AUTOSTAR INFORMATION Last updated: 10 October 2001

External Power for Autostar

From:	rseymour@wolfenet.com (richard seymour)

YES .. you can power a 495/497/494 Autostar without a computer.
You need to make a cable to replace the HBX cable.
You need to feed (at least) +9 volts to the outer two wires
of that cable.  No more than 15 volts..  DC.

If you look at the bottom of the Autostar, the positive side
of the power supply goes on the wire next to the rs232 jack.

Here's a picture, looking at the bottom of the Autostar.

Holes in Autostar         
+-------------------+       +-----------+    
|  8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1  |       |  4 3 2 1  |     
|_______     _______|       +---+   +---+       
       |_____|                  |___|

   ^             ^
   |             |
  0 volts      +9 volts


All the standard warnings apply: you CAN TOTALLY DESTROY your Autostar.
There are NO fuses or protective devices.  Reversing the polarity or
feeding power (or ground!) into any of the other 6 pins WILL (not may)
damage your Autostar.

good luck
--dick

full pin labels:


 Hole in Autostar          1: +12v        5: ALT/Az Data (ties to 7)
 +-------------------+     2:  Aux Clk    6: AZ Clk
 |  8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1  |     3:  Aux Data   7: ALT/Az Data (ties to 5)
 |_______     _______|     4:  ALT Clk    8: Ground
        |_____|          

Note that pins 5 and 7 are tied together inside the Autostar.

Hole in Autostar   1- Astar Rcv: data -to- Autostar  (PC pin 3) (25/2)
 +-----------+     2- Astar Xmt: data -from- Autostar (PC pin 2) (25/3)
 |  4 3 2 1  |     3- not connected
 +---+   +---+     4- ground reference   (PC pin 5) (25/7)
     |___|

Subject:	Re: Autostar External Power article
Sent:	Sunday, July 29, 2001 16:42:03
From:	rseymour@wolfenet.com (richard seymour)
I wrote the above before having a 494 in-hand.

The information re: pinouts is correct for the 494. However, the 494
doesn't have a socket, merely a cable.

As it happens, the picture is *correct* if you think that it is a
drawing of the end of the connector which -would- plug into the
telescope. Not the Telescope's socket, but the cable end itself. The
locking tang helps orient the figure.

The Starfinder is the same as the 494.

--dick

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