Windows Mobile - Bluetooth
Wireless
Telescope Control
No Cable Required!*
*Pocket PC, TheSky
Pocket Edition, Paramount ME, and the Bluetooth Wireless Serial Adaptor sold
separately.
The
Paramount ME (GT-1100S) or virtually any other RS-232 serially controlled optical
encoder system or "goto" telescope (Celestron, Meade, AstroPhysics',
Gemini, SGT, Temma) mount for that matter, can be controlled
wirelessly via Bluetooth using a Windows Mobile Device running
TheSky Pocket Edition
provided you have
Bluetooth available on the device. Your mobile device may or may not be equipped with
Bluetooth.
NOTE: For Windows
Mobile device users if your device does not have Bluetooth built in
you will have to find a solution. This is very device specific.
Minimum System Requirements
Links on this page
Controlling the
Paramount ME
or other scope via wireless control is very convenient, and
fun! Many of the newer laptop models and Windows Mobile devices come equipped with Bluetooth
technology. If your Pocket PC does not come with Bluetooth
then a
USB to BlueTooth adapter
can be used. This will depend on your Mobile device.
The following example
is using a Dell Axim X50v with built in Bluetooth. However, other Mobile devices
should be nearly identical in regard to connecting. Consult the devices manual if you need
help finding the Bluetooth manager. The
serial Bluetooth adapter must already be properly configured,
powered, and connected to the telescope (in some cases using a null modem
adapter and/or gender). Refer
to the following page for details on configuring these devices.
Start | Settings | Connections
Click the Bluetooth Icon
Make sure Bluetooth is Enabled!
Check Bluetooth On
Click on New Partnership
to search for Bluetooth devices in range.
Searching for devices
Be patient!
Names
listed will vary!
devices are listed
Or if the device is already shown in
the list click on it here.
Click on the Devices TAB
if device is already shown
Click on the Bluetooth serial adapter
by name. If there aren't any devices shown the serial adapter is not
configured correctly (made discoverable).
<--Click here for details on how to configure the serial adapters!
Assuming the device has already been
configured properly you will see the Serial Port service as shown
below. Change the Display Name to something
more meaningful and make sure that the serial port service is
enabled.
Refer
to the following page for details on configuring these devices.
Change the Display Name
Add PIN to name
HINT! Add the PIN to the name
if you like. That way you will see the PIN and name when connecting!
Next check the COM ports tab. See
below. If you do not specifically see an OutGoing port you must
add
a new OutGoing port before you can connect. REGARDLESS of
what the new OutGoing or existing Outgoing port number is that is the COM number to enter in TheSky
Pocket Edition. If there is already an Incoming port listed
ignore it BUT make note of the Incoming Port number. The incoming
port number and outgoing port number cannot be the same and you will
be warned!
In my example you simply cannot use COM7 here
as the Outgoing port
since it has already assigned as an Incoming port.
Make a NEW Outgoing Port
If not listed add it
Outgoing Com8 because Com 7 is used
Paramount ME shown here
COM7 Incoming already exists
Need an OutGoing port - make one
Your port assignment may vary!
NOTE! Personally I have found
that I have to "ADD" the Outgoing com port (again com8 in this example
) when connecting to the
Bluetooth serial adapters. Failure to do so results in TheSky not
being able to communicate with the telescope. In this case the
Outgoing port has become COM8 and is named Paramount ME below.
Regardless of the COM PORT number you must use the OUTGOING port in
TheSky Pocket Edition. COM8 as shown below. Individual COM PORT
assignment may vary.
Note the NEW Outgoing port COM8
Now you are ready
Use COM 8 with TheSky PE
Your port assignment may vary!
In TheSky Pocket Edition use Menu |
Telescope | Setup. Select the telescope by name from the list. Then
press Settings.
Choose the telescope by name
in TheSky PE
And then click Settings
Next you need to enter the proper COM
PORT for the Bluetooth serial adapter in TheSky Pocket Edition. In
our example here the OutGoing port has been assigned COM PORT 8. This is
the COM PORT you need to enter in TheSky Pocket Edition.
Your port
assignment may vary! Just use the OutGoing port number whatever it
maybe.
If you do not have an outgoing port you must
manually add it! See above.
Select the new manually added
Outgoing COM PORT
in TheSky Pocket Edition
Now you are ready to connect to the
telescope. Menu | Telescope Establish Link.
Telescope | Establish Link
Linking....
Choose Yes then enter PIN
Telescope Cross Hair
Whoo hoo ready to slew!
If you receive the
error code 55 (hex 37) when attempting to connect the port you have
entered in TheSky PE is is currently not available. If freeing up
the COM PORT still doesn't solve the problem also
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE TWO COM
PORT NUMBERS assigned to the adapter both an Incoming and
Outgoing port. AND you are entering the Outgoing port number in
TheSky PE.
Using my own Dell Axim
X50V with Bluetooth I simply cannot connect until I manually install
the required second outgoing com port and enter that number in
TheSky Pocket Edition. For example, I have to use Com 8 in my case
because Com7 is the incoming port.
Your port
assignment may vary!
Either the telescope
is not turned on or the wrong com port has been selected. Make
certain you have added a second
outgoing COM PORT and then entered this manually added a second OutGoing COM PORT number
in TheSky Pocket Edition. The outgoing com port assignment is the
one you must enter in TheSky Pocket Edtion.
If you have followed
all of the above, configured the serial adapter properly (proper
baud rate, 8 databits, one stop bit, no parity) and still cannot
connect most likely you have a hardware handshaking issue. If your
device does not allow the disabling of hardware handshaking (flow
control) by tying pin 7 to pin 8 on the
serial adapter side i.e. the "Socket Serial
Adapter" you will not be able to connect until you have
satisfied the handshaking requirement at the hardware level. See the
above links for details on how to tie pin 7 to pin 8.
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