Humble HubbleTeam 18 – Evan Foote

AbstractThe proposed project is a self-aiming telescope. This telescope will obtain its global position and the local time via GPS. It will then automatically

orient itself to point at a user selected target (star) using a variety of onboard sensors.

Background: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1303/m42_wittich_1024.jpg

Meade, Celestron Settle Patent Lawsuits

Meade Instruments Corp., the world's biggest maker of high-performance telescopes, and closest rival Celestron Acquisition said they had settled all patent litigation over tripods and telescope computers.Torrance-based Celestron agreed to pay Irvine-based Meade royalties equal to the greater of $100 per unit or 8% of Celestron's net revenue from telescopes that use technology developed by Meade to level the scopes and enable them to find true north.Source: http://articles.latimes.com/2004/jul/09/business/fi-rup9.8

Software Design (Initialization)

StartInit.

Turn on GPS.

Get reading

Accel, compass reading

Move to level

position

Move to point North

Turn on Bluetooth,

Connect

Select calibration

target

Android sends

calibration target

Calculate Relative Position

Telescope points to

calb. target

User centers

telescope on target

Init.Done

Original? GOTO Telescope

• Computer controlled altazimuth telescope mount• Patent number: 4764881

Filing date: Feb 10, 1986Issue date: Aug 16, 1988

• 1. An automatically pointing earth-based telescope system, comprising:– a telescope;– means for supporting the telescope for independent rotation

about substantially orthogonal first and second axes;– first motor means for rotating the telescope about the first

axis;– second motor means for rotating the telescope about the

second axis;

– a processor;– memory means connected to the processor for storing an

operation program and data representing a star table;– means connecting the processor to the first and second motor

means for actuating the same;– means connected to the processor for manually inputting

thereto the coordinates of a first known star when the telescope is pointed at the same and the coordinates of a second known star when the telescope is pointed at the same;

– means connected to the processor for providing the processor with a set of angular data representing first and second angles of travel of the telescope about the first and second axes, respectively, between the pointings of the telescope at the first and second known stars;

Cont’d

– means connected to the processor for providing the processor with a set of time data representing an amount of elapsed time between the pointings of the telescope at the first and second known stars;

– the processor being capable of executing the operation program and using the data representing the star table to calculate the coordinates of a zenith location from the coordinates of the first and second known stars, the first and second angles and the elapsed time, and for thereafter automatically causing the telescope to point at a third star upon manual input of its coordinates, and for thereafter causing the telescope to automatically track the third star to compensate for the earth's rotation.

Cont’d

Automated telescope alignment and orientation

method• Patent number: 7092156

Filing date: Feb 4, 2003Issue date: Aug 15, 2006

• In a computerized telescope system of the type including a telescope coupled for rotation about two orthogonal axes, together with first and second axial position indicators, one coupled to each axis, a method for orienting the telescope system with respect to a spherical coordinate system, the method comprising:– activating a central control processor, the central processor connected

to receive positional information from each position indicator;– using the central control processor to receive a rotation metric, the

rotation metric rotating a virtual telescope position in the spherical coordinate system in accord with a major axis of the spherical coordinate system;

Cont’d– using the central control processor to receive a

geographic input;– moving the telescope about a first one of the axes to a

first terrestrial reference position;– communicating, between the central control processor

and the first axial position indicator, a first reference value corresponding to the first terrestrial reference position;

– moving the telescope about the second one of the axes to a second terrestrial reference position;

– communicating, between the central control processor and the second axial position indicator, a second reference value corresponding to the second terrestrial reference position;

– and processing the first and second reference values and the rotation metric so as to define a virtual coordinate location of the telescope system with respect to the spherical coordinate system.