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Zebra Technologies GC420d manual

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Table of contents for the manual

  • Page 1

    User Guide Zebra ® GC420d™ Desktop Thermal Printer[...]

  • Page 2

    ii P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012[...]

  • Page 3

    iii 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 ©2012 ZIH Corp. GC420,GC42 0d, ZBI, ZBI 2.0, ZBI-Develop er , Uni-Ribbon, ZebraDesigner , ZebraNet, EPL, EPL2, ZPL, ZPL II, OpenACCESS and all product names and numbers are Zebra trademarks, and Zebr a, the Zebra head graphic, ZPL, ZPL II, Element Energy Equal izer circu it, E3 Circuitand, and ZebraN[...]

  • Page 4

    iv P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 FCC Compliance S tatement This device compli es with Part 15 rules. Operation is su bject to the followin g two conditions: 1. This device may not cause harmful in terferen ce, and 2. This device must accept any interference recei ved, including interference tha t may cause undesired operation. This eq[...]

  • Page 5

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 About This Document This section provid es you with contact information, d ocument structure and or ganization, and additional re ference documents. Content s Who Should Use This Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi How This Document Is Organi[...]

  • Page 6

    Who Shoul d Use This Documen t vi P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Who Should Use This Document This User Guide is intended for use by any pe rson who needs to operate o r to troubleshoot problems with the printer. How This Document Is Organized The User Guide is set up as follows: Section Description Intr oduction on page 1 This section[...]

  • Page 7

    vii Contacts 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Cont act s T echnical Support vi a the Internet is available 24 hou rs per day , 365 days per ye ar . W eb Site: www .zebra.com E-mail Back T e chnical L ibrary: E-mail address: emb@zebra.com Subject line: Ema illist Self Service Knowledge Base: www .zebra.com/knowledgebase Online Case Regist[...]

  • Page 8

    Document Conventions viii P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Document Conventions The following co nventions are used throughout this do cument to convey certain information. Alternate Color (online only) C ross-references cont ain hot links to ot her sections in this guide. If you ar e viewing th is guide onli ne in .pdf format, you can c[...]

  • Page 9

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Contents • About This Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v Who Should Use This Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi How This Document Is Organi zed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 10

    x P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Long T erm Printer In-activity or S t orag e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Thermal Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Modes of Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 11

    xi 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 T r oubleshooting T ests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Printing a Configuration Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Recalibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 12

    xii P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ ________________[...]

  • Page 13

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 1 Introduction This section describes what you get in your ship ping box and prov ides an overview of printer features. This includes procedures that descri be how to open and close th e printer and report any problems. Content s GC420d™ Thermal Printers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 14

    GC420d™ Thermal Printers 2 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 GC420d™ Thermal Printers The Zebra ® GC420d™ model is the best value in a desktop thermal printer . The GC420d™ printer provides di rect thermal prin ting at speeds up to 4 ips (i nches per second) at a 203 dpi (dots per inch) print density . The GC420d™ supports bo t[...]

  • Page 15

    3 What’s in the Box? 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 What’ s in the Box? Save the carton and all packing mate rials in case you ne ed to ship or store th e printer later . After unpacking, make sure you have all part s. Follow the procedures for inspecti ng the printer to familiarize yourself wi th printer parts so you c an follow t[...]

  • Page 16

    What’s in the Box? 4 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Y our Printer Opening the p rinter T o access the media comp artment, you must open the p rinter . Pull the release latch es towards you and lift the cover . Check the media compartment for loose or d amaged components. Interfac e Connectors Feed Button Status Light Release Latches [...]

  • Page 17

    5 What’s in the Box? 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Printer Features Label-Taken Sensor Peel Bar Platen Roller Dispenser Option BlackLine Sensor Gap Sensor Roll Holder and Media Guides Head-Up Sensor (inside) Pinch Roller Dispenser Door (open) Printhead Media Guides Media Guide Adjustment[...]

  • Page 18

    What’s in the Box? 6 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Operator Controls Power Switch Press up to turn ON or do wn to turn OFF the printer . Feed Button • T ap the Feed button o nce to force the printer t o feed one blank label. • Press the Feed button to ta ke the printer out of a “pause” condition . The printer is put into “[...]

  • Page 19

    7 What’s in the Box? 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 S tatus Light Located on the top case next to the feed bu tton, the status light fu nctions as a printer operational indica tor (see S tatus Light Descripti ons on page 60 ). Feed Butto n Status Light[...]

  • Page 20

    What’s in the Box? 8 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Closing the printer 1. Lower the top cover . 2. Press down until the cover sn aps closed.[...]

  • Page 21

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 2 Getting Started This section describ es how to set up your printer for the first time and use the most common operating procedu res for loading media. Content s Attaching Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Loading Roll[...]

  • Page 22

    Attaching Power 10 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Att aching Power 1. Make sure the p rinter ’ s power switch is in the off position (down). 2. Insert the AC po wer cord into the power supp ly . 3. Plug the other end of the cord into an appropriate AC elect rical outlet. Note: The active power light will go on if power is on at the A[...]

  • Page 23

    11 Loading Roll Media 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Loading Roll Media When you loa d media, you must place the ro ll onto the media ha ngers. Y ou must use the corre ct media for the type of printing you require . Prep aring Media Whether your ro ll media is inside or ou tside wound, you l oad it into the printe r the same way . • [...]

  • Page 24

    Loading Roll Medi a 12 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Placing the Roll in the Media Comp artment 1. Open the printer . Remember that you need to pull th e release latch levers to ward the front of the prin ter . 2. Open the media guides by turn ing the media gui de adjustment knob toward the rear of t he printer .[...]

  • Page 25

    13 Loading Roll Media 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 3. Pull the media ro ll holders open with your free hand an d place the me dia roll on t he roll holders and release. Orient the media roll so that its printing surf ace will face up as it passes over the platen (drive) roller .[...]

  • Page 26

    Loading Roll Medi a 14 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 4. Pull the media so that it extends out of t he front of the printer . Thread the media under the media guides.V erify the roll turn s freely . The roll must not sit in the bottom of the media compartment. V erify t hat the medi a’ s printing surface is facing up. 5. Close the me[...]

  • Page 27

    15 Printing a T est (Printer Configurati on) Label 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Printing a T est (Printer Configuration) Label Before you connect the printer to your computer , make sure that the p rinter is in proper working order . Y ou can do this by printi ng a configuration sta tus label. 1. Make sure the med ia is properly load[...]

  • Page 28

    Pre-install Windows® Printer Drivers 16 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Pre-inst all Windows® Printer Drivers Zebra is changin g the way you in stall and use your print er with your W indows based PC systems. W e recommend that at minimum, th e ZebraDesigner™ W ind ows® d river be pre- installed to take a dvantage of the advancemen[...]

  • Page 29

    17 Pre-install Windows® Printer Drivers 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Universal Serial Bus (USB ) Device Communications The printer is a terminal device (not a host or hub) when using a USB interface. Y ou can refer to the USB Spec ification for deta ils regarding t his interface . Scanners, scales or other data inpu t (terminal) dev[...]

  • Page 30

    Connecting your Printer to a Computer 18 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Connecting your Printer to a Computer The printer support a variet y of interface option s and configurations. Th ese include: Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, RS232 Serial and Parallel (IEEE 1284.4). • USB, Serial and Parallel The Zebra Setup Utility is des[...]

  • Page 31

    19 Connecting your Printer to a Computer 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 USB Interface Requirement s Universal Serial Bus (ve rsion 2.0 compliant) provid es a fast interface that is compatible with your existing PC h ardware. USB’ s “plug and play” desig n makes installation e asy . Multiple printers can sha re a single USB po rt/[...]

  • Page 32

    Connecting your Printer to a Computer 20 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Serial Communications The GK888 has a DCE serial communi cation port for hardware compatibil ity with legacy 888 printers. The required cable must have a nine -pin “D” type (DB-9P) male connector on one end which p lugs into the mating (DB -9S) serial port loca[...]

  • Page 33

    21 Connecting your Printer to a Computer 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 EPL Y Command Use the serial port setup ( Y ) co mmand to change the communic ations settings on the p rinter . 1. W ith the host computer set at the same communicatio ns settings as the printer , send the Y command to chan ge the prin ter to the desi red set tings[...]

  • Page 34

    Connecting your Printer to a Computer 22 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Parallel Port The required cable must have a 25 pi n “D” type (DB-25P) male connector (host) on one end and a Centronics (print er) on the other end (I EEE 1284 A-B parallel inte rface specification). Parallel Cable[...]

  • Page 35

    23 After Y our Printer is Connected 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Af ter Y our Printer is Connected Now that you have basic communicati on to your printer , you may wan t to test printer communications and then install other print er related applications, d rivers or utilities. T esting Communications by Printing V erifying the print [...]

  • Page 36

    After Y our Printer is Connected 24 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ _[...]

  • Page 37

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 3 Print Operations This section pro vides media and prin t handling, font an d language support, and the setup of less common printer configurations. Content s Determining Printer Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Long T erm Printer In-act[...]

  • Page 38

    Determining Printer Configuration 26 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Determining Printer Configuration The printer uses a ZPL printer confi guration status label to report the print er ’ s co nfiguration status for both EPL and ZPL operati ons.The ZPL style label provides a more intu itive and functionally descriptive naming conv enti[...]

  • Page 39

    27 Modes of Printing 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Modes of Printing Y ou can operate this printer in ma ny di fferent modes and media configurations: • Direct thermal prin ting (which uses heat sen sitive media to print). • S tandard T ear-Of f mode allows you to tea r off each lab el (or batch print a strip of l abels) after it [...]

  • Page 40

    Print Media T y pes 28 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 T able 1 • T ypes of Media Roll and Fanfold Media Media T ype How It Looks Description Non-Continuous Roll Media Roll media is wound on a core that can be 0.5 to 1.5 in. (12.7 to 38.1 mm) in diame ter . Labels have adhesi ve backing that sti cks them to a liner , and they are sepa[...]

  • Page 41

    29 Replacing Supplies 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Determining Thermal Media T ypes Thermal transfer media requires ribbon for printin g while direct thermal media does not. T o deter mine if ribbon must be used with a p articular media, perform a media scratch test. T o perform a media scratch test, complete these step s: 1. Scratch[...]

  • Page 42

    Adjusting the Print Quality 30 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Adjusting the Print Quality Print quality is influ enced by the heat (density) se tting of the printhead, the prin t speed, and the media in use. Experiment with the se settings to find the optimal mix for you r application. Print quality can be set with the Zebra Setup U ti[...]

  • Page 43

    31 Media Sensing 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Media Sensing The printer has au tomatic media sensing capabi lity . The printer is desi gned to continuously check and adju st media length sensing for minor varia tions. Once the printer is prin ting or feeding media, the printe r continually checks and adjusts the media sensing to acco[...]

  • Page 44

    Printing on Fa n-Fold Media 32 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Printing on Fan-Fold Media Printing on fan -fold media requ ires you to ad just the media roll holders’ stop position. 1. Open the top cover . 2. W ith a sample of your media, adjust the medi a roll holders to the width of the media. The hangers should ju st touch, but not[...]

  • Page 45

    33 Printing on Fan-F old Media 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 3. W i th a sample of your m edia, adjust the gu ides to the width of the media.The guides should just tou ch, but not restrict, the e dges of the media. 4. Run the media between the me dia gui de and roll holder s. 5. Close the top cover . After printing or feeding severa l[...]

  • Page 46

    Printing with Externally Mo unted Roll Media 34 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Printing with Externally Mounted Roll Media The GC420 printer acc ommodates externally mount ed roll media similar to the printer ’ s support of fan-fold med ia. The printer requires the media roll and stand combination to have a low initial in ertia to pu[...]

  • Page 47

    35 Fonts and Y our Printer 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Font s and Y our Printer The GC420 printer supp orts your language an d fo nt requirements wi th a variety of internal fonts, on-board font scaling, in ternational font sets and character code page support, Unicode support, and font down load. The GC420 printer ’ s font capabi[...]

  • Page 48

    Fonts and Y our Printer 36 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Identifying Font s in Y our Printer Fonts and memory are shared by th e programming languages in the printer . Fonts can be loaded in many memory areas in the GC420 print er . ZPL programming can recognize EPL and ZPL fonts. EPL programming can onl y recogn ize EPL fonts. See th[...]

  • Page 49

    37 S tand Alone Printi ng 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 S t and Alone Printing Y our printer can be config ured to work withou t being attached to a computer . The printer has the ability to automatically run a single label form. On e or more downloaded label forms can be accessed and run with a terminal or wedge device or a Zebra ® [...]

  • Page 50

    Sending Files to the Printer 38 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Sending Files to the Printer Graphics, font s and programming files can be sent to the printer from th e Microsoft W indows operating sy stems by using the Zebra Setup Utilities (a nd driver), ZebraNet™ Bri dge or Zebra ® ZDownloade r found on the u ser's CD or at w[...]

  • Page 51

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 4 Printer Options This section covers th e common printer opti ons and accessories with brief descri ptions and how to get yo u started using or configurin g your printer option or a ccessory . Content s Label Dispenser Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 52

    Label Dispenser Option 40 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Label Dispenser Option The factory installe d label dispenser option allo ws you to print a label with backing (liner/web) being re moved from the label as it prints, ready for applicati on. When printing multiple labels, removing the dispensed (peeled) lab el notifies the printe[...]

  • Page 53

    41 Label Dispenser Option 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 2. Lift the liner over the top of the printer and open the dispense r door . 3. Insert the lab el liner between the di spenser door and th e printer body .[...]

  • Page 54

    Label Dispenser Option 42 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 4. Close the disp enser door . 5. Press the Feed button to advance the media. 6. During the print job, the printer will pe el off the backing and present a single label. T ake the label fro m the printer to allow the printer to print the next label. Note: If you did not activate [...]

  • Page 55

    43 Zebra® KDU — Printer Accessory 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Zebra ® KDU — Printer Accessory The KDU (keyboard display unit) is a small termi n al unit that interface s with the pri nter for accessing EPL labe l forms stored in the printer . The KDU is strictly a te rminal and does not ha ve the capability to store d ata or s[...]

  • Page 56

    KDU Plus™ — Printer Accessory 44 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 KDU Plus™ — Printer Accessory The KDU Plus is a terminal device with memory for storing files and maint aining one or more remote printers. The KDU Plu s has a larger laptop style keyboard than the Zebra’ s original KDU design. The KDU Plus i s designed for the f[...]

  • Page 57

    45 ZBI 2.0™ — Zebra Basic Interpreter 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 ZBI 2.0™ — Zebra Basic Interpreter Customize and enhance your printer wi th ZBI 2.0 optional programming language, ZBI 2.0 allows Zebra printers to run appl ications and take input from scales, scanners and other periphe rals—all without a PC or network conn[...]

  • Page 58

    ZBI 2.0™ — Zebra Basic Interpreter 46 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ____________[...]

  • Page 59

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 5 Maintenance This section pro vides routine cl eanin g and maintenance p rocedures. Content s Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Cleaning the Printhead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 60

    Cleaning 48 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Cleaning When you clea n the printer , use one of the follo wing supplies that best suits your need s: Y ou can obtain cleaning supplies at www .zipzebra.com . The cleaning pro cess takes just a couple of min utes using the steps outlin ed below . Cleaning Supplies Order Quantity In tended Pur[...]

  • Page 61

    49 Cleaning 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Cleaning the Prin thead Always use a new cleaning pen on the printhead (an old p en carries contaminant s from its previous u ses that may damage the pr inthead). When you loa d new media, you can also clean the pri nthead. 1. Rub the cleaning pen across t he dark area of the printhead . Clean[...]

  • Page 62

    Cleaning 50 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Media Path Considerations Use a cleaning swab to remove debris, d ust or crust that has built-up on the holders, guides and media path surfaces. 1. Use the alcohol in the clea ning swab to so ak the debris to break up the adhesive. 2. W i pe the ridges to remove accumul ated debris. 3. W i pe [...]

  • Page 63

    51 Cleaning 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Sensor Cleaning Dust can accumula te on the media sensors. 1. Gently brush away dust; if ne cessa ry , use a dry swab to brush away dust. If adhe sives or other contaminates remain, use an a lco hol moistened swab to break it up. 2. Use a dry swab to remove any resi due that may be left from t[...]

  • Page 64

    Cleaning 52 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Platen Cleaning and Replacement The standard platen (drive roll er) normally does not require cleaning. Paper and liner dust can accumulate without ef fecting print opera tions. Contaminates on the platen roller c an damage the printhead or cause the media t o slip or stick when pri nting. Adh[...]

  • Page 65

    53 Cleaning 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 5. Install the platen in the printer . Discard the cleaning swabs afte r use - do not reuse. 6. Make sure the bearings and gear are on the shaft of the platen as shown. 7. Align the plat en with the gear to th e left and lower it into the printer’ s bottom frame. 8. Rotate the tabs back a nd[...]

  • Page 66

    Replacing the Printh ead 54 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Replacing the Printhead If you need to replace the print head, read the procedure and re view the removal and installation steps before actually re placing the printhe ad. Before followi ng the steps in th is procedure, open t he printer by pull ing the release l atches forward[...]

  • Page 67

    55 Replacing the Printhead 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 2. Grasp the print he ad spring and pull it to th e left; then, slide it fre e of the latch frame. 3. Gently pull th e wire bundles fro m the printhead. 4. Use a #1 Phillips driver to loosen the two screws and washers and release the print head from the latch frame and bracket .[...]

  • Page 68

    Replacing the Printh ead 56 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Printhead Installation 1. Route the p rint head ca bles under th e latch shaf t and plug the printhe ad cables into the receptacles on the printhead. 2. Hold the printhe ad against the bracket while replaci ng the screws and washers. Attach the ground wire usin g the right scre[...]

  • Page 69

    57 Replacing the Printhead 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 3. Slip the left end of the printhead spring into the l eft side of the latch bracket; then slide the right end into t he other side. The a ngle of the “V” fits into the indent on t he top of the printhead bracket. 4. Align the latch brack et up to the top case and ensure th[...]

  • Page 70

    Replacing the Printh ead 58 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ _________[...]

  • Page 71

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 6 Troubleshooting This section provides info rmation about printer error reporting that you mig ht need for printer troubleshootin g. Assorted diagnost ic tests are included. Content s S tatus Light Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 72

    S tatus Light Descriptions 60 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 S t atus Light Descriptions What the St atus Light is T elling Y ou LED St atus and Colo r Printer St atus For a Resolution, Refer to Numbe r: Off Off 1 Solid Green On 2 Solid A mber Stopped 3 Flashing Gree n Normal Operat ion 4 Flashing Red Stop ped 5 Double Flashing Green P[...]

  • Page 73

    61 S tatus Light Error Resoluti ons 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 S t atus Light Error Resolutions The following Status Error Light Resolut ion numbers correspond to the Status Light Description tab le on the previo us page. Each e rror number may ha ve one or more resolution to correct that erro r listed. 1. The printer is not receiv[...]

  • Page 74

    S tatus Light Error Resolutions 62 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 6. The printer is p aused. • Press the Feed button to resume prin ting. 7. The printhead is over temperature. • Printing wil l stop until the printhead coo ls to an acceptable printing te mperature. When it does, the printer will auto matically resume operation. 8. F[...]

  • Page 75

    63 Print Quality Problems 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Print Quality Problems No print on the label. • The media may not be direct ther mal media. See the test proc edure Determining Thermal Media T ypes on page 29 . • Is the media loade d correctly? Follow the instructions for Loading Roll Media on page 1 1 in the Getti ng Start[...]

  • Page 76

    Print Quality Problems 64 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 There are long tracks of missing print (blank vertical lines) on several labels. • The printhead is dirty . Clean the printhead . • The printhead ele ments are damaged. The printing does not st art at the to p of the label or misprinting of one to three labels. • The media [...]

  • Page 77

    65 Print Quality Problems 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 A EPL label format was sent to, bu t not recognized by , the printer . • Is the printer i n pause mode? If so, press the Feed button. • If the printer h as label dispensing enabled, t he printer may be waiting for the label to be removed. The liner/web must be properly t h re[...]

  • Page 78

    Manual Calibration 66 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Manual Calibration Manual calibrat ion is recommende d whe never you are using pre-pr inted media or if the printer will not correctly auto calibrate. 1. Make sure media i s loaded. 2. T urn on the printer power . 3. Press and hold the Fee d button until the gree n status light flash[...]

  • Page 79

    67 T roubleshootin g T e sts 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 T roubleshooting T est s Printing a Configuration Label T o print out a listing of the printer ’ s current configuration, refer to the o ne-flash sequence in Feed Button Modes on page 70 in this sectio n. See Appendix: ZPL Co nfiguration on page 81 to interpret the label. Re[...]

  • Page 80

    Resetting the Factory Default V alues 68 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Resetting the Factory Default V alues Sometimes, resetting the printer to the fa ctory defaults may solve so me problems. Refer to the four-flash sequence in Feed Button Modes on page 70 in this section. Communications Diagnostics If there is a problem transferring[...]

  • Page 81

    69 Communications Diagnostics 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 The following example of a communications DU MP mode printed out. The print out displays hexadecimal d ata 00h-FFh (0-255 deci mal) with a unique character for each hexadec imal value displayed above the hex adecimal data. The blank lines between t he lines of data are where [...]

  • Page 82

    Feed Button Modes 70 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Feed Button Modes Power Off Modes W ith the printer power off, pr ess and ho ld the Feed butto n wh ile you turn on the powe r . Flash Sequence Action Amber - Red Flashing Firmware Download Mode - The printer starts rapidly flas hing red to de note entry into the Firmware Download mod[...]

  • Page 83

    71 Feed Button Modes 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Power On Modes W ith the printer power on and top cove r closed , press and hold the Feed button for several seconds. The green status LED will flash a number of times in sequence. The explana tion at the right (Action) sh ows what ha ppens when you release the key after the start spe[...]

  • Page 84

    Feed Button Modes 72 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________[...]

  • Page 85

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 A Appendix: Interface Wiring This section provides printer interface connection information. Content s Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Parallel Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 86

    Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface 74 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface The figure below displays the cable wiring re quired to use the printer ’ s USB interface. The printer requires cable or cable pac kagin g that bea rs the “Cer tified USB™” mark to guarantee USB 2.0 complianc e. For print[...]

  • Page 87

    75 Parallel Interface 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Parallel Interface The printer ’ s parallel interface uses the IEEE 1284-A to 1284-B parallel interface cables. the host connect or has a DB-25 pin mal e connector . The printe r connector is a Centro nics style connector . PRINTER DB -25 Pin No. Centronics Pin No. DB -25 to Centro[...]

  • Page 88

    Serial Port In terface 76 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Serial Port Interface The maximum current avai lable through the serial a nd/or parallel port is not to exceed a total of 0. 75 Amps. When XON/XOFF handshak ing is selected, data fl ow is controlled by the ASC II control codes DC1 (XON) and DC3 (X OFF) . The DTR control lead wil [...]

  • Page 89

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 B Appendix: Dimensions This section p rovides extern al printer d imensions. Content s External GK Printer Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Label Dispenser Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 90

    External GK Printer Dimensions 78 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 External GK Printer Dimensions All dimensions are in inches[...]

  • Page 91

    79 External GK Printer Dimensions 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 Label Dispenser Option[...]

  • Page 92

    External GK Printer Dimensions 80 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ___[...]

  • Page 93

    5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 C Appendix: ZPL Configuration This section provides a basic overview of managi ng printer configurat ion, the Configuring Status Printout, and Pr inter Memory Pri ntouts. Content s Managing Printer Configuration with ZPL Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 ZPL Configuration S [...]

  • Page 94

    Managing Printer Con figuration with ZPL Programming 82 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Managing Printer Configuration with ZPL Programming The printer is desi gned to allow you to cha nge printer settings dynamically for fast first label out printing. Printer p arameters that are persiste nt, will be retained fo r following formats to [...]

  • Page 95

    83 ZPL Configuration Status to Command Cross-reference 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 ZPL Configuration S t atus to Command Cross-reference The Printer Configur ation Label, shown below , provides a listing of a majority of the configurations settings that can be se t by ZPL command. Some prin ter options and v ariations will only be d[...]

  • Page 96

    ZPL Configuration S tatus to Command Cross-reference 84 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 T able 2 • ZPL Commands a nd Configuration Receipt Callout Cross-Reference From this point in the Configuration Rece ipt listing, the print out has sensor settings an d values are displayed t o troubleshoot sen sor and media operatio ns. These are [...]

  • Page 97

    85 ZPL Configuration Status to Command Cross-reference 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 The configuration setti ngs listed here resume after the T AKE LABEL sensor value. These listings contai n printer features seldom chang ed from default or provid e status information (e.g. Firmware V ersion). T able 3 • ZPL Commands a nd Configurat[...]

  • Page 98

    Printer Memory Management and Related S tatus Reports 86 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Printer Memory Management and Related S t atus Report s T o help yo u manage printer resources, the prin ter supports a variety format commands to manage memory , transfer object s (between memory areas, import and ex port), objec t naming, and prov[...]

  • Page 99

    87 Printer Memory Management and Related S tatus Reports 5/23/2012 GC420d™ User Guide P1052685-001 T able 4 • Object Management and St atus Report Commands Command Name Description ^WD Print Directory Label Prints a list of objects and resident bar codes and fonts in all addressable memory locations ~WC Print Configuration Label Prints a config[...]

  • Page 100

    Printer Memory Management and Related S tatus Reports 88 P1052685-001 GC420d™ User Guide 5/23/2012 Notes • ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ ______ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ ___________ ________________ ________________ __________________ _____________ _________[...]