Mount OTA electrics - how to quick release

[stash_old]

Its doesn't happen often but I have had an occasion or 2 to get my cables snagged (normally power) - this does 1 of 2 things:

1. Snaps the cable or pulls the sockets apart depending on the type of connectors used - okish

2. Causes my mount to complain/stall - not required at all

Forgetting those lucky people who have "Slip rings" as part of the mounts (Celestron ?) how do other people allow for this.

NOTE - I am remote so I don't see what's going on until its too late ? Plus I am not going to put a battery on the OTA - do this for my camera already

Yes I am trying to "learn" from great ideas other people may have ?

[Dr_Ju_ju]

For me, the inter section runs, i.e. from the 'base' to the mount, then the mount to the OTA\Cameras\OAG\Focuser\Heaters etc. are wrapped in spiral wrap. I 'seal' the ends of the spiral wrap, with normal ty-wraps that are also tied into ty-wrap anchor point I've super glued at various points.

This allows for various 'tap-off' points as needed, but it also means that there is effectively a single cable that runs bottom to top, and, as it has some stiffness, I can ensure that there are loops, which guarantee that it can't get caught anywhere..... 

I then use the smaller Velcro ty-wraps to clean up the stragglers.

 

[stash_old]

I use the same spiral wrap and velcro BUT on 2 occasions (not sure if it was EQMOD as I am remote) but it looks like it went 360+ and took up my slack and more. I had always assumed it would never go 360 degree's in RA  - so at more than 180 degree's it would go backwards  through 0 degrees to get to say 340 degrees.  The spiral wrap worked but it wrapped around the pier! So I have allowed for more slack.

As I say its the power that is THE problem as ,unless I go back to wired Ethernet ,I will have only 1  cable running "off mount" (if that makes sense) as I am about to run everything on the OTA "PC".

[Dr_Ju_ju]

Strange, eqmod, by itself, doesn't do anything. It acts as a 'control conduit; between the direction\guide software and the mount hardware, therefore to go through anything like the movement you state, I'd first be very suspicious of the driving software.

But even if you are using wifi to control a local pier pc, if that pc is doing all the work, then there should be no issues with poor\intermittent connections, or are you splitting the tasks between pier local and remote control ?

I always run everything, local to the pier, whether Windows or Linux based, but control it from the comfort of a remote PC. And for me wifi is only for untrusted systems e.g. phones etc.

[stash_old]

Nohing unusually about the software Windows 10 CDC EQMOD APT  remote RDP - all standard stuff. This has happened even while I have been using wired Ethernet and the PC running all the above is 6 feet (old money) from the pier. So the software is not,IMO, the problem in that it appears to be doing what it should - just not in the way I would expect. The software must decide to back track at some point else people would be getting corked screwed wiring - just like mine. There must be some sort of algorithm to decide which way to slew from the point you are at and hopefully it takes into account wires! 

Wifi might have the best latency no argument there but it all ,except for the USB/Serial,uses TCP which does error checking and retransmission if required - I am not getting any errors and loss of any description - wish I was at least I could have something to correct. 

Maybe the only solution is to set up a web cam to watch the OTA/wires AND but large slack.

As I say just looking for any great idea's people use.

Might put the question out on Indilib forum as Peter C (CDC creator) seems to monitor that forum or just send him a question.

Plus use std 2.5mm connectors with elastic bands to allow for emergency clean brakes but not just come apart and the first tug or just but this http://www.curlycords.com.au/curlycords/12v-24v-dc-power-curly-cords/

 

Thanks for your input Julian ?

[chrisshillito]

13 hours ago, Dr_Ju_ju said:

Strange, eqmod, by itself, doesn't do anything. It acts as a 'control conduit; between the direction\guide software and the mount hardware, therefore to go through anything like the movement you state, I'd first be very suspicious of the driving software. 

 

No that's not correct. The direction/guide software simply tells EQMOD where in astronomical terms it wants the mount to point. However astonomical coordinates mean nothing to the mount motor controller. It is EQMOD that has to work out how to safely move each axis motor to a position corresponds to the astronomical coordinates it was given. Moving 360 shouldn't happen - but if its happening then one possible explanation is an EQMOD bug.

 

[Dr_Ju_ju]

I humbly stand corrected.... ?

[stash_old]

4 hours ago, chrisshillito said:

No that's not correct. The direction/guide software simply tells EQMOD where in astronomical terms it wants the mount to point. However astonomical coordinates mean nothing to the mount motor controller. It is EQMOD that has to work out how to safely move each axis motor to a position corresponds to the astronomical coordinates it was given. Moving 360 shouldn't happen - but if its happening then one possible explanation is an EQMOD bug.

 

Thanks Chris - what is the  Eqmod  algorithm for deciding a "safe move " ??  

[chrisshillito]

Eqmod will by default move in a way that  keeps the counterweights downward. If moving to a park position that is counterweights up then the move is performed such that the dec movement is completed whilst in a counterweights down position so that any counterweights don movement only occurs in RA. There is a video tutorial on youtube that illustrates the eqmod movement strategies.

Chris