2040 replies to this topic

[dlwmacgregor]

What do you mean you think so?

When you log into the router interface can you see the HBG3?

Edited by dlwmacgregor, 06 April 2025 - 03:28 PM.

[mlord]

What does the HBG3 display show -- got an IP address, or just 0.0.0.0 ?

[KrisKringle]

Sorry, I'm not good with this stuff. I configured access point in skyportal and entered my home SSID and Passkey.  Then did send configuration to wifi module. I didn't take note what IP address  the HGB3 displayed.... I will try again tomorrow. 

[mlord]

when I did the hold down for 3 seconds to install the update the connection always failed....

That's because it hasn't yet established a connection to your Access Point.  Most likely because the SSID/Passkey were not correctly entered.  Put it back into Direct Connect mode and start over.

 

I'll update the firmware to detect this situation and say "not connected" on the OLED in the future.

[KrisKringle]

What does the HBG3 display show -- got an IP address, or just 0.0.0.0 ?

 

 

What do you mean you think so?

When you log into the router interface can you see the HBG3?

Ok, got it first thing this morning. Printed out the instructions below and went to the garage. Read the instructions over and over and over…

Did exactly what I did yesterday and went really slow, reading each word and sentence…I saw what I typed in for the SSID yesterday and Wrong! I had a letter mistyped. Then everything went smoothly from there on. Thank you to the Canadians!

 

[KrisKringle]

That's because it hasn't yet established a connection to your Access Point.  Most likely because the SSID/Passkey were not correctly entered.  Put it back into Direct Connect mode and start over.

 

I'll update the firmware to detect this situation and say "not connected" on the OLED in the future.

Thanks Mark, that will be helpful for someone like me that can't enter their SSID correctly.

[mlord]

Firmware v8.67 is now available for the HBG3 project:  hbg3.ino.v8.67.txt   350.64KB   15 downloads

 

* Version 8.67 2025-04-07
*  -- Replace OLED_ROW_CHARS with OLED_ROW_SIZE, and fix related calculations etc.
*  -- Respond to WiFi mode switch changes while connecting to Access Point.
*  -- Fix ota_update from OLED to say "not connected" when waiting for WiFi to connect.
*  -- Include VERSION_DATE on first line of "help".
*  -- Fix some compile errors when certain features are not enabled.

 

So, the biggie from this release is the second item above.  If one has configured incorrect WiFi parameters for Access Point mode, or is simply out of range for it, the WiFi mode switch can now be flicked back to "Direct Connect" mode and it will take effect immediately.

 

Previously, flipping the switch while waiting for a connection would have no effect until the 5-minute fail-safe expired.  Much better now!

 

The OTA Firmware Update display on the OLED has been improved behind the scenes, and now updates to reflect WiFi status/switch changes as they happen.  Previously one might have had to switch away from that screen, and then come back to it, to see any changes in WiFi status.

 

So, nothing super urgent here, just stuff to make it nicer! 

 

But I do strongly recommend that everyone keep their HBG3 firmware up-to-date.  Updating HBG3 firmware is easy, and 100% risk free (unlike with Celestron updates):  it is impossible to "brick" the HBG3 from a firmware update!

 

Sources and binaries are available in all of the usual places, including for simple upgrades via the Over-The-Air (OTA) Firmware Update mechanism, direct to the HBG3 (no "computer" involved).

 

 

 

[klassikmann]

Just tried the OTA firmware update, but I got "File Not found".

[mlord]

Just tried the OTA firmware update, but I got "File Not found".

Temporary server-side issue.  Try again.

[klassikmann]

"OTA Update success"
Thank you.

[Chayko]

Just updated 2 HBG3+RELAY to current version this afternoon - went perfectly fine and easily with the following minor inconvenience- 

It would not let me update thru my wifi range booster that I use to get internet access my garage.

 

Booster gives me full internet access with great connection speed and uses same password as house but has a “_ext “  so bell777 (for house) vs bell777_ext  (for garage) which was used to try to update

 

LCD WiFi: was scrolling thru numbers 1-9 and ip stayed at 0.0.0.0.

 

Came into house and used main house Wifi connection and had both units updated faster than it took me to write this. 
 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks for the great product

[mlord]

 .. was scrolling thru numbers 1-9 ..

That's interesting.  It should be trying channels 1..14, not 1..9.  That's in the ESP32 operating system firmware though, not my HBG3 stuff.

 

You probably need to enable 2.4GHz 802.11n compatibility on that Range Extender.

Edited by mlord, 08 April 2025 - 09:18 AM.

[Chayko]

Numbers were scrolling pretty quickly so I might have missed it going all the way to 14.

 

Also 2.4 ghz and 5 ghz are both enabled.  
 

Not a big deal - I’ll try to recreate it tomorrow maybe my signal booster is junk. 
 

thanks again

[mlord]

A note for people doing HBG3 firmware updates in the next few hours:

We're in the middle of a major, sticky snowstorm here, and it has knocked the power out this morning. My server and stuff is all fine, but we will likely lose the Internet connection before power is restored to the ISP's equipment. They only have about a 3-hour backup supply out here in the sticks.

Should all be back in about another 5-6 hours or less from now.

Nothing to be concerned about. Even if a firmware update gets cut off mid-update, the HBG3 will be fine and still work.

 

Edited by mlord, 08 April 2025 - 05:38 AM.

[Kanis92]

Hi Mark,

 

I finally completed the HBG3 (though I forgot the OLED part). The firmware was built and uploaded to the device successfully. 

 

However, when I connect the HBG to USB and open CPWI, it searches for the device at COM5, then COM4, and then gets stuck at COM3. Do you have any idea what might be causing this?

 

At the moment, I’ve only connected the HBG directly to the computer, it’s not yet connected to the mount. Do I need to enable debug mode before running CPWI?

 

Thanks

Edited by Kanis92, 10 April 2025 - 10:20 AM.

[mlord]

CPWI, SkySafari, SkyPortal, will not establish a working connection unless the HBG3 is connected to a mount and the mount is powered on.

[Kanis92]

CPWI, SkySafari, SkyPortal, will not establish a working connection unless the HBG3 is connected to a mount and the mount is powered on.

Thanks Mark

I assumed I could emulate the mount without actually connecting it.

[mlord]

I assumed I could emulate the mount without actually connecting it.

Oh, okay.  Yes, having the HBG3 emulate a mount is indeed a valid way to "establish a working connection".

 

You do have to turn on the emulation, though:

 

set emulate.mount 1

save

reset

 

One can then observe the THREE BLUE BLINKS as the HBG3 restarts.

And later turn it off again before actually using a real mount:

 

set emulate.mount

save

reset

 

Cheers

Edited by mlord, 11 April 2025 - 09:48 AM.

[mlord]

HBG3 WiFi Bridge operation:

 

The HBG3 has long had a "wifi_bridge_mode" feature (formerly known as "wifi_relay_mode"), which can be used to connect from a remote "standalone" HBG3, over WiFi, to either an Evolution mount's WiFi, or to a second HBG3 at the mount.  Probably also for an AstroFi mount.  Original post:  https://www.cloudyni...6#entry12773742

 

What use is this "wifi_bridge_mode"?  Well, it allows the remote HBG3 to behave as if it were directly plugged into an AUX port of the mount, even when it isn't.   This mode of operation is "automatic" whenever the remote HBG3 is configured for Access Point mode, to connect to an SSID name beginning with HomeBrew-, Celestron-, or SkyQLink-.

 

So if one configures the built-in WiFi of an Evolution mount for "Direct Connect" mode, and then configures the remote HBG3 for Access Point mode, connecting to (eg.) the SkyQLink-xx SSID of the Evolution mount, then the two will establish a 2-way AUX protocol "bridge" between them.

 

 

This enables any accessories plugged into the remote HBG3 to act as if they were connected directly to the mount.  It is best suited to the HBG3-Relay variant, feeding +12V into its primary AUX port, to power it and any Celestron accessories connected to the HBG3-Relay ports.  Such as a Celestron hand-controller (Nexstar+ or StarSense).

 

But this can also be done with a regular HBG3, by shorting the Tx/Rx pins together on the lone AUX port, and feeding +12V into the pad provided for such on the HBG3 PCB, preferably through a diode for safety.

 

I was commenting in another thread here on CN, about the possibility of using a Nunchuck remotely with this feature.  This is very simple to do, as +12V isn't needed in this scenario, so a regular, unmodified HBG3 can be used with +5V USB power instead.  Which then got me to actually trying it here.  It failed.  Apparently wifi_bridge_mode had been broken for a while in the firmware, so today I fixed and improved it. 

 

Here is the pre-release firmware:  [removed -- full release coming..]

 

With this feature now reinstated, the HBG3 once again has "wireless Nunchuck" capability, as well as "wireless hand-controller", or anything else one wants to connect using it.  All of the emulated devices (implemented by the HBG3 itself) should also work over the WiFi Bridge.

 

EDIT:  Changed the name from "WiFi Relay" to "WiFi Bridge", to avoid confusion with the HBG3-Relay hardware device.

Edited by mlord, 13 April 2025 - 10:22 AM.

[koprol]

Focuser Update.

 

Today i received the 28byj-48 with a driver, first time i connected it i found the problem i was having with Nema17. Not all the connected to the HBG3 pcb were touching the ESP32 board. It was easy to see with 28byj-48 driver because it has leds... 

This was my problem:

esp.jpg

 

Also here is my working focuser if you need ideas (it still needs a bit of adjustments but works), it has two springs for the tention and it's a similiar idea to some previous ideas in this foroum, the diference is that is not around the diagonal and it does not change anything in the telescope so you can take it from the telescope very quickly

focus.jpg

My focus motor (nema17) does not work yet. So I'm trouble shooting.

I checked the connection of wires and they seem to be ok.

 

The pins mentioned by calhous should be soldered to both pcb's (so on both sides of the blad spacer block)? As mentioned in the post of calhous (see quote)?

 

I think I have made all the connections correctly but am in doubt about the settings on the controller board. There are 3 switches MS 1, MS2 and MS3. Does it matter if they are on or off?

 

There is also a potentiometer on the controller board. Does this need adjusting? If so what am I seeking to adjust? 12V on the nema17 inputs?

 

I took ground from the GPS pins (easiest accessible). That should work, right?

Edited by koprol, 13 April 2025 - 10:02 AM.

[mlord]

Firmware version 8.68 is now available for the HomeBrew Gen3 (HBG3) project:   hbg3.ino.v8.68.txt   351.17KB   16 downloads

 

* Version 8.68 2025-04-13
*  -- Rename wifi "Relay" to wifi "Bridge", avoiding naming confusion with HBG3-Relay.
*  -- Fix wifi_bridge_mode (formerly wifi_relay_mode): got broken somewhere along the way.
*  -- Ensure Nunchuck and all emulated devices work with wifi_bridge_mode.
*  -- Print the routing table in "status" command.
*  -- Include "SkyQLink-" for wifi_bridge_mode auto-detection.
*  -- Always trace both parts of auxtest messages.
*  -- OLED: Show Link-Down status for WiFi/Ethernet.
*  -- OLED: Respond better to Client/Server switch changes for WiFi/Ethernet.

 

Lots of little tweaks are hiding amongst that, but the main thing is that WiFi Bridge mode is now working, and better than ever before.

 

I do recommend that everyone keep their HBG3 firmware up-to-date.  Updating HBG3 firmware is easy, and 100% risk free (unlike with Celestron updates):  it is impossible to "brick" the HBG3 from a firmware update!

 

Sources and binaries are available in all of the usual places, including for simple upgrades via the Over-The-Air (OTA) Firmware Update mechanism, direct to the HBG3 (no "computer" involved).

 

[mlord]

The pins mentioned by calhous should be soldered to both pcb's (so on both sides of the blad spacer block)?

 

I think I have made all the connections correctly but am in doubt about the settings on the controller board. There are 3 switches MS 1, MS2 and MS3. Does it matter if they are on or off?

 

There is also a potentiometer on the controller board. Does this need adjusting? If so what am I seeking to adjust? 12V on the nema17 inputs?

 

I took ground from the GPS pins (easiest accessible). That should work, right?

Q: The pins mentioned by calhous should be soldered to both pcb's (so on both sides of the blad spacer block)?

 

They are labelled as A,B,C,D on the HBG3 purple PCB, but the connection is actually made by soldering them into the corresponding holes/pins of the ESP32 module.  It doesn't hurt to solder them to both PCBs though.

 

 

Q: There are 3 switches MS 1, MS2 and MS3. Does it matter if they are on or off?

 

"MS" stands for "Micro-Steps".  The switches should get set to match the motor driver module you use with the board.  See here for a bit of detail:  https://lastminuteen...duino-tutorial/

For my prototype NEMA version here, I use a TMC2209 motor driver module, which is plugged into that board with the switches.  For this specific driver module, I have MS3=Off, and MS1=On and MS2=On.

 

 

Q: There is also a potentiometer on the controller board. Does this need adjusting?

 

That potentiometer can be used to adjust the maximum amount of electrical current that the motor driver will draw when powering the motor.  If you have a 10-amp power supply for the +12V, then spin the adjustment all the way up (counter-clockwise on the TMC2209 I have here) for the fastest possible speed. 

 

But realistically, you'll want to limit the current draw to perhaps no more than 0.5A.  This can be done using an ammeter to actually measure what the motor is drawing (run it at max speed) while turning the focus mechanism, and then adjusting the potentiometer down (clockwise in my case) to reduce the current draw to the desired limit (eg. 0.5A).

 

Why 0.5A?  That's a low enough current draw that I can safely power my motor from AUX, should I choose to.

 

Q: I took ground from the GPS pins (easiest accessible).

 

GND is GND, so that will work.  On all of the purple versions of the HBG3, I ensured that all GND connections have nice, fat copper traces connecting them, to handle high current.

[Kanis92]

Oh, okay.  Yes, having the HBG3 emulate a mount is indeed a valid way to "establish a working connection".

 

You do have to turn on the emulation, though:

 

set emulate.mount 1

save

reset

 

One can then observe the THREE BLUE BLINKS as the HBG3 restarts.

And later turn it off again before actually using a real mount:

 

set emulate.mount

save

reset

 

Cheers

 

I was finally able to complete the HBG and set up the emulation - it works like a charm. Now I'm just waiting to test it on my CGX

 

I really appreciate all the work you've done and the help you've given, Mark!

 

 

 

 

 

[mlord]

I was finally able to complete the HBG and set up the emulation - it works like a charm. Now I'm just waiting to test it on my CGX

Great.  You may also then find this extra bit useful in the meanwhile:

 

;; Emulate a CGX mount:
set mount.override 0x1788

set emulate.mount 1

save

reset

 

.. and turn it all OFF again when using a real mount:

 

set mount.override

set emulate.mount

save

reset

Edited by mlord, 21 April 2025 - 07:15 AM.

[panholt]

edit: I touched up the solder on the RX and TX pads and its working now. 

 

 

I have just completed the assembly and everything looks ok, but I cannot communicate with the mount. When I power it on, this is the output in the terminal: 

000378144 auxbus_rx: 00
000389071 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 00 ff 3b 03                                  [UART   -> FF    ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000389095 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 01 6f 00 00                                  [MOUNT  -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000389114 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 00 37 00 ff                                  [UART   -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000389131 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 00 df 00 00                                  [UART   -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000389159 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 00 df 00 00 ff
000389557 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 03 ff 3b 02                                  [???    -> FF    ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000389585 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 03 ff 3b 02 01 ff
000390262 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 01 ff 3b 03                                  [MOUNT  -> FF    ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000390290 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 01 ff 3b 03 01 ff
000390967 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 01 ff 3b 02                                  [MOUNT  -> FF    ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000390995 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 01 ff 3b 02 c0 37 ff
000391671 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 c0 37 ff 3b                                  [???    -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000391699 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 c0 37 ff 3b 02 c0 27 ff
auxbus_rx: bad len 02
000392047 auxbus_rx: 3b 02 e0 37 ff                                     [???    -> ???   ]
000392729 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 df c3 3b 02                                  [???    -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000392757 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 df c3 3b 02 2f c0
000393433 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 2f c0 3b 02                                  [SCANER -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000393461 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 2f c0 3b 02 2e e0
000394138 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 0f c0 3b 03                                  [???    -> ???   ] BAD-CHECKSUM
000394166 auxbus_rx: 3b 03 0f c0 3b 03 2f c0

Additionally the test_auxbus command fails: 

 

test_auxbus
auxbus: Busy  test passed
auxbus: Tx/Rx test failed

Any advice? 

Edited by panholt, 24 April 2025 - 08:56 PM.