Another LHiRes Calib lamp automation

[Mike Potter]

Until the definitive solution is developed by Shelyk I've built my own remote operation solution for the upgraded LHiRes calibration module. The main component is a model B Raspberry Pi, which is kind of like using a sledgehammer to kill gnats - as it's a full-blown computer on a card the size of a credit card that runs Denbian, a small-footprint version of Linux. Given the price of about $23 I figured it was a fairly painless way to become better-acquainted with building small automation projects. I plan to use the Pi for dome control as well. I purchased a 4-relay "hat" that fits over the Pi's GPIO pins that allows control of up to four switches. I have it set up so that relay 1 turns the mount off and on, relay 2 turns power on to the LHiRes, relay 3 activates the wavelength calibration setting, and relay 4 activates the flat lamp setting.

PiCtrl1.jpg (125.46 KiB) Viewed 1690 times

For about $10 I got a WiPi module that allows the Pi to communicate over WiFi. I wrote a small Visual Basic program to toggle the switches from the comfort of my upstairs study (the domes are in my back yard). It all works really well. Next is to write a module that can be called from VB Script and/or Maxim so that I can define sequences of calibration and science exposures.

PiCtrl3.jpg (103.48 KiB) Viewed 1690 times