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Old 05-08-2018, 02:57 PM
Gavin1234
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Laptop to mount connection

Hi. I image through Sequence Generator Pro I’m currently waiting for my guidescope and guide camera so I’m just doing multiple 30 sec exposures at the moment. I don’t get any trailing or odd shaped stars but after about 50 exposures my subject has moved well away from the center of my frame.

So every now and then I repoint my scope at my target to get it back into the middle and then restart my sequence.

I would really like to do this from inside my house. I have team viewer setup so I can control my outside laptop from my iPad inside. The problem is I can’t seem to get my mount connected to my laptop. I have a USB running from my laptop to the USB port on the mount (not the one on the hand controller). I have installed the ASCOM drivers. I can select my scope in SGP and enter my coordinates, scope details etc. but I get an error when trying to connect the scope through SGP.

Any thoughts or hints on this?

I use a Celestron CGX Mount

Last edited by Gavin1234; 05-08-2018 at 03:19 PM.
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Old 07-08-2018, 08:18 PM
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netwolf
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Gavin i dont have a CGX mount but i suspect its similar in nature to my Celestron Evolution mount. I would connevt the usb cable from laptop to your hand controller not the mount. If you HC has a snall telephone like port then you need a usb to serial adapter and then either you can make or buy the serial to HC cable. If your HC has a micro usb port then you can connect via usb direct.


This thread maybe of help

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...d.php?t=155803
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Old 08-08-2018, 06:19 AM
Gavin1234
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Thank for that. Yeah I’m now using a mini USB into the hand controller but still no luck. The laptop is not recognising the mount. The driver is installed and I can select “celestron telescope” through PHD2 and ASCOM but no software will detect the mount or let me connect to it. Device manager shows the cameras but not the mount.

The cameras are working fine.

Really frustrating because after a month of waiting for them I finally got my autoguide scope and camera yesterday but I can’t guide....

I’ll read through that thread you linked after work.
Thanks again
Gavin
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Old 08-08-2018, 08:34 AM
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Gavin have u configured the Ascom Celestron drivrd to point to the correct COM port. I assume the usb connection on the HC appears as a com devices. It may not appear in device manager as a device but should perhaps appear under com ports.

When you open ascom drop down to celestron the select properties and check its pointing to correct com port.

Also there is an ascom diagnostics to check communication with mount is working. Open it select the celestron driver and open properties to check its pointing to the correct com port and try connecting. You should also select eq mode in the properties of celestron.
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Old 08-08-2018, 09:43 AM
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Open ASCOM Diagnostics From Menu select Chose Device and then from drop down menu select Chose Connect to Device (Pic1)

Next in new window "Select Device Type" should be Telescope (if not make this so). Then Click Chose button next to it. Then in new windows select Celestron Telescope Driver from drop down menu (Pic2).

Next Click on Properties. In this new window select the Com port drom drop down then select the right EQ Mode (i.e EQ S for Southern Hem). The other settings are up to you to choose. This is just a test so no need to get it right (pic3)

Click Ok Ok and click connect, you should see some communication occur between mount and laptop (pic4). Mine shows an error as no mount is connected.

Note if you want to connect more than one Application to the ASCOM driver , I.e SGP and PHD2 and others you need to look at using ASCOM POTH. ASCOM POTH acts like a virtual hub and will let multiple applications talk to your mount. So int he Applications you will select ASCOM POTH as your telescope and in POTH you will select Celestron Telescope Driver. Hope that makes sense. Sent you my contact details via PM feel free to ring me if you need further assistance in resolving this.


You may also look at using Nexremote , which will give you a virtual HC on the computer screen. The downside is that you will need to Align with this virtual HC and it will not be in Sync with the physical HC. I use this for my Evolution mount as it helps to keep the object centered using onscreen controls instead of touching the HC. But then I have to do all my alignments from the virtual HC. You can still use the physical HC to slew around but not to slew to an object. The Nexremote needs to connect to the Com port created by your usb cable connection to the mount. It will create a second virtual com port which you can use in ASCOM/ASCOM POTH etc. I also have an old XBOX 360 joystick connected to my laptop which makes slewing and centering easier for Planets its handy to compensate any drift. The Joystick is setup in Nexremote.
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Old 08-08-2018, 04:47 PM
Gavin1234
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Thanks again for all this help. When I try to select the appropriate COMS port there is no options to choose from.

When I plug a camera in they appear in devices and settings and I get a little sound to indicate they are plugged in, they also appear in device manager. When I plug in the mount I get no response at all. They do not appear in the settings or device manager.

I’ve tried a different hand controller, a new cable and different USB ports and still no success.
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Old 08-08-2018, 07:30 PM
Gavin1234
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Fahim, thank you so much for all of your help. There’s no way I would have figured that out by myself.

For anyone reading Fahim sent me a PM and then spent a lot of time troubleshooting my mount connection with me. We eventually found the problem. It ended up being the cable, well 4 separate cables actually. I had quite a few of the same type of USB cables and the first 4 were defective. The 5th one worked!

Seems there’s a hurdle at every step at the moment. I uninstalled PHD2 because I had been fiddling around with it so much. I’ve now gone in to Re download it and reinstall it. PHD’s website is down lol.

I can wait.
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Old 08-08-2018, 09:42 PM
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Most welcome Gavin , just paying it forward . I had plenty of help from the good folks in this forum and this hobby in general.
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