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The  MicroTouch  Autofocuser  is  designed  to  work  with  Feathertouch  Focusers  from 
Starlight  Instruments.    It  allows  automatic  focusing  with  CCD  and  DSLR  cameras.  
Included is FocusMax software to automatically focus the telescope for imaging.  Manual 
focus is also possible using the hand controller.  The hand control features an LCD screen 
for  displaying  a  digital  readout  of  focus  position  as  well  as  information  used  for 
programming the temperature compensation feature. 
 
The  MicroTouch  Autofocuser  is  compatible  with  Feathertouch  Crayford  focusers, 
Feathertouch  SCT  MicroFocusers,  and  Feathertouch  MicroFocusers  for  Takahashi  and 
TeleVue  refractors.    An  optional  larger  focus  motor  allows  use  with  the  Starlight 
Instruments 3.5” focuser. 
 

Included Parts 

 

 

Hand Control 

 

Focus Motor 

 

Focuser Gear 

 

Motor Connector Cable 

 

USB Cable 

 

12-Volt Power Cord (AC or DC, user selected) 

 

3 Hex-Head Wrenches 

 

MicroTouch & FocusMax Software 

 

 

 

Hand control, receiver, motor, cables 

Summary of Contents for MicroTouch Autofocuser

Page 1: ... focus position as well as information used for programming the temperature compensation feature The MicroTouch Autofocuser is compatible with Feathertouch Crayford focusers Feathertouch SCT MicroFocusers and Feathertouch MicroFocusers for Takahashi and TeleVue refractors An optional larger focus motor allows use with the Starlight Instruments 3 5 focuser Included Parts Hand Control Focus Motor Fo...

Page 2: ...head wrench to remove the knobs 2 Install the small brass gear onto the focus shaft The gear goes toward the telescope with the smaller gear hub away from the scope as shown below The gear should touch the brass bearing hub on the focuser Use the small hex head wrench to lock the gear in place Note The gear has a small insert to allow installation on different size focus shafts The insert can only...

Page 3: ...pletely cover the silver portion of the focuser Use the large hex head wrench to lock the motor in place Connect Hand Control 4 Use the included RJ11 cable to connect the motor to the hand control Using the MicroTouch Autofocuser Manually You can use the MicroTouch focuser to focus the telescope visually by using the IN and OUT buttons This is also how you will approximately focus the telescope wh...

Page 4: ...e drop of 1 F might require a focus position shift of 25 counts Therefore if the temperature drops by 2 degrees the focuser would move 50 counts to keep the telescope in focus The focuser must learn the exact focus shift required for a given telescope and configuration so adding a focal reducer for example would require the focuser to be recalibrated To activate the Learning mode press and hold th...

Page 5: ...n of the motor Reset Position The default position of the digital readout is 30000 The range of focus is 0 60000 If the focuser is moved to either end of this range press MODE until Reset Position appears Press and hold the SET button until the display blinks and resets The position has now been reset to 30000 If a different default position is desired it is possible to program this using the Micr...

Page 6: ...he directions given to install the FocusMax software The program will be located in the Windows Start Menu under All Programs FocusMax Installing the MicroTouch Hardware Drivers Connect the included USB cable to the hand control then to the computer The Found New Hardware Wizard should appear Select the automatic install routine The wizard should find the included drivers and successfully install ...

Page 7: ...roTouch temperature sensor may not be exactly the same as the actual ambient temperature due to heat given off by the electronics in the autofocuser Note that for the temperature compensation feature only the difference in temperature not the actual temperature is the only factor However if you wish the displayed temperature to be correct you can enter the known ambient temperature in this box and...

Page 8: ...range is needed for focusing eyepieces visually or for a focuser with a greater range of travel Any value from 1 10 can be selected Set Motor Speed There are two choices for motor speed Normal and High Normal speed turns the motor gear about once every 1 second High speed doubles the rate of revolution High speed allows large focus changes in less time but it produces less torque so heavier loads ...

Page 9: ...000 Select the desired position and press GOTO to move the focuser to that position Any value from 0 60000 can be selected Pressing Reset to Target Position changes the displayed count to the Target Position For example The default focus position when the MicroTouch is turned on is 30000 If after manually focusing the telescope using the IN OUT buttons the position reads 15000 you can enter 30000 ...

Page 10: ...00 the stored position can be selected from the drop down menu and the focus position of the filtered camera selected Note that offset positions such as this will only be approximate as temperature changes may affect actual focus differences Offset focus positions are still helpful for getting the telescope close to focus before running the autofocus routine The Halt button can be used to stop the...

Page 11: ... useful feature for users taking sequences of images is to only adjust focus between exposures To do this select Snapshot to store the current temperature and position information After an exposure has finished select Compensate Immediate and the focuser will move to the correct new position based on the new temperature At the bottom of the Movement screen is a strip chart showing temperature tren...

Page 12: ...ller Motor Controller and Temperature Sensor status windows will display OK The windows for Number of Corrupted Packets and Number of Comm Timeouts displays the history of the communication status between the hand control and wireless receiver Version numbers of the hand controller and motor controller firmware are displayed See above for details on upgrading firmware ...

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