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SkySafari 6 Pro On macOS + Virtual COM Port + Direct USB Cable To iOptron CEM40 Can Not Successfully Connect (Answer: Perhaps, SkySafari 6 Pro Does Not Work With Virtual COM Port At This Time - Need More Info)

Keiron:

PLEASE READ MY PREVIOUS POSTS CAREFULLY!

The fact that SS6 on Mac OS connects to a Celestron (NexStar) SE and other Celestron mounts is irrelevant, The CEM 40 uses a different protocol than Celestron. Selecting Celestron SE mount in SS6 Telescope Setup... results in the same error message when clicking Connect!  "Connection Failure  The scope is not responding . . ."   Also, according to Celestron the USB B port is intended for use with their CPWI software which is Windows ONLY developed by PlaneWave. The mini-USB on the hand controller is entirely different but I don't know what modifications have been made to the protocol/firmware/hand controller to allow "direct" USB connection.

But whatever the case, Celestron uses a different protocol for USB communication than the iOptron CEM40.  

The virtual COM port is part of the firmware on the CEM40. It replaces the serial-USB connection used on other iOptron mounts. 

This port is addressed through the FTDI USB to RS232 VCP driver that must be installed on the Mac. 

The protocol for controlling the CEM40 being used by SS6 apparently is not utilizing the driver or virtual COM port correctly. Several other telescope control software apps have worked this out so the issue is resolvable.

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9 comments

  • Avatar
    Keiron Smith Official comment

    DevOps reference: https://starrynight.unfuddle.com/a#/projects/7965/tickets/by_number/553

  • 0
    Avatar
    Keiron Smith

    David, 

    Of course, I am not suggesting you use the Celestron Scope Type option to connect to your CEM40.  I am making an analogy.

    So, to summarize iOptron has switched into using a virtual COM port connection on macOS that is not currently supported by SkySafari.

    In the future, please do not create a NEW community post when replying to an existing community post.  We want to keep the forums simple to follow, easy to read.

    Original post: https://support.simulationcurriculum.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/360038292574-SkySafari-6-Pro-On-Macbook-Running-macOS-10-12-6-Does-Not-Communicate-Through-USB-Cable-With-iOptron-CEM40-Mount-Answer-User-Needs-Help-

    Thanks so much!

  • 1
    Avatar
    David Murray

    Keiron:

    Yes, the CEM40 connects to a computer through a USB cable in the same way some Celestron mounts connect but evidently SS6 is either not implementing this type of connection or is not doing so correctly. That is what I have been trying to point out. It is a coding issue, not one that can be solved by making the correct cable connections.

    You asked for a copy of "page 360" however I'm assuming you are referring to page 48 of the iOptron CEM40 manual; Appendix F. Computer Control a CEM40 Mount.

    Here is a screen shot of the online manual (https://www.ioptron.com/v/Manuals/7400_CEM40_Manual.pdf):

    Additional information was obtained through conversations with iOptron techs. I'm sure they would be more than willing to help.

    A further comment:

    It is not obvious how to reply to a comment on this forum.  This box is not visible on my browser, "New Post" is the only obvious button. Also making it difficult is the fact that The Forum does not allow sign-in from Safari browser even when cookies are allowed. Clicking <Sign In> does nothing, and clicking "Click here to restart your sign in" leads to a blank page. I must use FireFox browser.

     

    Thanks,

     

     

  • 0
    Avatar
    Keiron Smith

    #1 - You said, "According to iOptron the serial port (RJ9 cable connection) on the hand controller (8407+) of the CEM40 no longer functions as a communication port for controlling the mount."

    Please elaborate.  How and when did this change?

    #2 - Can you connect to and control any other mount using your Macbook Pro and the direct USB-to-USB cable?

    #3 - Have you tried connecting from SS6 to your mount without using the virtual COM port.  

    The instructions say the virtual COM port MAY need to be installed. 

  • 1
    Avatar
    David Murray

    Hello Keiron,

    First to answer your questions:

    1.    iOptron switched to using direct USB to USB mount control with the introduction of the CEM40 which was announced at NEAF in April 2019. I was told that the serial connection on the hand controller could not be used for mount control. This was a change from previous iOptron mounts, thus I said the serial connector on the HC was no longer being use for this purpose.

    2.   I do not have any other mounts that use a direct USB to USB cable. However, the CEM40 can be controlled in this way by ZWO's ASIair and an iPad as well as by KDE Kstars/Ekos for Raspberry Pi (Stellarmate v.1.4.6 ) and Mac OS (v. 3.3.6).

    3.   SS6 does not communicate with the CEM40 with or without the FTDI driver installed (I've tested this).  The com error log contains the following message:

    Sent ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:03 with error 0:
    :
    Received ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:06 with error -13:
    Sent ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:06 with error 0:
    :
    Received ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:09 with error -13:
    Sent ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:09 with error 0:
    :
    Received ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:12 with error -13:
    Sent ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:12 with error 0:
    :
    Received ASCII at 2020/01/28 17:02:15 with error -13:

    All of this aside.

    It occurred to me that the real problem here is the phasing of the development cycles of SS6 Pro for OS X (created July 12, 2019) and the CEM40.  Since the CEM40 was announced well into the development cycle of SS6 v 6.4.0 it is likely the developers were unaware of the change in communication method by iOptron. Furthermore, the techs at iOptron (Woburn, MA) tell me they do not have SS6 on a Mac by which to test the connection so they were unaware of the problem. Hopefully the SS6 development team is now aware of the issue and are working to correct it.  It might be worthwhile contacting iOptron as well as Jasem Mutlaq at KDE or Stellarmate for some insight if there are still issues.

    I guess I must have to wait for the next update of SS6 for resolution of the problem.

    Thanks,

            David

  • 0
    Avatar
    Keiron Smith

    Thanks for the further details.  Unfortunately, many mount developers build their new tech systems without coordinating with our developers, and yet still claim SkySafari supports the new mount.  Mount manufacturers should test the system they are going advertise before going to market.  But, they don't. 

    Please tell me how you can control this mount using an iPad.  What apps, wifi, settings are used?  Are you using iOptron's StarFi WiFi?

    Thanks!

  • 0
    Avatar
    David Murray

    Keiron:

    SkySafari Pro on the iPad can control most mounts made by iOptron and others through the ZWOptical ASIair and ASIair Pro hardware and the ASIair app on the iPad.  The iPad app connects to the ASIair through a local WiFi connection (the ASIair acts as a proxy server with an IP of 10.0.0.1 at port 4030) between the two and once the ASIair app connects to the mount SkySafari also connects. The mount can then be controlled either directly by the ASIair app or the usual way with SS.  If you are not familiar with it, the ASIair is a device based on the Raspberry Pi with its own proprietary software which, as far as I can tell does not have a graphical interface off the Pi.

    I was told by iOptron that they sent a CEM40 mount (and possibly others?) to ZWO to assist in developing the app. The Sep 2018 manual for ASIair has a section on using SS with the app. titled, 4.5 Finding the target. But I was also told that they don't have a Mac on which to run the Mac version of SS but still make the claim that the CEM40 is supported by SS.  So it might be beneficial to contact iOptron to see if they will loan or give your developers "samples" of their latest mounts, the CEM40, CEM60, and GEM45. Both the CEM40 and GEM45 have only USB communication ports. The manual for the new GEM45 also states that the mount can be controlled by SkySafari.

    I have not tested the CEM40 with the iOptron iStarFi adapter because the device has been on back order. When I can acquire one I will give it a try, but I suspect it should work with SS on the Mac because it does not involve the USB connection.

    David

  • 0
    Avatar
    Keiron Smith

    Hi David, 

    Please see these discussions:

    Beta-Testing Support For The New iOptron CEM-120 Mount (Now Completed!)

    Skysafari 6 Pro + iOptron CEM60 + StarFi = Error Message "Connection To The Scope But The Scope Is Not Responding" (Solution: Update To The Latest Version Of SkySafari)

    Your hand controller firmware version may be relevant to this issue.  Maybe not.

    However, aside from using the iOptron StarFi adapter you can also use SkyFi 3.  If you want an immediate solution I suggest SkyFi 3.

    If you want to wait for our developers to find a way to test with an iOptron mount, to debug whatever the virtual COM port USB issue is, you could be waiting a long time.  There is a very long SkySafari to-do list and since there are working StarFi & SkyFi 3 solutions available for your mount, this USB connection issue, a result of iOptron's design decisions, will not likely be a priority.  It will be logged for review for sure.  But, I can't promise any kind of ETA.

     

  • 0
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    Jean-Baptiste Leprince

    Hello, 

    I am making a quick up to this thread because I was in a situation similar to David Murray : I have an iOptronCEM70 (not a G one) and I could not use SKySafari anymore.

    But now I can since I found WiFIScope: 

    https://www.sequencegeneratorpro.com/download/wifi-scope/

    This small piece of software makes a bridge between SkySafari and the ASCOM drive, now I can connect SS to the PC and this software drives my mount. It works only with Windows but this is already something

    Very convenient when you are in the rare case  where you can not use SS.

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