Atik Cameras

Author Topic: Horizon camera, a frame download issue/error!  (Read 3191 times)

NielsVChr

  • Horizon BETA Tester
  • Jr. Member
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  • Posts: 85
Horizon camera, a frame download issue/error!
« on: September 04, 2018, 10:39:51 am »
Edit note:
Sorry, I just saw that the/your support e-mail address should be used instead, fine with me to delete this entry.
I have just e-mailed you about this issue.
Thanks.
Br. Niels

Hi, fyi, I was one of the Horizon beta camera testers.

Please help me out here, what kind of tests are needed to solve below Horizon camera frame download issue, can I help?

Suddenly while taken a series of light frames the download speed from the camera slow down to around 20 sec/frame, instead of 2->3 sec/frame for a bin1.1 frame.

I can live with that, but what also happen is that it is old frames that are downloaded again in "a pattern",
not the new exposures/recorded frames, they have somehow disappeared/not downloaded from the camera!!!

Please check these 2 Pictures, from my public dropbox, that show the problem,

https://www.dropbox.com/s/di8tfodzkofpazd/HorizonDLerrorCrop.jpg?dl=0
Frames number 10375, 10373 & 10371 and 10374 & 10372 are identical frames and the new recorded frames will never be shown/downloaded from the camera.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6sibmr0cdqsp7dh/HorizonDLerror2ndCrop.jpg?dl=0
Same "story" with this sequence of recorded frames, number 10298 to 10304.

The only way to stop this error frame download "mode" is/was to disconnect & turn off the power to the camera & turn the power on again & connect.
I use a Win10 PC with two USB3 ports, one for the Horizon camera & one for a ZWO camera. Both cameras was used that night.
I use the latest Atik core sw version:  "The latest version of the core software (Version 4.2.2.9) was updated on the 21st of Aug 2018."
I use in TheSkyX SW, the/your ASCOM camera driver.

Hopefully you can reproduce the download error at your site & thereby solve this fatal error, thanks.

Thanks. Br. Niels
« Last Edit: September 04, 2018, 10:57:56 am by NielsVChr »

NielsVChr

  • Horizon BETA Tester
  • Jr. Member
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  • Posts: 85
Re: Horizon camera, a frame download issue/error!
« Reply #1 on: September 04, 2018, 09:11:31 pm »
Well just FYI, I have just checked the frames that I took while this Horizon download error was present (not before I change object, I saw/found the download error) => I lost one hours of exposures, that night it is just so frustrating :-(
Br. Niels

pascky999

  • Newbie
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  • Posts: 3
Re: Horizon camera, a frame download issue/error!
« Reply #2 on: September 14, 2018, 04:04:44 pm »
Thats the problem I describe in another post, for me it is either black pics or previous frames which are downloaded forcing computer restart/Horizon replug/etc.

I have used 2 laptops at the same time during each sessions, one on win 8.1 for guiding (my old one) and one Win 10 for taking pics (the new one); I recently swapped the 2 laptops and now taking pics with Horizon on win 8.1 and its seems ok so far (3 nights without problem); another thing that I did was to change my power adapter 12V 2 A for a 12V 5 A and upgraded to last package version (the one of August 2018). Since I did that all at once, don't know what change may have solved the pb.

Another thing on the laptop is that the old one (win 8.1) seem to have more power on usb devices.
« Last Edit: September 14, 2018, 04:13:46 pm by pascky999 »

Steve

  • Atik Staff
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Re: Horizon camera, a frame download issue/error!
« Reply #3 on: September 17, 2018, 08:09:59 am »
Hello,

Astro photography can be frustrating for many reasons so its a good job it can also be rewarding when it does come together.

Thanks for sharing
Steve

Noah4x4

  • Jr. Member
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  • Posts: 64
Re: Horizon camera, a frame download issue/error!
« Reply #4 on: February 16, 2019, 08:56:53 pm »
Last night I tried using Sharpcap because I wanted to see how it added darks on the fly. It wasn't very satisfactory as Sharpcap only supports the Horizon via ASCOM and that means unsupported features in both directions (but I digress). However, I then suffered similar performance issues described by Niel's after reverting back to Infinity.  I too had to reboot everything, then It worked fine. I notice he additionally mentions also using a ZWO camera, hence presumably used Sharpcap during the same session?  Coincidence? My camera subsequently worked fine.