Software for mount exercises...

[coatesg]

A couple of years back at IAS, there was a stall with a scope+mount in a sample rolloff obs doing continuous "exercises" (ie it was doing a series of slews one after the other all around the sky). Fairly sure there was a display on screen of the positions/track the mount was following round the sky.

I'm after something similar for some mount testing (it needs to drive a Gemini unit via ASCOM) - anyone got any idea what the software could have been? 

(I suppose I could script something similar if needed, but if there's a software package available to do it, that sounds like a lot less trouble...)

Cheers

 

[vlaiv]

Not sure, but here is idea (it does involve a bit of work / scripting) - Stellarium has "tour" scripts - that tour the night sky for objects (like Messier tour, ....)

I don't know if those can issue move commands via stellarium scope or similar (there is also telescope plugin, you have to check compatibility) - but I think that can also be scripted - so you can change that script and give a set of coordinates for a good workout.

[coatesg]

Thanks. My alternative plan would be to script with python and Ascom - would be nice to find out the original software though. May have been driving an ASA mount, but can't be sure...

[MCinAZ]

There's no need to go through the ASCOM interface at all. You can simply send serial commands directly to the mount. I've done this many times with both Gemini and A-P mount controllers as well as my Optec focuser using only a modem control program. I've also got scripts linked to buttons on my desktop which will send Park Home and Park CWD commands to my G11. An open-loop sequence script would be a trivial exercise in the Linux environment that I use, while closing the loop by reading status back from the mount would add only a bit more complexity. I presume that should be the case in Windows as well, though I wouldn't have the smallest idea as to how to go about writing one.

[coatesg]

Yes - that's true. I am fairly sure I've done ASCOM from python via the win32com module before, but going via pyserial may work too. I can go via the UDP interface to Gemini 2 as it's not actually connected directly to the PC that controls it.

Though, given I have a G1 and a G2, ASCOM at least provides a consistent interface.

[daz]

It was an ASA mount but have no idea what the software was!

Sorry!

[russellhq]

I wrote some vb script a while back that I used to do a 3 point alignment. It was fairly simple to do and didn't need anything more than notepad to put it together. Could this be an option? 

[coatesg]

I think that could be the way to do it, yup - something to slew to four points: so the movements go RA+, Dec+, RA-, Dec- out something should do it.

[russellhq]

If you have the 4 points you want to slew to, I could put them into a script and see if it works.