Rigel Systems usb-nSTEP - Manual (Page 3)

usb-nSTEP Instructions
Copyright Rigel Systems 2010 Page 3 of 4 www.rigelsys.com
Control Window
Position
:
Where the driver thinks the focuser is. For
nSTEP this is truly always relative to a point you
set in the SETUP screen.
In/Out:
Press to move in or out the number of “steps”
indicated by the 'sliders' setting.
Slider
Select number of 'pulses' to do for each press of
an In/Out or C
CIn/COut
Equivalent to repeatedly pressing the In/Out
buttons. nSTEP will continue to move until you
release the button.
Manual Steps
Displays the value selected on 'slider', or you can
manually enter the number of “pulses
Connect to nSTEP:
Check box to connect control software to usb-
nSTEP hardware via the COM port selected in
the setup screen (below).
Note: Once connected to the nSTEP you cannot
disconnect without quitting program.
Note: An ASCOM application opening the driver
will force this connection when “Linked”
Temp:
Displays the current temperature in degC or
degF for the temperature probe is attached to the
usb-nSTEP
Temperature Sensor Detected
The software will “check” this box if it detects that
a temperature probe is connected to the usb-
nSTEP. If temp probe detected then you can
choose to allow automatic temperature
compensation.
Temperature Compensation
Check box to enable temperature compensation
but note that manual focusing is disabled while in
temperature compensation mode.
Setup
Select to display usb-nSTEP setup window.
Traffic
Select to display ASCOM usb-nSTEP command
traffic with usb-nSTEP hardware.
Position Button
Select to expand window to display the Stored
Position / Internal Temperature Compensation
features.
Stored Position
.
Lets user make change major elements with
large differences in focal plane easily by focusing
once and then saving the position with annotation
for later 'GoTo' when this element is used
(camera1 to camera2 to eyepiece type '1' to
eyepiece type '2').
Save
Saves the current position
Goto
Moves the focuser to the saved position
Description
Lets the user label the position for ease of
operation.
Internal Temp Comp
This function runs the temperature internally to
the nSTEP so a user can actually configure it
and then exit the ASCOM driver, the nSTEP will
keep on 'auto' compensating.
This internal temperature compensation is -not-
controlled by the higher level ASCOM API for
temperature compensation, the higher level API
uses the temp comp of the ASCOM driver.
The
internal compensation should not be used if the
higher level API's are used.
DeltaT
This is the temperature change x10 to trigger a
compensation. The nSTEP uses a fixed point
value here which is 10X the real temperature
change desired. Examples: -005 = move in "-"
direction when temp changes by 0.5C, +015 =
+1.5C change must be detected before triggering
a compensation. The values can range from -100
(-10.0C) to +100(+10.0C) in increments of
5(0.5C). The sign signifies whether to move + or -
steps on a change.
Move/DeltaT
Move this many steps for each Delta Temp
change. Direction of movement controlled by
sign of DeltaTemp
Backlash
Apply this number of steps in last move direction
before reversing direction. Range 0 through 100
with 0 = no backlash takeup
Second/Avg
Temperature will be averaged over this number
of seconds. Range 1 to 75 seconds. Set to a
lower value for more immediate changes. A lower
value may cause 'hunting' if the sensor is
detecting a value that is just toggling slightly (e.g.
from 17.5C to 18.0C to 17.5C).
Off
Internal compensation turned off.
Auto
Internal compensation runs all the time. Mutually
exclusive with the ASCOM drivers temperature
compensation.
Manual
Temperature compensation done once on
demand. Mutually exclusive with the ASCOM
drivers temperature compensation.
Prime for manual
Must press 'Prime for Manual' then 'SaveT' to
set the device's current temperature and position
so it knows where to start from. After that, press
SaveT while 'Manual' is set to force a
compensation at the current temperature. Useful
for focusers with backlash when you do not want
compensation running in the middle of an
exposure as taking up the backlash will throw
image out of focus even more if direction of
motion reverses.
Setup Window
nSTEP Serial Port:
Set to the COM port number assigned to the usb-
nSTEP hardware when first plugging it into a usb
port on your computer. You can confirm/change
the usb-nSTEP hardware COM port number
using the WINDOWS DEVICE MANAGER. For
backwards compatibility, valid values are 1-16.