Re: Parking to Home position failing...
Where
can I find that Beta ?? I am about to rebuild my G11 and would like to install
that..
Derek
?
?
If
you have the ability to plate solve, and to remotely power cycle, you can reset
the optimal CWD position (to within a few minutes in both RA/DEC) by the
following?process;
- I get the mount
roughly in the right place (I do this via CCTV, but eyeball would be fine
to?your?tape marks) and Cold/Warm Start it.
- Do? a slew to
somewhere just to the east of the meridian, near the celestial equator
- Do a?plate?solve?and
sync.
- Park back at?CWD.
- With tracking
stopped, slew manually in dec (note, from parked, a manual slew will start
tracking going again so you need to stop it again) ¨C at this point look at
the hour angle ¨C Ideally should be very close to +/- 6hrs.
- If it is not, work
out which way the mount needs to move when at?CWD?to
achieve this. (I find this the hardest step, and invariably get it wrong ¨C
try a small movement first!). Park at?CWD?and
do this movement manually using the hand control while watching the HA/RA
values.
- Immediately
Reboot/Power cycle and do a *Warm Start*
- Repeat the
process, by slewing to near the meridian. Hopefully, the HA should be
closer to +/-6. If not, you made the correction in the wrong direction.
- Repeat corrections
as needed to get closer to the right HA value ¨C I can usually get to
almost the right position in 1 or 2?iterations ¨C certainly close
enough to allow meridian flips to work (I flip at 12min past meridian ¨C
safety limit is 20min past).
The position will be slightly different if you
plate solve from the west in step 2/3 - I choose east because this is where a
flip starts.
Runaway slews: I know of 2 causes - a) On the
Gemini 2 firmware, there were issues with short corrective slews (eg for
centering after platesolve) - the beta (still??) from 2018 solved this. b)
broken cable/dry solder joint on the relevant port resulting in lack of encoded
feedback as Michael describes. I've experienced the latter with a remote G2 -
it's bad luck.?
?
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From: [email protected]
<[email protected]>
On Behalf Of Daniel Judge
Sent: 13 January 2022 10:30
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Gemini_users_io]
Parking to Home position failing...
?
I have
placed tape markers on the RA and DEC arms when I manually tightened the
clutches with the scope in the best CWD position. If I need to realign CWD I
can do this via manual slewing via remote camera to align my markers then
remote power off the mount and then power back on with cold start. This
*should* remove all modelling and restore the alt/az position for CWD.
I¡¯ll
cold start again and see if I can get the same behaviour to occur.
I¡¯m
thinking I might platesolve 6-8 stars around the sky to build a model, but in
imaging sequences ensure platesolves don¡¯t add additional syncs to the model to
rule out model getting warped.?
I¡¯m not
to concerned if it won¡¯t do things properly as I have a new premium mount
coming soon, but would prefer not to have collisions or bad accidents in the
interim. It¡¯s kind of a learning experience to see what can and can¡¯t be done
here for now..
?
Do
*not* plate solve at (or near) the
pole ¨C this can lead to all kinds of issues (a very small pointing error can be
many hours of RA out) and this can throw the pointing model out entirely.
?
Graeme
?
?
A Possible solution.. Maybe.. Plate
Solve at the pole, then select Park Here.. Cycle the power, and then cold start
and you be much closer to CWD / The startup position you seek.. Maybe Sharcap¡¯s
Polar Routine would be useful..
?
Synching to a known object and then
Parking at CWD should also work.. if not the above might..
?
I have read that remote operators
use video to monitor where their scopes are pointed / view the bubble level in
the saddle, etc so they don¡¯t have to physically return to ¡°fix things¡±..
?
I am always at my scope, so these
are just logical solutions, but might help..
?
Derek
?
?
Hi Daniel,
You are using a
Park feature that I've read about in the Gemini manual, but never
tried.??
That is the
ability to set your own Home park position that is separate from the CWD
position.??
Reading your
description, it seems possible the system got "set" so the Home
position was to the Western position you were last pointing to.? Then
after that, each time you tell it to go Home, it just goes to or stays at that
location.? However, if you tell it to go Park to CWD, it should go to CWD
as a universally known position.??
Anyway, if I've
misinterpreted your message, I apologize.? I would say though that
unattended operation of the Gemini system can be hazardous and should be
carefully monitored.??
One reason for the
caution is that there have been reports of runaway slews.? The causes have
not been resolved.? The Gemini detects only the motor rotation by getting
electrical pulses from the motor's optical encoder.? If those signals
don't get received, it seems that the Gemini can keep DC motor power going
without any "time out" protection.? This happened to another
owner recently, and that slew (when it was supposed to Park I think,) wrapped
his DEC cable and broke his gearbox.??
Best of luck
resolving your Park / Home issue,
?
On Wed, Jan 12,
2022, 7:47 PM Daniel Judge <dan@...>
wrote:
Was this one ever
resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote
installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout
for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to
4-5 stars covering the West/East or the Meridian and then do my imaging run,
which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning and imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run HOME command, then PARK command.
And everytime it flews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just
stopped the mount in it's last position pointing at the Western horizon from
it's last image run, and parked in the same position. If I unpark, then from
the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the
same position.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
>>> I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere.. ? ? Daniel I run 4+ Losmandy mounts remotely , virtually every night, unattended and powered on 24/7. I don¡¯t have any issues with parking, as I must park each mount at CWD every night, and startup from CWD as well (power is left on, so I¡¯m not restarting the mount every time. I do power cycle the entire setup from time to time) ? Of course I¡¯m not there with you so I can¡¯t see what exactly is happening with your mount, but based on some of the things you mentioned, it¡¯s worth looking at how you are using it with Voyager. ? Better yet, if you have ascom and voyager logs from any of the times that behavior has happened, that would be ideal. Data is always a great help to hunting down questions ? ? Thanks ? Brian ? Brian Valente Losmandy Astronomical ? Losmandy.com Tutorials and vids at ?
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From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Daniel Judge
Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2022 7:47 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Gemini_users_io] Parking to Home position failing ? [Edited Message Follows]
[Reason: corrected typos] Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
Hi Daniel ? >>> I have the gemini.net driver park settings to "Slew to CWD before parking". ? I¡¯m not entirely sure I follow what you are trying to do, but if your goal is to park the mount at CWD, you don¡¯t need to do a 2 step command, you can just tell the mount to Park, and it will use the behavior set in the ascom driver, i.e., ¡°Slew to CWD before parking¡± ? Regarding warm start, are you building any models? If not, there¡¯s no reason to use anything other than Cold start. ? ? ? ? Thanks ? Brian ? Brian Valente Losmandy Astronomical ? Losmandy.com Tutorials and vids at ?
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From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Daniel Judge
Sent: Thursday, January 13, 2022 5:18 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Gemini_users_io] Parking to Home position failing ? I have the driver park settings to "Slew to CWD before parking". I'm using Voyager Starkeeper software. At the end of my imaging run, I send a Home command that slews to CWD, then I issue Park command. I had a read through the manual at the serial commands, and it seems that a Home command will default to the CWD position, unless it's been overridden. I will look through the logs afterwards to confirm these commands are being transmitted/receieved correctly. Everything for the past two nights, has worked flawlessly. For the past few weeks testing things, it seems that if the mount is left powered on for more than 48hours, strange things start to happen. Even worse if I Warm restart. ? On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 19:42, Paul Kanevsky <yh@...> wrote: Daniel,
Before speculating about bugs, RAM size, and null pointers, let's first see if we can find a simpler explanation. How are you issuing the park at CWD or at Home commands? Have you looked into the park setting in the driver that lets you chose where to park the mount? This is where you determine what the mount does when a park command is requested, and the wrong setting here can certainly result in the behavior you describe. For example, first option will park right where the mount is currently positioned, last setting will let you set an arbitrary Alt/Az position, etc:
? ??
If the mount doesn't remember the home position you've set, you may be losing settings between sessions.?
Regards,
? ? ?-Paul
On Wed, Jan 12, 2022 at 10:47 PM, Daniel Judge wrote: Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
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On 13 Jan 2022, at 21:58, Paul Kanevsky <yh@...> wrote:
?The Home position must be set if you want it to go somewhere other than CWD. It will default to CWD if not set. Regards, ? ? ?-Paul On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 08:18 AM, Daniel Judge wrote:
I have the driver park settings to "Slew to CWD before parking".
I'm using Voyager Starkeeper software.
At the end of my imaging run, I send a Home command that slews to CWD, then I issue Park command.
I had a read through the manual at the serial commands, and it seems that a Home command will default to the CWD position, unless it's been overridden.
I will look through the logs afterwards to confirm these commands are being transmitted/receieved correctly. Everything for the past two nights, has worked flawlessly. For the past few weeks testing things, it seems that if the mount is left powered on for more than 48hours, strange things start to happen. Even worse if I Warm restart.
?
?
On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 19:42, Paul Kanevsky < yh@...> wrote:
Daniel, Before speculating about bugs, RAM size, and null pointers, let's first see if we can find a simpler explanation. How are you issuing the park at CWD or at Home commands? Have you looked into the park setting in the driver that lets you chose where to park the mount? This is where you determine what the mount does when a park command is requested, and the wrong setting here can certainly result in the behavior you describe. For example, first option will park right where the mount is currently positioned, last setting will let you set an arbitrary Alt/Az position, etc: ? ?? If the mount doesn't remember the home position you've set, you may be losing settings between sessions.? Regards, ? ? ?-Paul On Wed, Jan 12, 2022 at 10:47 PM, Daniel Judge wrote:
Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
?
?
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
The Home position must be set if you want it to go somewhere other than CWD. It will default to CWD if not set.
Regards,
? ? ?-Paul
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Show quoted text
On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 08:18 AM, Daniel Judge wrote:
I have the driver park settings to "Slew to CWD before parking".
I'm using Voyager Starkeeper software.
At the end of my imaging run, I send a Home command that slews to CWD, then I issue Park command.
I had a read through the manual at the serial commands, and it seems that a Home command will default to the CWD position, unless it's been overridden.
I will look through the logs afterwards to confirm these commands are being transmitted/receieved correctly. Everything for the past two nights, has worked flawlessly. For the past few weeks testing things, it seems that if the mount is left powered on for more than 48hours, strange things start to happen. Even worse if I Warm restart.
?
?
On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 19:42, Paul Kanevsky < yh@...> wrote:
Daniel, Before speculating about bugs, RAM size, and null pointers, let's first see if we can find a simpler explanation. How are you issuing the park at CWD or at Home commands? Have you looked into the park setting in the driver that lets you chose where to park the mount? This is where you determine what the mount does when a park command is requested, and the wrong setting here can certainly result in the behavior you describe. For example, first option will park right where the mount is currently positioned, last setting will let you set an arbitrary Alt/Az position, etc: ? ?? If the mount doesn't remember the home position you've set, you may be losing settings between sessions.? Regards, ? ? ?-Paul On Wed, Jan 12, 2022 at 10:47 PM, Daniel Judge wrote:
Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
?
?
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
I have the driver park settings to "Slew to CWD before parking". I'm using Voyager Starkeeper software. At the end of my imaging run, I send a Home command that slews to CWD, then I issue Park command. I had a read through the manual at the serial commands, and it seems that a Home command will default to the CWD position, unless it's been overridden.
I will look through the logs afterwards to confirm these commands are being transmitted/receieved correctly. Everything for the past two nights, has worked flawlessly. For the past few weeks testing things, it seems that if the mount is left powered on for more than 48hours, strange things start to happen. Even worse if I Warm restart.
On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 19:42, Paul Kanevsky < yh@...> wrote: Daniel, Before speculating about bugs, RAM size, and null pointers, let's first see if we can find a simpler explanation. How are you issuing the park at CWD or at Home commands? Have you looked into the park setting in the driver that lets you chose where to park the mount? This is where you determine what the mount does when a park command is requested, and the wrong setting here can certainly result in the behavior you describe. For example, first option will park right where the mount is currently positioned, last setting will let you set an arbitrary Alt/Az position, etc: ? ??  If the mount doesn't remember the home position you've set, you may be losing settings between sessions.? Regards, ? ? ?-Paul On Wed, Jan 12, 2022 at 10:47 PM, Daniel Judge wrote:
Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing...
If you have the ability to plate solve, and to remotely power cycle, you can reset the optimal CWD position (to within a few minutes in both RA/DEC) by the following?process;
- I get the mount roughly in the right place (I do this via CCTV, but eyeball would be fine to?your?tape marks) and Cold/Warm Start it.
- Do? a slew to somewhere just to the east of the meridian, near the celestial equator
- Do a?plate?solve?and sync.
- Park back at?CWD.
- With tracking stopped, slew manually in dec (note, from parked, a manual slew will start tracking going again so you need to stop it again) ¨C at this point look at the hour angle ¨C Ideally should be very close to +/- 6hrs.
- If it is not, work out which way the mount needs to move when at?CWD?to achieve this. (I find this the hardest step, and invariably get it wrong ¨C try a small movement first!). Park at?CWD?and do this movement manually using the hand control while watching the HA/RA values.
- Immediately Reboot/Power cycle and do a *Warm Start*
- Repeat the process, by slewing to near the meridian. Hopefully, the HA should be closer to +/-6. If not, you made the correction in the wrong direction.
- Repeat corrections as needed to get closer to the right HA value ¨C I can usually get to almost the right position in 1 or 2?iterations ¨C certainly close enough to allow meridian flips to work (I flip at 12min past meridian ¨C safety limit is 20min past).
The position will be slightly different if you plate solve from the west in step 2/3 - I choose east because this is where a flip starts.
Runaway slews: I know of 2 causes - a) On the Gemini 2 firmware, there were issues with short corrective slews (eg for centering after platesolve) - the beta (still??) from 2018 solved this. b) broken cable/dry solder joint on the relevant port resulting in lack of encoded feedback as Michael describes. I've experienced the latter with a remote G2 - it's bad luck.?
Graeme ?
From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Daniel Judge
Sent: 13 January 2022 10:30
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Gemini_users_io] Parking to Home position failing...? I have placed tape markers on the RA and DEC arms when I manually tightened the clutches with the scope in the best CWD position. If I need to realign CWD I can do this via manual slewing via remote camera to align my markers then remote power off the mount and then power back on with cold start. This *should* remove all modelling and restore the alt/az position for CWD. I¡¯ll cold start again and see if I can get the same behaviour to occur. I¡¯m thinking I might platesolve 6-8 stars around the sky to build a model, but in imaging sequences ensure platesolves don¡¯t add additional syncs to the model to rule out model getting warped.? I¡¯m not to concerned if it won¡¯t do things properly as I have a new premium mount coming soon, but would prefer not to have collisions or bad accidents in the interim. It¡¯s kind of a learning experience to see what can and can¡¯t be done here for now.. ? Do *not* plate solve at (or near) the pole ¨C this can lead to all kinds of issues (a very small pointing error can be many hours of RA out) and this can throw the pointing model out entirely. ? Graeme ? ? A Possible solution.. Maybe.. Plate Solve at the pole, then select Park Here.. Cycle the power, and then cold start and you be much closer to CWD / The startup position you seek.. Maybe Sharcap¡¯s Polar Routine would be useful.. ? Synching to a known object and then Parking at CWD should also work.. if not the above might.. ? I have read that remote operators use video to monitor where their scopes are pointed / view the bubble level in the saddle, etc so they don¡¯t have to physically return to ¡°fix things¡±.. ? I am always at my scope, so these are just logical solutions, but might help.. ? Derek ? ? Hi Daniel, You are using a Park feature that I've read about in the Gemini manual, but never tried.?? That is the ability to set your own Home park position that is separate from the CWD position.?? Reading your description, it seems possible the system got "set" so the Home position was to the Western position you were last pointing to.? Then after that, each time you tell it to go Home, it just goes to or stays at that location.? However, if you tell it to go Park to CWD, it should go to CWD as a universally known position.?? Anyway, if I've misinterpreted your message, I apologize.? I would say though that unattended operation of the Gemini system can be hazardous and should be carefully monitored.?? One reason for the caution is that there have been reports of runaway slews.? The causes have not been resolved.? The Gemini detects only the motor rotation by getting electrical pulses from the motor's optical encoder.? If those signals don't get received, it seems that the Gemini can keep DC motor power going without any "time out" protection.? This happened to another owner recently, and that slew (when it was supposed to Park I think,) wrapped his DEC cable and broke his gearbox.?? Best of luck resolving your Park / Home issue, ? On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 7:47 PM Daniel Judge <dan@...> wrote: Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East or the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning and imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it flews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position pointing at the Western horizon from it's last image run, and parked in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
Daniel, Before speculating about bugs, RAM size, and null pointers, let's first see if we can find a simpler explanation. How are you issuing the park at CWD or at Home commands? Have you looked into the park setting in the driver that lets you chose where to park the mount? This is where you determine what the mount does when a park command is requested, and the wrong setting here can certainly result in the behavior you describe. For example, first option will park right where the mount is currently positioned, last setting will let you set an arbitrary Alt/Az position, etc: ? ??  If the mount doesn't remember the home position you've set, you may be losing settings between sessions.? Regards, ? ? ?-Paul
On Wed, Jan 12, 2022 at 10:47 PM, Daniel Judge wrote:
Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing...
I have placed tape markers on the RA and DEC arms when I manually tightened the clutches with the scope in the best CWD position. If I need to realign CWD I can do this via manual slewing via remote camera to align my markers then remote power off the mount and then power back on with cold start. This *should* remove all modelling and restore the alt/az position for CWD.
I¡¯ll cold start again and see if I can get the same behaviour to occur.
I¡¯m thinking I might platesolve 6-8 stars around the sky to build a model, but in imaging sequences ensure platesolves don¡¯t add additional syncs to the model to rule out model getting warped.?
I¡¯m not to concerned if it won¡¯t do things properly as I have a new premium mount coming soon, but would prefer not to have collisions or bad accidents in the interim. It¡¯s kind of a learning experience to see what can and can¡¯t be done here for now..
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On 13 Jan 2022, at 17:20, graeme@... wrote:
? Do *not* plate solve at (or near) the pole ¨C this can lead to all kinds of issues (a very small pointing error can be many hours of RA out) and this can throw the pointing model out entirely. ? Graeme ? ? A Possible solution.. Maybe.. Plate Solve at the pole, then select Park Here.. Cycle the power, and then cold start and you be much closer to CWD / The startup position you seek.. Maybe Sharcap¡¯s Polar Routine would be useful.. ? Synching to a known object and then Parking at CWD should also work.. if not the above might.. ? I have read that remote operators use video to monitor where their scopes are pointed / view the bubble level in the saddle, etc so they don¡¯t have to physically return to ¡°fix things¡±.. ? I am always at my scope, so these are just logical solutions, but might help.. ? Derek ? ? Hi Daniel, You are using a Park feature that I've read about in the Gemini manual, but never tried.?? That is the ability to set your own Home park position that is separate from the CWD position.?? Reading your description, it seems possible the system got "set" so the Home position was to the Western position you were last pointing to.? Then after that, each time you tell it to go Home, it just goes to or stays at that location.? However, if you tell it to go Park to CWD, it should go to CWD as a universally known position.?? Anyway, if I've misinterpreted your message, I apologize.? I would say though that unattended operation of the Gemini system can be hazardous and should be carefully monitored.?? One reason for the caution is that there have been reports of runaway slews.? The causes have not been resolved.? The Gemini detects only the motor rotation by getting electrical pulses from the motor's optical encoder.? If those signals don't get received, it seems that the Gemini can keep DC motor power going without any "time out" protection.? This happened to another owner recently, and that slew (when it was supposed to Park I think,) wrapped his DEC cable and broke his gearbox.?? Best of luck resolving your Park / Home issue, ? On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 7:47 PM Daniel Judge <dan@...> wrote: Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East or the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning and imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it flews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position pointing at the Western horizon from it's last image run, and parked in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
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Re: Parking to Home position failing...
Do *not* plate solve at (or near) the pole ¨C this can lead to all kinds of issues (a very small pointing error can be many hours of RA out) and this can throw the pointing model out entirely. ? Graeme ?
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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Derek C Breit
Sent: 13 January 2022 05:28
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Gemini_users_io] Parking to Home position failing...? A Possible solution.. Maybe.. Plate Solve at the pole, then select Park Here.. Cycle the power, and then cold start and you be much closer to CWD / The startup position you seek.. Maybe Sharcap¡¯s Polar Routine would be useful.. ? Synching to a known object and then Parking at CWD should also work.. if not the above might.. ? I have read that remote operators use video to monitor where their scopes are pointed / view the bubble level in the saddle, etc so they don¡¯t have to physically return to ¡°fix things¡±.. ? I am always at my scope, so these are just logical solutions, but might help.. ? Derek ? ? Hi Daniel, You are using a Park feature that I've read about in the Gemini manual, but never tried.?? That is the ability to set your own Home park position that is separate from the CWD position.?? Reading your description, it seems possible the system got "set" so the Home position was to the Western position you were last pointing to.? Then after that, each time you tell it to go Home, it just goes to or stays at that location.? However, if you tell it to go Park to CWD, it should go to CWD as a universally known position.?? Anyway, if I've misinterpreted your message, I apologize.? I would say though that unattended operation of the Gemini system can be hazardous and should be carefully monitored.?? One reason for the caution is that there have been reports of runaway slews.? The causes have not been resolved.? The Gemini detects only the motor rotation by getting electrical pulses from the motor's optical encoder.? If those signals don't get received, it seems that the Gemini can keep DC motor power going without any "time out" protection.? This happened to another owner recently, and that slew (when it was supposed to Park I think,) wrapped his DEC cable and broke his gearbox.?? Best of luck resolving your Park / Home issue, ? On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 7:47 PM Daniel Judge <dan@...> wrote: Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East or the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning and imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it flews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position pointing at the Western horizon from it's last image run, and parked in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing...
A
Possible solution.. Maybe.. Plate Solve at the pole, then select Park Here..
Cycle the power, and then cold start and you be much closer to CWD / The
startup position you seek.. Maybe Sharcap¡¯s Polar Routine would be
useful..
?
Synching
to a known object and then Parking at CWD should also work.. if not the above
might..
?
I
have read that remote operators use video to monitor where their scopes are
pointed / view the bubble level in the saddle, etc so they don¡¯t have to
physically return to ¡°fix things¡±..
?
I
am always at my scope, so these are just logical solutions, but might help..
?
Derek
?
?
Hi Daniel,
You are using a Park feature that I've read about in the Gemini manual,
but never tried.??
That is the ability to set your own Home park position that is separate
from the CWD position.??
Reading your description, it seems possible the system got
"set" so the Home position was to the Western position you were last
pointing to.? Then after that, each time you tell it to go Home, it just
goes to or stays at that location.? However, if you tell it to go Park to
CWD, it should go to CWD as a universally known position.??
Anyway, if I've misinterpreted your message, I apologize.? I would
say though that unattended operation of the Gemini system can be hazardous and
should be carefully monitored.??
One reason for the caution is that there have been reports of runaway
slews.? The causes have not been resolved.? The Gemini detects only
the motor rotation by getting electrical pulses from the motor's optical
encoder.? If those signals don't get received, it seems that the Gemini
can keep DC motor power going without any "time out"
protection.? This happened to another owner recently, and that slew (when
it was supposed to Park I think,) wrapped his DEC cable and broke his gearbox.??
Best of luck resolving your Park / Home issue,
?
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Show quoted text
On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 7:47 PM Daniel Judge <dan@...> wrote:
Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote
installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout
for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to
4-5 stars covering the West/East or the Meridian and then do my imaging run,
which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning and imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run HOME command, then PARK command.
And everytime it flews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just
stopped the mount in it's last position pointing at the Western horizon from
it's last image run, and parked in the same position. If I unpark, then from
the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the
same position.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing...
Hi Daniel,
You are using a Park feature that I've read about in the Gemini manual, but never tried.??
That is the ability to set your own Home park position that is separate from the CWD position.??
Reading your description, it seems possible the system got "set" so the Home position was to the Western position you were last pointing to.? Then after that, each time you tell it to go Home, it just goes to or stays at that location.? However, if you tell it to go Park to CWD, it should go to CWD as a universally known position.??
Anyway, if I've misinterpreted your message, I apologize.? I would say though that unattended operation of the Gemini system can be hazardous and should be carefully monitored.??
One reason for the caution is that there have been reports of runaway slews.? The causes have not been resolved.? The Gemini detects only the motor rotation by getting electrical pulses from the motor's optical encoder.? If those signals don't get received, it seems that the Gemini can keep DC motor power going without any "time out" protection.? This happened to another owner recently, and that slew (when it was supposed to Park I think,) wrapped his DEC cable and broke his gearbox.??
Best of luck resolving your Park / Home issue,
Michael
On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 7:47 PM Daniel Judge < dan@...> wrote: Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East or the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning and imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it flews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position pointing at the Western horizon from it's last image run, and parked in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
|
Re: Parking to Home position failing
Was this one ever resolved?
I'm experiencing the same issue after running the mount in a remote installation. I'm becoming more confident in that the mount just isn't cutout for this work. Bugs everywhere..
With the mount powered on for two days, it's suddently not able to park to CWD.
I have been powering on from CWD, Cold Start. I will plate solve and sync to 4-5 stars covering the West/East of the Meridian and then do my imaging run, which does it's own plate solve and sync on repositioning during the imaging run.
For two days it has finished the session, run the HOME command, then PARK command. And everytime it slews to CWD position and goes into Park mode.
Now just on the third night.. at the end of the session, HOME command just stopped the mount in it's last position when the last image was taken; pointing at the Western horizon and parked itself in the same position. If I unpark, then from the Gemini.net hand controller go to Park at CWD, it just parks itself in the same position.
Is there a limit to the amount of saved positions in RAM. I'm wondering if the saved position for Park mode is being overwritten, or returning null. I need to go through the logs later and see if I can work out if it's something obvious or not.
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Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
Just FYI Arnaud is in France so shipping and taxes may make it uneconomic for him. ? I suggested he source a 15 or 18V PC ¡°brick¡± power supply with 4 .5 or 5A output with a 2.5mm barrel connector and that he should connect to his existing long cable using something like: ?
? but it would seem he¡¯s not enamoured of DIY. ? David
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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Michael Herman
Sent: 11 January 2022 15:16
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Gemini_users_io] Power supply for Gemini 1 ? Hi Arnaud, I just sent you a private message...not to clutter up this group emails. Very best, and happy 2022, ? Thank you very much Andrew. But how can I join Michael Herman ? I didn't find him on google. ? Le?mar. 11 janv. 2022 ¨¤?15:17, collimated1 <andyfdonna@...> a ¨¦crit?: The best power supply for your Gemini is the custom made 18v regulated PS available from Michael Herman.? Digital readout for volts and amps.? I own one.? Highly recommend. ? Andrew?
On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 5:39 AM, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote: Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
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Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 04:39:41 AM MST, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote:
Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
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Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
Michael is?a regular on this group and he builds custom power supplies and repairs Gemini units. ?You¡¯ll be glad you contacted him. ?They don¡¯t come any nicer than Michael. ?
mherman346@...
On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 9:07 AM, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote: Thank you very much Andrew. But how can I join Michael Herman ? I didn't find him on google. Best regards. Arnaud
Le?mar. 11 janv. 2022 ¨¤?15:17, collimated1 < andyfdonna@...> a ¨¦crit?:
The best power supply for your Gemini is the custom made 18v regulated PS available from Michael Herman.? Digital readout for volts and amps.? I own one.? Highly recommend. ? Andrew? On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 5:39 AM, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote: Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
|
Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
Hi Arnaud,
I just sent you a private message...not to clutter up this group emails.
Look for that email...
Very best, and happy 2022,
Michael
Thank you very much Andrew. But how can I join Michael Herman ? I didn't find him on google. Best regards. Arnaud
Le?mar. 11 janv. 2022 ¨¤?15:17, collimated1 < andyfdonna@...> a ¨¦crit?:
The best power supply for your Gemini is the custom made 18v regulated PS available from Michael Herman.? Digital readout for volts and amps.? I own one.? Highly recommend. ? Andrew? On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 5:39 AM, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote: Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
|
Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
Thank you very much Andrew. But how can I join Michael Herman ? I didn't find him on google. Best regards. Arnaud
Le?mar. 11 janv. 2022 ¨¤?15:17, collimated1 < andyfdonna@...> a ¨¦crit?:
The best power supply for your Gemini is the custom made 18v regulated PS available from Michael Herman.? Digital readout for volts and amps.? I own one.? Highly recommend. ? Andrew? On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 5:39 AM, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote: Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
|
Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
The best power supply for your Gemini is the custom made 18v regulated PS available from Michael Herman. ?Digital readout for volts and amps. ?I own one. ?Highly recommend. ?
On Tuesday, January 11, 2022, 5:39 AM, arnaud kneib <arnaud.kneib@...> wrote: Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
|
Re: Power supply for Gemini 1
I have run both Gemini 1 and 2 from a 13.8V, 7A bench supply for more years than I care to remember: I would recommend something along those lines (having a higher current rating would be fine as well but 7A is more than enough).
Graeme
Hello,
The power supply of my venerable Gemini 1 recently brouhgt down. Unfortunatly Losmandy sails no more power supply for Gemini 1 . Had somebody the same problem in the past? Is it possible to use a power supply for PC by changing its cable (using the cable of my old power supply) to have the good electrical outlet for Gemini 1 (4 pins , cylindrical outlet)? And what about polarity? Is there a risk of damage in case of error of polarity?
Thanks in advance for good advice.
Best regard.
Arnaud
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Paul Kanevsky
Michael Herman
David C. Partridge
collimated1