Installation and Setup

This guide covers setting up the environment and running the INDI Celestron AUX Driver.

Requirements

  • Python 3.11+

  • indipydriver >= 3.0.4

  • pyserial-asyncio

  • ephem

  • numpy

  • scipy

  • caux-sim (Standalone simulator package)

Environment Setup

The project uses hatch for building, but local development is typically done in a virtual environment.

# Setup environment
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -e ".[dev,docs]"

Configuration

The system uses a hierarchical TOML configuration:

  1. config.default.toml: Built-in defaults (always loaded).

  2. config.toml: User overrides (if present).

  3. CLI Arguments: Specific overrides for scripts.

The configuration file is organized into clean sections:

  • observer: Location and elevation.

  • driver: Serial port and baud rate for the mount.

  • simulator: Ports and mechanical imperfections for simulation.

  • validation_hit: Parameters for hardware interaction testing.

  • validation_ppt: Parameters for pointing accuracy testing.

  • validation_pec: Parameters for periodic error measurement.

First Run (Simulator)

Before connecting to real hardware, it is recommended to test the setup using the caux-sim simulator.

  1. Starting the simulator:

    caux-sim --text --perfect

  2. Starting the INDI driver:

    python src/celestron_aux/celestron_indi_driver.py

To connect to the simulator from an INDI client, use the port: socket://localhost:2000.