Please note: High-quality products of this size will be shipped in their own purpose-built wooden box with special clasps. This rather expensive packaging is necessary for secure transportation and must be added to the invoice amount.
10 Micron manufactures mounts of the highest standard. The GM 4000 QCI/HPS mounts from 10 Micron are heavy-duty robotic GoTo mounts with a maximum load capacity (instrument load) of 150 kg.
The GM 4000QCI/HPS is a high-end mount for the "ultimate" observatory.
The mount is available in either a mobile or stationary version. In the mobile version, the common centre of gravity of the instrument and counterweights is located approximately 10 cm off-centre from the column/tripod – as is usual for German mounts.
In the stationary version, the axis intersection point is shifted a further 150 mm from the centre. This elegantly circumvents one of the biggest disadvantages of German mounts. The design principle corresponds to a bent column mount! The swing range for the instrumentation is greatly increased, eliminating the need for forced stops during meridian passage!
The telescope column is hollow for transport purposes, e.g. for exhibition purposes. For final installation, the column is usually filled with steel punches directly on site and then weighs up to 750 kg, depending on the column height, so that the centre of gravity is back in the middle.
The advantages at a glance:
Mechanics
- No accumulation of many small screw-fastened parts, but large-dimensioned milled parts made of solid duralumin for maximum torsional rigidity and low vibration
- Slip-free drive technology for maximum precision in positioning and tracking
- Pointing accuracy: <120 arc seconds
- Tracking accuracy: +/- 3" - without additional autoguiding - Slew speed: 5°/sec - suitable for satellite tracking
- Optionally with axis intersection centred or offset up to 40 cm to the north for maximum slewing radius
- Central cable feed through the mount
- Free from resonance vibrations due to high-frequency oscillations, as there is no direct drive
- Extremely low waste heat compared to a direct drive, thus no "mount seeing"
Electronics
- Intelligent! An AMD processor works with sophisticated LINUX firmware and enables stand-alone operation for functions that require a PC to be connected with other mounts (e.g. integrated T-point modelling, comet tracking).
- Operation either in stand-alone mode (with handcontroller) or via PC
- Fully network-compatible, integrated LAN interface, controllable via the Internet
- Fully pre-programmable, robotic operation possible thanks to slew limits, homing sensors and remote-controlled on/off switch
- Separate autoguider input
- GPS module can be connected
- No control cabinet required – the entire computer control system is housed in a small enclosure on the RA axis.
- Software and database updates via Internet firmware update
- Screwed cable connections
- Power consumption 24V/5A max.
The enormous load capacity and high tracking and positioning accuracy, which are otherwise only found in professional mounts, make this mount an ideal astronomical base, regardless of which optics you decide to purchase later.
Scope of delivery:
- GM 4000 QCI or HPS mount
- Control box
- Hand controller and all cables
- Counterweight bar.
The GM 4000 QCI/HPS is one of the most stable mounts available in series production. Finally, there is an affordable mount with a load capacity of 150 kg, state-of-the-art electronics and high energy efficiency without waste heat! The GM 4000 QCI/HPS meets professional requirements – and all this at an ideal price-performance ratio of approx. £115 per kilogram of payload! The GM 4000 QCI mount is available in two versions - as a "mobile" mount with the centre of gravity shifted 10 cm to the south, and as a fixed observatory mount with the centre of gravity shifted a further 15 cm off-centre. This turns the often-cited limitation of the German design into an advantage. The GM 4000 ST can be operated as a trunnion mount – even swivels of up to 30° above the meridian are easily possible with a 60 cm optical aperture. With smaller apertures, the mount does not need to be turned over at all – an important advantage for all robotic measurement applications and for astrophotography. The GM 4000 QCI is one of the few mounts on the market that allows any number of cables to be routed directly through the polar axis to the telescope (or sideways to the DE axis). This means that there is no longer any danger of cables becoming tangled or torn off when using eyepiece accessories that require electrical cable connections (CCD camera, stepper motor focuser).
These arguments have convinced not only a large number of universities and public observatories, but also the following customers:
- DLR Berlin: Satellite communication, extreme positioning and tracking requirements Institute for Planetary Research, Atacama Desert, Chile: Continuous parallel observation of the COROT star field
- Chile: Continuous parallel observation of the COROT star field,
- Alfred Wegener Institute: Meteorological research at the South Pole, at -80 degrees Celsius and on Spitsbergen
