EFW driver which is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-asi

Features

The INDI ASI EFW driver is for the ZWO ASI Electronic Filter Wheel (EFW). It supports all models. The devices must be powered and connected before you run the INDI driver.

ASI offer several sizes of wheel, such as:

  • 8x 1.25"
  • 5x 1.25" or 5x 31mm
  • 7x 36mm
  • 5x 2"
  • 7x 2"

  Connectivity

The EFWs connect via USB2.0.

Operation

The INDI control panel in EKOS exposes data associated with the device and permits parameters to be set. In normal operation, higher level software, such as EKOS, will control the ASI EFW, but this section will utilise the INDI control panel to explain the available features.

First Use

When the filter wheel is first connected and the ASI EFW driver used for the first time, it is recommended to setup the filter names to make future usage easier.

  • Power up the device.
  • Connect the ASI EFW driver. Main Control tab, Connect.
  • Setup filter names for all the filters you have.
    • Goto the Filter Wheel tab.
    • Enter appropriate names for the filters you have and press Set.
  • Go to Options tab and press Configuration -> Save.

The ASI EFW driver is now ready to use.

The Main Control Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-01_at_20.59.06.png

The Main Control Tab allows the device to Connect / Disconnect.

The General Info Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-01_at_20.59.23.png

The General Info tab displays basic information about the driver.

The Options Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-01_at_20.59.38.png

The Options tab provides generic control options over the filter wheel:

  • Debug: Displays the debug status. Note that debug options are set in Ekos as described here.
  • Simulation: Enable / disable simulation mode for testing purposes. In Simulation mode, parameters can be changed but not send to the device.
  • Configuration: Manage the driver configuration.
    • Load: Load the last saved settings.
    • Save: Save the driver settings.
    • Default: Restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
    • Purge: Delete the configuration file.
  • Polling: Displays the mount polling period in milliseconds.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

 Filter Wheel Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-01_at_20.59.54.png

The Filter Wheel tab allows filter parameters to be displayed and set:

  • Filter Slot: Display / set the currently active filter position.
  • Filter: Display / set the name of the filter in each position in the wheel. 

Issues

The current list of outstanding issues can be viewed at INDI's Github issues page. If you find an issue please report it on the Indilib forum and remember to include the logs (details on how to do this here).

]]>
knro Fri, 02 Jan 2015 14:56:40 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/zwo-optics-asi-cameras.html
ZWO ASI Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/zwo-optics-asi-cameras.html

Installation

The ASI CCD driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-asi

Features

This is the INDI driver for ZWO ASI cameras. It supports all models. The camera must be powered on and connected before you run the INDI driver.

The INDI control panel exposes data associated with the device and permits parameters to be set. In normal operation, higher level software, such as EKOS, will control the ASI Camera, but this document will utilise the INDI control panel GUI to explain the available features.

Current features supported:

  • All ASI cameras including colour and monochrome cameras
  • Cooling support

Connectivity

ZWO ASI cameras come with USB connectors. You may connect the cameras and accessories either directly to the PC via USB, or via a ZWO Camera onboard USB hub (if any). However, as a general rule of thumb, direct connection to PC is always more stable than through a hub.

There are two ZWO camera drivers available:

  • ZWO CCD: This is the standard Multi-Camera driver. By specifying this, a Single driver is controlling all the cameras connected to the PC. It is the default and recommended driver.
  • ZWO Camera 1, 2, 3: These are experimental Single Camera Drivers. These drivers cannot be intermixed with ZWO CCD, only one of them may be used at a time. The driver were created to address issues with operating multiple cameras simultaneously. While the ZWO SDK claims that it can support multiple cameras from a single driver instance, in reality when multiple cameras are streaming and downloading at the same time, the SDK may lag in performance. For example, when the primary camera is downloading an image, the guide camera download may get slower as a result. Therefore, these drivers can be used by specifying the primary camera in the equipment profile as ZWO Camera 1. If a Guide camera also exists, select ZWO Camera 2 for it. Once the driver starts, you can assign which physical camera is assigned to the driver. By default, the driver picks the cameras in order (i.e. ZWO Camera 1 picks the first camera detected on USB, ZWO Camera 2 picks the second camera detected and so forth).

Operation

Main Control Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_22.58.50.png

The Main Control tab deals with the following parameters:

  • Connection: Displays and sets whether the driver is connected or not.
  • Exposure: The remaining time of the current exposure.
  • Abort Exposure: Allows the current exposure to be aborted.
  • Temperature: If the camera supports cooling, displays the current sensor temperature. In addition, a target temperature can be set.
  • Cooling Power: Displays the percentage of maximum power going to the camera.
  • Cooler: If the camera supports cooling, allows the cooler to be turned on / off.

The way cooling works is to set a target temperature. The cooler then adjusts the power to the cooler to firstly change the sensor temperature to the target temperature and then to maintain that temperature ongoing.

General Info Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.16.02.png

The General Info tab displays information about the driver:

  • Driver Info: Displays information about the driver.
  • FITS Header: Allows information to be added to the FITS header of captured images. This is typically useful in post processing of the images:
    • Observer: Who is taking the photograph.
    • Object: The target being photographed.
  • SDK Version:

The Options Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.16.19.png

The Options tab allows a number of parameters to be viewed and set.

  • Polling: Polling period in milliseconds.
  • Debug: Displays the debug status. Note that debug options are set in Ekos as described here. If set, Debug Levels, Logging Levels and Log Output details are displayed.
  • Simulation: Enable / disable simulation mode for testing purposes. In Simulation mode, parameters can be changed but not sent to the device.
  • Configuration: Manage the driver configuration file.
    • Load: Load the last saved settings.
    • Save: Save the driver settings.
    • Default: Restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
    • Purge: Delete the configuration file.
  • Snoop devices: The driver supports the ability to listen to, or snoop, on parameters of other drivers. For example, the device could get the RA / Dec coordinates from the mount driver to add to the FITS header of the captured image.
  • Telescope: Whether the camera is the main imaging camera or a guidescope.
  • Upload: Parameters that define where images will be sent:
    • Client: Images are sent to the Indi server client.
    • Local: Images are stored locally on the device running Indiserver and if so, Upload Settings defines where the images will be stored.
    • Both: Images are stored locally and sent to the client.
  • Upload Settings: When images are to be stored locally, the directory to store them in.

Image Setting Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.16.34.png

The Image Settings tab allows parameters associated with the images taken by the device to be viewed and set:

  • Frame: Defines the Frame size of the image.
  • Binning: Defines the binning level.
  • Image: Save images either Compressed or Raw.
  • Frame Type: The type of frame, Light, Bias, Dark or Flat.
  • Frame Values: Allows changes made to the Frame size to be reset (to the sensor size).

Image Info Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.19.26.png

The Image Info tab displays information about the camera device:

  • CCD information:
    • Max Width / Height: The sensor size in pixels. This determines the maximum Frame size.
    • Pixel Size: Defines the pixel dimensions in microns.
    • Bits per pixel: Bit depth per pixel.
  • Image Data: Allows image data to be sent on the INDI Data Stream.
  • Bayer Info: This is only relevant to colour cameras:
    • X / Y Offset: X, Y offset for the matrix.
    • Filter: The Bayer matrix.
  • ADC Depth: Bit depth of the camera's Analog to Digital Converter (ADC).

Guider Control Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.17.03.png

The Guider Control tab supports parameters associated with guiding from the camera to the mount if the camera has an ST4 port.

  • Guide N/S: North / South pulse duration in milliseconds.
  • Guide E/W: East / West pulse duration in milliseconds.

Note that generally people guide from a Guiding application (like PHD2 or Ekos internal guider) directly to the mount in preference to using an ST4 cable from the camera to the mount. In this case these parameters can be ignored.

WCS Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.17.16.png

The WCS tab displays and sets parameters associated with the World Coordinate System (WCS).

  • WCS: Allows WCS to be enabled / disabled.
  • CCD FOV: Dispays the rotation angle of the CCD as determined during the most recent plate solve.

In general, a WCS allows mapping between celestial coordinates and an image. Specifically here, it allows a real world mapping of space in RA / Dec coordinates to an image in FITS format. The mapping goes both ways.

If enabled, the FITS viewer in Ekos will, after a successful initial plate solve, not only display the pixel x, y coordinates as the mouse is moved across the image, but also the cooresponding RA / Dec coordinates. In addition a request can be made from the FITS viewed to slew the telescope to centre the FOV where the mouse is located.

The CCD FOV Rotator, dispays the rotation angle of the CCD as determined during the most recent plate solve.

Streaming Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.18.07.png

The Streaming tab displays and set parameters associated with video streaming:

  • Video Stream: Either Stream On or Stream Off.
  • Expose: Parameters defining the current exposure length
  • FPS: Parameters defining the frames per second (FPS).
  • Video Record: How to take the video.
  • Record File: The directory and filename of the video.
  • Record Options:
    • Duration: The duration in seconds of the video.
    • Frames: The number of frames of the video.
  • Frame: The frame dimensions relative to the sensor size.
  • Encoder: Either Raw or MJPEG.
  • Format: Video format, either SER or OGV

Typically video format is used in planetary photography and not in DSO photography.

Controls Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.18.23.png

The Controls tab allows for a number of parameters to be adjusted:

  • Controls:
    • Gain: Camera gain.
    • Offset: Camera offset.
  • Bandwidth: The percentage of the USB bus speed the camera will try to use. The higher the value the faster data will be transferred from the camera over USB. However, if set too high, data transfer problems like dropped frames will result. The appropriate setting will depend upon whether USB 2 or 3 is used, how good the cable is and how good the receiving computer is at receiving the data.
  • Flip: Flip the image:
    • 0 - no flip
    • 1 - Flip the image horizontally.
    • 2 - Flip the image vertically.
    • 3 - Flip the image both horizontally and vertically.
  • AutoExpMaxGain: For automatic exposures, the maximum gain.
  • AutoExpMaxExpMs: For automation exposures, the maximum exposure in milliseconds.
  • AutoExposureTargetBrightness: For automatic exposures the target brightness.
  • HardwareBin: For cameras that support hardware binning. If you intend to use this please read the manual for your camera as there could be side effects, such as the camera changing the way the ADC is read to use a different bit depth.
  • HighSpeedMode: Some cameras have the ability to record ADC values in two modes. For example, the ASI1600mm pro can record in either 12bit ADC or 10bit ADC. Recording in 10bit mode loses bit depth but is faster. Setting HighSpeedMode allows the camera to record in 10bit mode. This feature would normally be used for planetary imaging when combined with a Format of 8bit in order to maximise the frames / second.
  • PatternAdjust:
  • Set Auto:
    • Gain: For Auto exposure automatically set the Gain.
    • Bandwidth: Automatically determine the Bandwidth parameter.
  • Format: Can be set to either Raw 8bit or Raw 16bit.
  • Blink: A blink inserts a delay between consecutive exposures.
    • Blinks before exposure: The number of blinks before the next exposure.
    • Blink duration: The duration in seconds of each blink.

For colour cameras the INDI control panel looks slightly different with additional parameters:

Screenshot_2021-09-04_at_23.20.15.png

Additional parameters:

  • WB_R / B: These parameters set the white balance of a colour image by adjusting the red channel (WB_R) and blue channel (WB_B) relative to the green channel. Usually ZWO recommend WB_R to be set to 52 and WB_B to 95 but consult your camera manual in case other values are recommended.
  • MonoBin: Whereas binning a colour camera will result in pixels of the same colour being combined, mono-binning will ignore the bayer pattern and bin in the same way a monochrome camera would, resulting in a monochrome image.
  • Format: In addition to Raw 8bit or Raw 16bit there are 2 additional options:
    • RGB 24: Store the red channel as 8bit, same from green and blue making 24 bits in total.
    • Luma:  The Luma format can be used for videos.

Issues

The current list of outstanding issues can be viewed at INDI's Github issues page. If you find an issue please report it on the Indilib forum and remember to include the logs (details on how to do this here). 

]]>
knro Fri, 02 Jan 2015 14:56:40 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/zwo-optics-asi-cameras.html
AZ-GTi Equatorial Wedge WiFi Only https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/az-gti.html

Installation

INDI AZ-GTi Driver based on EQMod driver and is released as a 3rd party driver and requires INDI Library >= v1.7.5. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-eqmod

Features

This INDI driver interacts with a mount controller using the Skywatcher Protocol through WiFi 

  • Goto/Slew at maximum microstep resolution
  • Independent slew speeds for both axes variable between x0.05 to x800 of the sidereal rate (step x0.05)
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom trackrates
  • Custom horizon limits
  • PEC training
  • Configurable custom parking positions
  • Pulse-guiding
  • ST4 Guiding
  • Full joystick support

Connectivity

The device running the EQMod driver (StellarMate/PC) should be connected to the mount WiFi HotSpot. There is no need to use the Synscan App. In the Connection tab, select Ethernet.

The mount supports two connection modes:

HotSpot Mode

This is the default mode. When the mount is powered, it is put into HotSpot Mode where it creates its own HotSpot wireless network (IP address 192.168.4.1). In this mode, the mount acts as the router all other devices must connect to it. 

If the mount is started in HotSpot Mode, then connect the PC/StellarMate to the mount open WiFi network. Then enter the IP address as 192.168.4.1 and port 11880. Go to options and click Save configuration. Now you can connect directly to the mount. The machine running the client (Ekos, PixInsight, SkyCharts..etc) should also be connected to the Mount WiFi HotSpot as well so that the mount, driver, and client are ALL on the same network which is in this case the Mount WiFi HotSpot network.

AZ GTi HotSpot

The IP address in the image above for the devices connected to the mount WiFi are just examples. Usually, the first device that connects to the Mount HotSpot gets IP address 192.168.4.2 and so on.

Station Mode

With this mode, the mount can join an existing WiFi network. This method is recommended since the controlling PC/StellarMate can connect to the mount and also to other devices on the network; whereas in the HotSpot mode, they must exclusively connect the mount' own internal network.

To use Station Mode instead, please follow these steps

  • Connect to AZ-GTi "SynScan_xxxx" wifi hotspot
  • Start/connect SynScan app
  • Go to Settings/Wi-Fi settings
  • There are two sections - Modify Access Point and Modify Station
  • Click Modify Station. There you can enable it (it's disabled by default)
    • If StellarMate HotSpot is active, then put Stellarmate SSID and password.
    • If StellarMate is connected to existing WiFi network, then select the desired SSID and password.
  • The IP address reported by the IP is the IP address you need to put in the Connections tab of the driver in INDI Control Panel.
  • Both modes can be enabled at the same time.

Station Mode to StellarMate

The follow image illustrates the connection topology for connect the mount in Station Mode to StellarMate WiFi HotSpot. All other devices must be connected to StellarMate WiFi HotSpot as well.

AZ GTi Station Mode

Station Mode to Home WiFi

In this mode, all the devices are connected to the home WiFi router. When setting the mount to Station Mode via the Synscan App, select the home wifi SSID and put the password to connect to it.

AZ GTi Station WiFi

Operation

Once AZ-GTi is online, it loads mount, alignment, parking, and horizontal limits settings if they exist. Its location defaults to the celestial pole unless a custom parking position is set previously.

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of EQMod takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

Four tracking modes are supported: Sidereal, Lunar, Solar, and Custom. When using Custom mode, the rates defined in Track Rates shall be used. Tracking can be enganged and disenganged by toggling the Tracking property.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

  • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices EQMod should communicate with:
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
  • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
  • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
  • Dome Parking Policy

    If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

    • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
    • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
    • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.

    eqmod options
  • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.
  • Backlash: Set RA & DEC backlash in microsteps.

Motion Control

eqmod motion

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with speed and guide controls are configured.

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property is meant for guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not intended to be used directly.
  • Guiding Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE. 0.3 means the mount shall move at 30% of the sidereal rate when the pulse is active. The sideral rate is ~15.04 arcseconds per second. So at 0.3x, the mount shall move 0.3*15.04 = 4.5 arcsecond per second. When receving a pulse for 1000ms, the total theoritical motion 4.5 arcseconds.
  • Custom Speeds: Customs speeds in RA & DEC axis when performing slew motion.
  • Track Default: Default tracking rate to be used on startup.
  • ST4 N/S/W/E: If the mount is receiving guiding pulses via ST4, apply this rate.

Site Management

Time, Locaiton, and Park settings are configured in the Site Management tab.

eqmod site

  • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
  • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Parking Position: Upon connection to the mount, Ekos loads these values into the mount's motor controller to initialize the (stepper) motor step values. The default values represent the home position where the mount points to the celestial pole - i.e. 0 deg RA, 90 deg DEC.
  • Parking: To set the parking position of the mount to the home position, click “Default”, then "Write Data" - this saves the home values as the parking values. To set the parking position of the mount to a custom position, slew the mount to the desired position and click “Current”, then "Write Data" - this saves the current motor step values as the parking values.
    • IMPORTANT: For the first time Ekos connects to the mount, or if for any reason the parking position has become incorrect. Make sure the mount is in the home position, power up the mount, connect Ekos and set the parking position to home by clicking “Default”, then "Write Data".

Firmware

Firmware tab displays information on the detected mount type and firmware version. Furthermore, the RA/DE steps, frequencies, and gear ratios are displayed.

eqmod firmware

Motor Status

The stepper motors positions and work periods are displayed in addition to the status of each motor. If the mount is equipment with auxiliary encoders, then their position shall be displayed

eqmod motor status

Alignment 

By default the alignment mode is set to N-Star, every time you perform a sync, a new sync point is added to the model. You need to save the alignment points file if you want the driver to utilize them on the next startup. You can perform all these operations in the Align tab. The EQMod driver is currently transition to the INDI Alignment Subsystem and this section shall be updated when the transition is over to avoid duplicate information.

Under Options, you can select to utilize INDI's Alignment Subsystem instead of EQMod's own alignment system. However, the Alignment Subsystem is currently not stable so it is recommended to use EQMod alignment system which is on by default.

PEC

PEC training works the same way as with the handcontroller. Guide on a star, engage PEC training and the firmware will wait for the mount pass the worm indexer and then records the resulting speeds in the EEPROM of the motor microcontroller. When it has finished (worm indexer) it toggles a status bit and you can see in the INDI Control panel the status of PEC training becoming green (whereas it remains busy/yellow while training).

PEC/PEC training is enabled in INDI EQMod for mounts which supports it, EQ8, AZEQ5/6, EQ6R too apparently. It is a motor controller firmware feature, the INDI driver just sends the corresponding commands to start/stop PEC/PEC training and do not then bother about it. Please note that the firmware PEC+guiding may not be a good idea as the firmware changes the motor speed unconditionnally, so some guide commands may be lost.

Horizon Limits

For horizon limit just slew to the points along the horizon you want to set and hit the Add current button. The order of points is significant as Horizon uses a linear approximation between them. When you have finished hit the Write File button (saved in ~/.indi/HorizonData.txt which you can manually edit also).

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

]]>
knro Tue, 04 Feb 2014 17:05:31 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/az-gti.html
EQMod https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/eqmod.html

Installation

The EQMod Mount driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via::

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-eqmod

Features

This INDI EQMod Mount driver interacts with a mount controller using the Skywatcher Protocol through a serial link. It can directly drive SkyWatcher and similar mounts through a serial port (see EQDIRECT interface for more details), or any other mount hardware which uses this protocol. The EQMod Mount driver can also be used with the Synscan controller if PC Direct Mode is enabled in the handset. However, this approach can be problematic and generally not recommended. For wired connections, using EQDirect cable is recommeneded.

The INDI control panel exposes data associated with the device and permits parameters to be set. In normal operation, higher level software, such as EKOS, will control the mount, but this document will utilise the INDI control panel GUI to explain the available features.

Current features supported:

  • Accurate gotos
  • Multiple alignment point and alignment algorithm support
  • Independent slew speeds for both axes variable between x0.05 to x800 of the sidereal rate (step x0.05)
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom trackrates
  • Maintainance of pier-side
  • Custom horizon limits
  • Configurable custom parking positions
  • Both pulse and ST4 guiding support
  • Dome integration support
  • PPEC mount support
  • Joystick support

If you plan to use EQMod driver with AstroEQ, make sure to use the latest firmware v8.11+ as prior AstroEQ versions will fail to work with EQMod.

Connectivity

1. Cable (EQ Direct or USB)

To connect to the EQMod mount from a PC, Mac or a device like Raspberry PI, use a USB cable (if this is supported by the mount) or a EQDirect USB cable (such as those offered by Shoestring Astronomy).

Many vendors sell USB to RJ45/DB9 EQDirect-compatible cables and adapters. You connect the USB to your computer or embedded device running INDI and then use the driver to control the mount.

For direct USB connections to AZEQ5 or EQ6R Mounts, make sure to set the baud rate to 115200

2. Network

If EQMod is available over the network via an RS232-to-Ethernet adapter for example, use Ethernet connection mode and enter the corresponding IP address and port where the remote server is located.

3. Bluetooth

For bluetooth adapters, several adapters are avaiable from, for example, Shoestring Astronomy. When using Bluetooth adapter, it is highly recommended to remove modemmanager as it interfers with connection with EQMod driver. To remove it, use the following command:

sudo apt-get remove modemmanager

Then you can either use your OS built-in Bluetooth manager to pair with the EQMod Bluetooth adapeter, or you can permenantly bind it by adding the following line to your /etc/rc.local

rfcomm bind hci0 XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX 1 &

Replace XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX with your Bluetooth adapter MAC Address. To get the MAC address, use the hciconfig command to list bluetooth devices and their correspnding information.

Operation

Before starting the driver, make sure the mount is in the Park position and then power it up. The Park position can be set in the Site Management tab. By default, it is set to the Home position is which the telescope is pointing to the celestial pole with the weights down.

Then start the EQMod Mount driver. Once the driver is online, it will load the mount configuration.

First Time Use

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select the port to connect to. You can also try connecting directly and the driver will automatically scan the system for candidate ports. If EQMod is connected the network via a Serial-TCP (Ethernet or WiFi) adapter, then you can select Ethernet mode and enter the IP address and port for the adapter connected to the mount. After making changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the settings.

Main Control Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.08.12.png

The Main Control tab is where the primary control of EQMod takes place. Users will seldom use this interface directly since most people will use powerful software such as Kstars/Ekos above the EQMod Mount driver to slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually. However, if necessary, control of the mount can be done from here:

  • Connection: Displays and sets whether the driver is connected or not.
  • On set: Describes the action to take when coordinates are set:
    • Track: In this mode, when coordinates have been entered and set, the mount will slew to the coordinates entered and when it arrives there, it will engage tracking.
    • Slew: In this mode, when coordinates have been set, the mount will slew to the new coordinates only.
    • Sync: In this mode, when coordinates have been set, the mount will not move, but synchronise itself to the coordinates that have been entered. Note that the mount must be tracking in order for Sync to work.
  • Eq Coordinates: The RA / Dec coordinates that the mount is currently pointing to.
  • Abort Motion: Can be activated to stop the mount if it is slewing.
  • Track Mode:
    • Sidereal: This is used for DSO photography and often for Planetary photography. It compensates for the rotational spin movement of the Earth about its axis. This rotational movement is what makes objects appear to move across the sky. By compensating for it, from the perspective of the telescope (and camera) the object being viewed appears to be stationery and thus long exposures can be taken without star trails.
    • Solar: This is used for Solar imaging. The mode combines Sidereal with the movement necessary to compensate for the Earth's rotation around the Sun.
    • Lunar: This is used for Lunar imaging. The mode combines Sidereal with the movement necessary to compensate for the Moon's rotation around the Earth.
    • Custom: Custom track rates can be defined in Track Rates.
  • Tracking: Can be set On / Off.
  • Track Rates: Displays the RA / Dec track rates associated with Track Mode. If Custom Track Mode is set, allows values to be set.
  • Parking: Allows the mount to be parked or unparked:
    • Parking: The mount slews to the Park position and Tracking is turned off. Once Parked, the mount cannot be moved, i.e. it cannot slew or track.
    • Unparking: The mount position remains in the Park position, but it is now available to slew and track.
  • Pier Side. Which side of the Meridian the mount is on (either East or West).
  • Hor. Coordinates. This is a translation of Eq. Coordinates into the Alt / Az coordinate system.
  • Reverse DEC. Reverse the Dec axis.
  • Target Pier Side:
    • Auto: The EQMod Mount driver calculates the pier side based on where the telescope is pointing and data in the Site Management tab. This is displayed in Pier Side. This is the recommended setting.
    • West (pointing east): Force the mount to use the West side of the pier. Generally it is better to let the driver manage Pier Side and allow higher level software such as Ekos to perform a Meridian Flip as the telescope crosses the Meridian. However, there could be situations where, for example, an object is being viewed a short period of time before it crosses the Meridian and it is more efficient to start on the "wrong" side of the Meridian and continue viewing uninterrupted rather than use Auto, start observing and immediately have a Meridian Flip. Please note, however, that care needs to be taken to avoid the telescope hitting the mount if this option is selected.
    • East (pointing west): Force the mount to use the East side of the pier.

Connection Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.09.55.png

The Connection tab shows information related to the connection of the Eqmod Mount driver to the mount.

  • Driver Info: Displays information about the driver.
  • Connection Mode:
    • Serial: Use this if connecting using USB either directly or through an EQDir cable.
    • Ethernet: Uase this if connecting using ethernet.
  • Ports: Displays the attached port and allows it to be changed.
  • Baud Rate: The baud rate of the connection. Use 9,600 with an EQDir cable and 115,200 for a direct USB connection.
  • Auto Search: If enabled, the driver automatically scans the system for candidate ports on startup or when Refresh is activated.
  • Refresh: If Auto Search is enabled, when Scan Ports is pressed, the system scans for candidate ports.
  • System Ports: The list of candidate ports to connect to.

Options Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.11.18.png

The Options tab, allows configuration of many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

  • Polling: Displays the mount polling period in milliseconds.
  • Debug: Displays the debug status. Note that debug options are set in Ekos as described here.
  • Simulation: Enable / disable simulation mode for testing purposes. In Simulation mode, parameters can be changed but not sent to the device.
  • Configuration: Manage the driver configuration.
    • Load: Load the last saved settings.
    • Save: Save the driver settings.
    • Default: Restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
    • Purge: Delete the configuration file.
  • Snoop Devices: The driver supports the ability to listen to, or snoop on, parameters of other drivers.
    • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. EQMod will sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
    • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
  • Dome Policy: If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with each other. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa.
    • Dome ignored: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
    • Dome locks: Prevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
  • Scope Properties: Enter the scope details for the primary scope and, if appropriate, the guide scope. If using an Off Axis Guider (OAG) repeat the primary scope details for the guide scope. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Guider scopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label of Scope Name.
  • Scope Name: Optional name of scope. Useful if you use several setups; be they different scopes or different setups on a single scope, e.g. with / without a focal reducer.
  • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
  • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.
  • Backlash: Set RA & DEC backlash in microsteps.
  • Use Backlash: Control whether or not Backlash is used for RA and / or Dec.
  • Align Method: Set the alignment method to use, either EQMod Align or Alignment Subsystem.
  • LED Brightness. Set the level of brightness of the Polar Alignment LED on the scope.
  • Snap Port 1. The Snap port is a mechanism to control the shutter on a DSLR camera through the mount. Activate it here. 

Alignment Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.12.23.png

The Alignment tab displays information about alignment points. As this repeats data on the Align tab, please see the Align tab section for more details.

Motion Control Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.12.53.png

The Motion Control tab allows motion control parameters to be displayed and set:

  • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
  • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above where 1x equals one sidereal rate. A range of options are offered. If Custom is selected, slew rates can be entered in Custom Speeds.
  • Slew Target: The RA / Dec coordinates of a requested slew. 
  • Guide N/S/W/E: Guiding pulses durations in milliseconds. This property would normally be used by a guider application (e.g. PHD2) and not used directly.
  • Custom Speeds: Customs speeds in RA & DEC axis when slewing.
  • Guiding Rate: Guiding Rate for RA & DE in units of sidereal motion. For exmple, at 0.3x, the mount moves 0.3*15.04 = 4.5 arcsecond per second. So a guide pulse for 1 second (or 1000ms) would move 4.5 arcseconds.
  • Pulse Limits:
    • Minimum Pulse. ** guessing this is the ST4 equivalent of Minimum Pulse Timer?
    • Minimum Pulse Timer. This is for pulse (as opposed to ST4) guiding. Only send the guide pulse to the mount if it exceeds the minimum value. Usually a value is set to stop the mount oscillating with continual small values that results in "chasing the seeing" without any guiding benefit.
  • Track Default: Default tracking rate to be used on startup. See Track Mode on the Main Control tab for more details.
  • ST4 N/S/W/E: The guide rate to use in units of sidereal motion for ST4 guiding.

Site Management Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.14.29.png

The Site Management tab displays and sets information about the telescope's location.

  • UTC: UTC time and offset must be set correctly. The UTC offset is in hours.
  • Scope Location: Latitude, Longitude and elevation above sea level must be set correctly. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.
  • Park Position: Upon connection to the mount, Ekos loads these values into the mount's motor controller to initialize the (stepper) motor step values. The default values represent the Home position of the mount.
  • Park Options:
    • Current: Set the parking position of the mount to current position.
    • Write Data: This saves the current park position.
    • Default: Sets the Park position to the Home position.
    • Purge Data: Removes the current Park position data.
  • JD: The current Julian Datetime calculated from UTC.
  • LST: The current Local Sidereal Time calculated from UTC.
  • Hemisphere: North or South. Which hemisphere the mount is located in, calculated from Scope Location.

IMPORTANT: It is important to understand the difference between the Home position and the Park position:

  • Home position. This is where the mount (telescope) is pointed at the celestial pole (either North or South depending on which hemisphere the mount is located in) with the counter weights down (below the telescope). There is just one Home position. There are online resources that describe how to set this up.
  • Park position. The Park position is user defined and can be anywhere. By default the Home and Park positions are the same and remain that way until the user decides to define a different Park position. For example, if the mount is in a low roof observatory, the Park position may be set with both the counterweight bar and scope horizontal to minimise the height of the scope and allow the observatory roof to close.

The first time Ekos connects to the mount, or if for any reason the parking position has become incorrect, make sure the mount is in the Home position, power up the mount, connect Ekos and set the parking position to home by clicking Default, then Write Data.

Firmware Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.15.22.png

The Firmware tab displays information on the mount and firmware controller:

  • Mount Information:
    • Mount Type: The type of the mount.
    • Firmware Version: Firmware version.
  • Stepper/Gear: Displays information about the RA / Dec stepper motors and gearing.

Motor Status Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.15.59.png

The Motor Status tab displays information about the mount stepper motors in RA and Dec:

  • Stepper Position: Displays the position of the stepper motors.
  • Worm Period: Displays the worm gear periods.
  • Motor Status: Displays the status of the motors.
  • Aux. Encoders: If the mount has auxilliary encoders then their position is displayed.

Sync Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.16.40.png

The Sync tab displays information about alignment points. As this repeats data on the Align tab, please see the Align tab section for more details.

Permanent PEC Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.17.02.png

The Permanent PEC tab exposes the Permanent PEC (PPEC) functionality if it is supported by the mount:

  • RA/DE PPEC training: Training can be enabled and disabled. PPEC training works the same way as with the mount handcontroller: guide on a star, engage PPEC training and the firmware will wait for the mount to pass the worm indexer and then record the resulting speeds in the EEPROM of the motor microcontroller as the worm travels through its cycle. The status is busy/yellow during training. When the worm has completed its cycle, the status of PPEC training becoming green.
  • Turn RA/DE PPEC:  PPEC can be turned on or off.

PPEC is normally only used on the RA worm.

PPEC is a complicated subject. INDI exposes the above mount functions but note that to effectively use PPEC requires many more steps and an understanding of how it works with your specific mount and what the constraints are (for example, to keep the stepper motor synchronised to the PPEC data). A good resource for more details on this topic can be found at The EQMOD Project.

Align Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.18.56.png

The Align tab displays information about the alignment of the mount:

  • Data File: The file use for alignment data.
  • Align Data: Set the alignment data on INDI DATA STREAM.
  • Alignment Point: Holds data for the alignment point:
    • Sync Date: The date the point was taken.
    • Sync LST: Local Sidereal Time the point was taken.
    • Celestial RA/DE: The celestial RA/Dec coordinates of the point.
    • Telescope RA/DE: The telescope RA/Dec coordinates of the point.
  • Manage List: Perform actions on the list of points:
    • Add Point: Add a point to the list.
    • Clear List: Remove all points from the list.
    • Write File: Write the list of points to a file.
    • Load File: Load a previously saved file of points.
  • Telescope Coords: Current telescope RA/Dec coordinates.
  • Number Of:
    • Points: The number of alignment points in the list.
    • Triangles: The number of triangles created from alignment Points.
  • Alignment Mode:
    • No Alignment: Do not use an alignment model.
    • Nearest Point: Use the Nearest Point alignment model. When the mount is asked to perform a goto, the nearest alignment point to the requested goto position is used to calculate how to move the mount.
    • N-Star: Use the N-Star alignment model. This is a more complicated alignment model that utilises all the alignment points in the list as effectively as it can calculate how to move the mount.

For background information on alignment models the EQMOD project has a useful document here.

N-Star alignment is the most accurate method of performing "gotos" standalone. When using plate solving, however, a very accurate goto is not required as plate solving refines every slew position iteratively to home in on the target. In this case it is better to use Nearest Point.

Horizon Tab

Screenshot_2021-09-07_at_12.19.40.png

The Horizon tab displays and sets data associated with defining an artificial horizon for your observing location. To use, slew to the points along the horizon you want to set and hit the Add Current Scope Az/Alt button. The order of points is significant as Horizon uses a linear approximation between them. When you have finished hit the Write File button. The data is saved in a text file that can also be manually edited.

  • Horizon File: The file used to store the data for the horizon being defined.
  • Display: Put the horizon data on INDI DATA STREAM.
  • Horizon Point: The Alt/Az coordinates of a point to define in the horizon file.
  • Traversal: Allows display of previously defined horizon points:
    • First: Displays the first point.
    • Next. Displays the next point.
    • Prev: Displays the previous point.
    • Last: Displays the last point.
  • Manage: Allows management of the list of horizon points:
    • Add Current Scope Az/Alt: Add the current scope's position as a new horizon point.
    • Delete Point. Delete the currently selected horizon point from the list.
    • Clear List. Delete all points from the list.
  • Operation: Manage the horizon points file.
    • Write File: Write the file of horizon points.
    • Load File: Load up a previously stored file of horizon points.
  • On Limit: Actions to take during observing when the telescope reaches the horizon perimeter defined by the current list of horizon points.
    • Abort Tracking: Stop tracking.
    • Abort Slewing: Stop slewing.
    • Abort Goto: Stop goto.
  • Limit Goto: If enabled, limit the goto to the boundary of the horizon.

Issues

The current list of outstanding issues can be viewed at INDI's Github issues page. If you find an issue please report it on the Indilib forum and remember to include the logs (details on how to do this here).

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knro Tue, 04 Feb 2014 17:05:31 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/eqmod.html
Sky Quality Meter - LU https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/sky-quality-meter-lu.html The Sky Quality Meter - LU is a night-time sky brightness monitoring tool.]]> Zerjillo Sat, 11 Jan 2014 16:53:20 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/sky-quality-meter-lu.html Imaging Source CCD https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/imaging-source-ccd.html

Installation

INDI can control Imaging Source DMK CCDs via the Video4Linux driver. This includes support for long exposures in addition to video streaming. DMK CCDs are supported in INDI library v0.9.8 or later. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The DMK driver provides all the Video4Linux control supported by the device such as brightness, contrast, gamma, ..etc. Subframing and binning is supported in software. Both gray scale and color modes are supported. Pleas note that due to limitation in V4L2 framework, you cannot change the camera resolution unless you disconnect and reconnect again.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera, or use video streaming if supported by your client. INDI will detect any extra options that your device may support and if found, INDI shall construct dynamic controls (knobs & switches) to control these features.

Issues

Some users bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Fri, 03 Jan 2014 10:10:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/imaging-source-ccd.html MoonLite Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/moonlite-focuser.html

Installation

MoonLite driver is included with libindi >= 0.9.8. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The MoonLite focuser is a high resolution stepper motor and uses a premium, low backlash Hurst stepper motor. This provides very fine .00008" resolution and accurate position repeatability required for today's high end imaging systems. You can control the focuser absolute & relative positions. It is recommended that the focuser is completely retracted when powered on as the focuser can only be operated in FOCUS OUT mode at this stage. You can set the temperature calibration and coefficient settings and enable/disable temperature compensation accordingly.

MoonLite INDI Control Panel

Main Control Tab

  • Port: Set the name of the RS 232 port. The speed is fixed to 9600 baud.
  • Direction: Focus IN or Focus OUT.
  • Focus Speed: Set Focus speed 1 (highest) to 5 (lowest).
  • Focus Timer: Move the focuser at the current speed in the current direction for the specified time in milliseconds.
  • Relative Position: Set the number of steps from the current absolute position to move.
  • Absolute Position: Set the number of absolute steps.
  • Temperature: read out of the built in temperature sensor or the external temperature probe.

Options

  • Step Mode: Set stepping mode to either Half or Full (default) steps.
  • Temperature Settings: Set the temperature calibration and coefficient values.

Presets

You may set pre-defined presets for common focuser positions in the Presets tab.

  • Preset Positions: You may set up to 3 preset positions. When you make a change, the new values will be saved in the driver's configuration file and are loaded automatically in subsequent uses.
  • Preset GOTO: Click any preset to go to that position

Operation

The INDI MoonLite driver provides complete functionality for all the features supported by MoonLite including relative and absolute positioning, temperature readout, preset and configuration parameters.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Sat, 07 Dec 2013 20:46:50 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/moonlite-focuser.html Java Raspberry Pi GPIO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/raspberry-pi-gpio.html

Raspberry Pi is an ARM based, credit card sized computer. In addition to the usual computer features, it has two GPIO ports with a total number of 21 pins that can be set (on / off) or read. Moreover, one of those pins can be used as a PWM output. Thus, it can be easily connected to sensors, actuators, relays and so on to operate them.

A driver for INDI-for-Java is available to allow easy contorl control of these pins within any INDI enabled software.

This driver is not include with official INDI Library. It requires INDI4Java server.

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Zerjillo Mon, 25 Nov 2013 18:25:42 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/raspberry-pi-gpio.html
Seletek https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/seletek.html

The Seletek is a peripheral controller developed by Lunático. This version of the driver allows to control its basic sensors and one or two focuser (three in the Platypus version) connected to the Seletek. You can check all the details about the driver and a small tutorial here.

]]>
Zerjillo Sun, 10 Nov 2013 23:59:31 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/seletek.html
Joysticks https://indilib.org/controllers/joysticks.html

INDI (v >= 0.9.7) supports game pads under Linux for input control. The INDI joystick driver (indi_joystick) queries the controller and provide the following properties:

  • Joysticks: Each joystick displays a normalized magnitude [0 to 1] and an angle. The angle is measured counter clock wise starting from the right/east direction [0 to 360]. They are defined as JOYSTICK_# where # is the joystick number.
  • Axes: Each joystick has two or more axes. Each axis has a raw value and angle. The raw value ranges from -32767.0 to 32767.0 They are defined as AXIS_# where # is the axis number.
  • Buttons: Buttons are either on or off. They are defined as BUTTON_# where # is the button number.

To snoop on buttons, call IDSnoopDevice("Joystick", "JOYSTICK_BUTTONS") from your driver.

Currently, INDI EQMod and all LX200 based driver support joystick input for basic motion control, slew speed selection...etc. In order to use the joystick, you need to run the telescope & joystick drivers simultaneously. For example:

$ indiserver indi_lx200gps indi_joystick

 

Alternatively, if you running from KStars, simply select your telescope driver and the joystick driver (found under auxiliary category) before you click Start Service.

Once you connect your telescope, you may then enable the joystick input in your Options tab. Then a new tab Joystick will be created where you can map your telescope functions to joystick input. You can check which controls on your game pad correspond to INDI standard property names by checking the Monitor tab in your joystick driver. For example, below is a screenshot showing JOYSTICK_1, in addition to AXIS_1 and AXIS_2 as being active. Those are the names you can set in the Joystick tab in your telescope driver.

INDI Control Panel

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knro Thu, 31 Oct 2013 20:19:15 +0100 https://indilib.org/controllers/joysticks.html
Apogee CCD https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/apogee-ccd.html

Installation

INDI Apogee driver supports all lines of Apogee CCDs. The driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-apogee

Features

The Apogee driver should support all features of the Alta and Aspen cameras including
  • USB or Ethernet connection
  • Temperature setpoint
  • Hardware binning
  • Frame sub-selection
  • Shutter capture mode; Dark, Bias, Light
  • Fan speed

Configuration

In order to use your Apogee camera in INDI the first step is to configure the CCD setting in a new profile or editing and existing one. Here is a new profile where we are selecting our CCD as an Apogee CCD.

config

Operation

After configuring your profile to use an Apogee camera, connecting to INDI will create new tabs for your camera that contain your camera's detailed specifics. In this case I have connected an Apogee Alta 8300 which uses a Kodak KAF-8300 chip via USB.

Main Control

maincontrol

Options

The Options tab contains various settings for simulation, default file locations, upload behavior and debugging.options

Image Settings

The Image Settings tab contains default settings for binning, sub framing, compression and frame type. Frame type controls the shutter such that you can take dark and bias frames with the shutter closed. All these options are available in the Ekos CCD application, you could change them here to establish different start up defaults.imagesettings

Image Info

The Image Info tab contains the read only details of the underlying CCD's dimensions, pixel size and bit depth.image info

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Wed, 30 Oct 2013 01:40:01 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/apogee-ccd.html
FLI CCD & Filter Wheel & Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/fli-ccd-filter-wheel.html

Installation

INDI Finger Lakes Instruments (FLI) CCD, Filter Wheel, and Precision Digital Focuser driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-fli

The driver install a Linux Kernel DKMS package which needs to be compiled successfully on the target system. If installation fails, the driver will not work

The driver package install three drivers:

  • CCD Driver: FLI CCD driver (indi_fli_ccd) for all FLI cameras.
  • Filter Wheel Driver: FLI CFW driver (indi_fli_wheel) for all FLI filter wheels.
  • Focuser Driver: FLI PDF driver (indi_fli_focus) for FLI Precision Digital Focuser.

Features

INDI FLI driver should be able to support all FLI family of CCDs. This includes temperature control, subframing..etc. The PDF driver is an absolute focuser driver that can be used in autofocusing applications.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera, control temperature, and set image binning and frame subset. The driver will automatically upload these images to the client in FITS format.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 30 Oct 2013 01:33:20 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/fli-ccd-filter-wheel.html SBIG CCD & Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/sbig-ccd.html

Installation

INDI SBIG driver supports all of SBIG line of CCD cameras and filter wheels. Dual CCD cameras and sending guiding corrections via ST4 port is also supported.

The driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-sbig

Features

INDI SBIG driver supports all SBIG family of CCDs/Guider and Filter wheels. Both USB & Parallel Port versions are supported. Mono and color CCDs are fully supported as well. INDI SBIG drivers are available for x86 and ARM architectures in both 32bit and 64bit. The installer auto detects your architecture and installs the appropriate driver accordingly.

Operation

Before connection, you verify the device port setting. If you are connected via USB, the port should be sbigusb0 or sbigusb1 (if you have more than one SBIG connected)...etc. For parallel port, the port should be sbiglpt0...etc.

Parallel port requires special setup and installing additional software. For more details please checkout this INDI forum post.

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera, control temperature, and set image binning and frame subset. The driver will automatically upload these images to the client in FITS format. If your camera is equipped with a filter wheel, you can control the filter wheel from the Filter Wheel tab where you can change filters and set their respective names.

INDI Control Panel


The drivers supports saving World-Coordinate-System (WCS) information in the FITS header. WCS enables you to view the image coordinates (RA/DEC) in several FITS editors. Furthermore, if WCS is enabled, you can click any where inside your image and slew to the mount to that particular point which greatly facilitates framing.

Fan and cooler control can be set in the Main Control tab. If you are using the CCD as a guider, clients such as PHD2 and Ekos, can be used to guide your mount.

For CCDs that come with a guide head, you can set the parameters of the guide head in the Guider Head tab including subframing and image type.

SBIG CCD in Ekos

Issues

The current SBIG Universal Library for Linux has a bug that prevents FAN control. SBIG was alerted to the issue but has no issued a fix yet.

The SBIG driver only support one-camera-per-driver, so if you have more than one SBIG camera, you need to start a dedicated instance to each camera.

The driver supports taking BIAS frames, but please note that the bias frame are captured using the minimum exposure time as supported by the camera and might not represent a valid bias frame. It depends on the minimum exposure time supported for each model.

If you controlling the cameras locally then the client should take of starting a separate instance for each driver. However, if you are operating the cameras remotely, then you need to start and rename each instance. For example, suppose you have an ST8 CCD as the primary camera and STi CCD for guider. To start separate instances for each driver remotely, start INDI server in FIFO mode:

mkfifo /tmp/indififo
indiserver -v -f /tmp/indififo

Then open a separate console, and then start each driver:

echo start indi_sbig_ccd -n \"ST8\" > /tmp/indififo
echo start indi_sbig_ccd -n \"STi\" > /tmp/indififo

If you are using Ekos, make sure to go to Ekos options in KStars settings, and set the CCD to "ST8" and Guider to "STi" before you try to connect.

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
knro Wed, 30 Oct 2013 01:28:02 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/sbig-ccd.html
Shoestring Astronomy FCUSB https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/shoestring-astronomy-fcusb.html

Installation

Shoestring Astronomy FCUSB driver is included with libindi >= 1.7.9 Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The FCUSB is a product that allows you to control a DC focus motor (or any DC motor for that matter) by way of a USB port and software on your computer. If you are already using a computer in your observatory for other reasons, this provides a way for you to focus your telescope without fumbling around in the dark for the focuser handcontroller. It works best with 5V focus motors such as the newer style JMI Motofocus, but can also work with 9V or 12V motors. Motors requiring up to 100mA of current will work with the FCUSB. To date, the FCUSB has been tested with the JMI Motofocus, Moonlite DC motorized focusers, Orion AccuFocus, Meade 1209, Televue Focusmate Driver.

FCUSB Control Panel

Main Control Tab

TODO

Connection

FCUSB Connection

Connect to the focuser using a USB cable. The connection type is serial and by default the port is set to /dev/ttyUSB0. The default baud rate is 9600. If you change the default port, save the changes by going to the Options tab and click Save configuration.

Operation

After establishing connection to the focuser, you can use the focuser control in the INDI control panel directly to move and sync the focuser. Alternatively, the focuser can be used in any INDI compatible autofocusing application.

Options

The options tab provides several settings to tune the operation and performance of the focuser:

TODO

Issues

TODO

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]>
polakovic Sun, 20 Oct 2013 22:38:52 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/shoestring-astronomy-fcusb.html
Atik Cameras & Filter Wheels https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/atik-ccd.html

Installation

INDI Atik Driver currently supports all Atik cameras and filter wheels. There is a dedicated filter wheel driver for standalone filters, but the filter can be used within the camera driver.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-atik

Features

Main Control Panel

The driver supports capture, binning, and setting temperature (if there is cooler). Furthermore, the following is supported:

  • Guiding via ST4 cable.
  • Mono and Color camera supported.
  • Multiple cameras can be used at the same time.
  • Gain and Offset controls for Horizon camera.

Operation

Connecting to Atik camera

Simple connect the camera to the PC/SBC (Atikbase, StellarMate..etc) via USB. When connecting to an embedded device, make sure to use a 3A power adapter to minimize any issues that could be related to power.

General Info

General Info

This provides general information about the currently running driver and driver version.  It also lets you set the Observer and Object Information for the FITS Header.

Capture

To capture a signle-frame image, simple set the desired exposure time in seconds and click Set. After the capture is complete, it should be downloaded as a FITS image. If the camera is equipped with a cooler, target temperature can be set. To change the gain and offset (if supported), select a different image format in the Controls tab.

Options

Options

The Options tab contains settings for default file locations, upload behavior, and debugging. The polling period for this driver should be kept as is unless you need to reduce it for a specific reason.

  1. Debug: Toggle driver debug logging on/off
  2. Configuration: After changing driver settings, click Save to save the changes to the configuration file. The saved values should be used when starting the driver again in the future. The configuration file is saved to the user home directory under .indi directory in an XML file.(e.g. ~/.indi/camera_name.xml)
  3. Snoop Device: The camera driver can listen to properties defined in other drivers. This can be used to store the relevant information in the FITS header (like the mount's RA and DE coordinates). The respective drivers (Telescope, Focuser..etc) are usually set by the client, but can be set directly if desired.
  4. Rapid Guide: Rapid Guide uses internal algorithm to automataically select guide stars.
  5. Telescope: Toggle between Primary and Guide scope selection. This selection is required in order to calculate World-Coordinate-System (WCS) values like Field-Of-View (FOV). When WCS is enabled, the FITS header is populated with WCS keywords that enable clients to map the sources in the image to physical coordinates in the sky. Usually, you do not need to toggle this setting manually as it is usually set by the client automatically
  6. Upload: Selects how the captured image is saved/uploaded?
    • Client: The image is uploaded the client (i.e. Ekos or SkyCharts)
    • Local: The image is saved to local storage only.
    • Both: The image is saved to local storage and also uploaded to the client.
  7. Upload Settings: Sets the local desired directory and prefix used to save the image when either the Local or Both upload modes are active. The IMAGE_XXX is automatically replaced by the image name where the XXX is the image counter (i.e. M42_005.fits). The driver scan the local storage and increments the counter automatically when a new image is captured and stored.

Image Settings

Image Settings

In the Image Settings tab, you can configure the framing and binning of the captured image:

    • Frame: Set the desired Region-Of-Interest (ROI) by specifying the starting X and Y positions of the image and the desired width and height. It is recommended to set use even numbers only to enable binning if required. The ROI values are indenepdent of the binning used.
    • Binning: Set the desired binning. The usually supported

Image compression can be turned on in image settings to compress FITS images. This might require more processing but can reduce the size of the image by up to 70%. The uploaded image would have an extenstion of .fits.fz and it can be viewed in multiple clients like KStars.

The Frame Type property is used to mark the frame type in the FITS header which is useful information for some processing applications. If there an electronic or mechanical shutter, the driver closes it automatically when taking dark frames.

To restore the ROI to the default values, click on the Reset button.

Image Info

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the CCD (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. If the camera supports Bayer mask, then the bayer filter and offset can be set here. These are usually set automatically by the driver, but can be adjusted manually if needed.

Issues

Atik filter wheel driver may crash under some environments due to missing depdencies. Please check INDI Issue #292 for details.

Issue Tracking System

      at Github.

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polakovic Sat, 07 Sep 2013 20:59:35 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/atik-ccd.html
TruTech https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/trutech.html

Installation

TruTech driver is included with libindi >= 0.9.

Features

Universal filter wheel for 1.25", 48mm and 50mm/2" unmounted filters through the use of interchangeable internal disks

Operation

Once connected, you can update the filter wheel position.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> bnc Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:49:41 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/trutech.html Optec TCF-S Temperature Compensating Focuser https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/tcf-s-temperature-compensating-focuser.html

Installation

TCF-S driver is included with libindi >= 0.9.

Features

The TCF-S Temperature Compensating Focuser is a most useful tool for any telescope owner, as focus is the single most important element to having a high-quality view of any astronomical object. In addition to having high resolution and low backlash from a purely mechanical standpoint, the TCF improves its focusing power with the addition of a temperature probe. This probe can monitor the temperature of the telescope tube and adjust focus to eliminate thermal focal shifts down to a resolution of 0.1° Celsius. Note: there is a 2" and 3" version.

Operation

Once connected, you can move the focuser in relative and absolute positions.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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bnc Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:48:05 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/tcf-s-temperature-compensating-focuser.html
AAG Cloud Watcher https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/aag-cloud-watcher.html

 

Installation

The AAG CloudWatcher, a high precision, low cost system for monitoring the sky condition. AAG CloudWatcher driver is included with libindi v1.3+ Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-aagcloudwatcher

Features

The AAG CloudWatcher comprises:
  • Clouds sensor: Through an infrared sensor of the AAG CloudWatcher measures the temperature of the sky, and an electronic thermometer measures the internal temperature. Both data are then related by a powerful formula used to determine the existence of clouds.
  • Rain sensor: CloudWatcher uses a variable capacitor to determine the existence of rain. In addition, the capacitor incorporates an internal resistance for heating the element, drying it, which allows a constant reliable reading.
  • Light sensor: To distinguish between day and night. It can even detect the Moon.
  • Temperature sensor
  • Anemometer (optional)

The current indi_aagcloudwatcher driver has the following features:

  • Shows the RAW readings as well as the corrected ones for every sensor (infrared sky, corrected infrared sky, infrared sensor, rain sensor, rain sensor temperature brightness sensor and ambient temperature sensor).
  • Shows the weather conditions in plain understandable options:
    • Cloud conditions: Clear, cloudy, overcast
    • Rain conditions: Dry, Wet, Rain
    • Brightness conditions: Dark, Light, Very Light
  • Allows to control the internal relay (switch) of the unit.
  • Reading interval is configurable.
  • The algorithm to control the rain sensor heater is fully implemented.
  • Allows to tune up all the unit configurable parameters.
  • And some more options...

Operation

Just connect the driver and watch the sensor information.

Issues

At this moment the driver does not offer any information about the anemometer. For any comments / problems with the driver please contact the author: zerjioi AT ugr.es.

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Zerjillo Sat, 24 Nov 2012 18:02:24 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/weather-stations/aag-cloud-watcher.html
Starlight Xpress Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/starlight-xpress-filter-wheel.html

Installation

INDI SX (indi-sx) driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-sx

Features

The driver supports Starlight Xpress Universal Filter Wheel with both 5 or 7 filter plates installed and controlled by USB (HID) communication protocol is supported (serial connection is not supported).

Operation

Once you're connected you can read or set filter wheel position.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 21 Nov 2012 14:29:11 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/filter-wheels/starlight-xpress-filter-wheel.html Starlight Xpress AO https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/adaptive-optics/starlight-xpress-ao.html

Installation

INDI Starlight Xpress Adaptive Optics driver (indi-sx) is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-sx

Features

The driver supports Starlight Xpress AOLF Active Optics controlled by serial mode command set (parallel mode command set is not supported). Unit can be connected directly to serial port or via usb-to-serial adapter. Read for more information.

Operation

Once you're connected you can control plan-parallel optical element of AO (reset, center or tilt in any direction) or bump to attached mount via ST4 guider port.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 21 Nov 2012 14:22:18 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/adaptive-optics/starlight-xpress-ao.html Starlight Xpress CCD https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/starlight-xpress-ccd.html

Installation

INDI SX (indi-sx) driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-sx

Features

The driver supports all Starlight Xpress CCDs, including autoguiders such as Lodestar. You can take exposures, set frame type and dimensions, and control temperature & cooler when applicable. The CCD must be powered and connected before you run the INDI server.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can select one or more physically connected camera, set cooler and temperature or control shutter (if applicable) and capture images as FITS.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 20 Nov 2012 21:29:16 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/starlight-xpress-ccd.html GPUSB https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/gpusb.html

Installation

INDI GPUSB driver is included with libindi v0.9.6+

Features

Provides basic auto guiding interface.

Operation

Usually the user doesn't control this device directly, but instead uses a client software (such as Ekos) to perform autoguiding and sends pulse commands to the mount using GPUSB.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Tue, 20 Nov 2012 20:48:05 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/auxiliary/gpusb.html MaxDome II https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/maxdome-ii.html

Installation

indi_maxdomeii is released as a 3rd party driver in source and binary packages. It is compatible with libindi >= v0.7. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-maxdomeii

Features

This device is a generic dome controller. Commercial "Sirius Domes" uses this device. MaxDome II is a fully automatic observatory dome control system. Link your dome to a computer for complete automation including telescope slaving and shutter control. MaxDome works with a wide variety of commercial and custom-built domes. It supports the following features:
  1. Support for Automadome
  2. Slave dome rotation to your telescope
  3. Rotation-only and full shutter-and-rotation systems available
  4. Single or dual shutter operation, with sequencing
  5. Wireless shutter control - no unreliable sliding contacts
  6. Direct confirmation of shutter open/closed state
  7. Safety interlocks automatically close dome upon loss of data from PC
  8. Park-before-close option to avoid mechanical interferences
  9. Manual override controls for shutter and rotation control
  10. Auxiliary auto-close inputs for Boltwood Cloud Sensor or other observatory protection hardware
  11. Easily adapted to custom or commercial observatory domes
  12. Directly compatible with Sirius Observatories
  13. Directly drives 12VDC motors up to 5A. Can operate other motor types through external relays.
  14. Field-upgradable firmware

Operation

Once you are connected to the dome, you can move it in absolute or relative position. You can slave the dome to the mount by setting the telescope name in the Options tab. You also need to fill in your slaving parameters which include the following:

  1. Radius is for the radius of the dome in meters.
  2. Shutter width is the clearance of the shutter of the dome. In a future version this will allow to calculate how much time the telescope can slew without been obstructed by the dome to minimize dome movements.
  3. N displacement is for North displacement. If telescope is not in his ideal position this parameter allows to configure how much it is displaced from the center. Displacement to north are positive, and to south are negative.
  4. E displacement is for East displacement. Similar as the above, displacement to east are positive, and to west are negative.
  5. Up displacement is for displacement in the vertical axis. Up is positive, down is negative.
  6. OTA offset is for the distance of the optical axis to the crossing point of AR and DEC. In fork mount this is generally 0, but for German like mounts is the distance from mount axis cross to the center line of the telescope.

You can also set the Autosync threshold which is the minimum distance autosync will move the dome. Any moving below this threshold will not be done. This is to prevent continuous dome moving during telescope tracking.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:19:35 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/domes/maxdome-ii.html QSI CCD & Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/qsi-ccd.html

Installation

INDI QSI driver is available for download as a 3rd party driver from INDI's download page. Under Ubuntu, you can install it via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-qsi

Features

INDI QSI should be able to support all Quantum Scientific Imaging (QSI) 500/600 family of cameras & filter wheels in addition to autoguiding support, whenever applicable.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera, control temperature, and set image binning and frame subset. The driver will automatically upload these images to the client in FITS format. If your camera is equipped with a filter wheel, you can control the position of the wheels and designate a name to each filter. For CCDs equipped with Off-Axis Guider (OAG), the driver supports pulse guiding.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:01:37 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/qsi-ccd.html QHY CCD & Filter Wheel https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/qhy.html

Installation

INDI QHY currently supports all the QHYCCD cameras and filter wheels. Some of the older camera like QHY8 might have some issues, but all camera released from 2015 onwards are supported.

Both mono and color versions are supported.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-qhy

Features

The driver supports capture, binning, setting temperature, gain and offset adjustment, subframing, and control of internal QHY Color-Filter-Wheel (CFW). Moreover, guiding via ST4 port is also supported.

Main Control Panel

Temperature control is available if the camera is equipped with TEC cooler. Depending on the camera, TEC cooler can be controlled either automatically or manually.

If you directly set the temperature, the driver switches to automatic cooler mode where the cooler power is adjusted by the driver until the desired temperature is reached and kept. Some camera allow manual TEC control where you can directly set the TEC cooler power. In this manual mode, the cooler power is kept constant regardless of the temperature. Manual mode can be useful for advanced users who wishes to slow the cooling process for their camera since the QHY driver starts cooling to 100% when a lower temperature is requested.

You can also enable video streaming and save recording in LuCam SER format or OGV format. When enabling video streaming, the Rate Divisor property decides how many frames to skip before sending it to the client while the FPS sets the desired frames-per-second requested. When tested on embedeed platforms like Raspbeerry PI, the frames due to USB 2.0 limitations are in the range of 12-18 FPS.

The driver can detect and run multiple devices, therefore you only need to run one instance of the driver even if you have multiple CCDs connected. i.e.

indiserver -v indi_qhy_ccd

Operation

Streaming

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS from the camera. You can also adjust gain and set temperature if cooling is supported. Images can be downloaded to the client or saved directly to the hard disk. If the CCD has an ST4 port, it should supported guiding via any INDI-compatible guiding application such as Ekos/PHD2.

Amp Glow Control

Some cameras provide a toggle to enable or disable Amp-glow control. However, for most cameras, this setting is already enabled by default in the camera and no control is exposed. That is, amp-glow control is enabled all the time.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

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knro Wed, 14 Nov 2012 19:56:42 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/qhy.html
DSLR Cameras https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/gphoto.html

Installation

INDI can control most cameras supported by GPhoto library using the INDI gphoto driver. This includes most DSLRs cameras. Make sure the OS does not mount the camera as a disk-drive as this would prevent the driver from communicating with the camera.

INDI should be able to support any camera supported by libgphoto2, including Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony, & Fuji DSLRs. Once you connect, you will be provided with a standard set of controls supported by INDI, as well as full exposure to all parameters supported by libgphoto. You must set your camera to Manual/Bulb mode in order to get full control via INDI. This can be done by turing the rotatory controls until they point at BULB or MANUAL mode.

There are two types of drivers available:

  1. GPhoto Driver: This is the generic driver that works with all camera. The driver name is always "GPhoto CCD" and it can connect only to a single camera at a time. The executable is indi_gphoto_ccd.
  2. DSLR-specific drivers. These drivers can connect to multiple cameras of the same type (i.e. two Canon cameras) and driver name would reflect the detected camera name.
    1. Canon: indi_canon_ccd
    2. Nikon: indi_nikon_ccd
    3. Pentax: indi_pentax_ccd
    4. Sony: indi_sony_ccd
    5. Fuji: indi_fuji_ccd

Besides the differences outlined above, the drivers are idential in every other way.

On the first time you use the driver, you must set the required CCD Information specific to your DSLR model. Your client should provide you with a list of drivers you can connect with.

Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install indi-gphoto

Features

Compression

The gphoto driver provides you with an option to compress incoming streams and images. The compression option enables you to balance between network load vs. CPU load.

If compression is enabled, network load is reduced (If your camera is not remote, network load is negligible), but CPU load is increased. If compression is disabled, network load is increased, but CPU load is decreased. The compression is disabled by default. The compress only applies to images captured in FITS format and it would produce a .fits.fz compressed file which can save up to 70% of the image size.

External Shutter Release

If your camera uses an external shutter release cable, make sure to indicate the port of the shutter release USB cable (usually /dev/ttyUSB0) in the Main Control tab of the GPhoto driver before connecting to the camera.

When using external shutter release cable, you must use the GPhoto generic driver and not a camera-specific driver (e.g. Nikon) as only the GPhoto generic driver would work with external shutter release cables.

Additionaly, users may employ DSUSB/DSUSB2 from Shoestring Astronomy in order to control the shutter. Before you connect, the port field must be set to DSUSB.

dsusb

Auto Noise Reduction in some camera models (e.g. Canon 350D) can make exposure times take twice their expected duration. Turn off auto noise reduction in camera settings (Custom Functions #3).

Image Format

By default, the transfer format is set to FITS. Images from the camera can be transferred in native (e.g. CR2, NEF..etc) without converting to FITS first. This can reduce latency and CPU usage on the server. Furthermore, FITS images can be larger in size compared to native formats such as RAW/JPEG. The FITS images are transferred as Bayered frames and it is the clients responsiblity to debayer the image upon reception.

Raw images from the camera will be in whatever mode your camera is set to (normally either RAW or JPEG). When using RAW images, it is the client software's responsibility to convert these to a usable format via libraw or equivalent. You cannot use RAW+JPG mode it is not supported by the driver, you must pick a single format.

To retain Image Format settings between sessions, set the desired Image Format then save the driver configuration under the Options tab

Image Info

The image info tab contains information on the resolution of the CCD (Maximum Width & Height) in addition to the pixel size in microns. Make sure that the information in this tab is correct and update it accordingly. By default, all values are set to zero, please update it to fit your CCD chip specification. The resolution value will change automatically after each exposure in case the image resolution is changed due to selecting a differently sized image from the drop down list.

Some clients like KStars will ask you to specify the maximum resolution of your camera and would limit the camera's image to this specific size.

Since GPhoto tends to produce different image sizes for CR2 vs. FITS image. it is critical to use only one method when imaging. You cannot take CR2 flats and mix them with FITS Lights. All images in a session must be all CR2 or all FITS.

Mirror Lock

GPhoto driver supports mirror lock in order to reduce mechanical vibrations. It's currently implemented only for Canon DSLR. You must Enable Mirror Lock feature in your camera before you can use this feature in the driver.

To enable it in your camera (usually in the last tab, Custom Functions, called Mirror Lockup). Then set the serial port for shooter, and open the gphoto camera as usual. When a serial port is set, now a new setting appears on connection: "Mirror lock", with a default value of 0.

Set it to a reasonable value (2 seconds will do). Now when shooting, you'll hear two "clicks" from your camera instead of the usual one: the first pulls up the mirror, the second (after the number of seconds you specified) opens the shutter and starts the exposure.

Saving locally

You can opt to save all captured images to the local storage. This is the local storage of the device running the INDI GPhoto driver and not the SD Card. Settings for saving to SD card is also available. Under Options tab you can select the Upload mode:

  • Client: Upload image to client.
  • Locally: Store image on the machine where the driver is running. Do not update to client.
  • Both: Store image on local storage and upload to client

Live Preview

GPhoto driver support live video preview mode if supported by your camera. KStars is the only client currently that supports live preview mode. To Enable, click on the Enable Preview in the driver's main control tab.

The Live View supports zoom levels of 5x and 10x respectively.

Focusing

If supported by your camera, you can control Focus In and Focus Out with speed settings under the Focus tab of the GPhoto driver. You can autofocus with any client that supports INDI auto-focusing.

Operation

Once you're connected, you can capture images as FITS or RAW from the camera. When using Ekos, you can configure what DSLR format is set to in capture module. Ekos automatically switches format to FITS when using Focus, Guide, and Align modules.

When using the driver for the first time, you must set the CCD Information specific to your DSLR model. Initially, all parameters are set to zero as shown below.

Fill and set the required parameters. For example, for Canon 600d. The following values were used. Please note that Bits Per Pixel is always set to multiples of 8 regardless of the DSLR's bit depth. This is because FITS format are transferred in multiples of 8.

After setting the parameters, you should save the parameters to the DSLR's configuration file so that they are loaded in future sessions.

INDI will detect any extra options that your device may support and if found, INDI shall construct dynamic controls (knobs & switches) to control these features.

Nikon

Nikon is officially supported under GPhoto but the level of features supported is less than that of Canon cameras. Noise Reduction must be turned off. For bulb exposures to work, you must set Capture Target to SD Card. By default it is set to Internal RAM which is problematic in Nikon cameras. Please save configuration after setting capture target to SD Card. If all fails, resetting the camera to Factory Defaults might help some users.

image settings

There are three settings for the SD card image handling:

  1. Save: The image is downloaded to INDI and also saved to the DSLR camera internal storage.
  2. Delete: The image is downloaded to INDI and deleted from the DSLR camera internal storage.
  3. Ignore: The image is saved to the DSLR camera internal storage and never downloaded at all. So no images are sent back to the client or saved on the machine local storage, it is only saved in the camera. This option might be useful to expedite the capture process.

Canon 10D, 20D, 350D

normal modeSome of the older Canon Cameras can only be operated in NORMAL mode. Adjust the camera communication settings menu and set it to Normal mode. When the camera is connected, it should appear like Canon EOS 20D (Normal Mode). If the camera shows in PTP mode then it cannot be used in the driver.

Canon 1DX

The following settings would make capture possible with Canon 1DX camera according to this INDI Forum Thread:

Main Control:
Mirror Lockup = 0 (It I set the mirror lockup on it would fail, and I would need to reboot the system and restart KStars on the Mac)

Options:
Force Bulb = OFF (Camera was set to Bulb mode, if I used Force Bulb it would fail)

Image Settings:
Capture Format = RAW
Transfer Format - Native
Capture Target = SD Card (I think this one was the key in the Image Settings tab)
SD Image = Delete

Canon EOS Ra, R5, R6

Camera produces CR3 formatted RAW images which are currently only supported on StellarMate. In case you run into capture issues, make sure to enable "Release shutter w/o lens" in C.Fn5

Fuji X-T3

Fuji cameras are supported with some limitations. Checkout the detailed HOWTO for operating Fuji X-T3 and X-T4 cameras.

Fuji X-T1

When using X-T1 with Remote Serial Shutter, please checkout this detailed HOWTO for operating the camera in BULB mode.

Sony A7III

The INDI Sony driver is reported to work well with the Sony A7III camera.

  • Set the camera format to RAW.
  • Set the camera capture mode to BULB.
  • In the INDI driver options, Force BULB must be enabled at all times even when taking short exposures.
  • If the ISO setting is set to AUTO then the camera will capture images at ISO 80, so it's recommended to specify exactly the desired ISO setting explicitly.

Here are some in-camera settings that might be helpful:

Camera --> Controls --> M modus --> AF set to AEF

Camera --> Settings --> Camera Tab > 4 > ISO set to 100
Camera --> Settings --> Camera Tab > 4 > DRO/Auto HDR set to "Off"
Camera --> Settings --> Camera Tab > 5 > Long Exposure Noise Reduction (NR) set to "Off"

Check the there are no features in the camera that prevents the camera from going to Bulb mode (e.g. Silent Shutter).

Olympus OM-D E-M1

Even if you set the mode to BULB, the camera automatically switches to M mode and the exposure is set to 1-second automatically after the first capture. To resolve this, set the mode back to BULB after the first capture and subsequent captures should be fine.

Pentax

There are two INDI drivers for Pentax cameras, both with limitations. The GPhoto-based driver is called Pentax Legacy, while the native driver is called Pentax Native. The native drivers offers more functionality over the generic GPhoto-based counterpart.

For some cameras, setting to BULB mode does not work and you must switch it to MANUAL.

Exposure Modes

The driver offers two destinct methods of taking an exposure. Bulb (B) and Manual (M) modes

The first one utilizes the camera's internal list of predefined exposure times (exposure widget: shutterspeed). In this mode, when an exposure is triggered, INDI compares the desired exposure time to the shutter speeds offered by the camera. If it finds an exact match, it fires the shot. If it does not find an exact match, it selects the closest one (if considered close enough, otherwise INDI will fall back to B mode which does not work with these cameras) and fires the shot. For example, a Canon 5D Mk2 does not offer 1/100s. When a 0.01s exposure is requested, INDI triggers a 1/90s exposure. The fits header will show EXPTIME 0.0111111s in this case.

The second method utilizes the camera's bulb mode (bulb widget: eosremoterelease). In this mode INDI opens the shutter, starts a countdown, and as soon as zero has been reached, it closes the shutter.

The FORCE BULB (under Options tab) setting tells INDI whether to look for camera internal shutter speeds first, or use bulb mode right away.

Generally, bulb mode works well for all exposure times except short ones and manual mode works perfectly for all shutter speeds that are predefined in the camera. Since very short exposures can't be produced precise enough in B-mode, it is a good idea to use bulb mode for exposures of 1s or more, and manual mode for exposures of less than 1s.

Unfortunately, cameras like the Canon 5D and 6D have a separate B-mode (selectable via main dial) whereas for most other Canon cameras "B" is just one of many shutter speeds within "M" mode. What it means is INDI cannot toggle between Manual and Bulb with cameras like the 5D and 6D. What's more, INDI reads the list of available shutter speeds from the camera at startup, when the initial connection is made. If the 5D/6D's main dial is set to "B" at that time though, the list contains "bulb" only. In order for INDI to obtain the full list of available shutter speeds, the camera must be set to "M" when the connection is made.

Therefore, as a general rule of thumb:

  • Set Force Bulb ON while in B-mode for exposures of 1s or more.
  • Set Force Bulb OFF while in M-mode for exposures <1s

When other combinations are attempted, it results in undefined behavior. The results depend upon two things:

  1. The exposure time set in INDI.
  2. The shutter speed that is set in the camera's sub-dial.

For example, if:

  1. The Camera is set to M-mode but
  2. Force Bulb is ON,
  3. The exposure time selected in INDI is 1s and
  4. The shutter speed in the camera's sub-dial is set to 1/10s

This wold lead to 3 exposures of 1/10s each (the camera keeps firing 1/10s shots for as long as INDI runs its count down), the first two triggering error messages and the last one resulting in a downloaed image.

For users with dual M/B rotary settings, make sure the camera's main dial is set to "M" when INDI is started. Secondly, for exposures of 1s or more, use the "Force Bulb = ON" / "B"-mode combination and for exposures of less than 1s use "Force Bulb = OFF" / "M"-mode.

Flat Frames

Taking flats requires particular attention. Users can set an ADU level and some clients (e.g. Ekos) will try to get there by taking test shots and adjusting exposure times until the desired ADU level is reached within a certain tolerance that can be set by the user, too. Some flat boxes feature a (too) bright light source which in turn requires rather short exposure times in order to achieve a suited ADU level. So the "B"-mode camera user might want to set the main dial to "M" and switch "Force Bulb" OFF. Let's assume the target ADU level is set to 30.000, tolerance is set to 1000. INDI takes a 1/10s shot which delivers 2400 ADUs. The next shot is taken at 1s which delivers 24000 ADUs. Now, in order to get to 30.000, the exposure time would have to be increased by 25% (to 1.25s). However, the camera does not offer a shutter speed of 1.25s. The two neighbouring shutter speeds (1s and 1.5s) cannot deliver the targeted ADU level within the given tolerance. This attempt to take flats will fail. With other cameras, INDI would automatically switch over to B mode, start a 1.25s countdown and succeed. B-mode cameras require the user to manually intervene. Two possibilities:

  1. Increase tolerance, in this case to 7000, for instance. The 1s shot will be good enough, 1s be used for all flat frames.
  2. Set camera to B, set Force Bulb to ON, set exposure to 1.25 and start again.

Troubleshooting

In case the camera fails to connect or capture, please make sure of the following:

  • Make sure the battery in the camera is full. If using a dummy battery, ensure that the power supply is sufficient in terms of voltage and current capacitiy. Otherwise, the camera may behave erratically.
  • Make sure the SD card in the camera has enough space.
  • Make sure camera is set to Bulb/Manual mode. You might need to rotate the dial to Bulb or Manual and then adjust camera settings to enable BULB mode.
  • Turn off any power-saving feature of the camera that might cause it to hibernate or sleep. Some cameras support adjustable inactivity timers before automatically turning off. Set such timers to 15 minutes or more.
  • Try a different USB cable.
  • Try a different USB port.
  • Turn off Noise Reduction settings in the camera.
  • Turn off mirror lock in the camera settings.

Issues

Please check the INDI Forum DSLRs FAQs before submitting any support request. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's issue tracking system at Github.

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knro Wed, 14 Nov 2012 19:48:12 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/cameras/gphoto.html
RoboFocus https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/robofocus.html

Installation

RoboFocus driver is included with libindi >= 0.9. Under Ubuntu, you can install the driver via:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The settings of the RoboFocus device are polled and displayed in the corresponding fields. Main Control Tab
  • Port: Set the name of the RS 232 port. The speed is fixed to 9600 baud.
  • Temperature: read out of the built in temperature sensor (not a real useful device)
  • Position: shows the actual position.
  • Speed, Timer: As described above.
  • Absolute goto: the focuser moves to the absolute position. Relative goto: the focuser moves the defined ticks (negative or positive).
  • Options: the settings step delay and motor steps per tick determine how fast the stepper motor turns. The duty cycle is can be set to zero for a main mirror focuser setup and to a decent value for a rack and pinion focuser. Read the RoboFocus manual.
  • Extrema: the movement of the focuser and the position setting can be limited.
  • Power: set the four digital outputs (used for optional RoboFocus accessory)
  • Maximum travel: (to me the RoboFocus documentation is unclear.)
  • Set register Position: set the counter to the value given in the input field.
  • Set register Backlash: define the amount of ticks. If the back lash correction and the absolute or relative movement have opposite signs RoboFocus will move into the negative direction of the main movement at the end.

Operation

The INDI RoboFocus driver provides complete functionality for all the features supported by RoboFocus including relative and absolute positioning, temperature readout, and configuration parameters. Use the default settings for duty cycle, step delay and motor steps per tick (a tick is a counter increment by one). Set the back lash correction only to a non zero value in case you measured it. RoboFocus is a slow device and sometimes the position needs to be read out separately. That needs additional time. If the LED indicator became green again of given property the robofocus driver resumed normal operation regardless what happened before. You can have a fine control of the focuser by setting the following parameters in the driver:
  1. Focus Direction: in or out with respect to the primary objective.
  2. Focus Speed: Since RoboFocus is based on a stepper motor, speed is constant.
  3. Focus Time: The duration of the focus motion in milliseconds before halt.
  4. Robofocus driver provides the following features: absolute and relative movement, resetting the counter to a given position, maximum and minimum travel, backlash compensation, duty cycle, step delay, number of motor steps per counter increment (tick), the read out of the built in temperature sensor and the four output lines used to control the remote power modules (optional accessories).

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Wed, 14 Nov 2012 19:30:30 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/focusers/robofocus.html IEQPro/CEM60 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/ieq45.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.0+. To install it under Ubuntu:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports the following iEQ mounts:

CEM60 (Firmware 140807 and later)
CEM60-EC (Firmware 140807 and later)
iEQ45 Pro (Firmware 140807 and later)
iEQ45 Pro AA (Firmware 140807 and later)

Functions such as Track, Sync, Guiding, Home, and Park (including custom parking) are supported.

Operation

On connection, the mount retrieves the controller time and location and updates the client accordingly. The driver also check if the driver is parked or not. You can either enter the parking coordinates manually, or slew to a parking position, then click on Current under parking options in the Site Management tab.

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.

You can set custom tracking and guiding rate if desired. You can also control the mount via a joystick by click on Enable Joystick under the Options tab.

INDI iEQ Control Panel

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Sat, 10 Nov 2012 08:39:09 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/ieq45.html ZEQ25/SmartEQ https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/zeq25-smarteq.html

Installation

Included with libindi v1.2+. To install it under Ubuntu:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libindi1

Features

The driver supports the following mounts:

  • ZEQ 25
  • SmartEQ
  • iEQ30
  • iEQ45 EQ/AA
Functions such as Track, Sync, and Park are supported.

Operation

On connection, the mount retrieves the controller time and location and updates the client accordingly.

When using the driver for the first time, ensure to set the telescope's aperture and focal length in the Options tab.

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you found a bug, please report it at INDI's bug tracking system at SourceForge. (You can log in with a variety of existing accounts, including Google, Yahoo and OpenID.)

]]> knro Sat, 10 Nov 2012 08:39:00 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/ioptron/zeq25-smarteq.html SkyWatcher Synscan https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/synscan-telescope.html

Installation

INDI Synscan Driver is installed by default with INDI. To Install the driver under Ubuntu:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install indi-bin

Features

The driver can control any mount controllable by Synscan hand controller, it offers basic GoTo capability and parking.

Main Control

Current features are:

  • Slew & Sync
  • Slew Rates
  • Sidereal, lunar, solar and custom trackrates
  • Full joystick support

Synscan Mount should already be aligned and ready before you connect to it.

Connectivity

1. USB

To connect to Syncan from a PC or a device like Raspberry PI, you need an RS232 Serial To USB adapter. After you connect to the USB port, a device port will be created (e.g. /dev/ttyUSBX) that you can connect to in order control the mount.

2. Network (Synscan App)

You can connect wirelessly using Synscan App on iOS/Android devices.

    1. Power on the mount , you should see red light blinking and wifi signal with synscan_XXXX)
    2. Connect the iOS/Android device to mount wifi.
    3. Open the app ; connect in EQ mode.
    4. Do 1 star alignment or press up/down/left/right buttons on the app to see if the mount responds to App commands.
    5. Your device should most likely get 192.168.4.2 as the IP Address.
    6. SynScan recommends to keep the app open all times, so turn off display going to sleep on this device.
    7. Connect your Laptop/Desktop/RPI to Mount wifi (SynScan).
    8. Configure the connection options as below. Connection mode as Ethernet IP address to 192.168.4.2 ( IP address of the device having synscan app) Port 11882 Connection Type to TCP

Synscan Wireless Connection

4. First Time Connection

Connection

When running the driver for the first time, go to the Connection tab and select the port to connect to. You can also try connecting directly and the driver shall automatically scan the system for candidate ports. If connecting wireless, set the IP address and Port of the Synscan App. After making changes in the Connections tab, go to Options tab and save the settings.

Operation

Main Control

The main control tab is where the primary control of Synscan takes place. To track an object, enter the equatorial of date (JNow) coordinates and press Set. The mount shall then slew to an object and once it arrives at the target location, it should engage tracking at the selected tracking rate which default to Sidereal tracking. Slew mode is different from track mode in that it does not engage tracking when slew is complete. To sync, the mount must be already tracking. First change mode to Sync, then enter the desired coordinates then press Set. Users will seldom use this interface directly since many clients (e.g. KStars) can slew and sync the mount directly from the sky map without having to enter any coordinates manually.

Options

 Under the options tab, you can configure many parameters before and after you connect to the mount.

    • Snoop Devices: Indicate which devices Synscan should communicate with:
      • GPS: If using a GPS driver (e.g. INDI GPSD) then enter its name here. Synscan shall sync its time and location settings from the GPS driver.
      • Dome: If using a Dome driver, put its name here so that Dome Parking Policy can be applied.
    • Configuration: Load or Save the driver settings to a file. Click default to restore default settings that were shipped with the driver.
    • Simulation: Enable to disable simulation mode for testing purposes.
    • Debug: Enable debug logging where verbose messaged can be logged either directly in the client or a file. If Debug is enabled, advanced properties are created to select how to direct debug output. Watch a video on how to submit logs.
    • Dome Parking Policy

      If a dome is used in conjunction with the mount, a policy can be set if parking the mount or dome can interfere with the safety of either. For example, you might want to always park the mount before parking the dome, or vice versa. The default policy is to ignore the dome.

      • Ignore dome: Take no action when dome parks or unparks.
      • Dome locksPrevent the mount from unparking when dome is parked.
      • Dome parks: Park the mount if dome starts parking. This will disable the locking for dome parking, EVEN IF MOUNT PARKING FAILS.
      • Both: Dome locks & Dome parks policies are applied.

      Options
    • Scope Properties: Enter the Primary and Seconday scope information. Up to six different configurations for Primary and Secondary Guider telescopes can be saved separately, each with an optional unique label in Scope Name property.
    • Scope Config: Select the active scope configuration.
    • Joystick: Enable or Disable joystick support. An INDI Joystick driver must be running for this function to work. For more details, check the INDI Telescope Joystick tutorial.

Motion Control

Motion Control

Under motion control, manual motion controls along with slew rate controls are configured.

        • Motion N/S/W/E: Directional manual motion control. Press the button to start the movement and release the button to stop.
        • Slew Rate: Rate of manual motion control above when 1x equals sidereal rate.

Site Management

Time and Locaiton settings are configured in the Site Management tab. These settings are usually set automatically by the client and do not need to be set manually by the user.

Site Management

        • UTC: UTC time and offsets must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The UTC offset is in hours. East is positive and west is negative.
        • Location: Latitude and Longitude must be set for proper operation of the driver upon connection. The longitude range is 0 to 360 degrees increasing eastward from Greenwich.

You can park the telescope by clicking on Park. If the telescope is already parked, click the park button to unpark it. You cannot perform any motion unless the telescope is first unparked!

Issues

There are no known bugs for this driver. If you find a bug, please report it at INDI's Github issues page

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knro Fri, 09 Nov 2012 14:37:17 +0100 https://indilib.org/individuals/devices/telescopes/skywatcher/synscan-telescope.html