aluma8300/FW8G will not track

Discussion in 'Aluma CCD Series' started by Robert Price, May 24, 2020.

  1. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    after guide camera exposure and calibration with aluma 8300 FW8g I get the error "error plugin callback [519]" when I initiate the track function. can you help? DL imaging camera connects OK and DL imaging guide FW connects OK.

    Update after upgrading to 6.21:

    tracking with the guide CCD is still not working. The guide CCD takes a exposure and does calibrate. When I start track the error message no longer appears in the info window during tracking but the track function does not track in one axis ( I assume just one axis but the Declination axis may just not have enough drift to need correcting). The guide info box shows a steady increasing guide error in one axis no matter what aggression number I use. What is interesting is that this guide error shows itself in the graph window as occurring in the other axis. Before I updated from MaxIM DL 6.18, I could put a box around a star I wanted to guide on (just like I can in CCDOps) and when I start the tracking the guide CCD exposed image would disappear and the box with the guide star appears (just as with CCDOPs selfguide). With the 6.21 upgrade the guide CCD exposed image with the small red calibration lines touching the brightest star does not disappear when I start track, and no guide star box appears as it does in CCDOPs and as it did in DL ver 6.18.
     
  2. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    Robert, can you use the [Upload a File] button at the lower right to upload the MaxIm log file, so we can have a look at this in more detail.

    In MaxIm, if you want to look at the log, View.... Log Window. Right click and turn on Timestampos.
    You will find the logs somewhere like this:
    C:\Users\Robert\Documents\MaxIm DL 6\Log
    They are named something like 20200526.log - corresponding to the day you were doing your tests.

    We may need some additional information after reviewing your log.
     
  3. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    OK I think its uploaded.
     

    Attached Files:

  4. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    Thank you.
     
  5. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    Ok, found one thing right away.
    In MaxIm, File... Settings... Site and Optics
    Please set up the parameters of your optical system including the focal length and other telescope informatio, your location (latitude, longitude, altitude)
    You also should set up
    File... Settings... FITS Header
    with the observer information etc.

    The Site and Optics are critical to calculations used for guiding.
     
  6. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    I set up the optical system parameters as you suggested, same result, no tracking! I am using a laptop with windows 7 sp1 64 bit OS. Is MaxIM DL 621 compatible with this OS? I ask because when I upgraded my Sequence Generator Pro it needed windows 8 or above.
     
  7. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    MaxIm will work on everything from XP to Windows 10, although we generally recommend Windows 7 SP1 as the starting point. It is normally very stable.
    Have you tested guiding in MaxIm alone, without using SGP?
     
  8. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    I am not sure what you are saying, I am not using SGP when I use MaxIm, its on the computer but not in use. Are you asking if I have used MaxIm without SG installed on the same COMPUTER?, no both are installed but I only use one at a time.
     
  9. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    Ok good.
     
  10. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    I had a bit of a discussion here.
    Please send me the most recent MaxIm log file related to "same result, no tracking!" as you said above.
    Also, if you have the track.log please send that as well.

    If you don't have a tracking log, can you turn on the tracking log, and make sure you are capturing the calibration and tracking images, so we can review those if needed?
    I will need you to do another trial, and send the MaxIm log and track.log files.
    To turn on, Camera Control Window, Guide Tab, Options [>] button.
    Check Record Cal Images
    Check Record Tracking Images
    Check Tracking Log Enabled
    Set Tracking Log - it will be saved there.
    As follows:
    guider_tracking.png
     
  11. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    log file attached
     

    Attached Files:

  12. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    I also need the MaxIm log file. It will probably be called 20200613.log
    Can you send a photo of your equipment setup?
     
  13. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    log attached. Equipment conf. was FSQ106EDX4, AP9000, aluma8300m
     

    Attached Files:

  14. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    Ok I've had a look.
    1. Is the guider oriented so that the image plane rows align with the X axis of the mount? e.g. motion of RA moves the star along a row?
    2. I see the Y corrections are always exactly 2.0. This is odd. Have you verified motion of the mount in all 4 directions?
    Best way to do this is to use:
    Camera Control Window
    Guide tab
    press the Move button
    Use the Y+ / Y- buttons with a setting of maybe 10 seconds, to see if the mount is actually moving as it should.
    Check the same with the X+ / X- buttons.
    guide_move.png
    For convenience, you might want to turn on the Auto Expose option in the lower right corner of the Move screen I show in the picture.


    Do you have a guider cable between the Aluma camera Guide Port and the Mount?
    Or are you using software guiding?
    Does your AP900 have APCC software running to assist its pointing?

    Please zip up your MaxIm settings and attach here using Upload a File.
    The settings are usually found in somewhere like:
    C:\Users\Robert\Documents\MaxIm DL 6\Settings
    Substitute your user name for "Robert" in the above.

    Send me the autoguider tracking image 652, 653, 654.
     
  15. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    Attached are two images. One taken with the aluma8300m and MaxIm program ( the last image in the log file I sent you) and one immediately after with a STT8300m and CCDOPs program. The same computer, telescope, mount, guiding cable, and USB cable was used with each camera. The STT8300m/CCDOPs guided perfectly. I am not sure where to find the tracking images, I will try.
     

    Attached Files:

  16. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    The guider tracking images usually are found somewhere like this:
    C:\Users\Robert\Documents\MaxIm DL 6\GuiderTrackingImages
    Thanks for that extra bit of info.
     
  17. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    attached, as I recall viewing the guide star at the time I heard the alarm, I believe the guide star is disappearing off the lower left edge of the images. I use the SBIG guide cable from the mount to the camera. I have used two different guide cables and two different mounts ( the other being an AP1200)with the same result.
     

    Attached Files:

  18. Robert Price

    Robert Price Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2020
    Messages:
    19
    One more thing when I calibrate I do see the brightest star move and red lines appear as it is moved.
     
  19. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    Do you get an L-shaped pattern?

    Can you give me the serial number of your camera, when and where you bought it?

    Start. DL Config Utility.
    Select the camera by clicking on it in the left hand column.
    Check the Firmware Rev. It should be 20.

    Please zip up your MaxIm settings folder, including the subfolders, and Upload.
    The settings are usually found something like here:
    C:\Users\Robert\Documents\MaxIm DL 6\Settings
     
  20. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2014
    Messages:
    7,379
    Location:
    Earth
    I don't see a guide star in the GuiderTracking images 652-654.
    Can you expose a guide image on a star, and upload the full guider frame?
    It should be 1280x1024.
     

Share This Page