INSTRUCTION
MANUAL
FIRMLY
THE
NEVER USE YOUR TELESCOPE TO LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN.
PERMANENT EYE DAMAGE WILL RESULT. USE A PROPER SOLAR FILTER
MOUNTED ON THE FRONT OF
TELESCOPE FOR VIEWING
THE
SUN.
WHEN OBSERVING THE SUN. PLACE A DUST CAP OVER YOUR
FINDERSCOPE OR REMOVE IT TO PROTECT YOU FROM ACCIDENTAL
EXPOSURE. NEVER USE AN EYEPIECE
-
TYPE SOLAR FILTER AND NEVER
USE YOUR TELESCOPE TO PROJECT SUNLIGHT ONTO ANOTHER
SURFACE, THE INTERNAL HEAT BUILD
-
UP WILL DAMAGE THE
TELESCOPE OPTICAL ELEMENTS.
1
SynScanr" precision-engineered
SynScanTM
Powering
SynScanTM 11-15V
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(Fig.b).
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DB9
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SynScan
RS-232
ntroduction to the SynScan
TM
The is a instrument
that will allow you to easily find and enjoy viewing night
sky treasures, such as planets, nebulea, star clusters,
galaxies and much more. The hand control allows you
to point your telescope at a specific object or even tour
the skies at the touch of a button. The user friendly
menu system allows automatic slewing to over 13,400
objects. Even an inexperienced astronomer can
master its variety of features in a few observing
sessions. Below is a brief description of the individual
components of the
hand controller.
the SynScan
TM
The should be powered by DC
power supply (tip
-
positive) capable of producing
continuous current of minimum 2 amps. Correctly plug
the power cord into the 12V DC outlet on the the mount
(See
and b for mount, and for
EQ6 mount). Flip the Power Switch to the "on" position
to turn on the power.
The power indicator will flash the
power is low. Continue to use the
this point may damage the The
power indicator will
rapidly when
the power is extremely
low.
Continue to
use the same battery may damage the
SynScan
T
"
system.
Guider
switch
to power supply
power indicator
ynScan
TM
Hand Control
SynScanT"
hand control cable for the has a
RJ
-
45 connector on both ends. Plug one end into the
hand control
and the other into the outlet on the
mount
Push the connector into the outlet until it
clicks into place. The
cable for the EQ6
mount has a RJ
-
45 connector on one end and on
the other. Plug the RJ
-
45 connector into the hand
control
Push the connector into the outlet until it
clicks into place. Plug the
connector into the outlet
on the mount. Tighten the screws to secure the
connector in place
The RJ-11 6-pin port is
used for communications between the
and a computer or other devices. (See
"
Linking with a Computei' for details.) The DC power
port allows independent use of the
hand
control for users who wish to browse the database
without connecting to the telescope
The DC power port on the hand control is for
hand control stand
-
alone applications only.
For telescope applicaions, use the
12V
DC
outlet on the
mount.
To connect the
to
a
PC, use only the
cable provided
with
the mount.
-----------
ESC,
SynScanTM
keys:-
-------
----
-
Scrollkeys
I
..........................
SynScanTM
----------
(Fig.d):
SynScanls
Scoll
(Fig.e)
(Fig.0
(Fig.0
0
(Fig.0
(Fig.0
(Fig.0
(Fig.g)
The Hand Control allows direct access to
all the motion controls of the telescope and a
database with a range of preset objects. The Hand
Control comes with a dual
-
line, 16 character display
screen that is backlit for comfortable viewing of the
telescope information and scrolling text. To explore
the many functions that the
has to offer,
Mode keys
there are
4
main categories of control on the Hand
Control
Mode keys
Directional keys
The mode keys are located near the top, close
to the LCD display. They include the
ENTER,
and
S
E
T
U
P
Dual purpose keys
ESC
key is used to escape from a certain
command or to go back a level in the menu tree.
ENTER
key is used to select the functions and
submenus in the menu tree, and to confirm
certain functional operations.
SETUP
key is a quick hot key that takes you to
the Setup submenu.
Directional keys
The directional keys allow complete control of the telescope at almost any step in the
operation. These controls are locked out when the telescope is slewing to an object. They are
normally used to initially align, center objects in the eyepiece, and manual guiding. The left and right
directional keys can also be used to move the text curserwhen entering data to the hand control.
Keys
The up and down scroll keys allow you to scroll up and down within the menu tree or selections.
Dual Purpose keys
These keys range from the middle to the bottom of the hand control. They serve two distinct
purposes
-
data entry and quick reference hot keys.
TOUR
key takes you on a preset tour across the sky you are currently under.
RATE
key changes the speed rate of the motors when the direction keys are pressed. There
are 10 speeds to choose from:
(slowest) to 9 (fastest).
UTILITY
key shows functions such as Show Position, Display Time
...
etc.
USER
key gives access to up to
25
user-defined coordinates.
ID
key identifies the object the telescope is currently pointing to.
NGC, IC,
M,
PLANET,
and
OBJECT
keys allow direct access to SynScanT"
database of over
13,400 objects.
Display screen
SynScanrM
aID
I
Celestial
Decl~natlon
Fig.h.
hor~zon
Celest~al
become diin~ner
turn
seconds.
09'N.
mmlddlyyyy
(e.g. 2:00PM=14:00).
SynScanTM
SynScan
SynScanTM
This section provides a step-by-step procedure on how to operate your hand control.
tial Setup
1. Perform the Polar alignment using
(Northern Hemisphere)
the polarscope.
2. Point the telescope roughly to the
Zenith
North Celestial Pole (or Polaris) if
North Pole
you are in the Northern
Hemisphere. Point to the South
Celestial Pole if in Southern
Hemisphere. Make sure the
counterweight rod is pointed down
as seen in
This will be the
home position of the telescope.
3. Flip the Power Switch on the mount
to the "ON" position to turn on the
power.
4. The initial screen displayed on the
hand control is the Version Screen.
Press
ENTER
to proceed.
5.
The hand control will display a
warning concerning pointing the
telescope at the sun without proper
equipment. If you have read the
Plane of local
message already, pressing
ESC
will
bypass the message and skip to the
next step.
Plane of Equator
The hand control's red light will and the key pads will off if idle
for
30
Pressing any key turns it back on.
6.
Enter the telescope's current latitudinal and longitudinal position using the numeric keypad.
First enter the longitudinal coordinate, followed by the latitudinal coordinate. Use the scroll
keys to choose between W or E, and N or S. Pressing the left or right directional keys will
move the cursor to the previous or next number. Press
ENTER
to confirm. The format you
enter should look like this: 123 04' W 49
7.
Enter your current time zone in hours (see Appendix C), using the scroll keys and numeric
key pad
(+
for East, -for West). Press
ENTER
to confirm. The format you enter should look
like this if you are in Pacific Standard Time (PST):
-
08.
8.
Enter the date in the following format using the numeric keypad. Press
ENTER
to confirm.
9. Enter your current local time using the 24 hr time mode
Press
ENTER
to view the time you just entered. If it is incorrect, press
ESC
to go back to the previous
screen. If correct, press
ENTER
again to proceed to the daylight saving setting.
10. If the date entered in step 8 falls between March and November, the will prompt
"DAYLIGHT SAVING?
"
. Use the scroll keys to make the selection and press
ENTER
to
confirm. If the date is out of the range between March and November, the
will'" skip
the daylight saving setting and proceed to the next step.
11. After setting the daylight saving, will display "Begin alignment?". Press "1" or
ENTER
to start the alignment procedure. Press "2" or
ESC
to skip the alignment and exit to
the Main Menu.
If a mistake was entered into the
SynScan
T
M
hand control, press the
ESC
key to go back
to the previous menu. and press
ENTER
to start again.
~li~nrnent
SynScanT"
W~th
SynScanTM
SynScanTM
3-StarAlign
0
9
SynScan"
becp slening
SynScan'"
ESC
SynScanT"
SynScanTM
SynScanTM
SynScanrM
SynScanTM
SynScanTM
Star
In order for the to correctly point to objects in the sky, it must first be aligned to one to three
known positions (stars) in the sky. As the Earth rotates on its axis every
24
hours, astronomical objects
appear to move through the sky following an arc.
the supplied information, the telescope can
replicate a model of the sky and the movements of astronomical objects. Star alignment can be done
anytime during the observing session by choosing Alignment under SETUP MODE, in the Main Menu.
There are three ways to align the depending on your demand for accuracy. If you are using the
for the first time, we recommend that you begin with the Three Star Alignment. In most cases,
this produces the most accurate alignment among the three methods. Before performing any of the
alignment methods, be sure that your finderscope is well aligned with the telescope tube. See the next
page for tips on how to choose the alignment stars. Below describes a step
-by-
step procedure on how to
perform the Three Star Alignment:
Three-Star Alignment
1.
In the alignment screen, select using the scroll keys. Press
ENTER
to confirm.
2.
The SynScan
TM
will provide a list of stars available in your current sky for you to choose as the first
alignment star. Using the scroll keys, choose an appropriate star from the list provided and press
ENTER.
The telescope will start slewing towards it. When the telescope stops slewing, adjust its
position with the directional keys until the star is centered on the crosshairs in the finder scope.
Now look through the eyepiece and adjust the telescope so that the object is centered in the field
of view of the eyepiece. Press
ENTER
to confirm.
The slewing speed can be adjusted by pressing on the
RATE
button. Then choose
a
number between (slowest) -(fastest).
will once when it has finished to an object. Do not try to
adjust the telescope before you hear the beep.
will only respond
to
the
key while slewing.
will provide a list of objects for the second alignment star. Choose a star using the scoll
keys and press
ENTER.
Repeat the centering procedure for the second star and press
ENTER
to
confirm.
will once again provide a list of objects for the third alignment star. Choose a star from
the list and press
ENTER.
Once again, repeat the centering procedure for the third alignment star.
5.
If appropriate stars have been chosen and aligned to, the hand control will display
"
Alignment Successful". Otherwise, the warning "Alignment Failed" will show and the alignment
will have to be done again.
Two-Star Alignment
Two-Star Alignment requires only two alignment stars but, without Cone Error Calibration (see Appendix
A), it may produce lesser pointing accuracy than the Three
-
Star Alignment. Below describes a step-by
-
step procedure on how to perform the Two-Star Alignment:
1.
In the alignment screen, select
2-Star Align
using the scroll keys. Press
ENTER
to confirm.
2.
The will provide a list of stars available in your current sky for you to choose as the first
alignment star. Using the scroll keys, choose a star you are most familiar with and press
ENTER.
The telescope will start slewing towards it. When the telescope stops slewing, adjust its position
with the directional keys until the star is centered on the crosshairs in the finder scope. Now look
through the eyepiece and adjust the telescope so that the object is centered in the field of view of
the eyepiece. Press
ENTER
to confirm.
will provide a list of objects for the second alignment star. Choose a star using the scoll
keys and press
ENTER.
Repeat the centering procedure for the second star and press
ENTER
to
confirm.
4.
If appropriate stars have been chosen and aligned to, the hand control will display
"
Alignment Successful". Otherwise, the warning "Alignment Failed" will show and the alignment
will have to be done again.
3.
4.
3.
HEQIEQG
I-StarAlign
SynScanTM
SynScanTM
Successfui".
w
One
RA
3"
Dec.
J
60" Dec.
Tmo
stcv
"to
"in Dec. Dec (<30°).
Dec 50".
Dec. 140'
>Abs(Dec 1)+Abs(Dec2)>6O0
Pointing
The
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goto
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One-Star Alignment
It requires only one alignment star but, without accurate polar alignment and cone error calibration (see
Appendix A), it may produce lesser pointing accuracy than the other alignment methods. Refer to the
manual for information on how to perform accurate polar alignment. Below describes a step
-
by-step procedure on how to perform the One-Star Alignment:
1.
Make sure the telescope has been polar aligned.
2.
In the alignment screen, select using the scroll keys. Press ENTER to confirm.
3. The
will provide a list of stars available in your current sky for alignment. Using the
scroll keys, choose a star you are most familiar with and press ENTER. When the telescope
stops slewing, adjust its position with the directional keys until the star is centered on the
crosshairs in the finderscope. Now look through the eyepiece and adjust the telescope so that the
object is centred in the field of view of the eyepiece. Press ENTER to confirm.
4.
Once completed, will display "Alignment
Following is some pointers on how to choose appropriate alignment stars:
Star:
Choose a star closer to the Celstrial Equator (smaller declination absolute value).
Two Star: Choose two stars that are on the same side of the meridian. and at least
3
hours apart in
and apart
in
If ou suspect that the polar alignment is off by
l
o
and above, choose
two stars that are well more than 3
"
but less than apart in
Three Star For the first two alignment stars, follow the same guideline as choosing for the
Star
Alignment. For the third alignment star, choose a star that is on the opposite side of the
meridian of the first two stars. Both first alignment star and third alignment
should
have an absolute value of 30
70 If the first chosen star has a small
the of the third star should be at least The following formula can be used as a
guideline when determining the correlation between the first and third stars in
Accuracy Enhancement (PAE)
three star alignment methods provide alignment adequate for any visual observing purpose. For
applications that require extra high precision in a particular part of the sky, the
provides a
Pointing Accuracy Enhancement (PAE) function to further improve the accuracy.
PAE can be
performed in up to
85
zones to cover the whole sky. The where the chosen alignment is located
should be already mapped out accurately by the Further accuracy enhancement is not necessary.
The following provides a step
-by-
step procedure on how to perform PAE:
1.
Choose a star as reference object from a star chart or planetarium software. This star should be a
known, bright object that is currently located in the same part of the sky with the object of your interest.
2.
Find the reference object in the hand control database and go-to the object. If the mount
is under the control of the planetarium software, click on the object to slew to it.
3. Adjust the telescope so that the reference object is in the center of the eyepiece or CCD view.
4.
Press and hold down the ESC key for 2 seconds. The hand control will display "Re-center" and the
name of the reference object will appear in a blinking mode (3 times). If the go
-
to command is sent
software, instead of the name of the object, the hand control will display "Last
5.
Make sure that the reference object is still in the center of the view and press ENTER. If you do not
wish to record the result, press ESC to abort the operation. After pressing ENTER, the
will record the amount of pointing inaccuracy and recalculate the model of the sky. Now the pointing
accuracy of this particular part of the sky should be greatly improved.
The result for the star alignments and PAE is stored in the hand control even after the power has
been shut off. You will only need to perform the star alignment once as long as these two criteria
are met: 1 The telescope is moved to its home position
(Park
the telescope) before turning off the
power. 2. The telescope setup. including the mount, has not been moved. Accessory change is
acceptable as long as it is done with great caution. When hand control is turned on for the
time. make sure that the time entered during initial setup is based on the same source as last time.
For example, if you enter the time on your watch during this observing session, the time you enter
next time should also be read from your watch.
from the
object".
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