Research Concepts RC2000C - Manual (Page 10)

2 RC2000C Az/El Tracking Antenna Controller Chapter 1 Introduction
Research Concepts, Inc. • 5420 Martindale Road • Shawnee, Kansas • 66218-9680 • USA www.researchconcepts.com
1.1 Organization of this Manual
This manual is divided into two broad parts, Installation and Reference. The Installation part of this
manual is designed to familiarize the user with the controller and guide him or her through the
installation and configuration of the controller. The Reference portion of the manual gives a detailed
description of all of the features and capabilities of the controller.
The Installation portion of the manual is comprised of Chapters 2 through 4. Chapter 2 explains the
user interface and the basic operation of the unit. Chapter 3 guides the user through the physical
installation and wiring of the unit as well as the initial software configuration. Chapter 4 covers all
aspects of tracking inclined orbit satellites. It begins with a brief discussion of some of the theoretical
aspects of the inclined orbit, and continues with a description of the algorithms used by the RC2000C
for tracking inclined orbit satellites. Chapter 4 concludes with a step by step procedure that guides the
user through the entry of track parameters and the initialization of a track on an inclined orbit satellite.
The Reference portion of this manual is comprised of chapters 5, 6, and 7 as well as the appendices
which follow. These chapters of the manual describe the fields on the screens that the user will
encounter, as well as the data that can be entered at any prompt. After the initial installation, when the
user has become familiar with the operation of the controller, these chapters will probably be the only
ones consulted by the user to handle the routine chores of adding new satellites and deleting old ones.
1.2 Before You Begin
Please read and understand the manual. Time invested in understanding the installation and operation
of the controller will insure satisfactory results. The unit has been tested thoroughly and will work
accurately and reliably if it is installed and configured properly. There is an old saying in the controller
business - "Garbage in, garbage out". Be very careful when entering data into the controller. For
example, if the longitude data for a geostationary satellite is entered incorrectly, the controller will
accurately position itself on that satellite. If, however, at a later time, a track is initiated on an inclined
orbit satellite in the vicinity of that geostationary satellite, the incorrect longitude may be used to
calculate incorrect step track angles and unsatisfactory results will occur.