The TeleCS - A Telescope mounted cloud sensor

[Komet]

I made a "normal" cloud sensor a while ago following ncjunks plans. It worked very well but couldn't handle dew at all. I spent some time improving it where it now handles dew very well indeed and can be rather sensitive.

Then I got thinking. A normal cloud sensor looks upwards - perhaps with a bit of a slant toward the area where the prevailing winds come from. We have all experienced those times when where we are looking has cloud and nowhere else. We have all experienced our subs getting grainy where fine cloud has moved in. If like me you control your gear remotely from indoors or a warm room you do not look at the sky that much unless you get guiding problems or deteriorating quality in your subs. So I made a smaller sensor that attaches to the scope and looks at the sky where it is looking. Seems obvious somehow.

This can display clear skies through very fine light cloud (the stuff you cannot see at night) through to cloud, rain (it is NOT a rain detector though) and poor seeing conditions caused by low altitude pointing.

I run a normal lookup sensor and telescope mounted one. One of them is on display here .... if the Sensor panel says Telescope then it is the telescope mounted one otherwise it is the upright one. It is usually cloudy these days so don't be upset if that is what it says.

The Garden Obs Cloud Sensor

It is a VERY easy build with very few components utilising the amazing little Arduino board.

If you are interested then full instructions are available through the SGL Observatory Automation group at SGL Observatory Automation

Sign up and cruise to the files section and look for the Cloud Sensor Evolution.

Have fun.

[ncjunk]

What i like is the "seems obvious really" i completely missed that idea...never even crossed my mind to mount one on the scope. :thumbup:

Lovely additions to the software need a few more people willing to have a play as i am snowed under at work

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[ncjunk]

Have you got your two IR sensors connected at the same time? We could rearrange the code and change the default address of one and add in some more displays.

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[Komet]

I have two sensors running but through two separate Uno's.

Is it possible to run two IR sensors from one board or do you mean have the CS program read from two Arduinos on two different COM ports?

I don't know. (You do keep putting ideas into my head though)

[ncjunk]

You can readdress the ir sensor as its semi intelligent so you can connect 2 onto the same comms wires, i think the comms allows up to 64 or 32 devices, and we can duplicate the code in the Arduino (with the new address) and add in a "TMP2:00;" read instruction to the VB code.

I have not done this as i only have one sensor but when i was trying to understand the ir sensor code there was a bit explaining its default address and how to change it.

Its probably in the data sheet as well

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[ncjunk]

See thus thread for some details:-

http://arduino.cc/forum/index.php?topic=54170.0

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[Komet]

I will have to have a look into this. Running two from one would be very interesting - just think of the display!

Prompts all sorts of ideas