Overview - ACP V8.1

If you think you already know what "controls" the telescope, camera, focuser, dome, guider, filters, etc., with ACP, the difference between a script and a plan, and how to hook everything up, then jump right to the Getting Started section! Otherwise, you might want to read this page and have a few myths dispelled while clarifying what ACP is -- and what it does. Later, once you have gone through the Getting Started process, check out the New User's information. Finally, for support and discussion with other ACP users, go to the DC-3 Dreams Communication Center.

If you haven't looked at the ACP Videos, it might be good to do so now.
You can see them on the DC-3 Dreams Channel at YouTube.

One of our eager and capable customers, Dick Berg, has produced an extensive ACP Reference Guide and published it online. He keeps updating this and it's already loaded with all sorts of good information, reference material, links, you name it. Take a look!

ACP Add-Ons, Enhancements, and Helper Components is a section of the DC-3 Dreams Communication Center in which you can find a variety of user-developed tools, enhancements, etc. for both ACP and ACP Scheduler. Check in there periodically, you might find a tool that will be useful to you.

What is ACP?

ACP is a program that serves as the hub and instrument sequencer for a fully robotic observatory, and (optionally) as a web and FTP server that provides safe and convenient internet access to a robotic observatory. It is designed to be used in conjunction with Diffraction Limited's MaxIm DL Image Processing and Camera Control software, and the FocusMax Autofocus Software. No other software is needed!

ACP is the leading program and web access portal for robotic and remote observatories, safely and securely servicing communities of observers.

ACP is a sort of Swiss Army Knife program which provides several services under one roof. It's completely independent of any other astronomy software except MaxIm DL and FocusMax. We innovated virtually all of these features, many years ago. ACP provides these capabilities (and more!):

• Provides a rich browser-based user interface that may be used locally at the observatory or remotely if you have the internet option. The web interface is meant to be the primary way to interact with ACP, so be sure to look it over. We want your ACP experience to be the same whether you are in the observatory, in your house, or far away.
• Takes text lists (which can be generated by our ACP Planner!) of targets, image specifications, and timing directives, and executes these "plans" automatically. While doing this, ACP controls all of the following:
  • Telescope (including optional pointing correction)
  • Imager (camera)
  • Filter wheel
  • Auto-guider (with predictive "smart start")
  • Focuser (auto-focus and/or filter focus offsets)
  • Imager rotator
  • Dome and Roll-off opening and closing
  • Dome slewing and slaving
  • Weather (with safety stop and shutdown)
  • Automatic adaptive sky-flat and/or EL-panel flat acquisition
• Every Image Centered™ technology - uses PinPoint™ (developed by us!) to precisely center every image right from the start, including automatic as-needed all-sky plate solving via Astrometry.net (the online service or via a locally installed copy of Andy Galasso's ansvr package.
• Soft recovery from image acquisition problems - if at all possible image acquisition will continue if an image fails for some reason.
• Overlapped slewing and image downloading. This is extremely important for science applications and is not supported by any other automation system! It's also very difficult given the robust recovery capability just mentioned.
• Adaptive telescope pointing corrector that learns as you image yet always centers your targets perfectly
• Non-parfocal filter management - auto-focus when needed or table-based focus shifts
• Automatic meridian flipping for German equatorial mounts - no more concern for where the pier is
• Automatic focus on demand, periodically, or adaptively when the FWHM grows too much
• Predictive autoguiding - automatically adjusts auto guider parameters for the best possible results regardless of filter or guide star magnitude
• Rotator support including automatic roll-over at meridian and positive assurance that the same guide star in the same position is used after a flip
• Automatic adaptive sky-flat acquisition at dusk and dawn, or EL-panel flats at any time, all as part of a total night's run
• Dome or roll-off roof controller, including geometry needed for proper dome slit alignment with both fork and German equatorial mounts
• Weather safety monitoring, and automatic shutdown when the weather becomes unsafe
• Automatic observatory shutdown, including parking of scope, imager warm up, and closing/homing/parking of dome/roof
• Tools and features for allowing unattended operation
• A web server for safely and automatically acquiring images via a web browser
• Pre-written web pages that dynamically adjust to your observatory settings, so you don't have to customize them to your observatory.
• An FTP server for downloading acquired images in bulk and other multi-file operations
• Support for cloud file services such as DropBox and Google Drive
• Pre-written scripts for many other useful tasks such as initial telescope sync and automatic sky-flat acquisition
• Manual telescope controls, including go-to bright alignment stars, 70000+ deep sky objects, and planets.
• Engine for running scripts in a variety of programming languages
• Script-accessible repository for observatory-specific data such as observer and observatory names, site lat/long, names for instruments, etc.
• Many programming objects (each is a sort of library or "programmable black box") for use by scripts and web pages
• Scriptable text-to-speech voice output and animated character.

What does ACP do?

ACP is an automation engine that takes your observing plans, which include multiple targets and timing directives, and acquires your data. It's actually much more than a simple sequencer, and can be customized and extended in limitless ways due to its open object architecture. As you become more familiar with ACP, you'll grow to understand the depth and power that it has. For now, though, just consider it as a "super sequencer".

It is also a web and FTP server, with pre-written web pages, that allows you to provide safe and secure access to your observatory to people who want images but don't need to know how to micro-manage your instruments. They just supply the "what" and "when", and ACP handles the "how".

Do I need to be a script programmer?