10 replies to this topic

[sroffers]

Hi All,

 

    I admit that I am fairly new to N.I.N.A. as I recently upgraded from the ZWO ASIAir system.

 

    One issue that I observed was that "Slew and Center" was taking the first image, plate solving, reporting the error, and then commanding the mount to slew. It then took a second image to confirm the new position. However, the error reported was exactly the same as the first one! I let it cycle for a few more images as I watched the mount move further and further away from the target.

 

    I sent the mount Home and started over. Sent the mount to the target, and the slew and center looped incorrectly again.

 

    So, thinking about the process and that the system might not be using the subsequent images for confirming the center, I sent the mount to the target, and when Slew and Center moved the mount the very first time, I canceled the operation. I took and image manually and low and behold the target was exactly on center!!

 

    The good news is that I was able to get on target by interrupting the Slew and Center after the first adjustment. The bad news is that I cannot automate a session.

 

    Perhaps the Eagle LE can't handle loading the images quick enough for the process?

 

Pertinent Equipment in use:

ASI6200MM Pro

Eagle LE (Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC (64-bit) on Intel Celeron J4005 CPU @ 2.0 GHz with 4GB RAM)

N.I.N.A. 3.1.2.9001

[afd33]

I think what mount you use is more important than the camera. With my EQ6R-Pro I've never had that issue. With my EQM35-Pro, a much cheaper mount, I did. It seemed like the mount was unable to slew that minute of an amount. Never really made sense because it guided fine. My solution was to up my pointing tolerance a bit. Since it was a widefield set up it didn't matter much anyway.

Edited by afd33, 12 March 2025 - 10:36 AM.

[markalot63]

Hi All,

 

    I admit that I am fairly new to N.I.N.A. as I recently upgraded from the ZWO ASIAir system.

 

    One issue that I observed was that "Slew and Center" was taking the first image, plate solving, reporting the error, and then commanding the mount to slew. It then took a second image to confirm the new position. However, the error reported was exactly the same as the first one! I let it cycle for a few more images as I watched the mount move further and further away from the target.

 

    I sent the mount Home and started over. Sent the mount to the target, and the slew and center looped incorrectly again.

 

    So, thinking about the process and that the system might not be using the subsequent images for confirming the center, I sent the mount to the target, and when Slew and Center moved the mount the very first time, I canceled the operation. I took and image manually and low and behold the target was exactly on center!!

 

    The good news is that I was able to get on target by interrupting the Slew and Center after the first adjustment. The bad news is that I cannot automate a session.

 

    Perhaps the Eagle LE can't handle loading the images quick enough for the process?

 

Pertinent Equipment in use:

ASI6200MM Pro

Eagle LE (Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC (64-bit) on Intel Celeron J4005 CPU @ 2.0 GHz with 4GB RAM)

N.I.N.A. 3.1.2.9001

 

 

As mentioned above, for options / plate solving what solver are you using and what tolerance?  Installing ASTAP and using it has never let me down, but I'm using an AM mount.  My tolerance is .5 arc seconds.

[sroffers]

Mount is working fine, likewise for plate solving (I'm using ASTAP). As I said, if I interrupt the slew and center process right after the very first plate solve and slew it is RIGHT ON CENTER. This means that the plate solve was accurate. It also means that the correction sent to the mount was performed correctly.

 

If the plate solver is stuck using the first image (which means subsequent ones were not loaded) then it would keep calculating the exact same error. This is what I saw.

 

• I guess the bug could be in the plate solver if it isn't accepting subsequent images.
• Or the system is under-performing and the subsequent images are not making it to the solver.

 

P.S. I considered the camera pertinent because of the large 120MB image size. If the system can't handle moving that large of a file around, it could be the issue.

Edited by sroffers, 12 March 2025 - 10:55 AM.

[markalot63]

Mount is working fine, likewise for plate solving (I'm using ASTAP). As I said, if I interrupt the slew and center process right after the very first plate solve and slew it is RIGHT ON CENTER. This means that the plate solve was accurate. It also means that the correction sent to the mount was performed correctly.

 

If the plate solver is stuck using the first image (which means subsequent ones were not loaded) then it would keep calculating the exact same error. This is what I saw.

 

• I guess the bug could be in the plate solver if it isn't accepting subsequent images.
• Or the system is under-performing and the subsequent images are not making it to the solver.

 

P.S. I considered the camera pertinent because of the large 120MB image size. If the system can't handle moving that large of a file around, it could be the issue.

 

Yea, that's larger than I've ever done.  I wonder if it's a timeout issue waiting for the next image.   I just happen to have NINA installed on this laptop ...

 

 

Delay between attempts issue?  Device polling issue?  USB limit on the camera (careful, this can break other things)?

[sroffers]

Thanks for the info. If it is a timeout waiting for the next image, I wish it would let me know.

We need a "Delay between image acquisition and solve" setting.

 

BTW, I just bought a 4MB RAM to add to this system. Hopefully it'll improve performance enough.

Edited by sroffers, 12 March 2025 - 11:17 AM.

[markalot63]

Thanks for the info. If it is a timeout waiting for the next image, I wish it would let me know.

We need a "Delay between image acquisition and solve" setting.

 

BTW, I just bought a 4MB RAM to add to this system. Hopefully it'll improve performance enough.

I use a 2600MC Pro on an 8gb system and have to be very careful about what is loaded, and even then there's a significant slowdown during acquisition that I do not see with my 16GB mele quieter 4C.  I had the orbitals plugin loaded and all asteroids loaded.  Not good!    

[OregonAstronomer]

P.S. I considered the camera pertinent because of the large 120MB image size. If the system can't handle moving that large of a file around, it could be the issue.

Hi,
I wish I had an answer for you. Just wanted to let you know that I use the ZWO ASI6200 connected to a BeeLink Mini PC with 8GB of RAM. It plate solves multiple 120MB images during the Slew and Center process as fast as the mount can slew and the camera takes a 6 second exposure. Two to three slews and plate solves take about 30 seconds or so. Based on my personal experience of a single camera/mount combination, the file size does not seem to be an issue for NINA.

Hope you find a solution soon.

Anrie
 

[sroffers]

Thanks for the help. The system is up to 8 GB now. I will test once the clouds clear. At least the moon is bright so I'm not missing any good galaxy time.

[sroffers]

Update: The system is now working properly for Slew & Center since adding the additional 4 GB. The overall performance is noticeably improved. The Eagle interface app crashes noticeably less often as well. Getting that to "Never" would be ice, but I'm happy with the system now.

 

I was able to fully automate an LRGBH session last night with N.I.N.A. without any of the previous hiccups. So, I recommend that everyone upgrade their Eagle LE to 8GB RAM.

[PIEJr]

As for being new to NINA, I can offer what has helped me ferret out any bothersome bugs I encountered.

First, we all approach this stuff from different angles, with different equipment. Makes it hard sometimes to figure it out.

But I took a new approach to NINA last year around this time that I was going to finish getting my automation to work for me once and for all.

 

Cuiv has an excellent set of NINA videos to help work through most problems.

My one tough nut to crack was Meridian flips. But that wasn't a NINA problem, it was a me problem trying to dial in my limits so NINA and my mount could get it right.

 

Anyway, like they say, Bookmark this link for future reference:

Nina Setup and In-Depth Tutorials