Electronic Telescope Eyepiece

by Wascopirate in Workshop > Science

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Electronic Telescope Eyepiece

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in this instructable, i will show you how to modify a cheap webcam to act as an electronic eyepiece for a telescope.

Materials

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webcam(i got mine for less than 6 dollars on amazon.com)

35mm film canister

small project box

optional: male to female usb cord

tools: drill

hack saw

screwdriver

Prepare the Webcam

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remove webcam case and remove lens from webcam. 

Assemble

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drill hole in project box lid for webcam chip.

place webcam board level on the inside of the project box lid with the chip centered.

cut out the bottom of the film canister.

center TOP of film canister on the outside of the project box lid.

hotglue webcam and film canister in place.

saw a notch in the project box for webcam cable.

hotglue cable in place and close the project box.

Using It

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put film canister in your telescopes eyepiece holder.

plug usb cable into computer(optional: use male to female usb cable to extend the webcam cable)

open your webcam software.

focus on a bright star.

I hope you enjoyed this instructable and please vote for it for the celestron space challenge.