Motorized Telescope (Dobson Mount)

Description

These are the stl files required to motorize my (and I guess a few similar) dobsonian telescope. I decided to use only 3D printed parts and parts that came from my old 3D printer. So if you have a spare 3D printer and a spare telescope - why not have a go? I provided STL, as well as STEP files. ## Hardware * Arduino Mega or Due * RAMPS 1.4 (for the Mega) * or RAMPS FD (for the Due) * 2 stepper motors (see below; TODO) ## Software You can find the required code and some additional instructions over at: https://github.com/ThisIsJustARandomGuy/dobson-star-tracker Just run the sketch in the Arduino IDE and have a look at the config.h file. If anything is unclear, either open an issue or comment here and I'll address the problem. You can either control the telescope via a serial connection (e.g. via the Ariduino IDE), or using Stellarium. Stellarium is Open Source software and can be used to point the telescope at various locations. You can get it at: https://stellarium.org The default baudrate is 9.600. Either have a look at GitHub, or type :HLP# in the command prompt and press Enter to see a list of possible commands. I'll expand this description and GitHub over time with additional information and instructions. Here's a video of it moving: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPZlFLoSKBY **Update 21.09.2019:** I just pushed a few updates to the code that should make the calculations a lot better. It appears to be off by around 0.01° on the azimuth axis sometimes. When tracking, there are small (but visible) jitters when the azimuth axis is moving, while the same is not true for the geared altitude axis. This leads me to believe that I may need to replace the azimuth stepper with a geared one to get better resolution. ** Update 03.11.2019** I added wiring diagrams to help with setup. I added a display unit which comes with a small star atlas and the ability to move the telescope target, without using a PC. I reworked a LOT of the code to be more readable and less buggy. There is now config setting for two control modes: Dobson and Direct axis control. Equatorial mounts will hopefully be supported in the future, but since I don't own one I can't easily test. ** Update 04.11.2019** There is now an issue open at GitHub to discuss possible ways for initially aligning the telescope. I'd appreciate any discussion on that topic - either here in the comments or over at GitHub.

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