Building a Merlin or Orion Motorized Pano-head
2. Project Outline
Here is the basic action plan for the Orion head mod:- Acquire Orion or Merlin TeleTrack telescope head.
- Acquire an external controller unit – probably a tablet or notebook running Linux.
- Create the connection/interface hardware – most people, like me, are using bluetooth to serial but you could use a cable connection if you wanted.
- Create camera adaptations – you need a remote camera trigger connector and panorama friendly mount.
sells them. In Austria,
TSZ sells them without
the tripod, which saves some money. For anywhere else, check the
official distributer list. I had
mine shipped from the
USA, I am still looking for sources for all of the
parts in
Australasia. If you have any ideas let us know. While you are waiting
for your TeleTrack to arrive, you can gather up the other parts.2. As shipped from Orion, TeleTrack has a controller that is useful for astronomy types, which is easily configured to track stars. The panorama head modifications retain that ability. What we are doing is replacing the controller in a non-destructive way. You can use a Linux, Windows or OS X powered computer or device, as long as it can run python, and communicate with the Orion head. Frédéric Mantegazza has developed open source control software in python, hence the requirement. He is using a Nokia Internet Tablet, and has optimized the software for that purpose. I bought a used Nokia 770 tablet on Amazon.com. (See below for more info on the Nokias.) Another popular choice is the Asus EEE PC.
3. One appealing aspect of the project for me was its configurability.You have your choice of external controller, and of connection mode. The head is run from the external controller, via a serial connection. This interface connection can be established via a cable, via bluetooth, and probably via Wi-Fi, though I don’t know of anyone trying that. I decided on using bluetooth. This connection hardware is actually most of the DIY part, as the software has already been written.
What you need for the interface:
- a 4 pin RJ11 (telephone) or 6 pin RJ12 (networking) modular cable
- 2 x 220ohm resistors
- bluetooth to serial TTL (RX/TX) hardware ( I used a SparkFunBlueSMIRF Silver, others have used used a combination of hardware to get BT>RS232>TTL)
- a power supply for the bluetooth card (The Orion provides
12V,
but the BlueSMIRF requires 3.3 to 6 volts. I used a 4.5v power supply
from a Sony car charger.)
- project box for the bluetooth and power supply
- wired remote connector for your camera (male)
- 2.5mm female headphone socket (for Nikon, a mono socket might be better, see below.)
4. The Orion/Merlin ships with a 2.5 mm phono plug cable for triggering some Canon cameras. If you have the film or digital version of the Rebel (including the XT, XTi, XTsi, 300D, 350D, 400D, 450D), you are set to go. Everyone else needs to get an adapter. If your camera has a wired remote, as my Nikon D80 does, the easiest thing to do is buy a cheap 3rd party remote and use the plug. If your camera only has an LED remote – like my D70 and Nikon’s D40 and D60 cameras, you will need to purchase or make an LED trigger.
You may also need to customize a mount, depending on your intended camera and usage. The Orion TeleTrack has a beveled L-bracket that works out of the box if you plan on attaching a telephoto lens to it , with the camera dangling behind. Otherwise, you might wan to dissassemble the L-bracket, or substitute your own. The beveled edge is about 45 degrees, but too big to line up with my arca swiss gear. I cover my solution in the next section.
This article was written on Monday, November 10th, 2008 and is filed under Making Creations.
For more articles about: slr (1), nokia 770 (1), panoramic photography (3)
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on December 21, 2008 at 11:01 am Cool Vid–I think this is what I’m looking for… « Cycling Experiences… wrote:
[...] Merlin/Orion is the pan/tilt head [one builder's approach] [...]
on January 14, 2009 at 2:37 pm chris blake wrote:
I was thinking i would use my laptop be cause i want to use remote contorl software for the rebel xsi. would it work if i used a usb to ttl converter cable into a usb server on top of a 50′ pole with a usb router on the ground?
usb server http://www.silexamerica.com/sx-2000wg.html
usb to ttl cable http://www.makershed.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=TTL232R&Redirected=Y
router http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1065011&CatId=2667
would appreciate your thoughts on this
thanks,
chris blake
on January 15, 2009 at 11:39 pm Milo wrote:
This is amazing! I have a question. If I used a fish eye lens with this setup wont the shots have a portion of the orion showing in it?
on January 16, 2009 at 3:29 am BeeZed wrote:
Milo – I use a 10.5 mm fisheye and it doesn’t catch any more of the Orion than anything else, if you have it set up correctly. Any lens setup will show the bottom (nadir) if you shoot 360 degrees. People either crop it out or shoot a nadir shot by hand and stitch it in separately. Though you might suspect that the upright would show up when using a fisheye, it doesn’t, at least for the 10.5mm. There is an example with of a stitched panorama with the Orion showing here. I use a method where I take 6 shots around at -15 degrees and the zenith or top shot.
on January 16, 2009 at 3:58 am BeeZed wrote:
Chris – I like the pole setup idea. My main concern is Papywizard being able to resolve the Orion through the complexities of the hardware and the control software possibly conflicting. Some users are direct wiring a laptop to the orion, while others are using a bluetooth antenna to boost range, so those are also possibilities. I think you should go to the source for answers, as Papywizard v2 may have camera control, or at least picture acquisition features. Head over to the Merlin/Orion forum on Autopano.net. There are more folks over there thinking about this stuff. Also check out this thread discussing the version 2. Panning time lapse panography is another potential feature.
on April 5, 2009 at 8:07 am Nick Spirov wrote:
Excellent review!
Your trigger cable is not defective, mine is also non-conductive in the left signal section. It’s made especially for Canons though.
I am beginning an experiment with a “Wi-Fly” wireless to serial adapter component, which will (hopefully) allow control of the Merlin over a standard WiFi network. What’s nice about the Wi-Fly is that it contains a voltage regulator on-board, so no need for power supply electronics. Together with an Eye-Fi memory card I would be able to drive the Merlin from across the street and see all photos the moment they are shot.
Now that would be geeky, don’t you think?
on April 11, 2009 at 10:42 pm BeeZed wrote:
The cable is not defective, just a PITA. I need to have it shorted for use with the Merlin, but stereo for use as a “normal” remote. I am trying a stereo to mono 2.5mm adapter at the moment, and it seems to work. Otherwise I was going to add a switch.
I love the “Wi Fly” possibilities! The new Papywizard has some tethered shooting functions best utilized with a PC. The only issue is that it is still focused on bluetooth. I am not a huge fan of the Eye Fi cards, since last time I looked they transmitted images to your computer via their server, which means you need internet access, not just your local network for it to work.
I’d love to hear what you come up with.
on April 24, 2009 at 1:30 pm DrSlony wrote:
For more information about this project, visit the project’s forum:
http://www.autopano.net/forum/f20-merlin,orion-and-papywizard
on April 27, 2009 at 7:57 pm BeeZed wrote:
Thanks DrSlony for the Autopano link note- while I had the right link in the Resources list, I have now corrected the link in the article.
on July 28, 2009 at 5:56 pm Tived wrote:
Hi,
great review and thanks for sharing.
I am interested in how you have attached your camera, and if you indeed, managed to use your Arca-Swiss mounts (I use RRS gear as well). I am thinking of using a slightly larger camera, either Canon 1D or Nikon D3. Do you think this will pose a problem with NPP?
thanks
Henrik
A Dane Down Under
on July 29, 2009 at 2:16 pm BeeZed wrote:
Thanks for the feedback. I used my RSS MPR-192 and some mini clamps for a while, but ultimately went back to using the bracket that came with the unit. In future I will need to get something machined. (A crown that I can bolt a miniclamp to and a thinner rail perhaps.) The orion/merlin has enough clearance for a D80, but getting a good NPP set up for larger cameras is impossible without major modification of the crown. If you are doing gigapans with a telephoto you can mount the camera in landscape orientation and have better luck, but you will still have issues with clearance. Anything with a vertical grip would be a headache. My recommendation would be to find a used consumer body to use for this project. Less to carry and less headaches trying to set it up.
on December 15, 2009 at 7:05 am Thomaz William Mendoza-Harrell wrote:
Amazing! I have been doing pano work for a couple of years and learning it all alone! so good to hear the experience of others.
I have a Milapse head and also a mechanical pano head (Panosaurus) I waant to go robotic though because I want to do some stop motion and other things like that.
on December 15, 2009 at 1:33 pm BeeZed wrote:
It has been very interesting to watch the growth of interest in these motorised heads. While the Orion/Merlin is a good value – I have several friends who are looking into building their own machine for better accuracy and function. I think they have more fun making the contraption than taking the pictures.
on February 24, 2010 at 1:26 pm bruno wrote:
Hi, this is great,
Thanks BeeZed and everybody.
Could please please someone help me regarding the Merlin?
I’m new to this and would like to try to remotely control the Merlin mount, on a first instance via Ethernet, then with the bluetooth.
Can I use a simple RJ11 cable connectors and put a RJ45 to one end?
Which connectors/colored-wires should I connect on the Ethernet plug?
Thanks
on February 25, 2010 at 6:35 pm bruno wrote:
I now have some answer thanks, is not feasible…
on March 1, 2010 at 8:51 pm BeeZed wrote:
Bruno – I have no experience conrtolling the mount beyond using papywizard. AS long as you can generate serial commands, you can probably get it to work.
on March 1, 2010 at 9:00 pm BeeZed wrote:
The best information is on the Autopano forum devoted to this head, listed in the post. The commands are summarized on the Papywizard wiki. The whole point of the project is to remotely control the robot head. With a little extra hardware connection you can control the camera as well.