Paramount Electronics Replacement Instructions

Transcription

1 Paramount Electronics Replacement Instructions Revision 1.7, October Software Bisque, Inc. All rights reserved.

2 Contents Replacing Paramount Electronics... 3 Step 1: Save Existing Control System Parameters... 3 Programming the Motor Index Angles... 5 Step 2: Transferring the PEC Curve... 5 Step 3: Removing the Electronics Box... 6 Step 4: Installing the Electronics Box Troubleshooting Solution 1: Calibrate the joystick Solution 2: Ensure both ends of the homing sensor cable are plugged in Restoring the Paramount to Default Settings Paramount MyT, Paramount MX+, and Paramount ME II Paramount ME with MKS 5000 Control System Appendix A: Revision History Page 2 of 27

3 Replacing Paramount Electronics This document describes how to replace the MKS 5000 printed control board (PCB) in the Paramount ME II, Paramount MX, Paramount MX+, and Paramount MYT German equatorial mounts. Step 1: Save Existing Control System Parameters The MKS 5000 control system contains many configurable parameters, such as the mount s maximum slew rate, slew limits, slewing acceleration, etc. The Paramount User Guide recommends recording these parameters so that, in the event of an electronics failure, they can be restored. Software Bisque makes every attempt to configure the replacement MKS 5000 PCB for your mount before we ship it so that all you need to do is install it and restore the PEC curve. If, after installing the replacement PCB and powering the mount, the control system emits continuous beeps follow the procedure below. Otherwise, skip to Step 2: Transferring the PEC on page 5. If you have not already saved your parameters, now is the time to do so (before removing the electronics). 1. From TheSkyX, click the Connect command from the Telescope menu. 2. Click the Bisque TCS command on the Telescope window. 3. On the Bisque TCS window, click the Read All Parameters From Mount command. This will get what is stored in the mount s flash memory. 4. Click the Copy Parameters (From This Window To Clipboard) command to copy the settings to the Clipboard as plain text. 5. Launch a text editor (such as Window s Notepad or Mac s TextEdit), then click the Paste command from the Edit menu. You should now see a curve of the mount s parameters. (On the Mac, choose the Make Plain Text command from the Format menu so that the text is aligned in columns.) Bisque TCS Parameter RA Value Dec Value MKS_INDEX_ANGLE, 3978, 375 <-- THESE VALUES ARE CRITICAL! MKS_UNIT_ID_, 5, 5 MKS_ACCELERATION, 800, 800 MKS_HOME_VEL_HI, , MKS_HOME_VEL_MED, , MKS_HOME_VEL_LOW, , MKS_HOME_REQD, 1, 1 MKS_HOME_JOYSTICK, 1, 1 MKS_HOME_INDEX_OFFSET, 0, 0 MKS_CREEP_RATE, 0, 0 MKS_GUIDE_RATE, , MKS_EMF_CONSTANT, 30, 30 MKS_MAX_SPEED, , MKS_BASE_RATE, , 0 MKS_MIN_POS_LIMIT, , Page 3 of 27

4 MKS_MAX_POS_LIMIT, , MKS_PEC_RATIO, 8, 8 MKS_HOME_DIR, 1, 1 MKS_HOME_SENSE, 1, 1 MKS_HOME_MODE, 2, 2 MKS_HOME_IN_OUT_IN, 1, 1 MKS_PEC_CUTOFF_SPEED, , 0 MKS_MAX_VOLTAGE, 15, 15 MKS_MAX_GAIN, 150, 150 MKS_MAX_POS_ERROR, 2000, 2000 MKS_JOY_CENTER, 2184, 2184 MKS_USER1_TICS360, , MKS_USER1_dEXPECTED_HOME, , MKS_USER1_dHOME_SENSOR, , MKS_USER1_dBASE_RATE_PERC, , MKS_USER1_dCREEP_RATE_ASPS, , MKS_USER1_dGUIDE_RATE_FACT, , MKS_USER1_dMAX_SLEW_PERC, , MKS_USER1_NMOUNT_TYPE, 0 MKS_USER1_SYNC_VERSION, MKS_USER2_NVERSION, 0 MKS_USER2_FOCUS_AXIS, 1 MKS_OTHER_MOUNT_ID, Paramount MX MKS_OTHER_DEBUG_OUTPUT, 0 MKS_OTHER_STARTUP_JS_RA, 0 MKS_OTHER_STARTUP_JS_DEC, 0 MKS_OTHER_STARTUP_JS_BUTTON, 0 MKS_OTHER_STARTUP_JS_GUIDER, 0 MKS_OTHER_SOUND_GUIDER, 0 MKS_OTHER_GP_IO_1, 0 MKS_OTHER_GP_IO_2, 0 MKS_OTHER_GP_IO_3, 0 MKS_OTHER_GP_IO_4, 0 MKS_OTHER_JOY_RATE_1, MKS_OTHER_JOY_RATE_2, MKS_OTHER_JOY_RATE_3, MKS_OTHER_JOY_RATE_4, MKS_INI_FOCMULT, 1 MKS_INI_FLIPHA, MKS_INI_SPEEDPERC, 60 MKS_INI_SPEEDTHRESH, 5 MKS_INI_KERNEL_STATE, 1 MKS_INI_CALLLEVELLOGGING, 0 MKS_INI_PACKETLEVELLOGGING, 0 MKS_INI_FOCUSPULSESLOW, 60 MKS_INI_FOCUSPULSEFAST, 200 MKS_INI_HOMEAFTERCONNECT, 0 MKS_INI_SHOW_LIMITS, 0 MKS_INI_LOG_SLEWS, 0 MKS_INI_PPEC_HARMONICS, 2 MKS_INI_PPEC_RATIO1, MKS_INI_PPEC_RATIO2, MKS_INI_PPEC_RATIO3, MKS_INI_PPEC_SCALE, MKS_INI_PPEC_TEETH, 375 MKS_INI_PPEC_PERIODS, 1 The single most important parameter is the MKS_INDEX_ANGLE. The RA and Dec values of this parameter are specific to the servo motors on your mount. When you replace the MKS 5000 PCB, these values must be saved to the new control system. The replacement control system will not function using the factory default index angles. These values are also printed on each individual motor. If you have lost, or cannot access the motor index values for your mount, contact Software Bisque. We maintain a database of the motor index angles for each mount (based on the mount s serial number). Page 4 of 27

5 Programming the Motor Index Angles Once the new MKS 5000 PCB is in place, you need to program the PCB s firmware with the correct motor index angles for your mount s motors. 1. Connect the mount to the PC as usual. 2. Launch TheSkyX Professional Edition. 3. Click Telescope > Connect. At this point, the control system attempts to use the default motor index angle values to initialize the motors and fail. The audible error beeps coming from the control system can be ignored for now. 4. Click Tools > Bisque TCS, on the Telescope window. 5. Click the Utilities tab. 6. Highlight Set Motor Index Angles on the left side of the window. 7. Click the Reboot For Indexing button and wait while the control system is restarted. 8. Enter the RA Index and Dec Index values for your motors. a. If you do not know or have access to the motor index angles, and have a Paramount MYT, Paramount MX, Paramount MX+, Paramount ME II or Paramount Taurus, rotate the RA and Dec axes two position switches to the Balance position and measure each motor s index angle by clicking the Measure RA Index Measure Dec Index button. When prompted with the warning message, click Yes to proceed. 9. Click the Save Indices To Bisque TCS button. 10. Power the mount off, then on to restart the control system for normal operation. Or, highlight Reboot/Update Firmware in the left column, then click the Normal button. The mount is now ready for normal operation. Step 2: Transferring the PEC Curve To transfer the mount s periodic error correction (PEC) curve from the old PCB to the new, either: Before removing the MKS 5000 PCB: 1. Launch TheSkyX. 2. Click Connect from the Telescope menu. 3. From the Periodic Error Correction tab on Bisque TCS window, click the Bisque TCS PEC Table tab on the bottom of the window. 4. Click the Get button to retrieve the existing PEC curve from the PCB's firmware. 5. Click the Copy command. This copies the PEC curve to the Clipboard. 6. From a text editor, click the Paste command from the Edit menu. There should be two columns, the first column shows the pec index (numbers from 0-999), and the second column is the PEC offset. This is your mount's PEC curve. 7. Click Save from the File menu to save the text file. Page 5 of 27

6 8. After replacing the MKS 5000 PCB, copy the contents of this text file from the text editor to the Clipboard (if necessary), then click the Paste button on the Bisque TCS PEC Table tab of the Bisque TCS window. 9. Click the Save To Mount button to save the PEC curve to the mount s firmware. Or, use the tracking log from which the PEC was originally created to generate the PE curve, and save it to the new PCB. The new control system now has your mount s PEC information. Step 3: Removing the Electronics Box 1. Place your mount in balance mode and rotate the right ascension axis until the counterweight shaft is vertical and place your paramount in the lock position. See Paramount User Guide if you are unsure how to do either of these. 2. For the Paramount ME II and Paramount MX/MX+: loosen the azimuth adjustment knobs until the threads are just visible. 3. Remove the two 4-40 screws for the external power plug in with a 1/16-inch hex wrench. Figure 1: Removing the Paramount MX/MX+ Kycon external power plug mounting screws. Page 6 of 27

7 Figure 2: Removing the Paramount ME II Kycon external power plug mounting screws. Figure 3: Removing the Paramount MYT Kycon external power plug mounting screws and Electronics Box covers screws. 4. Remove the two 4-40 screws that mount in the Electronics Box to the right ascension base using a 1/16-inch hex wrench. See Figure 4 and Figure 5. Page 7 of 27

8 Figure 4: Removing the Paramount MX/MX+ Electronics Box mounting screws (purple). Figure 5: Removing the Paramount ME II Electronics Box mounting screws (purple). Remove two 8-32 screws from the base of the Paramount MYT to be able to pull out the Electronics Box from the base, see Figure 6. Page 8 of 27

9 Figure 6: Removing the Paramount MYT Electronics Box mounting screws. 5. A ½-inch long dove tail is located at the top rear of the Electronics Box. This dove tail mates the Electronics Box to the right ascension housing and requires the Electronics Box to be slid forward during removal. See Figure 7, Figure 8 and Figure 9 for a visual explanation. To avoid applying excessive tension on the internal cables, never pull hard when sliding the Electronics Box out of the mount. Take great care to gently and slowly pull the excess cabling from the right ascension access cable access holes until Electronics Box has been moved sufficiently away from the mount to clear the dove tail. See Figure 10, Figure 11 and Figure 12 for help on removing the Electronics Box. Once the Electronics Box has cleared the dove tail, it will drop away from the right ascension base to provide access to the MKS 5000 electronic PCB. For the Paramount MYT in Figure 12, the Electronics Box cover when removed creates a place to grab the front plate and pull the Electronics Box out. Page 9 of 27

10 Figure 7: Paramount MX/MX+ Dovetail View. Figure 8: Paramount ME II Dovetail View. Page 10 of 27

11 Figure 9: Paramount MYT Dovetail View Figure 10: Paramount MX/MX+ Removal of Electronics Box. Page 11 of 27

12 Figure 11: Paramount ME II Removal of Electronics Box. Figure 12: Paramount MYT Removal of Electronics Box. Page 12 of 27

13 6. Unplug all of the cables from the MKS 5000 PCB, in the order shown in Figure 13 and Figure Sensor Cable 7. Dec Motor Wires 8. RA Motor Wires 5. Guider and Focus 1. Through Mount Power 4. USB A 2. 1A, 12V & 5V Power 3. USB B Figure 13: MKS 5000 cables. 6. Sensor Cable 7. Dec Motor Wires 8. RA Motor Wires 5. Guider and Focus 3. USB A 4. USB B 2. 1A, 12V & 5V Power 1. Through Mount Power Figure 14: Unplugging cables from the Paramount ME II MKS 5000 PCB. Each connector varies with how they are plugged and unplugged. See the list below to be sure not damage any of the cables or connectors on the PCB. Page 13 of 27

14 1. Remove the two 4-40 button head cap screws with a 1/16 th allan wrench 2. There is a tab towards the front of the box you need to push in while pulling up 3. 3 and 4 are only held in by little inserts which you can see on the side of the connector that is facing the center of the PCB. If you hold on to the wires as close as possible to the connector and pull to the left while you pull them out that should free them. Or you can use your fingernail to open up the connector on the PCB to free the cable while pulling up. 4. See #3 5. Nothing holds this connector in, pull straight up or wiggle from side to side to remove 6. See #5 7. There is a tab towards the center of the PCB you need to push in while pulling up 8. See #7 7. Once the cables have been removed, remove the button head cap screws that mount the MKS 5000 PCB to the Electronics Box and insert the replacement PCB. These screws have a tamper proof paint on them which will not hinder your ability to remove screws. There is no need to replace the tamper paint after replacing the PCB. 8. Plug each cable into the MKS 5000 PCB, in the opposite order shown in Figure 13 and Figure 14. Page 14 of 27

15 Step 4: Installing the Electronics Box Now that the new electronics PCB is in place and the cables are plugged in, the next step is to mount the Electronics Box to the base of the right ascension housing. Please carefully follow the procedure below to avoid damaging cables by pinching them between the box and the right ascension housing. 1. To replace the Electronics Box for the Paramount MX/MX+ and Paramount ME II, use your hand to reach through the back side of the mount (Figure 18 and Figure 19) and insert as much as possible of the excess cabling into the access holes on the bottom of the right ascension base (see Figure 15 and Figure 16) while maneuvering the Electronics Box into place. a. For the Paramount MYT the cable access hole is in the bottom of the rotating base plate as shown in Figure 17. Reaching your hand through the back of the mount (Figure 20) still helps keep the cables in order however all the cables go through one hole up through the mount. Figure 15: Paramount MX/MX+ through the mount cabling holes in the right ascension housing. Page 15 of 27

16 Figure 16: Paramount ME II through the mount cabling holes in the right ascension housing. Page 16 of 27

17 Figure 17: Paramount MYT through the mount cabling access hole in rotating base plate. Figure 18: Paramount MX/MX+ rear view of the mount. Page 17 of 27

18 Figure 19: Paramount ME II rear view of the mount. Figure 20: Paramount MYT rear view of the mount. 2. Orient the power cable connector so that the notch in the front of the connector is rotated toward the top of the Electronics Box and the flat part of the connector is on the bottom (Figure 21 and Figure 22). Page 18 of 27

19 Figure 21: Paramount MX/MX+ Orientation of the Kycon Power Cable Connector. Figure 22: Paramount ME II Orientation of the Kycon Power Cable Connector. Figure 23: Paramount MYT Orientation of the Kycon Power Cable Connector. 3. Place the cables in the box as flat as possible and rely on the memory of the wires to help guide them into their original positions. Start by making the top edge of the Electronics Box as close to flush with the bottom of the RA base as possible (the dovetails prevent it from being completely flush). 4. Slide the Electronics Box up, past the dovetails and right ascension axis cable access holes to ensure wires are completely contained within the Electronics Box. Page 19 of 27

20 To prevent wires from getting caught in the dovetail, watch from the back side of the mount and wiggle cables into position. Slide the Electronics Box forward until it is completely flush with the right ascension base. Remember keep the entire Electronics Box as close to flush with the right ascension base as possible, especially the front of the box. The Electronics Box will be completely flush once it has reached the front of the dovetail. Look from the back and line up the female dovetail on the right ascension base with the male dovetail on the Electronics Box. Once the box is completely flush, start pushing the Electronics Box toward the back of the mount while ensuring you are engaging the dovetail. Also make sure that all wires and cables are tucked into the box and not getting pinched when sliding the Electronics Box along the dove tail. 5. Replace the two 4-40 screws on the front of the Electronics Box. Figure 24: Replacing the Paramount MX/MX+ Electronics Box and mounting screws. Page 20 of 27

21 Figure 25: Replacing the Paramount ME II Electronics Box and mounting screws. Figure 26: Replacing the Paramount MYT Electronics Box and mounting screws. Page 21 of 27

22 Troubleshooting The table below describes common issues that can occur when replacing the MKS 5000 PCB. Problem Description After turning on the mount, the MKS 5000 beeps continuously. -OR- After turning on the mount, the motors initialize normally (as described in the Paramount User Guide), but attempts to home or slew the mount result in continuous beeps from the MKS Solution This means the motor index angles saved to the MKS 5000 are wrong for one or both servo motors, so the motors cannot be properly initialized, and prevent successful homing or slewing. To begin, see Programming the Motor Index Angles on page 5 for details on how to save the motor index angle values to the MKS 5000 control system. If, after measuring the motor index angles, and saving them to the MKS 5000 control system as described above, the behavior persists: 1. Restore the MKS 5000 to default settings as described under Restoring the Paramount to Default Settings on page Re-measure the motor index angles and save them to the MKS 5000 as described in Programming the Motor Index Angles on page Calibrate the joystick as described under Solution 1: Calibrate the joystick on page 23. If the behavior continues, please contact Software Bisque at for further assistance. Please provide your Paramount model, firmware and I/O versions, and the measured motor index angles to the Software Bisque support staff. I do not know the motor index angles for my mount. How can I find them? The motor index angles for the Paramount ME II, Paramount MX+, Paramount MYT, and Paramount Taurus should be close to the default values of RA: 200, Dec: There can be minor index angle variations motor-to-motor. You can also measure the motor index angles and save them to the MKS 5000 PCB as described in Programming the Motor Index Angles on page 5. If the measured motor index angle values differ significantly from the default values, use the default values instead. For Paramount MX owners, if you did not retrieve and save the motor index angles from your previous MKS 5000 PCB, they are written on Page 22 of 27

23 each of your motors. Or, contact Software Bisque support to obtain the values it has on file. After issuing the Find Home command, the telescope status text shows Not Homed or homing the mount by double-tapping the button on the joystick fails. Solution 1: Calibrate the joystick 1. Connect to the mount. 2. Choose the Bisque TCS command from the Tools pop-up menu on the Telescope window. 3. Highlight Hand Controller in the list on the left side of the Utilities tab on the Bisque TCS window. 4. Click the Calibrate Joystick button. 5. Important! Choose the Save All Parameters to the Mount command from the Commands pop-up menu on the Parameters tab of the Bisque TCS window. Explanation: The MKS 5000 control system has an internal sensor that detects input from the joystick on the hand paddle. Joystick calibration should be performed at the factory, and normally need not be calibrated again. However, if the joystick sensor was not calibrated at the factory, issuing the Find Home command may fail unexpectedly and the telescope status text on the Telescope window will show Not Homed. Note that the hand paddle does not need to be plugged in to the Electronics Box for successful joystick calibration. Solution 2: Ensure both ends of the homing sensor cable are plugged in. One end of the homing sensor cable plugs into the MKS 5000 PCB (Figure 13 and Figure 14). This cable splits into to two separate cables that plug into the right ascension and declination homing sensor. When removing the MKS 5000 PCB, if the homing sensor cable gets pulled too tightly, the right ascension axis homing sensor connector, or the declination axis homing sensor connector can get unplugged from the homing sensor itself. Double-check that all three ends of the homing sensor cable are securely plugged in. Page 23 of 27

24 The Paramount User Guide shows the location of the homing sensors for each model mount. After replacing the MKS 5000 PCB, stars are always trailed in right ascension as if the wrong sidereal tracking rate is applied. -OR- The mount homes to the correct mechanical orientation, and TheSkyX reports the correct HA and Dec for the mount, but slews are always way off. -OR- The Bisque TCS window reports the incorrect mount model. -OR- Setting the software limits does not work. -OR- Adding a single TPoint pointing calibration sample at the home position results unusually large IH and ID values. -OR- After adding a multiple TPoint pointing calibration samples the model s geometry terms (IH, ID, CH, NP, ME, and MA values) are pathological. -OR- The mount seems to be lost in space, even after homing and creating a TPoint pointing model based on six or more pointing calibration samples. If you experience any of the odd behavior described in the left column, make sure the Mount Identifier on the Bisque TCS window matches your mount model. To Verify the Mount: 1. Choose the Connect command from the Telescope menu. 2. On the Telescope window, choose the Bisque TCS command from the Tools pop-up menu. 3. Verify the Mount Identifier in the lower right of the Bisque TCS window (Figure 27) matches your model mount. Figure 27: Location of the Mount Identifier on the Bisque TCS window. If the Mount Identifier does not match your model mount, you must configure the MKS 5000 for your mount, as described below. Restoring the Paramount to Default Settings 1. Make sure to install the latest daily build of TheSkyX: Mac: Windows: 2. Launch TheSkyX Pro. 3. Choose the Connect command from the Telescope menu. 4. Choose the Bisque TCS command from the Tools pop-up menu. 5. On the Parameters tab, choose the Restore Defaults command from the Commands pop-up menu. Page 24 of 27

25 6. CRITICAL: When prompted, choose the correct model of your mount (Figure 28). Figure 28: Make sure to choose your Paramount model. 7. CRITICAL: Choose the Save All Parameters To Mount command to permanently save these settings to the MKS Click Telescope > Connect to disconnect from TheSkyX, turn off the mount, click Telescope > Connect to reconnect, and verify that the Bisque TCS window shows correct Mount Identifier. When the Bisque TCS is configured for the correct mount model, the mount will operate normally. How do I measure my Paramount s motor index angles? Paramount MyT, Paramount MX+, and Paramount ME II and Paramount Taurus The procedure below describes how to measure the motor index angles for the right ascension and declination motors on the Paramount MYT, Paramount MX, Paramount MX+ and Paramount ME II and Paramount Taurus mounts. These values should be saved to the MKS 5000 non-volatile RAM as described in Programming the Motor Index Angles on page Launch TheSkyX Professional Edition. 2. Click Telescope > Connect. 3. On the Telescope window, click Tools > Bisque TCS. 4. On the Utilities tab, highlight Set Motor Index Angles on the left side of the window. Page 25 of 27

26 5. Click the Get From Bisque TCS button to retrieve the motor index angle values that are saved in the MKS 5000 memory. 6. Click the Measure RA Index button to measure the right ascension axis motor index angle, and compare it with the RA Index value. 7. Click the Measure Dec Index button to measure the declination axis motor index angle, and compare it with the Dec Index value. The motor index angle number that is displayed in the RA Index text box should be within plus or minus 5 of the value displayed after clicking the RA button. Likewise, the motor index angle value that is displayed in the Dec Index text box should be the same as the value displayed after clicking the Dec button. After clicking the Get button, if either of the measured motor index angle values is different than the motor index angle values displayed in the RA/Dec Index text boxes, then the measured motor index angles should be saved to the control system instead. See Programming the Motor Index Angles on page 5 for details how to do this. Paramount ME with MKS 5000 Control System The motor index angles on the Paramount ME can only be measured when the motors are not under any load. This means the belts on the pulleys must be removed so that the belt tension is eliminated before measuring the motor index angles. Appendix A: Revision History Revision Number Changes 1.7 Updated button names based on the latest version of TheSkyX. Added additional troubleshooting information. 1.6 Augmented troubleshooting descriptions. 1.5 Clarified how to measure the motor index angles. 1.4 Clarified cable removal instructions. 1.3 Added more troubleshooting tips. 1.2 Added a Troubleshooting section. Page 26 of 27

27 Made minor layout and grammatical changes. 1.1 Added instructions for saving and restoring the MKS 5000 control system parameters and the PEC table. 1.0 Original publication. Page 27 of 27