Eqmod Problem

[Dave Moulton]

Can't solve this one and it is driving me nuts.

When capturing AVI'S using Lucam recorder after a certain time my EQMOD mount control freezes and I am unable to move the mount whether with the wireless rumblepad or on the buttons directly from EQMOD. Sometimes even the guiding stops altogether.

I have EQMOD running directly from a USB port on the Laptop via a Shoestring EQDIR adapter not the handset.

Most of the rest of the kit is power though a USB Hub. I have tried connecting the Avi camera directly to the laptop but no better.

Any help would be appreciated

Dave

[beamish]

I reckon you'd do well to post this up on the eqmod yahoo site but, not knowing what sort of machine/specs your using-Is it possibly down to a mix of frame rate,planetarium s/ware and processing power.

I know Starry night can sometimes slow things down or cause things to hang.

make sure that the usb/serial doesn't run to a paired usb socket that might have the usb from the hub running into it (if that makes sense?)

Other than this I'm 'fraid I can't really offer much, soz.

Karlo

[Robd]

Dave,

I have had similar in the past. My problem was due to a dodgy power supply, or at least I think it was.

Flip through the details pane in EQMOD - look for messages along the lines of 'motor has stopped'

My assumption was that the mount had lost power very briefly. This was enough to break the link back to EQMOD.

My problem was with a home built 12v power supply that was not up to the HEQ5 power requirements. Another clue was in the flashing of the LED on the mount when fast slewing in ra and dec.

I changed back to my Maplins mains transformer and all has been OK since.

Hope that this helps.

Rob

[Dave Moulton]

I reckon you'd do well to post this up on the eqmod yahoo site but, not knowing what sort of machine/specs your using-Is it possibly down to a mix of frame rate,planetarium s/ware and processing power.

I know Starry night can sometimes slow things down or cause things to hang.

make sure that the usb/serial doesn't run to a paired usb socket that might have the usb from the hub running into it (if that makes sense?)

Other than this I'm 'fraid I can't really offer much, soz.

Karlo

Thanks Karlo, I will post any fix to this thread if I get anywhere

[Dave Moulton]

Dave,

I have had similar in the past. My problem was due to a dodgy power supply, or at least I think it was.

Flip through the details pane in EQMOD - look for messages along the lines of 'motor has stopped'

My assumption was that the mount had lost power very briefly. This was enough to break the link back to EQMOD.

My problem was with a home built 12v power supply that was not up to the HEQ5 power requirements. Another clue was in the flashing of the LED on the mount when fast slewing in ra and dec.

I changed back to my Maplins mains transformer and all has been OK since.

Hope that this helps.

Rob

i see where you are coming from. I don't think it is a power issue though in my case, more a usb or software problem, as it only happens when I use Lucam recorder even if I am not downloading video at the time eqmod or my planetarium software cdc still stops.

Many thanks for the input

Dave Moulton

[MikeP]

Are you using a powered USB hub? If not, that could cause problems.

Mike

[Dave Moulton]

Are you using a powered USB hub? If not, that could cause problems.

Mike

Thanks Mike, I am using a powered hub though.

[George]

USB1 or USB2, could just be a case of trying to cram too much data down the pipe. My old laptop that was USB1 had this problem until I replaced with a USB2 equipped machine.

[Dave Moulton]

USB1 or USB2, could just be a case of trying to cram too much data down the pipe. My old laptop that was USB1 had this problem until I replaced with a USB2 equipped machine.

Thanks George, it is USB 2. EQMOD Hangs even when I am not streaming at the time, just running Lucam recorder in the background. The usual problem is that the mount will not respond although it keeps chugging away. If I close down CDC from the task manger the relaunch I can usually park the scope.

It could be a red herring this as it may well have already fallen over after streaming or downloading. I may try lowering the frame rate and see if it stays stable

Cheers,

Dave