Acknowledged as the best mount in the world for ‘small' (under 70kg) OTA set-ups. The Paramount ME is Software Bisque's third generation, professional quality robotic telescope mount, and it will blow you away! Originally developed for tracking satellites and missiles for the US Air Force. Unsurpassed pointing & tracking accuracy and weight capacity make this mount the pinnacle of amateur astrophotographers and serious scientists alike. It can be remotely controlled via the Internet or any Ethernet cabled computer. Truly a work of art in it's functionality and it's looks. Piers priced separately - call for options. Picture courtesy of Gordon Haynes - visit www.imagingtheheavens.co.uk

Specifications:

• 8.8" (223mm) RA and 6.7" (170mm) declination bearings machined into the gears!
• ProTrack software compensates for tube-flexure, atmospheric refraction, polar misalignment and other system errors, while tracking!
• Weight Capacity is 150 lbs (70kg).

The Paramount ME^TM Robotic Telescope System features a German equatorial mount with research-grade 11" right ascension gears that provide unsurpassed tracking performance. Astronomers equipped with a Paramount ME are defining new levels of reliability, productivity and performance. Hefting up to 150 pounds of astronomical equipment, and designed for uninterrupted operation, the Paramount ME can be used as a remote and/or Internet Astronomy^TM solution. Through advanced CNC construction, it is "field portable" at 68 pounds. The system includes the Bisque Observatory Software Suite (TheSky6^TM Professional Edition, CCDSoft^TM, TPoint^TM and ProTrack^TM, Orchestrate^TM, and Internet Astronomy^TM Software Client and Server applications) as well as the Bisque TCS^TM dual-axis DC servomotor control system with USB and serial interface, and AutoHome^TM start-up.

The Paramount ME is built for the digital age, featuring integrated telescope and CCD camera control, unattended start-up and automated operation, 5 arcseconds or less periodic error before correction, and precision guided or unguided tracking (using TPoint and ProTrack^TM). The result is unsurpassed image quality and observatory performance.

Highlights of the Paramount ME...

• Paramount ME can carry payloads up to 68 kg (150 lb.). The latest design uses an 8" roller bearing (which produces an effective 8" bearing surface) on the right ascension axis to ensure maximum stability.

• Ultra-precision gears. Software Bisque guarantees that the right ascension gear has 5 arcseconds or less periodic error before periodic error correction (PEC).

• Transportable. More efficient mount design reduces the overall weight to 68 lbs (no equipment) with improved overall rigidity.

• Improved altitude and azimuth adjustments. New design makes polar alignments much simpler and more precise.

• Improved exterior finish and quality. Every part is precision manufactured using CNC machines in our production facility.

• Improved accessory control panel. Inputs for CCD camera cables, auto-guiders, focusers and other accessories are integrated into the Paramount ME.

• MKS 4000 control system layout with a smaller integrated board design with more features (see below).

• Only Software Bisque mount currently in production.

• AutoHome^TM for absolute positioning from night to night.

• ProTrack^TM integration (see below)

MKS 4000 Control System...

The Paramount ME's advanced dual-axis telescope motion control system, called the "MKS 4000" includes the following standard features:

• Autoguider input port.

• Focuser input port.

• Brushless DC Servo motors. Brushless DC servo motors are designed so that all moving parts are on bearing surfaces. If your mount is used for survey astronomy all night, every clear night, no other type of motor is sufficient. Lesser mounts use motors with "brushes" that don't have nearly the life expectancy of brushless DC servo motors and are not designed to be operated for long periods at the (relatively slow) sidereal rate.

• DC servo motors provide fast slew speeds and consistent torque at all slew rates. A maximum slew rate of five degrees per second in both the right ascension and declination axis. The gear-reducer and worm-block design of the Paramount ME are extremely efficient so that little power is lost between the motor and the telescope drive. Though good balance is always recommended, the Paramount ME has no problem slewing or tracking when several foot-pounds out of balance. You'll spend less time fiddling with the telescope and more time acquiring data.

• Permanent periodic error correction (programmable) with up to eight-order polynomial curve fitting via TheSky6, for smooth PEC correction. Note that the Paramount ME's periodic error before PEC is so small that excellent seeing conditions (less than one arcsecond) are required just to measure and record the periodic error of the worm.

• AutoHome^TM homing capability (to better than one arcsecond resolution) with built-in sensor circuitry on each axis ensure that the mount always knows its orientation (after an initialization process called "homing"), even after power failure.

• Integrated telescope control via TheSky6 Professional Edition or TheSky Pocket Edition.

• Configurable park position.

• Audible home position indicator and a separate "error" sounds if the mount cannot slew (due to an out of balance payload, obstruction, or other error condition).

• 56-bit of internal precision. What does this mean? The right ascension and declination motors can be run from 0 to 4000 rpm and virtually anywhere in between, providing precise tracking, rapid slewing (up to five degrees per second). This gives you the ability to track on comets, asteroids and even fast- or slow-moving objects such as LEO satellites or any object that moves above or below the sidereal rate.

• Belt-driven research-grade gears, the Paramount ME has backlash so small it is difficult to measure (typically less than two arcseconds in both axes. Autoguiding calibration is always a snap with this "no-slop" system.

• USB and/or serial port communication interface (special USB driver maps as the next logical serial port). This means that no USB-to-serial adaptor is required for USB-exclusive computers.

• Temperature compensated oscillator with better than 10 parts per million to ensure accurate tracking over a wide temperature range.

• Built-in thermistor for automatic slew speed adjustment through TheSky6 based on ambient temperature.

• Soft "reboot" capability. This means that the control system can be restarted through software and does not have to be manually turned off, then on.

• Faster, more capable internal processor. The total number of electronic components has been reduced by over 30% (compared to the earlier MKS 3000 control system) for a more reliable (that is, less prone to component failure) system.

• The internal flash RAM is upgradeable without the need to set DIP switches. This makes future firmware upgrades simpler.

• New expansion connector with 2 generic purpose input/output ports for future use.

• Current limited slews. This means that if the mount slews into a stationary object (observatory roof, latter, etc.), the slew is immediately terminated.

ProTrack...

ProTrack^TM is software technology that is integrated with TPoint that can be used to apply very small corrections to the Paramount ME's MKS 4000 control system to improve unguided tracking results.

ProTrack gives amateur astronomers the ability to take long unguided exposures (up to 20 minutes at 100-inches of focal length) and still have pinpoint stars. Unguided exposures of this length, with pinpoint stars, are simply not possible without this type of software and hardware integration.

The same tracking enhancement technology found in ProTrack is used to improve tracking on many of the world's largest telescopes, such as the 8-meter Gemini telescopes.

Minimum System Requirements...The following computer, software and hardware components are required to operate the Paramount ME:

Computer and Operating System:

• Any computer capable of running Windows XP (Home Edition, Professional Edition, Tablet Edition) or later and TheSky6 Professional Edition or later).
• Any Windows Mobile Device capable of operating TheSky Pocket Edition.
• Serial/USB/Bluetooth Communications Interface
• The Paramount ME can communicate with a personal computer or Windows Mobile Device using either a native RS232 serial port, a native USB port, USB to serial adaptor or via wireless Bluetooth.
• Native USB port (PCMCIA-to-USB adaptors are not supported).
• A standard RS232 serial port.
• A compatible USB to Serial adaptor.
• Any wireless Bluetooth device (requires TheSky6 Professional Edition version 6.00.0
• TheSky6 Professional Edition or later (included with the Paramount ME).
• TheSky Pocket Edition (software and Windows Mobile Device sold separately).
• Suitable pier - The Widescreen Centre recommends Pier Tech units.