I was asked for some more pictures of the TARDIS showing exactly how the setup works. I just quickly took these pictures this evening, but took it down again; it’s still cloudy here :-(. It only takes 5 minutes to set up, though, which was the idea; it’s the closest I can get to observatory set up time of just opening the roof and switching everything on without actually taking up the space of a full-size observatory.
First, the door removes. It’s designed to fit underneath the overhang provided by the “Police Box” sign so that there’s nowhere for water to get in.
Then you just wheel it away. There are wheels at the back near the bottom and handles at the top to lean the whole thing backwards onto the wheels.
The mount you can see here is one of the earlier model Orion Atlas-GoTos. It’s shortly to be upgraded – I have an Astro-Physics Mach 1 on order and currently being built.
The telescope and camera assembly is stored in one piece (it fits inside a large Pelican case) so I just have to lift it out and attach it to the mount dovetail.
The telescope is a Takahashi FSQ-106ED, and the camera is a QSI583wsg with an Orion StarShoot autoguider attached to the off-axis guide port. The camera currently has my narrowband filter carousel installed (necessary for any useful imaging under the Bortle white skies around here, but I also have a second carousel with LRGB filters). There’s also a Robofocus stepper motor attached to the focuser shaft.
Finally all of the control electronics are in one box (one of those lightweight tool cases that you can get for $20 at Home Depot or Harbor Freight). Inside the box is an Intel Atom-powered PC and a WiFi router, plus all of the cables (tied together with zip ties into a permanent wiring loom) and power distribution.
With this box plugged in, I can control everything from indoors over the WiFi network…
That’s it! Total setup time is less than 5 minutes.
The electronics box makes a huge difference, making the control system very close to a permanent observatory setup. By having everything tied down in the box, not only is it very quick to get everything connected, but everything is always exactly the same.
That last part is very important, particularly given that a lot of this kind of gear is controlled by serial ports, and something as trivial as moving a serial converter from one USB port to another can mess up the configuration.
I’ll post more details of the electronics box in a future post…
Dear Duncan,
With your permission, I’d like to build a version of your Tardis over my rig!
I realize that this post is almost 6 years old (!), but I have recently been experimenting with a similar electronics box that rides atop my scope so that it rotates with the mount to avoid cable tangles during pier flips.
My imaging rig with controller is pictured here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/wh5hw0ouxvlqiik/scope.jpg?dl=0
My control unit is based on an Intel Compute Stick (under $150) that runs Windows 10 with Sequence Generator Pro and PhD2 for guiding. The whole thing weighs about 2 pounds and also includes an Optec Focus Lynx controller, a powered USB hub, and a 12 V distribution hub with Anderson PowerPoles.
A very nice feature of the piggy-back electronic setup is that there is only a single 12 V power cord going up to the scope, and a single USB coming down (to the mount).
As with your rig, I control everything via Remote Desktop from a laptop, iPad, or even my phone.
Thank you very much for posting your drawings of the Tardis construction. Do you have any further details on the roof construction?
How has your Tardis held up to weather over the years? Have you done anything further to keep it watertight?
I also image from a dark site 100 miles NW at a cabin near treeline in Wyoming. My dark site images are available at the website below, and also at astrobin.
Many thanks for any help!
Scott Denning
Scott,
awesome! Look forward to seeing some pictures once you’re done with construction.
The roof construction is pretty difficult, but essentially involves cutting 4 pieces of plywood into parallelogram shapes, with a circular saw and guide and the blade tilted at an appropriate angle.
The TARDIS is currently in my garage undergoing repairs for weather related damage; not too bad but needs some parts replacing, including the roof. I have new pieces that I cut for the roof, and this time will be sealing the edges with self-adhesive stair tread tape before painting. Although not intended for this purpose, I’m hoping that it will help keep water away from the edges of the plywood, which is the weather-damage weak spot:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/3M-2-in-x-15-ft-Safety-Walk-Step-and-Ladder-Tread-Tape-7635NA/100132176
Anyway, good luck, and looking forward to seeing how you get on!
Duncan