I am a longtime SBIG user and have a 8300 setup (ST-8300M, Sti, & FW5-8300), and also a ST-2000XCM with AO-7. However, I recently got a great deal on a used Apogee CM16 (183020 chip) camera and then found a FW5-STX 65 mm filter wheel & filters. 1. Is it possible to run the FW5-STX in standalone mode? Using either the I2C or rs232 port? 2. If not, can I use the SBIG dll's to write my own control? 3. If 1 or 2 are not possible, is the I2C information available for the FW-5-STX? That would allow me to at least write my own ASCOM control using an Adruio as the master? Thanks in advance!
It should be possible to run the FW5 from the serial port, via CCDOPS. MaxIm DL has an option in the SBIG Universal driver for selecting a COM port also. IIRC it was originally added for CFW-10, but it should also work for FW5.
Thanks, and I have it working in MaxIm DL in serial port mode. However, ideally I need to use this as an ASCOM device to interface with other software I am writing. Is this possible? Or is it possible to just get the RS-232 filter wheel commands? I assume there is probably one simple command that sets the desired filter wheel position.
I sorted out the serial port commands used to run the FW5-STX filter wheel. Its was really simple. It then took me about 20 minutes to make a fully functional ASCOM universal driver of the FW5-STX which now works perfectly in Sequence Generator Pro, or anything else using ASCOM. Can I ask why SBIG doesn't provide end users with a standalone ASCOM driver for all their filter wheels? It's a great product so why limit its use to ONLY SBIG cameras, or having to have a SBIG camera connected? Also, as the COM port was so simple, I may just write a quick universal I2C driver too so I can control my other SBIG filter wheels by themselves as well. A cheap $20 Arduino board could act as the master to the ASCOM driver. Is there a pdf out there of the SBIG commands for I2C to set filter wheel positions?
The I2C protocol is not the same for all wheels, and that interface is considered proprietary. Most of the wheels are mechanically tailored to fit on our hardware. The FW5/FW7 is very different in that regard. For wheels that support serial protocol, that is open. It's been a long time since someone asked - pretty sure I have a protocol spec document somewhere, but I couldn't find it. Will try again when I have a moment.... though it's probably moot since you figured it out.
Hi David, I'm interested in a similar application for an FW7-STX. Is this simply a matter of connecting the filter wheel to the computer via a USB-to-RS-232 adapter? Can MaxIm talk to it in a straightforward way after that? Thanks, Russ
I believe MaxIm DL will work if you set Filter Wheel to SBIG Universal and select Model to CFW-10 Serial, and COM Port as appropriate. I've not tested it but it's almost certainly the same protocol.
Thanks, Doug. The filter wheel should be connected via it's RS-232 port, not the I2C port, correct? -Russ
What are the specs on the FW7-STX's power connector? Need both voltage range and the dimensional specs of the jack so I can fashion a cable. Couldn't find the info in the manual. Thanks, Russ
The power connector is a Switchcraft 722A. Drawing: http://www.switchcraft.com/Drawings/722a_cd.pdf Recommended mating connector is Switchcraft S760K. http://www.switchcraft.com/Drawings/S760K-S765K_CD.pdf Available at http://digikey.com Center positive, 12V DC @ 1A.
Hi David, I'd like to convert my CFW9-V2 to run without connected to an SBIG camera. It seems you have succeeded in doing this for the FW5-STX. Can you provide any help? Thanks Joe
I found the CFW serial interface developer's kit and posted it: https://cdn.diffractionlimited.com/downloads/CFW10DevKit_1r0.zip
