The Lozano Observatory - Remote Observatory Control

If you have been into Astronomy for a while you surely have noticed the prevalence of remote observatories for both Professional and Amateur observing. Remote operation of an observatory will dramatically change your time behind the scope which is the main reason it appeals to so many observers. My wife is actually encouraging me to remote control our observatory since that would keep me around at night. Here is the problem; its VERY difficult to actually accomplish remote control. Sure there are packages out there to automate the process but that's only part of the project. Here was my dilemma: Control the dome and scope and make sure they were pointing correctly. Sounds easy right? Software wise its actually easy but reliable communication, and ease of use are not.

When I was initially designing my remote-control set up, several minor details sprung up that became major problems. Internet-access is an absolute must form remote-control for obvious reasons but because this hobby takes place far from populated areas there are limited choices available for Internet access. I tested several methods including the use of a Sprint wireless air card and to be honest it worked quite well, remote-control operation was easy the only problem was inconsistency of connection speed. Due to the manner in which the card works, it had to be left logged on to my computer which proved not to be practical; occasionally there were updates that would load on to the air card and then log out, losing the connection.

Once again, ONLY if you are running XP Professional here are the steps to gain of remote-control access for another computer also running XP Pro.

Click Start
Mouse over All Programs
Mouse over Accessories
Select 'Remote Desktop Connection'

You will see the Microsoft login screen appear in the center of your window and you will be asked for an IP address or a username. In order to test the system I brought my computers home and tried this operation from my living room to my office. The process is easy if the computers are on the same network so I made sure and connected a second router to create a secondary network and utilized only the IP address from the second computer. In other words connecting to the other computer was no different than entering a unique Internet address, in this case the computers IP address and domain name. I have to admit I was very shocked when the computer connected and then asked me to in enter my username and password for the remote computer. One of the best things about remote access is it doesn't matter if there is currently user on the remote computer that has logged in because once you enter your password the home computer that you using will ask you if you would like to disconnect the current user who is connected to the remote computer, click yes. The home computer will then load the remote computer's desktop onto your screen at this point it will have complete control of the remote computer. Because of this direct connection, the speed of your connection will be no different than if you are actually at that computer which is a clear advantage over any of the current software programs currently available.

Micro Innovations

In Sight Webcam

Currently there are several products on the market that offer remote-control access to Internet connected computers such as, Go To My PC, Anyplace Control, and Remote PC. All of these companies offer great products that do come with some limitations; cost for one thing with Go To My PC runs around $20 per month. Anyplace control requires you to purchase the software upfront and pay a minor fee for continued updates while remote PC requires and monthly service fee. I have used ALL of these products and although they work, there are better, much more cost effective methods. Remote Desktop is FREE if you have 2 copies of Microsoft XP Professional.

Because cost is always a factor a decided to try something a little different when it came to remote control. Within the Microsoft Windows XP PROFESSIONAL platform there is a control operation that allows for remote-control desktop and remote-control invitations, both of them are quite easy to access if you are utilizing Microsoft XP Professional. It's well-documented that remote-control desktop will only work with XP Professional so if you don't have the software don't try this because it will not work in a matter how hard you try. For any computer running XP you can send remote-control invitations to another computer; this is not the answer to remote-control operation of the telescope because the remote computer is required to accept the invitation and this would defeat the purpose of remote-control operation because the user would not be there to accept the request to control their computer!

This menu appears after Remote Desktop is started and you

Once I was able to control my observatory computer from our home, we had some other choices to make. For safety reasons we wanted to have cameras installed in the observatory to check that all the doors on the dome are closed and that there are no mechanical problems with the mount such as the telescope not returning to the home position or the camera becoming dislodged. We do have security cameras on the observatory and I did consider purchasing another Lorex CCD System but cost was an issue along with the lack of Lorex having a pan and tilt camera I could justify spending the cash on (I'm over budget according to my wife).

I looked into several different remote camera operation programs and found that they were very expensive. The solution that I came up with was cost effective and worked perfectly! A company by the name of Micro Innovations manufactures a camera that connects with a USB connection and a 2.5 mm microphone cable; the camera can rotate 180° horizontally and 90° vertically. The camera also features a standard 1/4" 20 Mount on the bottom of the camera for easy mounting. This camera is able to automatically track objects in its field of view and also features a zoom function. The picture quality is outstanding and of course it has automatic white balance adjustment. The camera does have a microphone which could be useful for checking for Mount operation or any other extraneous noises. I purchased my camera new from a seller on eBay and paid around $49 for it, including shipping. The camera does not have any infrared LEDs which of course would be catastrophic for a camera in observatory with CCD equipment. And lastly the camera is able to see in relatively low light and I found it very useful for usage in the dome.

are INITIALLY CONNECTED to the remote computer, type in your password as you would if you were sitting in front of the computer.

On this 'Setup' screen, you will be able to rename outlets, change outlet properties and change your password.

Once your password is accepted you will see this screen, click on the outlet to turn it on.

Click on 'Setup' and you will be able to change your password, name the outlets and set outlet properties.

Once you are connected to your remote computer, open your web browser and type in the Default Web Power Switch IP, 192.168.0.100 and this dialog will appear, type in your user name and password.

After double clicking on the 'Remote Desktop' Icon, this dialog will appear. Type in your remote computer IP address or your Domain name plus your remote computer IP address.

One other issue that came up was the decision to leave the power on between imaging sessions or find some way to remote-control power operation. Digital Loggers is a company that manufacturers a product called the Web Power Switch II that offered the perfect solution to my problem. This power switch comes with a total of 10, 110 volts, 15 amp outlets, eight of which can be controlled remotely over the Internet. This product has its own NIC (Network card) which enables the user to access it over the Internet and turn on or off specific outlets. This Web switch was the perfect solution to my problem of having to leave on the telescope and the camera for extended periods of time. After using this switch for some time, I would highly recommend utilizing a crossover cable rather then a standard Cat5e cable. The reason is that I found out the connection is actually a bit more secure because utilizing a crossover cable access to the switch is not available floating around on the Internet but is rather associated directly with the computer. Once you're able to gain access to the switch, you are able to configure each of the eight controllable outlets and rename them according to the device that you plan to plug into them. This Web switch is a high-quality product, well-made and even has its own cooling fans and slots for mounting. The best part, the switch itself is only about $120 and it works perfectly. I would not even attempt to remote-control without this Web power switch! I have contacted Meade and Santa Barbara instruments and they both agreed that it would not be in the equipment's best interest to leave them on for extended periods. The screenshots below detail the procedures to make remote observing a reality!!!