[HN Gopher] Satran Satellite Tracking Antenna
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       Satran Satellite Tracking Antenna
        
       Author : zenbryo
       Score  : 26 points
       Date   : 2021-01-15 19:07 UTC (3 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.danaco.se)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.danaco.se)
        
       | Rebelgecko wrote:
       | Cool! I wonder how the pointing accuracy is? When we made
       | something similar for a project that was a big problem with the
       | Az-El servos. Is the microcontroller propagating TLEs itself or
       | is that being done on the controlling device?
        
         | zenbryo wrote:
         | The accuracy is designed to be approx 1 degree. The current
         | microprocessor code only handles full degrees. But since I hope
         | to get enough traction to afford developing upgrades, using
         | encoders and higher gear ratios could give a higher precision.
         | 
         | The positioning and calculating of TLEs happens in the android
         | app. Hopefully I can also offer drivers for other software like
         | Gpredict later on.
        
       | golem14 wrote:
       | Neat! It would be good to know how this is different from
       | Satnogs, e.g., max weight/momentum of antenna, what APIs etc.
       | 
       | Satnogs looks great and is probably more sturdy, but I can't just
       | buy one (no kits afaik), and it is probably more complex to build
       | one.
        
         | zenbryo wrote:
         | Specs will be released later on since its still in prototyping
         | phase. Satnogs looks sturdy and has a similar control board but
         | seems more complicated. My goal is to offer complete kits for
         | 200USD (shipping and customs not included) but if you can
         | 3D-print the plastic parts yourself you'll more or less cut the
         | price in half.
        
       | benbojangles wrote:
       | https://github.com/RedBalloonShenanigans/antenny
        
       | penagwin wrote:
       | Hmm this appears to be an alt-az mount. If they made a future
       | version as an equitorial mount it would be even better for
       | radioastronamy, and if it's strong enough astrophotography too.
       | They're a lot more complicated though so it's understandable why
       | they didn't go that route.
       | 
       | Especially if this is meant more for geostationary satellites and
       | I'm guessing most satellites like NOAA aren't too bothered by the
       | slightly rougher tracking. Plus I guess the passes are fairly
       | short anyway...
        
         | zenbryo wrote:
         | Correct its and "Az-El rotator" intended for amateur radio and
         | was not designed with any other purposes in mind, but this is
         | just the first release. Main objectives were price and
         | simplicity. But I hope to get a good enough response to release
         | other versions in the future, especially a much tougher all-
         | metal weatherproof version.
        
         | buescher wrote:
         | Just add an equatorial wedge. Search terms: "DIY equatorial
         | wedge"
        
           | zenbryo wrote:
           | Thx for the tip! Lots of different upgrades should be
           | available later on and also I hope to build a community of
           | open source designs and addons
        
       | fotbr wrote:
       | Wish it had more details: Rate(s) of rotation, load capacities --
       | including windloading, etc.
       | 
       | Also rather wish it didn't rely on wifi/android, but that's
       | mostly because I don't use anything android based, and don't run
       | any wifi on the home network anymore.
       | 
       | All in all though, it's still a pretty nice looking little az-el
       | rotator. With different control software, it might also be a
       | useful little addition to give your static security camera a bit
       | of extra capability without breaking the bank.
        
         | zenbryo wrote:
         | Thanks for the feedback! It's still under development so more
         | specs will be released later on.
         | 
         | "Unfortunately" the entire design is based around ESP8266 to
         | make it cheap and easy for people to modify so wifi is the
         | current option but if there's interest for other alternatives,
         | anything is possible.
         | 
         | Since the rotator uses simple HTTP GET queries for the azimuth
         | and elevation, it should be possible to make it compatible with
         | other ethernet enabled positioning software.
        
           | fotbr wrote:
           | Regarding other software / platforms, HTTP GET seems easy
           | enough to work with.
           | 
           | My issue with wifi is really just a matter of too-many-
           | networks and interference making it a bad solution for me.
           | 
           | But I understand the appeal of the ESP8266 (and the rest of
           | that family of chips) and don't blame you one bit. IIRC it
           | has a serial port on a couple of pins, so that's another comm
           | option.
           | 
           | In any case, I look forward to seeing your progress. Good
           | luck!
        
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       (page generated 2021-01-15 23:01 UTC)