ASTRO-PHYSICS 1200 Manual - Page 9
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Print PageOPERATION OF THE QUARTZ MICRO-DRIVE CONTROLLER
The push button controller contains all the circuitry for driving the two motors. The controller will be operational when
attached to both the motors of the mount and a power source. There is no on-off switch.
A very accurate quartz clock specifically calibrated for the drive gear is an integral part of the controller. The calibration is
made to the King sidereal rate, which compensates for atmospheric refraction over a large part of the sky. With this
tracking rate, it is easier to maintain critical guiding at high power. For the most sophisticated tracking of celestial objects,
the controller has a built-in provision for attaching a ST-4 or ST-6 CCD imaging camera/autoguider. Using the autoguider
function, it is possible to take long exposure astrophotos totally unattended. You can walk away from the setup to enjoy
other observing activities while your astrograph is in operation.
CABLES: Place the DC power cord into the phono plug outlet of the R.A. motor box.
Plug the short length of the "Y" cable into the R.A. motor box and the long
length into the Dec. motor box. Complete the cable assembly by joining the
control box cable to the "Y" cable. The control box and motors are designed to
work at 12 volts DC. Suggested power sources include: portable rechargeable
battery pack, auto battery, or power inverter for 110 volts with a minimum
output of 800ma.
DRIVE ROTATION: If you are operating the 1200 mount north of the equator, the HEM
(hemisphere) switch must be set to "N". If south of the equator, set the switch
to "S".
PUSH BUTTONS: The four red buttons are arranged so that the left and right buttons
control the movement in right ascension, and the top and bottom buttons
control the declination. This is the normal orientation of objects in the eyepiece
field. If the star moves down when you push the "N" button, move the DEC
REV (Dec. Reverse) switch to the opposite position. Pushing the right hand
button "E" should cause the star to move to the right. If it moves to the left,
move the R.A. REV (R.A. Reverse) switch to the other position. When
properly set up, the controller buttons will cause the object to move according
to your orientation at the eyepiece.
MODE SWITCH: There are three guiding modes (rates): a 2X guiding rate, an 8X and a
16X slew rate. The slew rates are for positioning objects in the field; the
guiding rate is for fine-guiding at high powers during astrophotography. Move
the switch to select the mode that you prefer.
SELECT BUTTON: The control box has three drive rates to choose from: SID (sidereal),
SOL (Solar), and LUN (lunar). Select the position appropriate for the object
under observation.
King Sidereal: Tracking rate for observing planets, stars, galaxies, and other
distant objects.
Solar:
Tracking rate for observing the sun.
Lunar:
Tracking rate for observing the moon.
LED KNOB: There is an LED output available on the 1200 Dec. axis motor housing as
shown in the diagram on page 2. You may insert your LED reticle to this plug.
Brightness can then be controlled using the MIN to MAX (minimum to
maximum) setting of the LED knob.
AUTOGUIDER CONNECTION: If you own a Santa Barbara Instrument Group (SBIG)
ST-4 or ST-6 Star Tracker/Imaging system, connect it to the controller via the
9-PIN connector. Call Astro-Physics to purchase a separate cable for this
connection, or we can add the correct connector to the cable supplied by
SBIG.
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