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"The Dobsonian Telescope" by Kriege & Berry

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ServoCAT Goto Drive System
Servo Drive Computerized Astronomical Telescope

The new full featured ServoCAT will power your Obsession telescope to new horizons - and zeniths! Now you can enjoy your Obsession telescope to it's fullest potential. Coupled with the "Argo Navis digital setting circles" your scope will be tracking with ease and provide full GoTo ability. Read the features below to learn why the ServoCAT is taking over the motorized telescope market in large aperture dobs.

ADVANCED FEATURES

Full tracking. No matter where the scope is pointing, it is always tracking the sky.
Full GOTO capability: Enter an object and ServoCAT sends your scope right to the target.
Spiral search feature. Off target, just hit spiral search and the telescope makes ever widening circles around the field until you find your object. Two speeds/widths for different field widths. This is a "TRUE" spiral - not a box or some other shape... if left to search the whole area it will span an area of 12 sq degrees! When you want to stop simply push any of the motion buttons and it stops and tracks from there! "REALLY COOL" is the most common statement when it is used for the first time! Also great for exploring rich fields. Cruise around the North American - a breeze, literally. Or explore the multitude galaxies in the Virgo Cluster with your hands in your pockets! (Background chart from Uranometria 2000.0 Deep Sky Atlas, copyright 1987, 2001 Willmann-Bell inc. Used with permission.)
Routine two star align to initialize system. Align - and go - nothing else to do but enjoy.
Closed loop system with encoder feedback. If someone bumps the scope or the wind pushes it off target just press a button and the scope returns to the previous target.
Supplied with super resolution 10000 count encoders. Most older DSC's only support lower resolution 8192 or 4000 res encoders. Super res 10K encoders yield greater tracking accuracy and more precise target acquisition.
Wired multi-function handpad. 3-Speed selection with LED indicator; Simultaneous axis moves; Local Sync; Slip-Return; GOTO; Spiral Search Optional fully compatible Wireless handpad ($250) No cords to trip over.
Choice of SIX speeds. Slew, Jog, or Guide. All programmable to what YOU want! Maximum slew of 5+ degrees per second.
Back lash compensation included, even functions with the Spiral Search function.
Can be used with the Argo Navis Digital Setting Circles. NO PC REQUIRED!
Supports "Manual" operation without having to realign (closed loop).
Emergency shut down mode. Accidently notice it is moving towards a ladder or an obstruction... Hit any three buttons on the hand paddle and the scope slews to a rapid stop.
ServoCAT externally mounted on rocker for better visibility and control.
Manual disconnect. Flip two levers and the system is disconnected from the drive motors. Free to move as you please. Flip the levers back and your back tracking and responding to GOTO commands. When in Manual Disconnect your scope retains the full buttery feel and ease of motion of a pure Obsession Telescope. Nothing better!
For those desiring a Planetarium program at the scope... the system supports FULL GOTO for Megastar, Astroplanner, and TheSky. GOTO literally 100's of thousands of objects

SUPERIOR SERVO MOTORS & DRIVE TRAIN

ServoCAT handles big Dobs with ease... because of superior technology, robust gearing and high precision servo motors.
Stronger than the stepper motors others use with a much higher dynamic speed range and closed loop speed control! Servo drive motors do not suffer from "pull out", a point where stepper motors simply stop due to lack of torque. Servo motors have a much higher dynamic speed range than stepper motors. This means they provide greater torque through out the range all the way up to their maximum RPM.
No altitude fabric friction drive like others use with slippage and wear problems. ServoCAT has a stainless steel altitude cable drive like big observatories use. No more eyepiece weight balance issues... gone are the days when you have to add or subtract weights when going from a 31 Nagler to a 5 Nagler.
Final gear drive ratios of 8000:1 to 10000:1 which means lots of reserve torque for those demanding outings when the wind picks up. Other manufacturers use much weaker gear ratios in the 200:1 - 500:1 range. The higher torque generated by our high gear ratios are perfect for big heavy Dobs like the 18 plus apertures.
The ServoCAT-Argo Navis GoTo system has more features, the most rugged drive train on the market, the most powerful digital setting circles, and it happens to be the least expensive computerized large aperture Dobsonian telescope going. At Obsession you get the best scope, the best GoTo drive, the best DSCs and even the best price! Are you Obsessed yet?

ORDERING INFO

The ServoCAT GoTo drive with Argo Navis digital setting circles and super res 10000 count encoders complete system installed is:

$2,795 on the 12.5 inch Obsession.
$2,995 on the 15, 18, or 20 inch Obsessions.
$3,195 on the 25 or 30 inch Obsession

Price includes the ServoCAT Goto drive system installed along with the Argo Navis digital setting circles and 10K resolution encoders installed.

Wireless hand pad is $250 option.

System is available now and ready for installation on new Obsession orders.

To order please send an email or phone.

Not interested in a motorize tracking but want the targeting capability and deep sky catalog of digital setting circles? No problem. We can install the Argo Navis digital setting circles with 10K resolution encoders on any new Obsession.

NOTE TO ALL EXISTING AND FUTURE OBSESSION OWNERS. The ServoCAT GoTo system was designed specifically for the Obsession series and can be retrofitted to all Obsessions.

For more info please send an email.

New customers that do not want GoTo capability now but think they might in the future should keep this in mind too. The ServoCAT can be retrofitted at any time.

Rui T, Alberto F, and Alfonso P, 18, 15 and15 inch owners in Portugal says
"The telescopes are working perfectly, and, as always, are providing stunning images. Just for kicks, we pumped up to 1400x, and the M57 ring went out of the FOV. We were looking at the central part of M57... All all this was on so-so seeing, average transparency, and medium light pollution. If all goes as planned, we will be taking all 3 Obsessions to the Canary islands, to observe at the Roque de los Muchachos site, at 2400m (7874 feet) altitude, home of a battery of professional telescopes, and one of the best sites in the world. Imagine the performance of these "beasts" over there... :-) The decision to use the ServoCAT/Argo-Navis combo, was a smart one. That thing really works! It's impressive to see a 15" move that fast! On a 25"... scary, I presume. ;-) Well, and that's all. Thanks again for the great telescopes!"

Randy R, 25 inch owner in Houston Texas says
"Dear Dave, Last night (albeit with a 2/3 Moon high in the sky all night), Andy and I finally took my 25" Obsession with ServoCAT and Argo Navis out to the TAS "dark sky" site for it's maiden voyage. I plugged all the cables in after getting there and setting up right at dusk (as usual) and finding myself in darkness (with Moon) I turned on the Argo Navis did an alignment on Polaris and then a second star (Rigel), then I flipped the switch on the power strip that ServoCAT is controlled from and it came online. I entered M42 and hit "GoTo" and it went to and tracked at 300X for 30-minutes! First time to try it out! No hassles, no fuss, no muss. Simple two-star alignment, turn the unit on, dial the object from the very user-friendly catalogues and then hit the GoTo button. I expected a night full of frustration with troubleshooting, plugging in my laptop and trying to diagnose electrical problems. Amazingly this never happened. What did happen was it worked first time, every time. The spiral search feature is WAY-COOL. I cannot wait to try it out on a really dark night without all the dew/Moonlight. If you haven't gotten the AN/CAT combination already ordered - sell all you have and do so immediately. I don't have RXDesigns stock, but am ONE extremely satisfied customer. You have a real winner here."

Jean-Paul R, 18 inch owner in Adelphi Maryland says
"I am delighted with my new Obsession 18". Two days ago, I took it to a fairly dark site (Tuckahoe State Park, MD), quarter moon and wind with gusts of 25 or so m/hr. Argo Navis and ServoCat (which I was connecting for the first time) worked perfectly. As you had suggested, the Telrad was all I needed for a very fast and accurate alignment. I was very please with that. Much easier to use than the power viewfinders. I was amazed at the rigidity of the telescope under wind. I could very well observe with high magnification (200+) without problems, even with the shroud on !. Some times, the wind would move the telescope but in a few seconds, it was back on track. It seems the friction of your design and the power of ServoCat combine to permit excellent viewing under windy conditions. I had not foreseen that. With the Paracorr and the 24 mm Panoptic, 13, 9 and 7 mm Naglers, I did a tour of galaxies in Leo and Ursa Major, some planetaries, a magnificent view of Orion Nebula and some clusters. I was most impressed with M46, a open but dense cluster with a large number of almost equal and low magnitude stars uniformly distributed over a 30' or so field. It includes a 3' or so Nebula. Absolutely magnificent. Three friends where very impressed by the telescope. The loading and set up are done in a breeze. Again, I am delighted with it. Thank you very much!"