Astronomy

[AlleyCat]

@Sarel.wagner Digital Photographer magazine (Issue 268) has an excellent expose on covering Astro photography, you should check it out.

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Some progress,



Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Tested working, including the remote keyboard.

Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Andersen Power Pole connection distribution block to send 12V everywhere, can handle 40A in total. Each connector is capable of 45A. Colour coded the various connection, just need to get the correct fuses now.



Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

As part of transforming my setup, reliability is a major topic. Going to robophotography where you are not with the mount and telescopes and can oversee everything, brings a whole lot of challenges. Reliable power, not from availability perspective Ala Eksdom utility, but rather having 12v that will not be interrupted if a cable is accidentally unplugged by snagging on something when the mount moves for example. Same is true for USB data cables. And there are a lot of cables, 9 power cables and 8 USB cables plus the Dew prevention heater cables. There are temp sensors, 2 hand controllers for now, with a 3rd to replace the dew controller setup later.

So I am chucking all the wall wart power supplies and the myriad cables and powering everything from a Lithium Phosphate battery. This bad boy is in my power trolly and one cable will run to the telescope and be distributed from there. I am moving everything onto the telescope itself, the PC, ll distribution end ll cables bar the main power supply cable.

This is a mockup of what it will look like. Both telescopes mount on the orange dovetail slots.


Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

For this I now need to go cut and bend an ally sheet to dimension and then install all this lot on that. This will also help with the balance of the stuff on the mount, as currently it is to heavy biased to the back of the telescopes. If this dont sort the balance, we need to start moving the scope mount point, a bigger mod on the big dovetail plate, time will tell....

ModsGroetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Allrighty, mounting plate bent up during lunch break, yea I was hungry

Now the mounting can commence.


Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Now all them power cables can be cut to custom length, ie very short and they all stay out of harms way, no more tangling yay!

Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Reduced a huge amount of cable, some were a few meters long, now a few cm



KortGroetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

This was a totally different project I designed with utmost reliability and longevity in mind. It is still in perfect operation after 15 years, there were 10 systems commissioned. You can tell, I detest cabling.... No patch panels and no cables on the front.



DraadtrekGroetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Mounted the Focuser stepper motor today. First design and make the bracket, then mount it to the telescope. Then modify the stepper bracket to fit and mount that to the focuser bracket.... Still rough, needs to be finished tomorrow
.

Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Finished it this AM


Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

The focus hand and auto controller is now done. Just the connections to the Stepper to be made now. Happy me Made up the snake to manage all the different cables and to prevent snagging.


Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Tested and working in NINA, yay

Groetnis

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Busy sorting the Power supply. This will be running off a lithium battery pack (more on that later) and I want to stabilize the supply voltage to the EQ6 Pro mount. Using a buck/boost converter to set the voltage to the mount at 13.4V, no matter how the battery voltage varies. The camera need 7.8V, so here I am using a buck converter to set that.




This will be mounted to the plate with the rest of the equipment mounted on the dovetail plate.

Groetnis

 

[naboo]

I hope you'll also let us know when there is something not to miss up there so we can have a look, Sarel.

 

[Sarel.wagner]

Yes can do

Groetnis

 

[DewaldS]

Comet Nishimura should be visible with binoculars in the early morning hours.
Theskylive link here

 

[Sarel.wagner]

View Saturn 27th Aug in opposition

SterGroetnis