Instruction manual

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• You may reorganize the data by date/time, temperature, or position by clicking on the column headings
or select an option from the “sort order” list.
• If you want to do wholesale editing of data, combine data sets, or perform other complex editing, you
can go to Explorer, find the data file, then use Notepad to edit, cut, paste, etc.
• You may enter an “X” into the left-hand column on the data set if you wish to leave the data piece in
the data set, but EXCLUDE it from the temperature compensation calculation.
• You should save the data set at convenient times during the training session.
• You may inspect the data set in several different ways. Obviously, you can look at the data points in
the RFCP table, or use Notepad. Or you can open a spreadsheet (e.g., Excel), and then select and open
the data file. Excel will present a wizard that parses the data into proper columns. You can then select
the temperature and position columns, and create an X-Y graph that will show the data graphically.
• You can enter short notes in the “dataset notes” box to describe the data set and the optical setup in
use.
Caution: if your current focus position calibration is different from earlier training sessions, you will
introduce major errors into your data set. If this is the case, before you train, you should recalibrate the
focuser to match the data set so that the new data will fit. To do so
• Focus the telescope
• Open the training file.
• Select Compute Position Mode.
• Record the Computed Focus Position displayed in the Compute Position window.
• Open the Configuration window.
• Enter the previously recorded Computed Focus Position into the Current Position text box.
• Press “Enter” (C/R) to set the focus position to the new value.
• The focuser has been calibrated to the current dataset. You can now take additional data and add them
to the dataset.
Temperature Compensation Operation.
You will first select a mode to identify the source and type of the temperature coefficients you plan to use.
There are three modes:
• Compute Position. The Compute Position mode computes where the focuser should be positioned at
the current temperature using the selected dataset. This mode is used only when it is desired to re-
establish synchronization between the focuser and a dataset.Compute Slope. The Compute Slope mode
computes the focus position relative to temperature and provides the slope value to text boxes that are
a part of the Scope Setup Mode screen. It uses the coefficient data from the training data set that you
select. For most users, this is the most convenient way to compute temperature coefficients.
• Slope Setup. The Slope Setup mode uses a coefficient that you enter, or transfer and then adjusts the
focus as temperature changes, relative to when you start the compensation running.
If choosing one of the computed modes, you will use FILE to Open the data set you wish to use. When the
file opens, the program will use data in the file to insert the last used values of DeadZone and AutoRate
(see below), and will reset the stepsize (microsteps/step) setting to that used in the data set. Failure to have
the proper stepsize or changing it during a run will cause incorrect temperature compensation; therefor the
temperature compensation software will check the stepsize before it takes a reading and reset the stepsize if
necessary.
Having selected the temperature coefficient data source mode, you now have several settings to make to
control when the temperature compensation takes place:
• Select the Dead Zone. This is the minimum amount of movement that must be computed before the
focus correction is actually applied. The purpose here is to set the DeadZone small enough that
necessary focus changes will be made, but large enough so that unnecessary focus movements will be
avoided. Note that each time a focus correction is done during an exposure, if there is a backlash
correction it is likely that the image will go out of focus for several seconds.