ZWO ASI185MC-COOL User manual

ASI185 Manual
Revision 1.1
Nov, 2017
All materials related to this publication are subject to change without notice and its
copyright totally belongs to Suzhou ZWO CO.,LTD.

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ASI185 Manual...............................................................................................................................1
1. Instruction.................................................................................................................................3
2. Camera Models and Sensor Type .............................................................................................4
3. What's in the box?.....................................................................................................................5
4. Camera technical specifications................................................................................................7
5. QE Graph & Read Noise...........................................................................................................8
6. Getting to know your camera..................................................................................................10
6.1 External View....................................................................................................................10
6.2 Power consumption:..........................................................................................................11
6.3 Cooling system..................................................................................................................12
6.5 Analog to Digital Converter (ADC)..................................................................................13
6.6 Binning..............................................................................................................................13
7. How to use your camera..........................................................................................................14
8. Clean the camera and redry desiccant.....................................................................................15
9. Mechanical drawing................................................................................................................16
10. Servicing.................................................................................................................................17
11. Warranty .................................................................................................................................17

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1. Instruction
Congratulations and thank you for buying one of our ASI Cameras！This manual will
give you a brief introduction to your ASI camera. Please read it thoroughly. If you
have any other questions, please feel free to contact us. [e-mail]
ASI185 Cameras are designed for astronomical photography.
Its excellent performance and multifunctional usage will impress you a lot!
For software installation instructions and other technical information please refer to
―Support‖on our official website.
https://astronomy-imaging-camera.com/

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2. Camera Models and Sensor Type
Model
Mono or Color
Regulated TEC Cooling
Sensor
ASI185MC
Color
No
IMX185
ASI185MC-COOL
Color
Yes
IMX185
Why do I choose ASI185MC?
ASI85MC cameras are designed for astronomical photography. The slightly larger sensor,
extremely low read noise , high sensitivity and high frame rates make this new camera a very good
choice for planetary imaging, it also comes with a 2.5mm all sky lens which can provide a nearly
170°view of the sky. The excellent performance and multifunctional usage will impress you a lot!
TEC cooling will help to reduce dark current noise for long exposures. For short exposures, such
as under one second, the dark current noise is very low. However, cooling is recommended for
DSO imaging when long exposures are required.

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3. What's in the box?
ASI185MC
1–ZWO ASI185MC Camera Body
2–2 m long ST4 guider cable
3–1.25″ Cover
4–M42-1.25″ T-Mount
5–2 m long USB3.0 cable
6–Driver & Extra Software CD (Mac, PC&Linux Compatible)
2
3
4
5
6
1

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ASI185MC-COOL
1–ZWO ASI185MC-COOL Camera Body
2–M42-1.25″ T-Mount
3–1.25″ Cover
4–2 m long USB 3.0 cable
5–USB 2.0 short cable x2
They are used to connect your EFW or guider camera through the USB2.0 hub.
6–Backup desiccant tablets packet
Only when you find fogging inside camera chamber, you need to replace them.
7–Driver & Extra Software CD (Mac, PC&Linux Compatible)
2
3
4
5
6
1
7

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4. Camera technical specifications
Sensor
1/1.9‖ CMOS IMX185
Resolution
2.3 Mega Pixels 1944*1224
Pixel Size
3.75µm
Image area
7.3mm*4.6mm
Max FPS at full resolution
108FPS(10bitADC)
Shutter
Rolling shutter
Exposure Range
32μs-1000s
Read Noise
1.5e @30db gain
QE peak
TBD
Full well
22.8k e
ADC
12 bit
Interface
USB3.0/USB 2.0
Adapters
2″ / 1.25″ / M42X0.75
Protect window
AR window
Dimensions
Uncooled 62mm/Cooled 78mm
Weight
Uncooled 120g/Cooled 410g
Back Focus Distance
Uncooled 12.5mm/Cooled 17.5mm
Supported OS
Windows, Linux & Mac OSX
Working Temperature
-5°C—45°C
Storage Temperature
-20°C—60°
Working Relative Humidity
20%—80%
Storage Relative Humidity
20%—95%

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5. QE Graph & Read Noise
QE and Read noise are the most important parts to measure the performance of a camera.
Higher QE and Lower read noise are needed to improve the SNR of an image.
Color 185 Sensor Relative QE

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Read Noise includes pixel diode noise, circuit noise and ADC quantization error noise, and the
lower the better.
The Read Noise of the ASI185 cameras is extremely lower when compared with traditional CCD
cameras. It is even lower when the camera is set at a higher gain.
Depending on your target, you can set the Gain lower for higher Dynamic Range (longer exposure)
or set the Gain higher for lower noise (such as short exposure or lucky imaging).

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6. Getting to know your camera
6.1 External View
*the first generation of cooled camera we used a ST4 port instead of USB2.0 hub
Heat Sink
USB3.0 or USB2.0 IN
Protect and sealed window
AR coated
D25*3mm
ST4 Guide Port
USB2.0 Hub*
USB3.0 or USB2.0 IN
Cooler power supply
5.5*2.1 DC socket
12V 3A AC-DC power
supply suggested
Cooler Maglev fan
Only on when cooler
power supply is there
USB3.0 or USB2.0 IN
ST4 Guide Port
1/4‖screw
You can mount to tripod

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You can order the holder ring from us or our dealer to mount the cooled camera to tripod.
There is 1/4″ screw under the holder
6.2 Power consumption:
ASI cameras are designed to have very low power consumption which is around 180ma@5V. You
only need the USB cable to power up the camera, however you will need a separate power supply
to activate the cooler. We recommend 12V at 3A or more AC-DC adapter for cooler power supply
(2.1mm*5.5mm, center positive). You may also use a battery supply from 9 to 15V to power the
cooler.

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6.3 Cooling system
The cooled ASI185 cameras have a robust, regulated cooling system, which means that the camera
sensor can be kept at the desired temperature throughout your imaging session. The super low
readout noise, combined with efficient cooling and adjustable gain setting, allows you to do short
exposure or lucky DSO imaging, unlike the traditional CCD cameras which need very long
exposures for each frame. However, keep in mind that cooling won’t help with very short
exposures such as less than 100ms. The lowest temperature that can be set is -40℃.
6.4 Protect Window
Our ASI185MC comes with the D21AR window, thickness is 1.1 mm
WhileASI185MC-COOL has the D25AR window, thickness is 3 mm.
Transmission chart of the AR filter.

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6.5 Analog to Digital Converter (ADC)
The ASI185 camera records in 10bit ADC and 12bit ADC. You can image at a faster fps rate if you
choose to use 10bit ADC (high speed mode). This camera also supports ROI (region of interest)
shooting, and this smaller ROI has faster fps.
Here is the maximum speed ofASI185 running at 10bit ADC and 10bitADC.
Resolution
USB3.0
10BitADC
12BitADC
1944x1224
108fps
54fps
1920x1080
120fps
60fps
1024x768
170.5fps
85.2fps
800x800
163.8fps
81.9fps
640x480
268.4fps
134.2fps
320x240
515.3fps
257.6fps
6.6 Binning
The ASI185 camera supports software bin2 mode. You should use 10bit ADC. We recommend
customer to use software binning if you don’t care speed.

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7. How to use your camera
There are many adapters available for this camera for connecting to your scope or lens. Some are
included with the camera and others you can order from our site:
Color camera connecting drawing:
1. 1.25‖ T-Mount
2. 1.25‖filter(optional)

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8. Clean the camera and redry desiccant
The camera comes with an AR protect window, which can protect the sensor from dust and
humidity. Should you need to clean the sensor, it’s better to do so during the daytime. To see the
dust, you just need to setup your telescope and point it to a bright place. A Barlow is required to
see these dusts clear. Then attach the camera and adjust the exposure to make sure not over
exposed. You can see an image like below if it’s dirty.
The big dim spot on the image (at right ) are the shadows of dust on the protect window.
The very small but very dark spot in the image (at left) are the shadows of the dusts on the sensor.
The suggested way to clean them is try to blow them away with a manual air pump. To clean the
dust on the sensor you will need to open the camera chamber.
We have a very detailed instruction on our website:
https://astronomy-imaging-camera.com/manuals/

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9. Mechanical drawing
ASI185MC
ASI185MC-COOL

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10. Servicing
For software upgrades please refer to ―Support-manual and software‖on our official website.
https://astronomy-imaging-camera.com/
Repairs and servicing are available by emailing [e-mail]
For customers who bought the camera from your local dealer, dealer is responsible for the
customer service.
11. Warranty
We provide 2-year warranty for our products. We offer repair service or replacement for free if the
camera doesn’t work within warranty period.
After the warranty period, we continue to provide repair support and service on a charged basis.
This warranty does not apply to damage that occurred as a result of abuse or misuse, or
caused by a fall or any other transportation failures after purchase.
Customer must pay for shipping when shipping the camera back for repair or replacement.