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Lacerta M-GEN User Manual

Stand-alone autoguider
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Download this manual See also: User Manual
1 ABOUT THE HARDWARE ............................................................................................................................... 3
1.3.1 Specification of the HC and Camera ...................................................................................................... 6
1.3.2 Imaging specification of the Camera ..................................................................................................... 7
.............................................................................................................................................. 8
2 NEW FEATURES IN FW. 02.00 ...................................................................................................................... 10
3 ABOUT THE USER INTERFACE .................................................................................................................. 14
3.2.1 Menus ................................................................................................................................................... 15
3.2.2 Variables (parameters) ......................................................................................................................... 15
3.2.3 Profiles ................................................................................................................................................. 17
4 PARTS OF THE SOFTWARE, FUNCTIONAL UNITS ............................................................................... 18
(FS) .......................................................................................................................................... 20
5 MENU TREE ...................................................................................................................................................... 22
5.1.1 Autoexposure (AE) screen .................................................................................................................... 24
5.1.2 Random Displacement (RD) screen ..................................................................................................... 27
5.1.3 Misc. screen .......................................................................................................................................... 29
5.1.4 Power off screen ................................................................................................................................... 33
5.1.5 Guiding menu screen ............................................................................................................................ 34
5.1.6 Guider setup screen .............................................................................................................................. 35
5.1.7 Star Search screen ................................................................................................................................ 36
5.1.8 Live View screen ................................................................................................................................... 38
5.1.9 Guiding screen ..................................................................................................................................... 40
6 MORE ON CCD BINNING .............................................................................................................................. 47
............................................................................................................................................... 47
7 PRACTICAL EXAMPLES ............................................................................................................................... 50
LACERTA M-GEN
Stand-Alone AutoGuider
User's manual for Firmware 02.00
Created by: Zoltán Tobler at 9 June 2010
Last updated: 18 August 2011

Table of contents

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.................................................................................................................................... 14
(AG) .................................................................................................................... 18
(AE) ................................................................................................................. 19
(RD) ................................................................................................... 19
................................................................................................... 20
............................................................................................................ 23
............................................................................................................................. 50
........................................................................................................................ 50
............................................................................................... 14
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  • Page 1: Table Of Contents

    LACERTA M-GEN Stand-Alone AutoGuider User’s manual for Firmware 02.00 Created by: Zoltán Tobler at 9 June 2010 Last updated: 18 August 2011 Table of contents 1 ABOUT THE HARDWARE ..........................3 1.1 P ............................. 3 ARTS OF THE DEVICE 1.2 P ...........................
  • Page 2 7.3 E ..............51 XAMPLE FOR SETTING UP AND STARTING AN AUTOGUIDING 8 ERROR CODES ..............................53 9 PLANNED DEVELOPMENTS ........................54...

  • Page 3: About The Hardware

    1 About the Hardware 1.1 Parts of the device The “LACERTA M-GEN Stand-Alone AutoGuider” (referenced as LMG) consists of the following parts: • Handcontroller (referenced as HC). It has the whole user interface (buttons, indicator LEDs, LCD) and does the main functions like Autoguiding, Random Displacement, AutoExposure etc.
  • Page 4 o Canon EOS compatible shutter output (3.5mm stereo jack conn.) o Camera port (RJ-45 type female conn., can be used any low resistance UTP cable too but the supplied cable is preferred. Note: NEVER try to use a cross cable!) o DC power input (5.5/2.1mm size) (12V nominal, 9-15V), tip positive (polarity-protected) o ST-4 compatibles autoguider output (RJ-12 type female conn.)

  • Page 5: Powering The Device

    conducting material or liquid fall into the circuit, on the CCD and its pins. (The foam around the CCD gives some protection.) • Supplied cables: o 1 piece of Camera cable (black), similar to a straight UTP cable. Used to connect the Camera with the Handcontroller.

  • Page 6: Electrical Characteristics

    1.3 Electrical characteristics 1.3.1 Specification of the HC and Camera  Values for HC with BOOT version $14 or above (see ‘-v’ option in the App.) Notes: currently the is no power saving features implemented. All DC input current values are for a nominal 12V input. These currents change with the input voltage.

  • Page 7: Imaging Specification Of The Camera

    1.3.2 Imaging specification of the Camera ADU means: Analog to Digital conversion Unit (step) means: electron RMS means: standard deviation (statistical); Root Mean Square Min. Typical Max. unit Notes CCD active pixel area 752 × 582 pixel 3.65 × 2.7 CCD pixel size 4.85 ×...

  • Page 8: Tuning On And Off The Device

    1.4 Tuning on and off the device After the device is first supplied with power source it goes to sleep (power-down) mode, nothing can be seen and there are no output signals. The cables can be safely plugged in or out.

  • Page 9: Hardware Types

    valid firmware on the device, UPDATE mode will start anyway with the text ‘NO FIRMWARE’. This mode is used to update the Firmware or download/refresh stored parameter data. The PC application may make the running Firmware to enter this mode (even during autoguiding), be careful! More on this at 1.4 or in the PC app.’s manual.

  • Page 10: New Features In Fw. 02.00

    2 New features in Fw. 02.00 A short list about the main features compared to the pre-release (01.99): o It can handle the device with new hardware. (The new hardware is indicated by the BOOT version number which is $14 instead of $13.) o The autoguiding (only) on RA axis is extended by a “DC-offset removal”...

  • Page 11: Previous Version Changes

     Camera can be turned ON and OFF manually on this page. The position of the guiding window is memorized except between binning changes.  The ‘wait’ time variable is moved to page 5. (Most of the users don’t need this at page 1.) o The guiding window display mode can be changed now from all the pages.
  • Page 12 o Complete file(system) menu screens: open, close, delete and create new, a short file list and file details screen. The date and time settings screen is also accessible now from menu. o In Autoexposure, selecting Start/Stop, Pause will change the selection to the more understandable item.
  • Page 13 o Bugifx : some more-byte parameters were not stored correctly at power-off. From 01.12: o Three profiles available now to store parameter settings individually. Can be used as “presets” for separate guiding configuration (off-axis, guide scope(s) etc.); o AG speed can be set independent for each axis with 0.01 step size (any non- standard correction speed can be set);...

  • Page 14: About The User Interface

    3 About the user interface 3.1 Buttons and LEDs On the front panel of the HC there are 6 buttons and 6 so-called indicator LEDs next to them. The buttons are for navigation and controlling of the device while the LEDs indicates some action of it for visual checking.

  • Page 15: Menus

    Certain items behave differently. There are number, time and text types etc. Text type items can lead to a submenu or are to do some function (like a button), while other (number or time) types store a value that could be edited/changed and are called parameters or variables. These are to setup, parametrize the device, to control its behaviour.
  • Page 16 To discard the new value edited (to hold the old one) press ESC. This exits editing ESC mode. Discarding the new value. The editing process is always done on a temporary variable so it does not affect anything if You start an editing and then exit from it with ESC. During editing the device uses the old/original variable value.

  • Page 17: Profiles

    Can be a so-called button item that does/starts some function. Can be a submenu item to enter a new screen (down in menu tree). For example the main menu consists only of this type of items. Can be a so-called switch that can be altered by the SET button.

  • Page 18: Parts Of The Software, Functional Units

    4 Parts of the software, functional units There are some well defined functional units in the device. In the next sections You can read about these functional units for the sake of a better transparency. 4.1 AutoGuiding function (AG) The main function of the device is Autoguiding. It has its own process (runs independently of the other (including the User Interface)), handling the Camera is it’s job exclusively so the program of the Camera is the part of this functional unit.

  • Page 19: Autoexposure Function (Ae)

    The Firmware handles sudden lose of the Camera but it is not safe to power-off it that way, it might damage some circuit part in the Camera. 4.2 AutoExposure function (AE) The Autoexposure functional unit is also a separate part of the software. On its dedicated screen can be set up, started and stopped etc.

  • Page 20: Filesystem (Fs)

    On photos taken without RD some small pattern of the background noise is a typical effect. This may be caused by the changing gravitational flex in the system (using a guide scope and a separate imaging telescope) or image movement (rotation) around the guiding star due to not enough precise polar alignment.
  • Page 21 Autoexposure Random Autoguiding (AE) Displacement (RD) (AG) Autoguiding active Program start Requiring new position Start moving to new position Wait state („w”) Special mode “Autoguiding” for RD On new position Start Exposure Autoguiding active („m” or „E”) Some behaviour read from the diagram: •...

  • Page 22: Menu Tree

    5 Menu tree The menu is structurized around the function units. From the main menu You can access these main functional units’ control screens, besides other subscreens and menus. Here is the menu structure except for the “misc. menu” that will be detailed later at the screen descriptions.

  • Page 23: Screens And Functions Detailed

    5.1 Screens and functions detailed Some explanation for the next (screen-descriptor) sections and its items:  With blue color the item as it apperas on the screen;  after it in caret, separated with comma (if it has): o type of it (see 3.2.2); o limits (minimum and maximum);...

  • Page 24: Autoexposure (Ae) Screen

    5.1.1 Autoexposure (AE) screen To control the EOS-compatible shutter output lines (3.5mm stereo jack). One program can be set time this screen, started, paused/continued and stopped. The screen items are the following: Shots to do: (decimal, 1 ... 999) global •...
  • Page 25 ended. The item text will be ‘Continue’. The paused state gets active at the last 0.1 second of the wait state of the program. At the paused state the program variables can be changed. (Meanwhile a running program it is not allowed.) The ‘remaining time’ will stay at 1 second at paused state. Activating ‘Continue’...
  • Page 26 Events „Start” AE state wait expo. wait expo. … Exposure line Focus line 1 sec ml. sec exp sec wait sec ml. sec exp sec 0.5 sec  Operation without ML but with enabled Random Displacement Events Req. new Req. new position position set position...

  • Page 27: Random Displacement (Rd) Screen

    5.1.2 Random Displacement (RD) screen About the meaning of RD see 4.3. Below are the screen’s items and detailed descriptions: • Enable: (switch) profile To enable or disable the RD function. If enabled, rigth after the currently running exposure (in AE) has ended this generates a new guiding position for the guide star.
  • Page 28 A new displacement is generated by the Autoexposure program when it goes into wait state. In this case the AE waits until the new position has been stabilized and continues the program after it (see the example at the end of section 5.1.1). The RD positions are fix so reproducable.

  • Page 29: Misc. Screen

    5.1.3 Misc. screen This screen holds every menu and settings that may be accessed rarely. • Display: (submenu) Leads to LCD and LED indicators’ settings. Mode settings: (submenu) • This submenu contains switches for the different modes of operation of the functional units.
  • Page 30 Currently the indicated events or states are constant, can’t be changed:  ESC (blue): shutter focus line active  SET (green): shutter exposure line active  directions (red): the RA autoguiding signals horizontaly (left-right), the DEC signals vertically (up-down). Each brightness can be next to the bright item in percentage of the full light.
  • Page 31 Date and time screen 5.1.3.3 You can set the realtime clock and date here. The format is displayed on the screen: year- month-day and hours:minutes. The seconds are also displayed but can’t be changed. After setting a new date the device checks it and limits the day value.
  • Page 32 The files in the list are ordered by their unique ID. This value is constantly increasing with every new file creation and gives the ability to indentify all new files from the older ones (from even those that were downloaded to PC and then deleted). The newest file is always the first file in the list (at the top of the other) regardless to its creation time value.

  • Page 33: Power Off Screen

     Modif: the date and time of its last opening (“modification”). If this row is empty the file was open (created) only once yet.  Size: the size of its data content in kilobytes and in percentage of the whole memory (rounded).

  • Page 34: Guiding Menu Screen

    5.1.5 Guiding menu screen This screen (and its subscreens) holds all the functions and settings for autoguiding. Current guiding: (subscreen) • This leads to the main Guiding screen (5.1.9.1). Live View: (subscreen) • To enter LiveView screen, where the full CCD surface can be monitored in realtime. Star search: (subscreen) •...

  • Page 35: Guider Setup Screen

    5.1.6 Guider setup screen This screen holds the parameters of the guiding optics and mount, so “guider” in this context does not mean the autoguider device. These values are needed by some function that does not know anything about the used system and giving the values (approximately) helps them.

  • Page 36: Star Search Screen

    5.1.7 Star Search screen After setting some guiding parameter (that You want to use) an automatic star searching function can be started from here. The guiding parameters are the imaging parameters like analog gain and the guiding exposure time. This two main parameters are responsible for the limiting magnitude and the precision of determining the star position.
  • Page 37 Other notes: The automatic star search method uses a 32 pixel width window. Stars having this huge image or defocused spots may not result in a hit point or more points close to eachother. Double stars within this size are also identified as single stars.

  • Page 38: Live View Screen

    5.1.8 Live View screen The screen does that it’s name suggests. The entire CCD surface is monitored on the LCD in realtime so far as a two-state display can: there are on- (bright) and off- (dark) pixels on it. The on- pixels show that the given part of the CCD is brighter than a threshold value.
  • Page 39 faint star so as a hot pixel, use this mode carefully. Moving slightly the telescope will show which pixel is due to a star (it moves with the scope) and which is a hot pixel (stays in place). The new ‘havg’ mode can be used if single hot pixels are disturbing but don’t forget it suppresses very faint star’s highest pixel value as well and they may become almost invisible.

  • Page 40: Guiding Screen

    5.1.9 Guiding screen One of the most important screens is this one. From here You can start, stop, parametrize the autoguiding, run the calibraton etc. Due to the much function and parameters this screen is splitted into pages that is displayed at the right bottom as “ ”.
  • Page 41 This is a time diagram (or history) of the drifts of the guiding star, realtive to the guiding center where the star should be held. The latest 48 drift values are shown for the latest 48 frames, for each axis. One time step (one frame) is one pixel horizontally while vertically the drift values are scaled to the tolerance limit set.
  • Page 42 More on this value at 1.3.2. Changing the value takes effect imediately (at the next exposure). • exp.: (decimal, 50…4000 ms) profile The same variable as the “expo.time” at Star Search screen. (They are identical.) The used exposure (integraton) time for taking images for autoguiding. •...
  • Page 43 When enabled they invert the apropriate axis’ autoguider signal direction. It is important to know that these inversions are made just before putting them physically to the output and so they will invert all the signals generated by any part of the unit. If a calibration data is used, these need to be disabled.
  • Page 44 If a calibration has run with no error, a calibration data is present. The data consists of the directions (on the CCD’s surface) of the two axes (RA and DEC) and their actual correction speeds. This is displayed on the screen as on the screeenshot at right: ...
  • Page 45 Guiding parameters page (RA and DEC: 3/5 and 4/5) 5.1.9.3 The next two pages have the same items, one page is for the RA and one for the DEC axis’ parameters. These settings are independent. These parameters define the guiding behaviour of an axis. The parameters can be experienced with time and should be only trimmed later for some fix guiding configurations.
  • Page 46 as a function of the current drift to remove low-frequency component of the guiding curve (the drift’s history). This mode is more liable to cause oscillation, it may be compensated by lowering the aggressivity or increasing the tolerance a little bit. There is an “emergency”...

  • Page 47: More On Ccd Binning

    6 More on CCD binning Hereby I try to describe the hardware binning operation modes of the Camera. The following modes can be selected: Binning Binned pixel size CCD area mode (um) 1 × 1 752 × 582 4.85 × 4.65 2 ×...
  • Page 48 1×1 (no binning) full frame, 1 second exp.time 2×2 full frame, 250 msec. exp.time...
  • Page 49 4×4 full frame, 62 msec. exp.time 6×6 full frame, 26 msec. exp.time...

  • Page 50: Practical Examples

    7 Practical examples 7.1 Assembly and startup  Fix the Camera to the guider telescope or other optics. Try to put it near in focus.  Connect the cables (advised in this order): DC power cable into the HandController (nominal 12V), can be charged. Camera and HC with the black 8-wire cable (UTP like).
  • Page 51 sharp and short focal length optics because this easily maps the star into one or only some pixels that is not enough for detecting the position in fractions of a pixel. In this case slight defocusing of the guiding star will help. 7.3 Example for setting up and starting an autoguiding ...
  • Page 52 the LEDs. If these LEDs are flashing sometimes (“rarely”), the autoguiding is working well. You may discover (and keep off) many symptoms, like: o Oscillation. The LEDs in the opposite directions (along one axis) will flash alternating left-right-left-.. and so on for example. o Backlash, stucked gears or ST-4 cable contact error: one LED flashes almost constantly in one directon and it never ends.
  • Page 53 8 Error codes In some cases there are error codes generated in the device. These may not be fully interpreted yet in the current Firmware and displayed as a text but the error codes are. These are the following with a short description of the cause: Indicates Camera error ERR type: c0 DC input power is too low or missing for the HC...
  • Page 54 Planned developments The Firmware for the device is continuously developed. There are planned functions that are not implemented yet so are missing from the current Firmware. The ‘direction ‘of the development is influenced by the feedbacks from the users and the testers. Currently the following (useful) functions are planned to implementation (not all listed) •...

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