Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly Owners Manual

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1 matthias a. uhlig Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly Owners Manual camera obscura verlag matthias a. uhlig

Matthias A. Uhlig Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly Owners Manual Waschow: Camera Obscura Verlag, 2011 2011 Camera Obscura Verlag Matthias A. Uhlig 1.

2 Matthias A. Uhlig Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly Owners Manual Waschow: Camera Obscura Verlag, Camera Obscura Verlag Matthias A. Uhlig 1. Edition 2011 The trademarks and brand names used in this book are property of their respective owners. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit by-sa/3.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

3 Contents Designated Use 5 General Safety Specifications 5 6 Contents of Motor & Cart 7 Operation 12 Stage Zero Dolly Setup 12 MX2 Controller 12 Buttons 12 Menu 13 Manual Move 13 Axis 1 13 Ramp Shots 13 Lead In 13 Lead Out 13 RPM 13 Fixed SMS 13 Angle 13 Calibrate 14 Slow Mode IPM 14 Dist. Per Rev 14

4 Min Pulse 14 Contents Axis 2 14 Camera 14 Interval sec 14 Max Shots 14 Exp. Time ms 14 Exp. Delay ms 14 Focus Tap ms 14 Shutter + Focus 14 Settings 15 Motor Disp 15 Motor Sl. Mod 15 Backlight 15 AutoDim 15 Blank LCD 15 Input 1 15 Input 2 15 Metric Disp. 15 Reset Mem 15 Scope 16

5 Designated Use The Stage Zero Dolly is a device designed to capture motion controlled timelapse sequences using a DSLR. Please note: The Stage Zero dolly is always work in progress, as is the MX2 controller. All specifications are subject to change. Please refer to the Dynamic Perception Website at for up to date information. This manual is based on firmware version General Safety Specifications Hinweise Use of the Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly is at your own risk. The user is liable for any damage done while operating or transportig the Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly. The supply voltage must not exceed 12 V. Higher voltages might damage the controller, motor or motordrivers. The Stage Zero Dolly is designed to be used in dry environments or indoors. Especially when using a mains supply, the user must obey any local safety regulations. When used outdoors, a sufficient weather protection is needed.

6 Parts List Part Count Plate 1 Support Angles 2 1x1x 9 Support profile 1 Motor 1 Rail-Cart Parts 1 Motor-Mount Parts 1 Belt-Clips (2x) 1 Belt (2 m) 1 Hex Tool 1 End Caps + Screws & Fasteners 2 MX2 Controller 1 Power Supply 1 Rail 4 or 6 1

At first, check if you have all parts using the parts list.

NOTE: The top side of the plate has the v-shaped countersink hole.

7 At first, check if you have all parts using the parts list. of Motor & Cart Slide the aluminium rollers on the button head bolts so that the flange is at the head. Screw the bolts into the plate from the bottom. NOTE: The top side of the plate has the v-shaped countersink hole. If you experience problems aligning the motor, try to mount it on the other side. Secure both bolts with the stainless steel nuts, so that the rollers are still able to move.

Using a wrench, unscre the bolts from the motor as shown in the picture.

Now slide the 1-1/4 long, black thumbscrews into the holes in the motor and place the aluminium spacers on the screws Hold motor and

NOTE: If you can t properly align the motor, you probably need to turn the plate upside down.

8 Using a wrench, unscre the bolts from the motor as shown in the picture. These bolts hold the motor together, so be carefull that it does not fall apart. Now slide the 1-1/4 long, black thumbscrews into the holes in the motor and place the aluminium spacers on the screws Hold motor and plate sideways so that the spacers cannot slide off the screws and attach the motor to the plate. Firmly tighten the thumbscrews. NOTE: If you can t properly align the motor, you probably need to turn the plate upside down. Next, you mount the belt pulley on the motor shaft. Rotate the motor until the flat section of the D-shaped shaft faces the outer edges of the plate, using the MX controller. Do not rotate the shaft manually, you might damage the gearbox. Attach the pulley and fasten both with the enclosed hex wrench.

NOTE: This is how you rotate the motor with the MX2 Controller: Power up your controller and press

With the UP/DOWN buttons, you select the speed of the motor, with the LEFT/ RIGHT buttons you move

9 NOTE: This is how you rotate the motor with the MX2 Controller: Power up your controller and press ENTER. Attach the motor cable to the motor1 jack of the controller. With the UP/DOWN buttons, you select the speed of the motor, with the LEFT/ RIGHT buttons you move the motor. Screw the slider pads (the ones with one flat side) to the support angles. Now attach the double oriented slider pads to the support profile by loosening the screws until you can slide the t-slot nuts into the profile. To attach the profile to the plate, use the countersunk 1/4 screws. Don t tightem them all the way just yet.

Attach the support angle on the motor side of the plate with the thumbscrews and put the motor on the rail.

With the tension of the support angle thumbsrews you can control the friction of the cart.

10 Attach the support angle on the motor side of the plate with the thumbscrews and put the motor on the rail. With the cart on the rail, attach the second support angle and check, if the cart moves without resistance. With the tension of the support angle thumbsrews you can control the friction of the cart. Make sure, it s not to hard or your system will need more power than it should. If everything moves alright, tighten the 1/4 countersunk screws to attach the support profile firmly to the plate. Now you need to attach the belt cips on both ends of the rail. Use the shorter thumbscrews to attach the long t-slot nut to the belt clip plate. The looner thumbscrews hold the toothed belt clip. Now slide the belt clip assembly onto the rail on the motor side. Do likewise on the other end. 10

For best results, place the cart in the middle of the rail while tightening the belt. Attach the end caps with the enclosed screws.

11 Now thread the belt through the roller assembly and secure it tightly on both sides with the belt clips. To tighten the belt, you can now move the belt clips in opposite direction until the belt is tight. Don t overtighten it. For best results, place the cart in the middle of the rail while tightening the belt. Attach the end caps with the enclosed screws. Depending on wether you ordered your rail directly from DP or from another source, the fasteners for the screws are already installed. If not, follow these simple steps. Use a hammer or the back of a screwdriver to push the fasteners into the outer holes of the profile. Cut off excess plastic with a knife. If you have problems screwing in the screws, use a small drill to widen the fastener a little bit. You are almost done now. Using the enclosed 3/8 screws, you can attach a ball head (Manfrotto, Novoflex and others) to the cart for easy camera positioning. If you want to mount the controller directly on your cart, use Velcro. 11

12 Operation Operation Stage Zero Dolly Setup With the enclosed t-slot nuts you can fasten the rail on two tripods. Makes sure the system is securely fastened and mount your camera onto the cart. Connect the camera cable with the camera jack and the motor with motor1 or motor2. At last, power your controller using a battery or the enclosed power supply. MX2 Controller After powering the controller, a splash screen shows the firmware version of the controller for a few seconds before the Main Screen is displayed. Main Screen On 3s [15] R30.50% L0.00% ON/OFF 2.Interval 3.Shot count 4.Motor 1 : direction and speed 5.Motor 2 : direction and speed Buttons The MX2 Controller has 5 buttons:the ENTER button, and 4 arrow buttons UP, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT. ENTER opens the menu and enters values, RIGHT leaves the menu or jumps back one step in the menu hierarchy. Enter values directly Press RIGHT to access the values in the Main Screen. If a value is selected, it wil blink. Using UP or DOWN, you can alter the value. You start a program by switching the first position in the Main Screen from OFF to ON. 12

13 Menu You access the menu by pressing ENTER. To navigate, use UP/DOWN, LEFT & RIGHT. Select menu entries by pressing ENTER or cancel by pressing RIGHT. To change values, press UP/DOWN. Manual Move The Manual Move menu allows to manually move the motors. Select appropriate axis (Axis1 & Axis2). UP/DOWN adjust the motor speed. LEFT/ RIGHT moves the motor. To leave Manual Move mode, press ENTER then RIGHT to leave the menu. Operation Axis 1 In this menu, you can set the values for motor1: Ramp Shots Number of frames that the dolly accelerates to full speed Lead In Number of frames at the beginning of a dolly move before the dolly starts moving Lead Out Number of frames at the end of a dolly move after the dolly reaches its final destination RPM Motor speed in revolutions per minute. The standard value for the enclosed motor is 8,75 and does not need to be changed. Fixed SMS ON: Shoot-Move-Shoot will travel a fixed distance OFF: The distance the dolly travels between two shots will be calculated from interval and motor speed. Angle Offset value for movements in vertical or angled directions. Choose the most appropriate value for your setup. 0 for horizontal movements. 45 & 90 for angled and vertical movements. 13

14 Operation Calibrate Calibrates the motor for the actual load and orientation. Usually, this value does not need to be changed. Slow Mode IPM Threshold value for Slow Motion Mode Usually, this value does not need to be changed. Dist. Per Rev Distance traveled per motor revolution. Usually, this value does not need to be changed. Axis 2 14 Min Pulse Optimizes motor settings. Usually, this value does not need to be changed. Refer to Axis 1. Camera in Camera Menu, you can change the camera parameters Interval sec Interval between two shots. This overrides the setting in the Main Screen and vice versa. Max Shots Max shot count. Set this value in order for down ramps to work. Exp. Time ms Exposure time in milliseconds. Most cameras need between 70 and 100 ms. If your camera is in bulb mode, the exposure time equals this setting. Exp. Delay ms Delay in milliseconds after an exposure. Usually this needs to be set at a higher value than your cameras exposure time. Focus Tap ms Focus Tap time in milliseconds Shutter + Focus

15 ON: Shutter & focus will be triggered together (z.b. Nikon) OFF: Only the shutter will be triggered Settings Global settings. Most settings will be saved to the controllers non-volatile memory. Motor Disp Display motor speed in inches per second or percent. Operation Motor Sl. Mod Set the Slow Motion Mode to Pulse (continous movement) or Interleave (Shoot- Move-Shoot) Backlight Adjusts backlight intensity AutoDim Number of seconds the display backlight is turned off after last interaction. Blank LCD Switches off LCD. LCD will be switched on pressing any button Input 1 Configures trigger 1 Start :Starts current program Stop :Stops current program Disable deactivates trigger 1 Input 2 Configures trigger 2 Start :Starts current program Stop :Stops current program Disable deactivates trigger 2 Metric Disp. Distance will be displayed using the metric system Reset Mem Resets factory defaults. Good practice after a firmware upgrade 15

16 Scope Specal functions for controlling Merlin pan & tilt heads. Operation For more information, please referto the online user manual at : 16

17 Operation 17

18 Dynamic Perception products are available at

Quick Start Guide. Basic set-up for your Axis360 system

Quick Start Guide. Basic set-up for your Axis360 system Quick Start Guide Basic set-up for your Axis360 system Table of Contents 1 Setting up Slide slider assembly attach belt to cart attach ballhead to cart connect motor to controller attach slider to tripod(s)