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INDI Library v2.0.6 is Released (02 Feb 2024)

Bi-monthly release with minor bug fixes and improvements

iOptron CEM120 has strange PARKING behavior.

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Wouter,

At least with the CEM25P I have absolutely no problem with parking. Works like a charm at my end.

I wonder whether the problem is rooted in a misconfigured file somewhere. At least that is what I suspect my problem was when the refocusing on filter change no longer worked for me:
indilib.org/forum/ekos/8421-solved-refoc...ger-works.html#64997

Purging Nightly, reinstalling and a full upgrade restored normal behavior.

Jo
3 years 3 months ago #65018

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Thanks , I reported the issue to iOptron and awaiting their response.
3 years 3 months ago #65024

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Jo,

I know that you don’t and we have already compared our INDI config files which are exactly the same. Apart from that, I am not the only one who has parking issues with a CEM25 or GEM45 and to my best of knowledge there are many more people with issues than without (actually I think you’re the only one without).

FWIW I use the stable release and have had this issue since we started using this mount which is over a year now.

Wouter
Last edit: 3 years 3 months ago by Wouter van Reeven.
3 years 3 months ago #65030

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Yes, I know we compared the config file and I know they did not explain the discrepancy. However, the fact that my mount parks reliably does indicate that this cannot be a systematic Kstars problem, but either has to be a misconfiguration either of an Ekos or Indi file, or, perhaps most likely, in the hand controller. I never used that for anything, except for setting the Zero, i.e. home position, which is also the parking position. That may be the reason why I am one of the few who do not have these parking issues.

I don't recall off-hand whether it is possible to reset the hand controller to the original factory settings. Perhaps that would be something to try and see if it gets rid of the parking problem?

I also think it is possible to control the mount directly without the need to go through the hand controller, but I do not have the required cable for that. Do you - or anyone else having these problems - and have you tried that? That would help tremendously with trouble-shooting, as it would allow one to narrow the issue either to Indi/Ekos or the hand controller.

Jo
Last edit: 3 years 3 months ago by Jose Corazon.
3 years 3 months ago #65074

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I’ll check the possibility to reset the mount again but AFAIK it is only possible to reset certain parameters, like pointing errors.

To my best of knowledge there only is a cable to connect the handcontroller to a USB port, which we have. No direct connection is possible. The GEM45 does allow you to bypass the handcontroller and for that mount parking also doesn’t work with Ekos/INDI.

See

indilib.org/forum/mounts/7901-parking-th...ron-gem45.html#61012

Wouter
Last edit: 3 years 2 months ago by Wouter van Reeven.
3 years 2 months ago #65081

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Thanks, Wouter, but I am confused now.

On Cloudy Nights you write: "....after resetting the alignment model in the CEM25P hand controller and disabling DST (and setting the UTC offset such that it compensates for DST manually), it works like a charm. Pointing using plate solving, meridian flip, parking all work very well."

Does that mean that parking does indeed also work in your hands with the CEM25P, not just for me, and that the problem is isolated to the GEM45?

Jo
3 years 2 months ago #65096

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OK I am confused now as well about the CEM25. Hopefully I will be able to test this soon again. However, I am sure that parking doesn’t work properly for the GEM45.
3 years 2 months ago #65097

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GEM45 here, with the same problem when trying to park.

Some background: I just updated my StellarMate packages. With indi_ioptronv3_telescope now being used for all iOptron mounts by default, I was required to update my mount firmware to restore functionality. While this did solve the communication issues with the mount, I am now facing the parking issue (mount continues to report tracking/slewing and must be stopped via the handbox in order for parking to engage).

Any progress or development on this issue? Thanks!!
2 years 11 months ago #69747

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It's a bug in iOptron firmware and I reported it to them. I think users here need to follow up with iOptron to push them to fix this. This is the email I sent to iOptron in January:
The following user(s) said Thank You: Paolo
2 years 11 months ago #69751

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CEM70 user with the same issue! Mount parks correctly, but "slewing" is reported.
I've just emailed iOptron with a link to this page (and all the affected users should do the same, IMHO), let's hope they'll do something about it :)
The following user(s) said Thank You: Jasem Mutlaq
2 years 11 months ago #70132

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I haven't received any updates on this from iOptron yet. Anyone with better luck? The problem must be solved at the firmware level.
2 years 9 months ago #71974

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They replied to my email with "engineering will look into this".
Let's hope they'll do that one day..
2 years 9 months ago #72171

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