Running the system

Three screens here tell you all you need to know about the functions of Autopilot while it it running and controlling the assigned lights. If no PC is plugged in, then Autopilot II will run automatically, assuming a complete calibration was done prior to power up.

  1. Light Information.

    2. Here is the information on each of the lights assigned to Autopilot II. The last three columns show what the control configuration is and whether the assigned lights are controlled from the console, or assigned to a beltpack for control by Autopilot II.

    1. Name

      The Name of the light assigned during CONFIGURE LIGHTS in system setup.

    2. Type

      The light model pulled from the Autopilot II light model library.

    3. Status

      For Autopilot II to control the lights, each one must be calibrated.

    4. Beltpack Control Channel

      The beltpack channel numbers are listed here and in the next column the value of each beltpack channel. This could be helpful in confirming the light is assigned to the beltpack you thought it was.

    5. DMX Value

      The DMX value of the beltpack channel.

    6. Beltpack Assignment

      Autopilot's interpretation of which light is assigned to which beltpack. Your interpretation should agree with this.

  2. Beltpack Height Offsets

    3. Typically the beltpack element will be positioned on the upper part of an actors body, possibly hidden in the hair or a hat. This position will work well if only a head shot is desired. However, for a full body shot, the aim point of the lights must be shifted down to about the belt buckle. This is what height offset does for each beltpack. The height offset can be controlled from the PC or the lighting console. If it is controlled from the console, then changes in height and iris size can be written into lighting cues.

    1. Control from PC.

      This button allows you to control beltpack height offsets from the PC. Four Sliders control the height offset for each beltpack. The height dimensions are displayed at the bottom of the screen in whichever units were selected in basic setup.

    2. Control from DMX value (console).

      This button allows you to control beltpack height offsets from the console. Each beltpack has a height offset channel. The channel number and value are displayed in the window on the right. The height dimensions are displayed at the bottom of the screen in whichever units were selected in basic setup.

  3. Start/Stop

    1. Click On/Off

      This box starts the Autopilot II and turns the start/stop indicator light green.

    2. 2D View

      Look at the 2D view to see if the positions of the receivers are reasonable. This is a live screen which updates approximately every 3 seconds and will give the relative position of the beltpacks.

    3. 3D view

      This view gives the relative positions of the receivers, the lights, and the beltpacks in "real time". The 3D viewer has the following navigation controls: right and left arrow keys to rotate around the center of the picture, up and down arrows to see the stage from a higher or lower perspective, and + and - or "i" (in) and "o" (out) keys to dolly in or out.

      This is a live screen which updates approximately every 3 seconds and will give the relative position of the beltpacks.

    4. Receiver Signal View

      This screen shows in real time the quality of the signal from each beltpack at each receiver. These should be mostly green and yellow for all positions of beltpacks in the operating area.

    5. View DMX map

      Each box on the DMX map represents a DMX channel. The output data level is shown in addition to the channel number. The data level may be displayed in decimal values (0-255) or in percentages. If the box is green, then Autopilot II knows the channel is used by a light, a control channel, or a height offset channel. By placing the cursor on the box, it's function is displayed at the bottom of the DMX map. A red box means there is an overlap which should be eliminated. Placing the cursor over the overlapped channels will show at the bottom of the screen what items are overlapping.