Reply To: Ratchet mechanism for opening slit in dome

Forums General Discussion Ratchet mechanism for opening slit in dome Reply To: Ratchet mechanism for opening slit in dome

#626264
Dr Paul Leyland
Participant

I think it would be too slow Bill unless we motorised it but getting power to the dome at any position in its 360 degree rotation would be difficult.

I have been considering the same problem for my dome.

Front-runner idea at the moment is a UPS (i.e. a controllable and rechargeable battery) attached to the inside of the dome. Attached to it, also on the inside is a Raspberry Pi which switches power from the UPS to the dome motors – slit and dome azimuth – as required, the Pi being controlled from the main TCS over WiFi. Attached to the UPS on the outside of the dome is a solar panel which keeps the UPS fully charged.

In my case the dome azimuth is already motorized and controllable by the TCS so I need only the slit control but you may need both degrees of freedom to be upgraded.

Perhaps the same idea may work for you.

Paul