Instruction/ maintenance manual of the product 4500 Series AMT Datasouth
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CodeWriter 4500 Series Operator’s Manual Manual Part No. 10 8738 Rev. C.
ii NOTICE There are no user- servicable p arts inside t he side ac cess panel on t he Codewriter 4500 Ser ies products. Do not attempt to open the side access panel without first turning off the power to the unit, disconnecting the power cord from the unit, and disconnecting all communication cables.
iii WARNING Any alteration or modification to this equip ment may cause non-compliance to: WARNUNG Jede Abänderu ng oder Modif izierung di eses Geräts k ann eine Zuwiderh andlung gege n fo lgend e B.
iv WARNING The operator m ust dis connect the pri nter from the AC power su pply bef ore performing any corrective action procedure that requ ires reaching into the prin ter. Changes or modifi cations to this unit not expres sly approved by the party responsi ble for compl iance could void the user's authority to ope rate the equipment.
v A DVENTERCIA El usuario debe descon ectar la impres ora de la corriente alterna AC antes de proceder con cualquier arreglo que requ iera met er la mano dent ro de la im presora.
vi Datasouth C odeWriter 4500 Disclaimer of Warran ties Software All software is licensed “as is” without warrant y of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchanta bilit y a nd fitness for a particula r purpose.
vii CodeWriter is a trademark of Dat asouth Computer. All other brand and product names are trademarks or r egistered trademarks of their respective companies. Datasouth 4216 Stuart Andre w Boulevard Charlotte, North Carolina 282 17 • Phone: 704.523.
Contents viii T able of Contents Introduction ................................................................................. 1 Code W riter 4500 Series Mod els .................................................................. 1 Code W riter 4500 Series Fe atures .
Contents ix Troubleshooting Guide ............................................................ 49 Response to Display Messages ................................................................. 49 Print Quality Issues...................................
Contents x T able of Figures Figure 1 – Code W rit er 4505 Fro nt/Side View ................................................. 2 Figure 2 – Code W rit er 4505 Rear View .......................................................... 2 Figure 3 – L abel Roll Feed Path .
Introduction 1 Introduction Welcome to the Datasouth customer family. For more than 20 years Dat asouth customers have enjoyed hi gh-performance printer produ cts, quality consumables, and responsive service. We take p ride in products that operate r eliably ye ar aft er year.
Introduction 2 Figure 1 – C ode W riter 4505 Front/Si de View Figure 2 – C ode W riter 4505 Re ar View Media and Printhead A ccess Cover Operator Panel Documen t Exit and Tear Bar RS232 Communicat.
Introduction 3 CodeWriter 4500 Series Fe atures The Datasouth CodeWriter 4500 Series printers are compact, rugged, direct thermal/thermal transfer label printers designed for the bar cod e industry. The printers’ high spee d and high dot density offer the ability to create quality labels, tickets, and tags containing text, graphics and bar codes.
Introduction 4 Features Host or Standalone operation Printer Application Language (PAL tm ) allowing ab ility to write powerful programs residing on the printer.
Introduction 5 Guide to t he Operator’s Ma nual The CodeWriter 4500 Series Operator ’s Manual documents all printer features, controls and spec ifications. The following suggestions will help g uide y ou quickl y to the most useful manual section.
Introduction 6 (This Page Intentionally Blank).
Quick Start Guide 7 Quick Start Guide Unpacking an d Pow er Up Upon receipt of your Datasouth printer, you should inspect for possible in-transit damage.
Quick Start Guide 8 Appl y ing Power to the Printer Connect the AC power cord to the printer. Note: 230V units hav e a label near the Pr inter’s AC Input. Plug the power cord into grounded AC outlet and turn the printer on. The power switc h is loc ated on the printer’s left side .
Quick Start Guide 9 Media Loading Loading and Feeding Label Roll Figure 3 outline s the media path for loa ding the label stock. Figure 3 – L abel Rol l Feed Path 1. Lift t he Media Access Cover using the tab in the bottom center side of the cover. DO NOT lift from the fr ont panel.
Quick Start Guide 10 Loading and Feeding the Ri bbon Thermal transfer applications requir e a ribbon. Direct Thermal users go to the next step. Figure 4 shows the feed path fo r the ribbon.
Quick Start Guide 11 Operator Panel Me dia Settings During this step the label’s dimensional c haracteristics and dar kness settings are programmed into the printer via the Operator Panel (Figure 5).
Quick Start Guide 12 Set Label Parameters 1. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. This takes you to the off-line menu. 2. When Interface Stat us Off-Line i s displayed, press the MENU key. This will display the sub-menus. 3. Press the MENU key until the Label Par ameter s option is display ed.
Quick Start Guide 13 8. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. If any par ameters were changed, the display will read ENTER to sav e new defaults . Press the ENTER PRINT key to save these values. The display will then read Inter face Status Online . [The remaining parameters under the Label Parameters menu will not require adjustment at the this time.
Quick Start Guide 14 Set Print Pa rameters The factory setting s for the printer will include a setting for print darkness for effective printing on media shipped with the pr inter. If the media you’ve selected for the printer was not included with the printer, the following procedure provides a print setting that will image most media .
Quick Start Guide 15 Printing Test L abels The Operator Panel me nus include features to print test labe ls. The following procedures demonstrate how to print these labels. Feature/Settings Label 1. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. This takes you to the off-line menu.
Quick Start Guide 16 Quick Start CD The Quick Start CD provides the following features to help connect the printer to the host system application. Windows 95/98 drivers Label Genesis Label Gen.
Data Com municatio ns 17 Data Communications The CodeWriter 4500 Series printer provides a RS232 serial port for communications to host sy stems. The DB25 female connector is located on the re ar of the unit (see Figure 2 ). The Operator Panel provides access to the serial ports operating parame ters.
Data Com municatio ns 18 Configuri ng the Personal Computer This portion of the proc edure will set up the Personal Computer based on the CodeWriter 4500 Series factor y default settings.
Data Com municatio ns 19 Sending Data to the P rinter After configuring the communic ations link between the Pe rsonal Computer and the printer , a label application progr am will be used to send data to the printer. This progr am may be Datasouth’s Label Genesis Label Generation package included on the Quick Start CD.
Data Com municatio ns 20 Serial Port Specifications Table 3 lists the RS-232 signals supported by the printer. Pin # Signal D escription Signal Mnemonic Direction 1 Shield -- -- 2 Receiv ed Data RXD I.
Data Com municatio ns 21 Figure 8 – 4 500 Seri es Printer t o DCE (M odem) Dev ice Cable Diagr am Shield 1 RXD 2 TXD 3 CTS 4 RTS 5 DTR 6 GND 7 DSR 20 1 Shield 2 TXD 3 RXD 4 RTS 5 CTS 6 DSR 7 GND 20 .
Data Com municatio ns 22 Flow Control The CodeWriter 4500 Series printers provide two methods to control the flow of data between the host s ystem and the printer. Hardware or Xon/Xoff flow control is selected from t he Operator P anel. Hard ware Flo w Con tro l The printer uses the CTS, RTS, DTR, and DSR signals during hardware flow control.
Data Com municatio ns 23 Xon/Xoff Flow Control Host systems that use a simple three-wire RS232 connection (TXD, RXD, GND) accomplish flow control b y using Xon/Xoff or Robust Xon/Xoff. The printer supports these modes and ma y be selected from the Operator Pan el.
Data Com municatio ns 24 Operator Panel Settin gs for Data Com munications The following procedure guides the op erator through setting data communications parameter s on the printer. Setting the Baud Rate 1. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. This takes you to the off-line menu.
Data Com municatio ns 25 Setting the DTR Polarity 10. Press the ITEM FEED key. DTR Pola rity is display ed. 11. Use the or CANCEL keys to set the DTR Polarity [Ready = High, R eady = Low ] . Complete the sele ction process by pressing the ENTER PRINT key.
Data Com municatio ns 26 (This Page Intentionally Blank).
Media Settin gs 27 Media Settings This section examines the CodeWriter 4500 Series printer settin gs related to the document (labels) and ribbon, and obtaining the desired print quality. Following these instructions carefull y will result in a trouble-free initial setup and repeatable results.
Media Settin gs 28 Black Bar Labels Figure 11 show the front view of a bla ck bar label with the dimensions required f or setting up the printer . Figure 11 – Black Bar La bel Dimensi ons Notch or H.
Media Settin gs 29 Programmi ng the Label Dimensions The following procedure guides the oper ator through programming the label dimensions into the printer via the Operator Pane l. 1. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. This takes you to the off-line menu. 2.
Media Settin gs 30 pressing the ONLINE PAUSE key. If problems occurred return to step 2 to verif y the settings. If after verifying the setting s the labels are not feeding correctly, turn to the Troubleshooting Guide section in this ma nual for information on adjusting the media sensor sensitivity.
Media Settin gs 31 Setti ng the Prin ting Method The CodeWriter 4500 Series Printers offer Th ermal Transfer and Di rect Th ermal print methods. Thermal Transfer printers use a ribbon which transfers ink to the label during the printing process. Direct Ther mal printers use specially treated labels that darken in the heated area s while printing.
Media Settin gs 32 Setting the Print Parameters The Print Parameters control the print speed, darkness, image position, and presentation distance du rin g printing. These features ar e pro grammed via the Operator Pan el. Print Speed and Darkness The Print Speed and Darkness parame ters control the qua lit y of a printed label.
Media Settin gs 33 Note that accurate l y a ssessing bar code label quality will require bar code validation equipment to de termine a bar c ode’s ANSI grading.
Media Settin gs 34 Ad justing Prin t Posit ion The Operator Panel menu includes a featur e for adjusting the print position in the X (label width) and Y (alon g the feed direction) directions. Use the following procedure when the label requires a minor adjustment (+ or - 1.
Media Settin gs 35 Presentation Distance After printing each label, the printer advances the labe l a p reset presentation distance. This all ows the label to be p resented at a convenient dist ance for the application. The following procedure demonstrates how to change this value from the Oper ator Panel.
Media Settin gs 36 Bar Code Quali ty Printing bar codes represents one of the prima ry applications of the CodeW riter 4500 Series printe rs. The American National Sta ndards Institute (ANSI) provides a standard 2 b y which bar code image quality is measured.
Media Settin gs 37 Increa sing the ladder bar code’s narrow width fe ature size will reduc e the heating modulation’s geometric impact. The 4500 Series printers will generate ANSI Grade ‘A’ and ‘B’ ladder bar cod es when using a n arrow feat ure size of 3 dots (3/300 inches, 0.
Media Settin gs 38 (This Page Intentionally Blank).
Operator Pa nel Reference 39 Operator Panel Referenc e This section serves as a refer ence for al l Operator P anel features. E ach panel key function and the underlying menus will be detailed in this section. Displa y and Panel Ke ys Panel Feat ure Function ONLINE PAUSE Toggles the printer’s On-l ine status.
Operator Pa nel Reference 40 Off-line Menu Re ference The operator may access the off-line menu by pressing the ONLINE PAUSE key and pressing the MENU key . The first menu item is Print Para meters . Continue pressing the MENU key to access Label Para meters , I/O Co nfig .
Operator Pa nel Reference 41 Print Pa rameters Parameter Values Description Print Speed (%) 4505/4505+ 80% – 100% 4510 40% – 100% Printing Speed as a percentag e of the pr inter’s maxi mum sp eed.
Operator Pa nel Reference 42 Label Parameters Parameter Values Description Media Type Direct Thermal or Ther mal Transfer Selects printing mode Label W id th (in) 0.25 – 4.25 inches Selects pri nted w idth of label Label Le n. (in) 0.25 – 99 inches Selects the printed l ength o f the label Label Gap (in) 0.
Operator Pa nel Reference 43 I/O C onf ig. Parameter Values Description Baud Rate 300, 600, 1200, 2400, 4800 , 9600, 1920 0, 38400, or 57600 Selects the s erial por t baud rate Flow C ontrol Hardw are.
Operator Pa nel Reference 44 System Para ms. Parameter Values Description Units Inches or Millimete rs Selects the units for paramet er val ues Media Ali gnment Automatic or Manual Automatic : Printer.
Operator Pa nel Reference 45 Default Parameter Val ues This section lists the default par ameter values. The Opera tor may restore these va lues using the ENTER to recall de faults feature in the System Pa rameters me nu.
Operator Pa nel Reference 46 Off-Line Me nu M ap Figure 15 provides a map to assist in locating features in the menu s ystem. Print Para mete rs → → → → Label Parame ters → → → → I/O Config.
Maintenance 47 Maintenance The CodeWriter 4500 Series printers require ver y little operator maintenance. The routine tasks involve keeping the media paths clear of pap er dust and debris. NOTE: Turn off power while performing maintenanc e tasks. Removing th e Ribbon T ake-up Roll Use the following procedure to remove the ribbon take up roll: 1.
Maintenance 48 Printhead Cl eaning Clean the printhead with ever y ribbon change or after ev ery 10,000 linear inches of direct ther mal label media. Use the c leaning pen supplied with the printe r or a Q-tip soaked in alcohol.
Troubleshooting Guide 49 T roubleshooting Guide This section serve s to guide the operator through successfully resolving issues that might occur during normal printer operation. If the printer issue is not resolved using the info rmation in this guide , please contact Da tasouth Service f or additional assistance.
Troubleshooting Guide 50 The ribbon sensor indicates a therm al transfer ribbon is present while in direct thermal mode. I f direct thermal mode is desired and the ribbon is removed, then one of the following conditions has occurr ed. (This procedure onl y applies to Thermal Transfer printers ope rating in Direct Thermal mode.
Troubleshooting Guide 51 The printer cannot resolve the relationship betw een the detected medi a size (the space between gaps) and the prog rammed size. One of the following conditions has occurred to cause this messa ge. 1. If the label is behind the contact point between the platen and the printhead, the la bel will not feed.
Troubleshooting Guide 52 The printer has detected an abno rmally high temperatur e on the printhead. The following conditions have caused this problem. 1. If the printer has been printing labels continuously, allow the p rinter to cool for a few minutes and press the ENTER PRINT key to continue printing.
Troubleshooting Guide 53 Print Qualit y Issues The problems and solutions listed here presume the printer was setup p roperl y using the procedure in this ma nual’s Media Setti ngs section. I f the printer is displa ying any messages, see Response to Display Messages in this se ction before proceeding.
Troubleshooting Guide 54 Missing Dots in Label See Printhead Cleaning in the Mainte nance section to see if this procedure will solve the problem. Thermal Printheads reaching the end of their operational life will ex hibit this symptom. Although you may continue printing without damaging the printer, make arrangem ents to obtain a new printhead.
Troubleshooting Guide 55 Data Communica tions Iss ues The following information presumes the serial communications link has been set up using the procedures in Data Communications section. Resolving wiring or hardware handshaking issues usually requir es a RS232 Breakout Box or RS232 Signal Mini-Tester.
Troubleshooting Guide 56 Hex Dump Mode The Hex Dump Mode assists in verif y ing the Data Communications function b y providing a printed record of all data re ceived b y the printer. The Hex Dump mode presents the data in hexadecima l format, explicitly displaying the serial port data as received.
Troubleshooting Guide 57 Adjusting Sensor Sen siti vity The Operator Panel off -line menu includes a featur e to adjust the sensor sensitivity. The default sensor sensitivity setting s will detect the major it y of media types. This procedure is only applicable to situations whe re the printer is unable to proper ly detect a ribbon or label stock.
Troubleshooting Guide 58 If this proce dure fails to produce a working sensor sensitivity that stops the Media Ou t messages contact qualified service p ersonnel. Printer is Displaying “Media Fe ed Fault” Message The printer display s this message when the Gap Sensor sensitivit y level is less than required.
Troubleshooting Guide 59 Adjusting the Black Ba r Sensor Sensitivity The printer uses the Black Bar S ensor s ystem to detect bl ack bar on the back of label stock. Setting the Label Gap parameter v alue to Black Bar (0.01 inches) causes the printer to use this method.
Troubleshooting Guide 60 this issue involves lowering the Black Bar Sensor Sensitivity to a level that will allow the sensor to de tect the black bar s between labels. 1. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. This takes you to the off-line menu. 2. When Interface Stat us Off-Line i s displayed, press the MENU key.
Troubleshooting Guide 61 Adjusting the Ribbon Sensor Sensitivit y The Ribbon Sensor system detects the presence of a ribbon in the system. The Media Type parameter value determines how the pr inter uses the sensor (se e Media Se ttings section , Setting the Pri nting Me thod ) .
Troubleshooting Guide 62 Printer Di splays “Ribbon Out” Message in Ther mal Tr ansfer Mode The printer displays this message when Ribbon Sensor sensitivity level is greater than required. The Ribbon Sensor is r eceiving light reflecting from the back of the ribbon, or through the ribbon from the back of the printhead bracket.
Troubleshooting Guide 63 Verifying the Sens or Operation The Operator Panel off-line menu provid es a diagnostic tool to verif y the ope ration Gap Sensor operation. 1. Press the ONLINE PAUSE key. This takes you to the off-line menu. 2. When Interface Stat us Off-Line i s displayed, press the MENU key until System Par ams .
Troubleshooting Guide 64 (This Page Intentionally Blank).
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 65 Applications Overv iew This section identifie s the applications de velopment resource s available, the pr inter’s fonts and bar code s ymbologies, and a Quick Start .
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 66 P A L Font s and Bar Cod es CodeWriter 4500 Series printers include following fonts and bar codes for application development. Fonts Font Point Size PAL Identi fier Sample Sans Seri f 6 Sans6.00pt Sans Seri f 8 Sans8.00pt Sans Seri f 10 Sans10.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 67 Bar Codes Bar Code PAL Identi fier Sample Code 39 /Code39 Code 93 /Code93 Code 128 A, B and C /Code128 Interleav e 2 of 5 /I2of5 UPC-A /UPCA UPC-E /UPCE EAN-8 /EAN8 EAN.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 68 MSI Plessy /MSI PDF-417 /PDF417 Table 8 – PAL Bar C ode Li st and Sampl es.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 69 P A L Quick Start This section c ontains instructions for establishing communic ation with the printer to setup a PAL development environment for lab el applications. The d evelopment environment makes use of a terminal emulator progr am such as H yperTerminal .
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 70 If it does, then the communication channel has been setup correctl y. If it doesn't, check the cables, the printer I/O Setting s and the terminal emulator settings. For developing applications, the printer has an ex ecutive mode that incorporates a prompt and provides an e cho of characters t yped.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 71 Label Tutori al This section guides th e read er through a ex amples desi gned to tea ch the re ader how to create basic labels. The tutorial starts with a simple label with a plain text string. The tutorial builds on this example b y introducing a single concept in each subsequent example.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 72 Printing Text on a Label Label Out put PAL Com mand Seq uence Hello World! 1 " 1 " /Sans12.00pt find font 12 scalefont setfont 72 72 mov e to (Hello Wo rld!) show 1 _showpages Purpose: Demonstrate how to pr int simple text on a label.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 73 The default coordinate syste m used by PAL is a traditional Cartesia n coordinate s ystem with the origin at the lower left-hand corn er of the drawing surface: ( 0,0 ) x PAL Coordi nate Sy stem An internal “cursor” is maintained b y PAL that keeps track of where to put the next print object, i.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 74 Printing a Line Label Out put PAL Com mand Seq uence /Sans12.00pt find font 12 scalefont setfont 72 72 mov e to (Hello Wo rld!) show 72 68 mov e to 144 68 lineto stroke Hello World! 1 " 1 " 1 _showpages Purpose: Demonstrate drawing lines on a label.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 75 Printing a Box Label Out put PAL Com mand Seq uence /Sans12.00pt find font 12 scalefont setfont 72 72 mov e to (Hello Wo rld!) show 72 68 mov e to 144 68 lineto 30 30 m.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 76 Rotate a Text Object Label Out put PAL Com mand Seq uence /Sans12.00pt find font 12 scalefont setfont 72 72 mov e to (Hello Wo rld!) show 72 68 mov e to 144 68 lineto 3.
App li cat i ons Ov erv ie w 77 Printing a Bar Code Label Out put PAL Com mand Seq uence /Sans12.00pt find font 12 scalefont setfont 72 72 mov e to (Hello Wo rld!) show 72 68 mov e to 144 68 lineto 30.
Applications Guide 78 (This Page Intentionally Blank).
Specifications 79 Specifications Environmental Operatin g Temperatur e : 32 to 104 degrees F (0 to 40 degrees C) Storage Temperature: 0 to 140 degrees F (-17 to 60 degrees C) Relative Humidity : 8 to 80 percent Maximum wet bulb temperature : 84 degrees F (29 degrees C) Physical 4505 Width: 9.
Specifications 80 Media Ribbon Length: 984 feet (300 meters) Maximum Width: 4.375 inches Maximum Ribbon Leader: 12 inches (300 mm) Ribbon Trailer: 6 inches (150 mm) Reflective or Clear Ink Side: Outside Core ID: 1.0 inches Roll OD: 2.
Advanced Featur es 81 Advanced Features Flash Mem or y Management The CodeWriter 4500 Series printer provides the user with a dedicated 32k ar ea of flash me mory to store applica tions or label for mats. To use this area the user must understand how to access the area and copy the application to the printer.
Advanced Featur es 82 PAL Applicati on Bootstrap Bypass Hold down the CANCEL button while turning on power. Do not release until the printer display s the Inter face Status Online message. The printer supports the downloading of standalone or other user PA L applications into a reserved portion of the internal flash ROM.
Advanced Featur es 83 Print Darkness Con trol CodeWriter 4500 Series Printers shipped with this manual 4 will conta in a new Print Darkness control method.
Advanced Featur es 84.
An important point after buying a device AMT Datasouth 4500 Series (or even before the purchase) is to read its user manual. We should do this for several simple reasons:
If you have not bought AMT Datasouth 4500 Series yet, this is a good time to familiarize yourself with the basic data on the product. First of all view first pages of the manual, you can find above. You should find there the most important technical data AMT Datasouth 4500 Series - thus you can check whether the hardware meets your expectations. When delving into next pages of the user manual, AMT Datasouth 4500 Series you will learn all the available features of the product, as well as information on its operation. The information that you get AMT Datasouth 4500 Series will certainly help you make a decision on the purchase.
If you already are a holder of AMT Datasouth 4500 Series, but have not read the manual yet, you should do it for the reasons described above. You will learn then if you properly used the available features, and whether you have not made any mistakes, which can shorten the lifetime AMT Datasouth 4500 Series.
However, one of the most important roles played by the user manual is to help in solving problems with AMT Datasouth 4500 Series. Almost always you will find there Troubleshooting, which are the most frequently occurring failures and malfunctions of the device AMT Datasouth 4500 Series along with tips on how to solve them. Even if you fail to solve the problem, the manual will show you a further procedure – contact to the customer service center or the nearest service center
