Starlight Xpress SX Universal filter wheel - Manual (Page 3)

Handbook for the SX Universal Filter Wheel - Issue 1, May 2009
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Installing the software:
No drivers are required for the SXUFW. The USB input is an ‘HID’ device which
Windows recognises automatically, and the serial input does not use a special driver.
Popular third-party software, such as AstroArt and MaximDL include the command
sets for the SXUFW, and the latest SX software can be used with the wheel. You may
also use a simple Windows ‘Console’ program, which is provided on the CD ROM.
This program, ‘SX Filter Wheel.exe’, may be copied into a folder on your computer
and will display a filter wheel control panel when executed. It may be found useful for
both testing the wheel and operating it when the camera software does not support the
SX wheel protocols.
Connecting up the wheel:
USB control:
If you are using USB control, then the only connection required is that between the
USB port on the wheel and a USB output on your computer. You may, of course, use
a USB hub, if necessary – a powered hub is recommended to ensure that the wheel
motor has sufficient torque to operate reliably. When the wheel is first connected,
Windows will display a message about ‘New hardware found’ followed by ‘SX filter
wheel’. Shortly afterwards, the wheel will rotate twice as it calibrates and determines
the number of filter positions available. It is now in position 1 and ready to use.
Serial control:
The SXUFW requires a special RJ12 cable that must be used to connect via the serial
port. This is available from Starlight Xpress dealers, if you wish to use serial control.
The serial port of a PC cannot supply sufficient power to operate the filter wheel
motor and so the cable is modified to allow the connection of a small 9v battery at the
PC end. Just clip a 9v radio battery (PP3 or R22) to the snap connectors and then
connect the serial socket to the PC serial port. No power will be taken until the RJ12
plug is inserted into the wheel socket. Disconnect the cable when not in use, or the
battery will be drained in a few hours.
Serial control does not require any special drivers. Just determine the correct COM
port number and operate the wheel using the control interface provided by the
software in use.