Instruction/ maintenance manual of the product MiniTower Pro iOptron
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SmartStar ® MiniTower Pro TM Instruction Manual.
2 Table of Content Table of Content .............................................................................................................. ............... 2 1. MiniTower TM Overview..............................................................
3 5.5.7. Set Anti-backlash ...................................................................................................... .. 19 5.5.8. Set Key Beep................................................................................................
1. MiniTower Pro TM Overview 1.1. MiniTower Pro TM Features MiniTower Pro TM is the perfect combination of capacity and portability. 33 lbs of Payload Born out of the popular iOptron Cube TM , The Min.
5 Figure 2. MiniTower Pro in an aluminum case Accurate GOTO and Tracking Equipped with our SmartStar ® GOTO technology, the MiniTower Pro TM is one of the most powerful and accurate GOTO mounts available on the market.
6 Additional Unique Features Equipped with additional features such as automatic over-current protection, automatic clutch protection for both axes, easy 3-point level adjustment, dual scope setup with two dovetails and more-- The MiniTower Pro TM is one of the most user-friendly GOTO mounts available today.
7 1.2. MiniTower Pro TM Components 1 Figure 4. MiniTower Pro Components Shown in the picture: 1. Tripod Lock 2. Tripod Support 3. Tripod Knob 4. Tripod Rod 5. Level Adjustment Lock (not included with MiniTowe r Pro) 6. Level Adjustment Screw 7. Tripod 8.
8 2. MiniTower Pro TM Assembly There are two shipping boxes. One box contains the hard case and mount components. The other box contains the tripod and counterweight. 2.1. MiniTower Pro Assembly Figure 5 1 . Setup tripod. Extend tripod legs to full extension.
9 Figure 8 4 . Secure the mount to the tripod by using the long tripod rod (#4). Hand tighten the rod into the bottom of the mount by turning the tripod knob (#3). Next, slide tripod support (#2) onto bottom of rod (#4). Position the three edges to fit against the three tripod legs.
10 Figure 12 If you are attaching a second scope, do not add t he counterweight. Instead, skip to Step 10 to add a second scope. 8. Slide the counterweight onto the counterbalance shaft (#18). Next, insert the brass pin into the hole on the counterweight.
11 and accurate GOTO and tracking. The heavier the OTA, the more necessary it is to use a CW. For lightweight OTAs, i.e. 5-6 lbs, however, the CW may not be necessary. If you have a secondary OTA on the secondary dovetail holder, make sure you align it with the primary OTA.
12 3. 4. GOTONOVA TM 8401 Hand Controller Figure 17. GOTONOVA 8401 Hand Controller GOTONOVA TM 8401 hand controller (HC) is the standard controller for a MiniTower Pro, as shown in Figure 17. 4.1. Key Description • MENU: Press “MENU” to enter the Main Menu.
13 2X; 3: 8X; 4: 16X; 5: 64X ; 6: 128X; 7: 256X; 8: 512X; 9: MAX) • Light Key( ☼ ): Turns on/off the red LED reading light on the back of the controller. • ? Key: For help or extra information. • STOP/0 Key: Stop/Start tracking. • HBX (Handbox) port: connect the HC to MiniTower Pro mount using a 6-wire RJ11 cable.
14 5. Getting Started In order to experience the full GOTO capability of GOTONOVA technology it is very important to set up the mount correctly before observation. 5.1. Level and Align the Mount 5.1.1. Level the Mount. Leveling is critical for a good GOTO and tracking accuracy.
15 longitude and latitude information from satellites after the link is est ablished. However, manual input is still needed for time zone and Daylight Saving setting. A clear sky outside is needed for GPS to communicate well with the satellites. 5.2.1.
16 To adjust minutes, move the cursor to each digit and use the number keys to input number directly. To change the “behind” or “ahead of” UT, move the cursor to “ahead” and using ▲ or ▼ key to toggle between “behind” and “ahead”.
17 Press ENTER. A R.A. anti-backlash will display: To adjust steps move the cursor to each digit and use the number keys to input number directly. Press ENTER – “DEC anti- backlash” will display: Move the cursor to each digit and use the number keys to set the anti-backlash to 0.
18 the number keys to change the slewing speed. Simply press a number while slewing to change the slew speed. 6.2. Slew to an Object Press the MENU button. From the main menu, select “Select and Slew.” Select an object that you would like to observe and press the ENTER key.
19 6.2.8. Enter R.A. DEC Here you can go to a target by entering its R.A. and DEC numbers. 6.3. Sync to Target This operation will match the telescope's current coordinates to Target Right Ascension and Declination. After slew to an object, press MENU—then scroll to “Sync to Target” and press ENTER.
20 6.5.11. Update Firmware Firmware updating using iOptron Downloader through USB port on hand controller. (Refer to Appendix E.) 6.5.12. Set gear ratio Reserved for future products. 6.5.13. Set Language Select hand controller language. 6.6. Align This function is used for aligning the telescope.
21 6.8. Set Up Tracking A user can set up tracking in the main menu by selecting “Set up tracking”. Then the user can select “Sidereal speed”, “Solar speed”, “Lunar speed”, and “User defined speed”. For “User defined speed” this can be adjusted from 91% to 109% of sidereal speed by pressing the ▲ or ▼ buttons.
22 (4) Check the hand controller cord. Unplug it and re-plug into the other HBX port. 2. Error Message “Warning! Can not communicate with DEC motor controller.
23 Appendix A. Technical Specifications Mount AltAzimuth Mount Body Materials Die-cast Aluminum Motor Dual-Axis DC Servomotor, DC12V Gear Aluminum worm wheel/brass worm gear Bearing 4 high precision b.
24 Appendix B. GOTONOVA TM 8401 HC MENU STRUCTURE MENU Select and Sl ew Select and Sl ew Plane ts, Sun, Mo on Plane ts, Sun, Mo on Comets Comets Asteroids Asteroids Stars Stars Mercury Venus Mars Jupi.
25 Set Up Controller Set Up Controller Set Up Local Time Set Up Site Set N/S Hemisphere Set Displa y Contrast Set Eyepiece Light Set Backlight Set Anti-backs lash Set Key Beep Set Mount Type Reset All.
26 Appendix C. GOTONOVA TM Star List GOTONOVA Deep Sky Object List for 8401, 8402 and 8403 ID No. OBJECT NGC # Messier # IC# A(Abell) U(UGC) 1 Andromeda Galaxy 224 31 2 Barnards Galaxy 6822 3 Beehive .
27 35 Keyhole Ne bula 3372 36 Lagoon Nebula 6523 8 37 Little Gem 6445 38 Little Gem Nebula 6818 39 Little Ghost Nebula 6369 40 North American Nebula 7000 41 Omega Nebula 6618 17 42 Orion Nebula 1976 4.
28 Modern Constellations No. Constellation Abbreviation No. Constellation Abbreviation 1 A ndromeda A nd 45 Lacerta Lac 2 A ntlia A nt 46 Leo Leo 3 A pus A ps 47 Leo Minor LMi 4 A quarius A qr 48 Lepu.
29 GOTONOVA Named Star List for 8401 001 Acamar 049 Ascella 097 Kaus Australis 145 Rassalas 002 Achernar 050 Ase llus Australis 098 Kaus Borealis 146 Rasagethi 003 Acrux 051 Asellus Borealis 099 Kaus .
30 GOTONOVA Double Star List for 8401 No. Object Const SAO Name 1 Eta Cas 21732 Achird 2 Alpha Psc 110291 Alrisha 3 Theta Per 38288 4 Alpha For 168373 Fornacis 5 Alpha Aur 40186 Capella 6 Sigma Ori 13.
31 Appendix D. Set Up USB-PC Connection 1. Download USB2COM driver (cp2102.zip file for 8401) from iOptron Website 2. Install cp2101(usb2com) driver Choose the appropriate driver for your OS. In this case is a Windows XP operation system. Double click on it, and you will see: Click “Next”.
32 Select “I accept the terms of license agreement”, and click “Next” Using the default installation path, c:SiLabsMCUCP210x, or specify your own path by click “Change”.
33 When finished installation, click “Finish” 3. Plug the USB cable to the USB port on your PC, plug the other end of the USB cable to hand controller. Turn on the power on the mount. 4. Install the Hardware The computer will find a new hardware and show the following screen Select “No, not this time” and click “Next”.
34 Select “Install from a list or specific location” and click “Next”. Select “Search for the best driver in these locations,” and che ck “Include this location in the search.” Click on “Browse” and select the cp210x driver from directory c:SiLabsMCUCP210xWin2K_XP, click OK.
35 Click “Next”. The computer will start to install the driver for the USB2COM. When the installa tion is done, click “Finish”. If the computer shows “find a new hardware” screen again, just repeat the steps in this section again.
36 Now your computer should be ready for Firmware Upgrading; computer communication with the mount via ASCOM platform; and planetarium software applications.
37 Double click on “Ports (COM & LPT)”. Find the COM number and write it down (in the following figure, it is COM4).
38 Appendix E. Firmware Upgrade 1. Download and install Firmware Downloader from iOptron Website 2. Double click and open “iOptron Downloader” On the interface, select appropriate port using pull-.
39 Click “Open Data File” and select the appropriate “.bin” file that matches your hand controller. Then click “Open”. Select “Main Program” in Update Type.
40 The upgrade is complete. Turn your mount power off then on again. Typical Errors: 1. Invalid Port Number: in Device Manager: make sure you have the correct COM port number for CP210x. 2. Screen is now blank: Wrong “.bin” file: make sure you have the correct “.
41 Appendix F. Use a PC to Control an iOptron Mount In general you need the followings to use a PC to control the mount, 1. Download USB2COM driver (cp2102, zip file for 8401 and 8402A) http://www.ioptron.com/manuals/USB_2COM_Driver.zip; 2. Install USB2COM and establish the connection between the mount and the PC (see instruction); 3.
42 Appendix G. RS-232 Command Set Abbreviations used: DD or DDD degrees or day of t he month depending on the context HH hours MM minutes or month depending on the context MM.M minutes and tenths of minutes s + or – sign, assumed to be + if omitted SS seconds SS.
43 Command: :Gt# Response: sDD*MM:SS# Get the current latitude. Command: :GL# Response: HH:MM:SS.S# Get the current local time in 24 hour format. Overflows from 23:59:59 to 00:00:00. Command: :GS# Response: HH:MM:SS.S# Get the current local sidereal time in 24 hr.
44 Command: :Qn# :Qs# :Qe# :Qw# Response: (none) Stop motion in the specified axis. Note that :Qn# is identical to :Qs#, and :Qe# is identical to :Qw#. Motion is terminated only if it was not started by a slew (:MS#) command. Command: :Q# Response: (none) Motion in both axes is stopped, regardl ess of how the motion was invoked.
45 Calibrate mount. Current Rig ht Ascension and Dec lination become the comma nded Right Ascension and Declin ation. This command sy nchronizes HC coordin ate to commanded coordinate. No GOTO needs to be don e first. Command: :Sr HH:MM:SS.S# Response: “1” Define the commanded Right Ascension, RA.
46 0 - sidereal 1 – solar 2 - lunar Command: :SGS0#,:SGS1#,:SGS2#,:SGS3#, Response: (none) This command sets the guide rate. 0 – 1.0X of sidereal 1 – 0.8X of sidereal 2 – 0.6X of sidereal 3 – 0.4X of sidereal Command: :GGS# Response: ‘0’,’1’,2,’3’ This command gets the current guide rate.
47 IOPTRON TWO YEAR TELESCOPE, MO UNT, AND CONTROLLER WARRANTY A. iOptron warrants your telescope, mount, or cont roller to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for two years. iO ptron will repair or replace such product or part which, upon inspection by iOptron, is found to be defective in materials or workman ship.
An important point after buying a device iOptron MiniTower Pro (or even before the purchase) is to read its user manual. We should do this for several simple reasons:
If you have not bought iOptron MiniTower Pro yet, this is a good time to familiarize yourself with the basic data on the product. First of all view first pages of the manual, you can find above. You should find there the most important technical data iOptron MiniTower Pro - thus you can check whether the hardware meets your expectations. When delving into next pages of the user manual, iOptron MiniTower Pro you will learn all the available features of the product, as well as information on its operation. The information that you get iOptron MiniTower Pro will certainly help you make a decision on the purchase.
If you already are a holder of iOptron MiniTower Pro, but have not read the manual yet, you should do it for the reasons described above. You will learn then if you properly used the available features, and whether you have not made any mistakes, which can shorten the lifetime iOptron MiniTower Pro.
However, one of the most important roles played by the user manual is to help in solving problems with iOptron MiniTower Pro. Almost always you will find there Troubleshooting, which are the most frequently occurring failures and malfunctions of the device iOptron MiniTower Pro along with tips on how to solve them. Even if you fail to solve the problem, the manual will show you a further procedure – contact to the customer service center or the nearest service center
