Hamlib/rotators/flir

FLIR/DirectedPerception PTU Rotor Module

This module interfaces FLIR and DirectedPerception rotor using the PTU protocol via serial.

This includes:

• PTU-D48(E)
• PTU-E46
• PTU-D100(E)
• PTU-D300(E)

Tested only with PTU-D48 yet and with one rotor per chain only.

Usage

1. Connect the rotor via serial (RS232 or RS485)
2. Power up the rotor
3. The rotor must be calibrated after each power up. This can be accived either using the rotctl Reset command (R) or manually via serial terminal sending the R\n command.
4. To enable the rotor to fully turn +/- 180°, the softlock must be disabled. This is included in the rotctl Reset command or manually via serial terminal seinden the command LD\n. WARNING: Send this command only after the rotor is calibrated, or you risk damage running into the hard endstops (at about +/-190°)
5. Start rotctl or rotctld with the arguments -m 2501 -r <Serial Interface>

Have Fun.

Hints

1. Setup the max. velocity, power and acceleration according to your antenna load. This must be done via serial terminal, as the functions are not implemented yet.
2. Never use the maximum hold power, only use the low or off. If you use max or regular, the rotor may easily overheat!

PTU Protocol

• Protocol Version 3.02 (2011)

Current Status

The current status is ALPHA. It is tested with DirectedPercepiton PTU-D48 (Firmware v2.13.4r0(D48-C14/E)) Linux with rotctl and gpredict.

Implemented so far:

• init
• cleanup
• open
• close
• set_position
• get_position
• park
• stop
• reset
• move
• info

Needs to be implemented:

Parameters

• velocity
• acceleration
• velocity profile
• user soft-limits
• power commands (move and hold)
• step mode
• reset on startup

Functions

• usage of chained rotors via RS485