Hi GTO gang!  Some good detective work by some smart people at Lowell Observatory (Thanks Jim C.!) has led us to a probable solution to WiFi dropouts when using Sky Safari, Luminos etc.

It appears we have been looking at this the wrong way.  We were blaming weak or corrupted signal from our WiFi module, and couldn't reproduce the problem here.  Instead, it appears that our signal may actually be too strong and may be overwhelming the smart devices' WiFi hardware. 

For right now, if you are having WiFi dropout issues, please fold your antenna into its little cubby on the GTOCP4, and then try not to let your smart device get too close to the GTOCP4.  Try to keep the device a couple feet from the GTOCP4.
Please give us feedback on your results.  If this does indeed turn out to be the issue, then we may be able to fix it permanently and more elegantly.
Thanks in advance for any feedback you can give!

Howard 

Howard,
Thanks for this tip. I will try it out once the weather gets more hospitable here in Michigan. I have my mount about 25' from my Samsung Android tablet and also tried with Samsung cell phone both running Sky Safari. I run it from inside my house through a glass door wall. I would think that should be enough distance but never tried with the antennae folded into its storage area.  In the near term I have been using a SkyFi wireless moduie and it is very robust connection over a long distance. When I disconnect it quickly reconnects also. I remember that when the CP 4 dropped the wireless it was difficult to reconnect so that might point to some issue.

COOL TIP ALERT:  I found that there is a free app called XePlayer (Google to find)  for Windows 10 PCs. It allows me to run any Android app flawlessly on a Win 10 PC. I use it to run Sky Safari Pro on my PC....it runs the mount via wireless with no issues other than I can't point the lap top at the sky to see what is there since the PC doesn't have a compass. The app creates a partition that is Android....just load any app from Play Store in it and runs great. All files are invisible to the PC file explorer. You need to also download a file viewer Android App from the PLAY STORE if you want to see those files. That free app was designed to run Android game apps on PCs but it works for any Android app.

Sky Safari Pro 6 says connected to my Mach 1 via wifi, but nothing happens when I try to move the mount. Any suggestions?

Peter

I do have a CP4.

Peter

I had never considered a WiFi signal being too strong, but this makes sense.

I have not had any issues with my laptop of phone connecting to my CP4; but I have constant issues with my phone connecting to my Nexus DSC that I use on another mount.

I discovered that if I turn off the Wireless data and have only WiFi on it works without fail. I had assumed this was just a problem with my phone, but I wonder if this problem is related.

This has the added benefit of making sure I don't get any calls or text message popups on the screen while using SkySafari. :)

-Mike

I use Sky Safari PRO and SkyFi module latest version with both my AP 900 with CP3 and a AP 1100 with CP4. Both work flawlessly (unlike with AP built in wifi).  Confirm that you are connected to the SkiFi first with your Android device (I don't have an iphone or ipad so can't confirm how it is setup...but assume the same.

Once you are connected to the wireless via your Android device, you need to open Sky Safari and MENU and than SETUP. You need to have it show that the AP mount is mount and tht the check box for CONNECT VIA WIFI IS MARKED AND AUTO DETECT SHOULD BE CHECKED AND THE CORRECT sKYfI NAME YOU HAVE GIVEN TO YOUR MODULE OR THE DEFAULT NAME. FINALLY IT MUST SHOW PORT 4030 UNLESS YOU HAVE CHANGED THE PORT NUMBER. Note that the port for Sky Fi defauilt is different than that for AP built in WIFI which is port 30. If you check instructions for SkyFi you will find out how to use your web browser to connect to the SKY FI to change some options such as password, unit name, port, etc. 
The SkyFi unit is very robust on its wireless connection and can be run pretty long distances. I run about 35' and through a wall in my house to the mount. I was hoping that the tip Howard mentioned would solve the drop out issue on the AP mount but it didn't. I did extensive testing today and still drops signal and than can't reconnect without complete reboot, etc.
Hopefully this gets you running. If any issues you can write me privately.

Howard,
Took time today to do extensive testing on my GTO 1100 with CP4 for wireless connection using my Android tablet and also Android cell phone.

I normally have had to use my SkyFi wireless module to control the mounts using a serial connection from the SkyFi to the mounts (I have both a AP900 with CP3 and AP900 with CP4). All have been updated to very latest drivers for hand controller and CP boxes. The wireless connection is robust with the SkyFi and an easily disconnect and reconnect.

After seeing your post above requesting owners to give the tip a try, I left the antennae folded in its pocket and was about 25' away and through a glass door/wall. I was able to connect to the AP wireless easily and it did work for a while....but than reverted back to the same issue I have had all along....it dropped the connection from the mount EVEN THOUGH the Android device was still connected to the AP wireless I couldn't reconnect with SkySafari PRO. With the same setup but when connected with SkyFi module it worked fine and never dropped the connection, was able to disconnect and than reconnect several times. It seems that the issue isn't a matter of strength of signal as I was always connected with Android to the AP wireless. It seems that there is something that makes the connection drop and than prevents from reconnecting. The only way I could reconnect (for a short time) was to reboot everything. But again it would drop the connection after a few minutes. 

So sad to report the idea of reducing the signal strength didn't pan out for me. Still love a solution though as I hate the idea of having to use an extra piece of equipment to do what was supposed to be done by the mount. I will say the new 1100 and CP4 is SO much better than the previous, I can overlook this one gripe....but sure wish it worked correctly ;-) 

I never run wireless DATA on my cell phone when using the mount and Sky Safari. But the problem persists. See my other response to Howard about my testing today. Unfortunately, that tip didn't work for me. Interesting that the SkiFi module is trouble free and a very robust connection for Sky Safari....but the AP keeps dropping the connection and even though the Android device is still connected to the AP mount....once disconnected I can't reconnect. These type of issues are above my pay grade. Heard that Sky Safari may assist AP in debugging the issue....that would be great if it works. I did hear a rumor that the wifi module component AP uses may be the issue as others have had issues with it. Hope that isn't the case as that might mean the problem is not curable without major surgery or replacement ;-( 
I would say that one of the major reasons for my upgrade from AP900 CP3 to AP1100 CP4 was the internal wireless. Oh well......At least the Sky Fi works great.

I have the same issues with the CP4 WiFi. I simply don't use it anymore. Instead I use the SkyFi, which is completely reliable. I do hope AP finally resolves the issues with the CP4 WiFi.

For those using the SkyFi, is it the old one or the new SkyFi 3?  I have the old one.  I briefly and unsuccessfully tried to get it to work but will have to try harder if I know others are successful with it.  Thanks.

I'm using an older SkyFi unit (the one without the rechargeable battery built-in). I've not had any problems getting it to work with my 1600 CP4 and my iPad Pro. My configuration settings in SkySafari are:

Scope type: Astro-Physics GTO
Mount type: Equatorial GoTo (German)
Auto-Detect SkyFi: off
IP Address: 10.0.0.1
Port Number: 4030

It's connected via a USB cable to the USB port on my CP4. Hope this helps.

-Robin

Thanks very much, Robin.  This helps a lot.  I will give all your settings a try sometime.  Thanks again!

I have both the original SkyFi and also the latest version 3. The difference is the original used AdHoc wireless which wasn't supported with most Android devices but Iphone/Ipad worked. The latest version no longer uses AdHoc wireless so works great with Android....and over longer distances also. I use with Sky Safari with both a Samsung 7s phone and a Samsung tablet both running Android.
I still wish AP could get their CP4 wireless to work correctly.  I added a 1100 CP4 to my 900 CP3 for my observatory in the Summer of 2016. The wireless capability was one of the main plus points for going that way but sadly hasn't worked out. 
As noted in one of the my posts above....I have tested the AP CP4 extensively with Howard's suggestions and it didn't cure the problem. Oh well........

Thanks Robert.  I didn't know that.  I use Android.  I am going to try my old SkyFi and if that doesn't work I will consider version 3 or should I get an ipad instead.  Unless someone figures out how to get the CP4 wifi to work consistently :o)

This will work with Ipad or Iphone but will NOT work with most Android Tablets or Phones since Android does not support AdHoc wireless with the exception of older ASUS Android tablets. The latest Sky/Fi 3 uses an improved wifi and now works fine with Android devices such as my Samsung Phone and Tablet. The settings you mentioned are the correct ones for either setup. The newer SkyFi also can be used at much longer distances and also has on board USB support for mounts that use that such as latest Celestron and Ioptron (which I also use). 

I have the old Asus Nexus 7,  I'll have to give it a try.  I have been using the AP keypad but the database is somewhat limited and so I would like to get Sky Safari working too.

Is AP investigating this issue?  I have had occasional drops with my iPad and SkySafari won’t reconnect unless I reboot the CP4.  The iPad is still connected to the CP4 WiFi, but when I disconnect and reconnect it asks for the password and if I put it in, it won’t connect, so I park the scope with APCC and re-power the system and everything is good.  It is a rare occasional event, but my friend who has a Mach 1 and 1100 has frequent drops with the same symptoms.  I think he reported it to AP and they told him it was something with his system.  He just hard wires it now.  With all these reports, I’m not buying that it’s other things.  There must be something going on with the CP4.

On Mon, Nov 25, 2019 at 06:01 PM, Donald Rudny wrote:

Is AP investigating this issue?

We are most certainly investigating this.  The problem we are having is a general inability to reproduce the issue.   George and I both have iPhones.  I also have an iPad Pro.  Liam has an Android phone as does our engineer.  All of us have Sky Safari (among other astro-software) on our devices.  We also all have laptops - both PC and Mac.  None of us can find a way to reliably reproduce the dropout issue here in house.

For my own setup, My iPhone will disconnect from the mount if left idle for a while, but it reconnects immediately every time without a hitch as soon as I wake it up.  Same with the iPad Pro.

Liam suggested that we might want to investigate changing the WiFi channel in use.  We have done that here and it neither created nor solved the issue, but we haven't had the issue to begin with.  I would love it if any of you who are experiencing this dropout issue might try changing the channel in the Advanced WiFi page of the GTOCP4's internal web page. (Factory default is Ch. 3.)  Remember that changes will require a power-cycle of the GTOCP4 to take effect.  Let us know what you find - good or bad.