Arduino Focuser
This has since been mounted to the Edge 11". It is an Arduino project called MyFocuserPro2 on Sourceforge. I wired an Arduino Nano to a motor driver board inside the case. The Arduino firmware was written by Robert Brown, which I uploaded to the Arduino. I have another copy on a small refractor. It works, but I need to tweak the setting to get sharper focus.
Onboard PC
If you remove the Chrome OS and replace the bios, a Chromebox becomes a standard x64 system. Increase the hd and ram and you have a fairly decent fanless pc with a core i7 processor. I mount this to the front of the SCT to offset the weight of the mirror and the back of the refractor to offset the weight of the objective lens. Four usb ports are standard, plus the Ioptron mount has a built in hub.
Scope Trolly
The idea is to wheel the tripod, mount and monitor in an out of the garage. This cuts down setup and teardown time. The wheels come off the ground when the tripod legs are down. The whole unit detaches by lifting the three red levers, so I can leave the trolly home when traveling to a remote site.
Dew System
If you look closely, there is a nichrome wire wrapped around the outside of the telescope. At this gauge, 1 volt powers about 1 foot (so 12v ~ 2 yards). That's enough to wrap around the primary scope twice. I frequently observe at 100% humidity with no dew issues.
Astro-Snuggie
I like creature comforts and I don't like being cold. So, I sewed the bottom portion of a fleece-lined nylon blanket together to create an Astro-snuggie. The hood is from an old ski jacket and is sewed to the top of the blanket. I use a wireless keyboard and mouse so I can control everything from inside the snuggie.
Monitor with swivel mount
Most of the time, I remote into the pc mounted to the scope. However, when I am setting up the image or looking at something extremely faint, it's nice to have a 10"monitor connected with hdmi. It's essentially my eyepiece. It swivels on an aluminum rod so it can turn to either side of the scope I happen to be working on. It is mounted to the work table attached to the tripod.
Enhance Dust Lanes
After the initial color stretch, I enhance the dust lanes by stretching the red using a color mask. When I set the blend mode to multiply, the dust lanes jump out of galaxies. I then back off the opacity to make the transition more natural. The black and white image in the lower right is the red color mask.
Starless Mask
For my initial stretch, I use a starless mask created in StarXterminator. This allows me to stretch the object without star bloat or background noise. It also allows me to impart some sharpening on the object during the stretch. This technique has helped tremendously in the early innings and I spend a lot less time fixing problems created by my own stretch.
Counterweight Caddy
The idea is to have a convenient way to carry these massive IOptron counterweights in and out of the house. It is made from a simple pvc pipe and a pull handle from a chainsaw. The handle is quick release, secured with a cotter pin. Carries easily and compact for storage.
