A complete "wireless + cordwrap free" EAA set up.

[noah4x4]

I promised in an earlier thread to post more information about my "wireless + cordwrap free" set up once it was complete; now as shown below; except for the Dew Shield which I have left off so that people can see the Camera/Hyperstar attachment.

This first illustration shows it with all the necessary cables attached. It is completely wireless between telescope and my cosy warm office. The 'cradle' assembly means that everything required rotates with the Evolution mount (hence the 'cable spaghetti' at the telescope is minimal). I keep my scope fully assembled except for camera and Hyperstar which take about two minutes to attach.  This set up is sufficiently lightweight for me to carry it fully assembled to its location; and is far lighter with than previous when it had the 15lbs Evolution wedge. Adopting Hyperstar (at F2) means I can user short exposures, hence requiring no polar alignment, no guiding no wedge (or GEM) etc. It is possibly not for the traditional astrophotographer seeking award winning images, but for my EAA objectives I am now enjoying great 'near live' views using (continuous) less than 2 second (stacked) exposures.

The camera is an Atik Horizon 4644 x 3506 pixels on Hyperstar powered by a Tracer 12v 8Ah battery. The USB and power cables run down OTA (affixed by Zacfton cable ties) to an Intel NUC i5; 4GB DDR; 2 TB hard drive that is powered by MaxOak K2 '50,000 mAh' battery. Note that in the image below a (blue) 2-Power 27Ah power pack is shown, but I found that this 97Wh unit would only offer 3 hours of power to my (30W-40W) NUC so I have since replaced that with the MaxOak K2 that has a 185 Wh rating and offers me at least six + hours between charges (probably more, but I have not yet needed that duration). Either of these battery types will fit inside the 'cradle' if 40mm spacers are used as they are each barely larger than a hefty paperback book and far more compact than Lead-Acid 'bricks' or typical telescope manufacturer 'power tanks' etc.

The second image shows the basic construction of my simple 'cradle' built from (manufacture pre-cut to size) 5mm x 240mm x 170mm perspex sheets; M4 bolts and hex spacers. The Evolution does, of course, have its own internal battery. This entire 'cradle' assembly attachs and detachs in seconds using three Zacfton cable ties. Note; for clarity, I have not shown the short (local) cables that hook all the components up. Then, located between the Starsense Camera and RACI Finderscope I have an MKIT20 autofocuser hand control affixed by Zacfton cable ties. The regular Nexstar + HC (not shown) is also connected to the NUC by a serial to USB adapter. All necessary software is then loaded on the Intel NUC, but that is then remotely controlled from my laptop in my 'office' (converted garage).

I originally tried TeamViewer, but as the 'free' version runs over the internet it can be a bit 'laggy'. The better solution is to run Win 10 Pro and Remote Desktop on the Intel NUC (if you have an old version of Windows you might not need Windows 10 Pro, but it is not in Win 10 'Home Edition'). I hence switch on the gear at the telescope scope and can run everything remotely from my laptop located in my cosy warm office over my 802.11ac LAN, so zero cables exist between telescope and laptop.  I align the scope using Starsense via Celestron WiFi using my my Android tablet.  The sharp eyed will note the SkyPortal external WiFi accessory (my first generation Evolution internal WiFi is appalling!). This portability of the tablet is useful at the scope during set up bearing in mind that the NUC has no screen (and my laptop is in my office). Thereafter, I only use the tablet for GoTo and for the excellent audio commentary in SkySafari.

Once aligned, I then retreat to my cosy warm office where thereafter I use my laptop to remotely perform focus, set up autofocus and get cracking with EAA activity. I can do minor directional adjustments to the scope by Nexremote (which needs to be run in Win8 Compatibility mode in Win 10) and with a mouse. Its 'virtual HC' is more precise than the tablet's non-tactile swipe. However, the FOV of the Atik Horizon on Hyperstar is so huge (see next) that I probably don't need this. Frankly, it's quite hard with this set up NOT to get your target in FOV, quite unlike my days with an eyepiece. With Hyperstar the FOV is about five times wider than if using the Atik Horizon in isolation which itself has a large sensor.

It is early days, but I reckon that the Atik Horizon (on Hyperstar) is just awesome! The FOV is huge and it cuts through light pollution like a knife. This thumbnail (below) showns the full width on screen view that I saw on my very 'FIRST LIGHT' (n.b. the original was just 12 x two second stacks before save/capture). Note the size of the star field captured when compared to the Orion Nebula in the top left corner. The local football stadium and rugby club floodlights were also doing their very worst to spoil the sky. This thumbnail has also been resampled from the original 48MB file down to merely 44kb to fit into Forum, and it is obvious that I need to work on my focus, exposures and histogram skills etc (!). But for a very first effort with an unfamilar camera and unfamiliar software I was delighted as this was perhaps as close as it gets to 'aim, point and shoot'. I previously struggled with my Nikon DSLR on the tedious cumbersome wedge and this is vastly easier. Sadly, clouds interviened before I could refine my skills and before Atik's excellent 'Infinity' EAA software could extract even more detail. But the 4644 x 3506 pixels of the Atik Horizon did permit me to zoom in to the Orion Nebula so that it completely filled the screen with no loss of detail. My only regret is being persuaded in another Forum that I didn't need a '4K UHD' screen.  I am instead using a 1920 x 1080ip 'Full HD' computer monitor (which is still outstanding), but I am sure that this camera could deliver the full '4k UHD' experience (with or without Hyperstar). Now I suppose I will now have to persuade my wife that we urgently need a new 4K UHD television with HDMI input. I hope this inspires others to attempt to go 'wireless and cordwrap free'. Having no long cables is truly liberating!

 

 

[stash_old]

Nah - I will go "Hubble" next time when money is no object 

RDP is ok but RealVNC knocks the socks off RDP for speed and quality - I use both and RealVNC doesn't mind what Op sys version you have - OK its not totally free !

 

[RobertI]

Very impressive setup, hope you will reap the rewards over the coming months and years. Looking forward to seeing some of the spring galaxy clusters with that setup.

[noah4x4]

I have now improved my 'cradle' device by adding an extra sheet of Perspex to form an additional 'Bay' to accomodate the Tracer battery and a dual cigarette lighter socket. This means that the MKIT20 autofocuser controller no longer sits on top of my OTA and is also affixed to the 'cradle'. Any excess lengths of cable between components are now coiled and put inside small ABS plastic (electrical project hobby) boxes bolted to the inside of these 'Bays'. This means that everything is now self contained affixed to the 'cradle'; which can be affixed or removed in seconds (using the three Zacfton cable ties); and rotates with the mount so no cordwrap. Just three long cables leave the device to Camera and Focuser. I imagine that our Forum sponsors could perhaps develop a similar 'Universal, dual 12v socket, battery and peripheral holding device'  but for now I hope my DIY effort inspires other Evolution, CPC or other Alt-Az owners to create similar compact solutions.

[noah4x4]

I have now added a Lilliput 339GL 1080p Full HD 7” monitor to my ‘cradle’ device.  It is a brilliant bit of kit with its own internal 12v battery.  Really sharp images despite its small screen.

This can obviously be used conventionally at the scope with the camera (example for ‘out-reach’), but I added it principally so that I have a quick means of checking what was happening at the scope when Win 10 Pro 'Remote Desktop' won’t immediately connect (usually due to ‘Windows Updates’ processing delays or the NUC having to reset itself after a bad ‘shutdown’ or similar frustration). It is an expensive indulgence for that, but given what I have already spent on this project to make my scope 'wireless' and 'cordwarp free' it does neatly finish it off.

What is perhaps worth mentioning is that despite this addition my ‘cradle’ device can still be attached or removed in under a minute using the three Zacfton cable ties that hold it to the Evolution mount arm. This device holds everything required except for camera (Atik Horizon) and Hyperstar. The Lilliput monitor mount (1/4") simply clips to a ‘cold shoe' bolted  to the top of one of the ABS Plastic boxes that I have used to conceal the coiled excessive lengths of cable. The entire assembly affixes to the Evolution mount arm and weighs just 3.30kg despite being fully loaded with EAA equipment as follows;

0.52 Kg  Intel NUC  mini-computer
1.25 Kg  MaxOak K2 20v 50,000 mAh Power Unit (which powers the NUC)
0.60 Kg  Tracer 12v 8Ah battery (powers Camera and auto-focuser)
0.30 Kg  MKIT20 auto-focuser controller
0.38 Kg  Lilliput 339 7” monitor
0.25 Kg  Miscellaneous parts (Perspex sheet; Spacers; ABS boxes; screws and bolts).

That is less than half the weight of the Celestron Evolution Wedge (6.80 Kg) that I was previously using when chasing long exposures, and with Hyperstar I don't need to add an autoguider or similar additional astrophotography paraphernalia. With Hyperstar (at F2) I only need exposures of a few seconds to get the same results and its great for EAA using Atik's "Infinity" software.. As everything is affixed to the 'cradle', everything rotates with the mount, so no cord-wrap and all controlled from my cosy warm office using Win 10 Remote Desktop.