tekkydave

Did you type a colon after the C

That would be very helpful Gina, thanks.

It would be great to know if anyone else has tried to install the V2.4.0 software. I really need to work out if the issue Davey-T has is only on fresh installs or also on PCs where the driver has previously been manually registered. Thanks.

Do you mean you want an indication of some sort in the FocusAAF2 program so you can tell if the focuser is moving when you can't see it. I have added a link to the Wiki section of the SF site http://sourceforge.net/p/arduinoascomfocuser/wiki/To-Do%20List/ to keep track of any requests - I've added yours to it.

Thats a bit of good news. What version of Windows are you using and is it 64-bit? Have you done the manual registration on your PC in the past for the previous versions?

Can you try the manual registration and see what happens. Cheers.

It's very strange. I have just rolled my test VM on Virtualbox back to have just a clean Win7 plus Ascom Platform 6.1 and tried again. I downloaded the msi from SF directly to the test machine and installed it with no issues. I'll be interested to see if anyone else has the same problem.

Is the user you are installing from an Administrator?

You shouldn't have to. The installer now creates the correct registry entries. I have tested it on a clean install of Windows 7 Pro 64-bit and it registers fine. It will be interesting to see if anyone else has the same problem. B***y Windoze

By default it installs in C:\Program Files\ASCOM\AAF2.focuser or C:\Program Files (x86)\ASCOM\AAF2.focuser depending on architecture. Are there any icons on your desktop or an AAF2 folder at Start Menu --> All Programs?

The arduino has a command to detect when it is moving (M# command) which is called by the IsMoving() method of the ASCOM driver. I suppose it is down to the client application to determine if it is moving and act accordingly. If you want something adding in the FocusAAF2 test application I could look to put some kind of indication on the form next time I make some changes.

Version 2.4.0 is now released on the SF Site https://sourceforge.net/projects/arduinoascomfocuser/files/Mark2/Software/V2.4.0/ I have made a few changes to the sketch and the Driver that I have been promising for a while. I hope it works for everyone but please let me know if you have any issues or comments. Enjoy Changes in Version 2.4.0 ------------------------ Enhancements: * The Arduino sketch has the following changes: - Amended to step the motor in single half-steps not 8 per unit. (One unit is a single step from the driver/application's point of view). The number of half-steps to execute per unit of movement is set in #define MOTOR_STEPS_PER_DRIVER_STEP Set this to 8 (default) to keep the existing behaviour. If you want finer movement lower it as required (may need some experimentation). - Moved user-configurable parameters to a single block at top of code for easier location / modification - Reduced number of read/write operations to/from EEPROM. This should lengthen the life of the EEPROM storage. - Reduced no of calls to clear the output pins in loop() - Some general code and structure tidying * The Ascom Driver has the following changes: - Driver Registration should now work correctly (woohoo). The Setup project has had the correct Registry entries added. - The trace files are now created in the AAF2Trace directory which is a sub-directory of the user's Personal Documents Folder. Normally this will be at C:\Users\<Username>\Documents but may be different if your system is non-standard. There is usually a shortcut in Windows Explorer to 'My Documents' which is the same location. The AAF2Trace sub-directory is created automatically during installation so there is no longer a need to create it manually. The location is stored in the Registry so the Driver can access it. - The 'Trace on' option in the Ascom Chooser dialog is now unset automatically when the Driver exits. If you need to trace the Driver during normal use you will need to tick it every time you use the Driver. This is to save the disk filling up if you forget to turn it off.

Thanks. Is there an emoticon for a bow Edit: Hee Hee found this one.

All the great people on SGL who have built the focuser so far: Dave_D Baffa wuthton Mick J russellhq mindburner Davey-T iwannabswiss silios SUNJiaLin blackdragon72 redtail SnakeyJ cthorpey golyo73 richyrich_one sloz1664 msh1 RogerTheDodger Thanks guys :-)

I started the project partly to learn about Arduinos as well as the Astronomy & Ascom aspects. I never expected so many others to build it too. Good luck.

Did you create a c:\trace directory for the driver to send trace files to. Also check you have the com port and an initial position set

If my test program works ok then the driver is correctly registered. Must be an issue with Nebulosity. Can you load the Focuser Simulator driver or any other Ascom drivers from Neb?

You're welcome. I've hardly used it myself

The driver has not registered correctly. This sometimes happens, there is a workround on my SF page here: https://sourceforge.net/p/arduinoascomfocuser/wiki/Manual%20Driver%20Registration/

APT does autofocus.

Not sure then. Check connections and state of battery.

Not sure - I thought it used those pins normally for the USB port communication. Do you mean to drive it directly from a regular serial port? I suspect you might have to change the voltages as normal serial is 12V and the nano will only handle 5V standard logic levels. Have a look on the Arduino website - someone may have asked the same question in their forum.

Is the stepper motor driving anything i.e pushing against any resistance or just free-running at the moment?

Are you using an external power supply for the stepper driver e.g. battery. The 5V from the nano alone does not give enough torque.