Celestron CGX-L + CPWI cant get park to work

Sequence Generator
1

Recently switched to CPWI software to control my Celestron CGX-L mount.

It works quite well with one exception.

It wont ‘park’ at the end of a sequence!?

I like to park the scope with the OTA on the west side and pointing slightly downwards. A ‘custom’ park position.

The CPWI software has a command “Save Alignment and park scope” which will work. But it has to be done manually. I would like to automate it.

I have tried everything I can think of but it just wont park with a “Run end of sequence operations”

2

You didn’t include logs so it’s hard to say. What happens when you just click the “Park” button in the Telescope module?

3

Sorry about the lack of log files. I will try to get some posted today.

But basically either if I use the end of sequence command from the menu or the Scope module the mount either just ‘twitches’ or moves a small amount, or it does nothing.

4

If the mount moves at all, it means that SGPro has successfully told your mount to park. Unfortunately, we can’t be of much help beyond that. The way that the ASCOM contract works is that clients (like SGPro) ask a mount to park, but don’t tell it where to park. The mount gets to decide that for itself and it sounds like there is some complexity in that part that is wholly internal to the driver itself.

5

Here is a log file from where I was putzing around trying to get it to work.

Doubt that it will shed much light on things.

I was wondering might it be possible to put in a ‘fake’ target at the end of the sequence set up to slew to that location then run the end of sequence actions?

6

Ya, not much in the logs, except logs showing a request to park the mount was sent, acknowledged and then the mount reporting that park was successful.

Sure, you can do this, but…

  • You’ll need to manually compute a RA / Dec location that corresponds to the physical position you’re looking to be in. This will, of course, change every time a mount sync occurs.
  • Assuming you have that position, you’ll need a way to ensure that the fake target will always run. There are several circumstances in which it would be skipped based on things that happen to the preceding targets.
7

So long story short… automated parkng with CPWI “You cant”.

It’s odd though the CPWI interface “Save alignment and park” command works.

I guess there is no way to make that call from outside the interface. A real shame because everything else works quite well.

8

You may need to first use the „Set Park“command in SGP:

  • Slew the mount to the park position. You must use the mount motors for this. Ideally the mount is already synchronized with the stars.
  • Stop Tracking
  • Press „Set Park“ in SGP“

This is a one time procedure. The ASCOM Driver should remember this position.

Kind regards,
Horia

9

Thanks for the idea. I was pretty sure I had done this ‘set park’ in SGP a number of times. However, I went out this morning and tried again to double check.

It does not matter if the park position is set also double checked that the park was set in the CPWI software. No change.

Even tried it with using the hand controller as a pass through and the results are always the same. If I send a park position from SGP regardless of the OTA’s orientation it just nudges a little wherever it is currently pointing and stops tracking. At least it stops tracking :slight_smile:

If I use the “Save alignment and park” command from within CPWI it goes to the park position I had set. There is no simple just “Park” command available in the CPWI interface.

Its a shame that “Save alignment and park” command cannot be called through SGP.