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Zebra GC420t manual

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Table of contents for the manual

  • Page 1

    User Guide Zebra ® GC420t™ Desktop Thermal Printer[...]

  • Page 2

    ii P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1[...]

  • Page 3

    iii 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 ©201 1 ZIH Corp. GC4 20, GC420t, ZBI, ZBI 2.0, ZBI-Developer , Uni-Ribbon, ZebraDesigner , ZebraNet, EPL, EPL2, ZPL, ZPL II and all product names and numbers are Zebra trademarks, and Zebra, the Zebra h ead graphic, ZPL, ZPL II, Element Ener gy Equalizer circuit, E3 Circuit and, and ZebraNet are reg[...]

  • Page 4

    iv P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 FCC Compliance St atement This device compli es with Part 15 rules. Operati on is subject to the following t wo conditions: 1. This device may not cause harmful in terferen ce, and 2. This device must accept any interference recei ved, including interferenc e that may cause undesired operation. This e[...]

  • Page 5

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 About This Document This section provides yo u with contact informatio n, document structure and organiz ation, and additional re ference docu ments. Content s Who Should Use This Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi How This Document Is Orga[...]

  • Page 6

    Who Shoul d Use This Docum ent vi P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Who Should Use This Document This User Guide is intended for use by any pe rson who needs to op erate or to troubl eshoot 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 secti[...]

  • Page 7

    vii Contacts 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Cont act s T echnical Support vi a the Internet is availa ble 24 hour s per day , 365 days p er year . W eb Site: www .zebra.co m 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 Reg[...]

  • Page 8

    Document Conventions viii P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Document Conventions The following co nventions are used throughout this do cument to convey certain information. Alternate Color (online only) C ross-referenc es contain hot links to other sections in this guide. If you are viewing this guide on line in .pdf format, you can cli[...]

  • Page 9

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Contents • About This Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v Who Should Use This Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi How This Document Is Organi zed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 10

    x P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 3 • Print Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Determining Printer Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Long T erm Printer In-activity or S torag e . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 11

    xi 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 6 • T roubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 S tatus Light Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 S tatus Light Error Resolutions . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 12

    xii P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________[...]

  • Page 13

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 1 Introduction This section describes what you get in your sh ipping box and p rovides an overview of printer features. This includes procedur es that describe how to open and close the printer and report any problems. Content s GC420t™ Thermal Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 14

    Introduction GC420t™ Thermal Printe rs 2 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ Thermal Printers The Zebra ® GC420t™ model is the best value in a desk top thermal printer . The GC420t™ printer pr ovides ther mal transfe r and direct ther mal printi ng at speeds up to 4 ips (i nches per second) at a 203 dpi (dots per in ch) pr[...]

  • Page 15

    3 Introd uction What’s in the Box? 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 What’ s in the Box? Save the carton and all packi ng materials in case you need to ship or store th e printer later . After unpacking, make sure you have all parts. Follow the p rocedures for inspecti ng the printer to familiariz e yourself with printe r parts so yo[...]

  • Page 16

    Introduction What’s in the Box? 4 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Y o ur Printer Opening the p rinter T o access the media comp artment, you must open the printer . Pull the release latches t owards you and lift the cover . Check the media compartme n t for loose or d amaged components. Interface Connectors Feed Button Status Light R[...]

  • Page 17

    5 Introd uction What’s in the Box? 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Printer Features Sensor Peel Bar Platen Roller Printhead BlackLine Sensor Ribbon Motion Sensor Media Guides Head-Up Sensor (inside) Pinch Roller Dispen ser Door (open) Take Up Spindles Supply Spindles Ribbon Roll Holders Dispenser Option Web (Gap) Sensor Media Guide A[...]

  • Page 18

    Introduction What’s in the Box? 6 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Operator Controls Power Switch Press up to turn ON or down to turn OFF the printer . Caution • The printer power should b e turned off before connecting or disconnecting the communications and power cable s. Power OFF Power ON Power Swit ch Power Swit ch[...]

  • Page 19

    7 Introd uction What’s in the Box? 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Feed Button • T ap the Feed button once to force the prin ter to feed one blan k label. • Press the Feed button to take th e printer out of a “pause” conditi on. The printer is put in to “pause” by either a pr ogramming command or an error condition. See W[...]

  • Page 20

    Introduction What’s in the Box? 8 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Closing the printer 1. Hold the top cover and press t he “k ick-stand’ cov er lock to release. Lower the top cover . The ribbon carriage automatic ally folds up into place. 2. Press down until the cover sn aps closed.[...]

  • Page 21

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 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 medi a. Content s Attaching Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Loading Ro[...]

  • Page 22

    Attaching Power 10 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Att aching Power 1. Make sure the p rinter ’ s power swi tch is in the o ff position (down ). 2. Insert the AC po wer cord into th e power supply . 3. Plug the other end of the cord into an appropriate AC electrical outlet. Not e: The active power light will go on if power is on at t[...]

  • Page 23

    11 Loading Roll Media 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Loading Roll Media When you load med ia, you must place the roll onto the media hangers. Y ou must use the correct media for the ty pe of printin g you require. Prep aring Media Whether your roll media is inside o r outside woun d, you load it i nto the printer the same way . • Re[...]

  • Page 24

    Loading Roll Medi a 12 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Placing the Roll in the Media Comp artment 1. Open the printer . Remember that you ne ed to pull the relea se latch leve rs toward the front of the prin ter . 2. Open the media guides by turning the media gu ide adjustment knob towards the rear of the printer .[...]

  • Page 25

    13 Loading Roll Media 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 3. Open the media rol l holders. Pull the media guide s open with your free hand and pl ace the media roll on the roll hold ers and releas e the guides. Orien t the media ro ll so that its printing surface will face up as it passes over the platen (drive ) roller .[...]

  • Page 26

    Loading Roll Medi a 14 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 4. Pull the media so th at it extends out o f the front of the p rinter . V erify the roll turns fre ely . The roll must not sit in the botto m of the media compartmen t. V erify that the media’ s printing surface is facing up. 5. Push the media under both of the media guides. Cl[...]

  • Page 27

    15 Loading Transfer Ribbon 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Loading T ransfer Ribbon T ransfer ribbons come in severa l varieties and in so me cases colors to match your application needs. Genuine Zebra ® transfer ribbons are sp ecifically designe d for your printer and Zebra brand media. Usin g non-Zebra media or ribbons no t approved[...]

  • Page 28

    Loading Transfer Ribbon 16 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 1. W ith the printer op en, thread the ri bbon thro ugh the ribbon carriage. Press the right side onto the spring lo aded supply hub. Alig n the left side of the ri bbon core notches to the lef t supply (spi ndle) hub spok es. Rotate the roll unt il the notche s align and lo ck[...]

  • Page 29

    17 Loading Transfer Ribbon 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 3. Attach the ribbon to the take up core. Use the adhesi ve strip on new rolls; otherwise, use tape. Y ou must align th e ribbon when you are attachi ng it to the core , so that it will be taken straig ht onto the c ore and align wit h the supply . 4. T urn the ribbon take-up g[...]

  • Page 30

    Loading Transfer Ribbon 18 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 6. If printer powe r is on, press the Feed button to have the printer feed a min imum of 10 cm (4 inches) of media to remove sl ack and ribb on wrinkle, and to align the ribbon on th e spindles. Otherwis e, wait to turn on the printer and complete the printer ‘Getting Started[...]

  • Page 31

    19 Printing a T est (Printer Configurati on) Label 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Printing a T est (Printer Configuration) Label Before you connect the printer to your computer , make sure that the printer is in p roper working order . Y ou can do this by printi ng a configurat ion status lab el. 1. Make sure the med ia is properly lo[...]

  • Page 32

    Pre-install Windows® Printer Drivers 20 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Pre-inst all Windows® Printer Drivers Zebra is changin g the way you install and use your printer with your W indows based PC systems. W e recommend that at minimum, th e ZebraDesigner™ W ind ows® driver be pre- installed to take a dvantage of the advancements[...]

  • Page 33

    21 Pre-install Windows® Printer Drivers 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Universal Serial Bus (USB ) Device Communications The printer is a terminal device (not a host or hu b) when using a USB interface. Y ou can refer to the USB Spec ification for d etails regard ing this inte rface. Scanners, scales or other data inpu t (terminal) d[...]

  • Page 34

    Connecting your Printer to a Computer 22 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Connecting your Printer to a Computer The Zebra ® GC420 printers supp ort a variety of interf ace options and config urations. These include: Universal Se rial Bus (USB) interface, RS232 Serial, Parallel (IEEE 1284.4) and 10/100 Ether net. • USB, Serial and Par[...]

  • Page 35

    23 Connecting your Printer to a Computer 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 USB Interface Requirement s Universal Serial Bus (ve rsion 2.0 complia nt) provid es a fast interface that i s compatible with your existing PC hardware. USB’ s “plug and play” design ma kes installation e asy . Multiple printers can sha re a single USB po r[...]

  • Page 36

    Connecting your Printer to a Computer 24 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 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 mati ng (DB-9S) serial port loc[...]

  • Page 37

    25 Connecting your Printer to a Computer 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 EPL Y Command Use the serial port setup ( Y ) co mmand to change th e communications set tings on the pri nter . 1. W ith the host computer set at the same commu nications settings as th e printer , send the Y command to chan ge the prin ter to the desi red set ti[...]

  • Page 38

    Connecting your Printer to a Computer 26 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Parallel Port The required cable must have a 25 pin “D” type (DB-25P) male connector (h ost) on one end and a Centronics (print er) on the other end (I EEE 1284 A-B parallel inte rface specification). Parallel Cable[...]

  • Page 39

    27 Connecting your Printer to a Computer 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Ethernet The printer requires UTP RJ4 5 Ethernet cable rated CA T -5 or better . For more informatio n on configurin g your printer to run on a compatible Ethe rnet based network, see the ZebraNet® 10/100 Intern al Print Server manual. The pr inter must be config[...]

  • Page 40

    After Y our Printer is Connected 28 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Af ter Y our Printer is Connected Now that you have basic commu nication to you r printer , you may want to test printer communications and then install other printer related applications, d rivers or utiliti es. T esting Communications by Printing V erifying the print[...]

  • Page 41

    29 After Y our Printer is Connected 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 T est Print with a Copied ZPL Command File for Non-W indows Operating Systems: 1. Create a text fil e with the following ASCII th ree characters: ~WC 2. Save the file as: TEST .ZPL (an arbitrary file name and extension name). 3. Copy the file to the printer . For DOS, [...]

  • Page 42

    After Y our Printer is Connected 30 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____[...]

  • Page 43

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 3 Print Operations This section pro vides media and print handling, font and lan guage support, an d the setup of less common printer configurations. Content s Determining Printer Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Long T erm Printer In-ac[...]

  • Page 44

    Determining Printer Configuration 32 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Determining Printer Configuration The printer uses a ZPL printer config uration status label to report the printer ’ s config uration status for both EPL and ZPL op erations.The ZPL style label provides a more in tuitive and functionally descriptive naming conventio[...]

  • Page 45

    33 Modes of Printing 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Modes of Printing Y ou can operate this printer in many di fferent modes and media configurations: • Direct thermal prin ting (which us es heat sensitive media to print). • Thermal transfer printing (whi c h uses ribbon to heat transfer pr int to the med ia). • S tandard T ear-[...]

  • Page 46

    Print Media T ypes 34 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 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 diameter . Labels have adhe sive backing that sticks them to a liner , and they are separa[...]

  • Page 47

    35 Replacing Supplies 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Determining Thermal Media T y pes Thermal transfer media requires ribbon for prin ting while direct thermal me dia does not. T o deter mine if ribbon must be used wit h a particular media, perform a media scr atch test. T o perform a media scratch test, complete these step s: 1. Scr[...]

  • Page 48

    Adjusting the Print Width 36 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Replacing a Partially Used T ransfer Ribbon T o remove used transfer ribbon, perform the fol lowing steps. 1. Cut the ribbon from the take-up roll. 2. Remove the take-up roll an d discard used ribbon. 3. Remove the supply roll and tape th e end of any fres h ribbon to preven [...]

  • Page 49

    37 Media Sensing 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Media Sensing The printer has au tomatic media sensing capability . The printer is desi gned to continu ously check and adju st media length sensi ng for minor variations. Once the printer is prin ting or feeding media, the printe r continually check s and adjusts the media sensing to ac[...]

  • Page 50

    Ribbon Overview 38 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Ribbon Overview Ribbon is a t hin film that is coat ed on one side with wax, resin, or wax resin, which is transferred to the media duri ng the therm al transfer pr ocess. The medi a determines whether you need to use ribbon and how wide the ribbon must be. When ribb on is used, it mu [...]

  • Page 51

    39 Ribbon Overview 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Ribbon T est with Adhesive If you have lab els available, perform th e adhesive test to determine which sid e of a ribbon is coated. This method works well for ribbon that is already install ed. T o perform an adhesive test, complete these step s: 1. Peel a label fro m its liner . 2. P[...]

  • Page 52

    Printing on Fa n-Fold Medi a 40 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Printing on Fan-Fold Media Printing on fan-fol d media requires you t o adjust the media guide’ s stop p osition. 1. Open the t op cover . 2. W ith a sample of your media, adjust the medi a roll holders to the width of the media. The hangers should just t ouch, but not r[...]

  • Page 53

    41 Printing on Fan-F old Media 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 3. W ith a sampl e of your media, adjust the gu ides to the width of the media.The guides should just t ouch, but not restri ct, the edges of the media. 4. Run the media between the me dia guide and roll ho lders. 5. Close the top cover . After printing or feeding several l[...]

  • Page 54

    Printing with Externally Mo unted Roll Media 42 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Printing with Externally Mounted Roll Media The GC420 printer acc ommodates external ly mounted roll media similar to the printer’ s support of fan-fold media. The printer requ ires the media ro ll and stand comb ination to hav e a low initial in ertia to[...]

  • Page 55

    43 Fonts and Y our Printer 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Font s and Y our Printer The GC420 printer supp orts your language an d fo nt requiremen ts with a variety of internal fonts, on-board font scaling, in ternational font sets and character code page support, Unicode support, and font downlo ad. The GC420 printer ’ s font capab[...]

  • Page 56

    Fonts and Y our Printer 44 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Identifying Font s in Y our Printer Fonts and memory are shared by the programming lang uages in the printer . Fonts can be loaded in many memory areas in the GC420 printer . ZPL programming can recognize EPL and ZPL fonts. EPL programming can only recogn ize EPL fonts. See the[...]

  • Page 57

    45 S tand Alone Printing 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 S t and Alone Printing Y our printer can be config ured to work withou t being attached to a computer . The printer ha s the ability to automaticall y run a single labe l form. One or more downloaded label forms can be accessed and run with a terminal or wedge devic e or a Zebra [...]

  • Page 58

    Sending Files to the Printer 46 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Sending Files to the Printer Graphics, font s and programming files can be sent to the printer from the M icrosoft W indows operating sy stems by using th e Zebra Setup U tilities (and dri v er), ZebraNet™ Bri dge or Zebra ® ZDownloade r found on the user's CD or a[...]

  • Page 59

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 4 Printer Options This section covers th e common printer opti ons and accessories with brie f descriptions and how to get yo u started using or configuring your p rinter option or a ccessory . Content s Label Dispenser Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 60

    Label Dispenser Option 48 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Label Dispenser Option The factory insta lled label dispenser op tion allows you to print a label with backing (liner/web) being re moved from the la bel as it prints, ready for applicati on. When printing multiple labels, removing the dispensed (pee led) label notifies th e pri[...]

  • Page 61

    49 Label Dispenser Option 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 2. Lift the liner over the top of the printer and open the dispenser door . 3. Insert the lab el liner between the di spenser door and the printer body .[...]

  • Page 62

    Label Dispenser Option 50 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 4. Close the disp enser door . 5. Press the Feed button to advance the media. 6. During the print job, the printer will peel of f the backing and present a single label. T ake the label fro m the printer to al low the print er to print the next label. Note: If you did not activa[...]

  • Page 63

    51 Cutter Option 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Cutter Option The printer supports a factory installed medi a cutter option for full width cutting of lab el liner , tag or receipt media. These cutter option s are all supported in a single cutter housing design . The type of cutter optio n installed in your prin ter can be veri fied by[...]

  • Page 64

    Cutter Option 52 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Loading Media with the Cutter Option 1. Open the printer . Remember that you ne ed to pull the relea se latch leve rs toward the front of the prin ter . 2. Open the media guides by turning the me dia guide ad justment knob t oward the rear o f the printer .[...]

  • Page 65

    53 Cutter Option 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 3. Open the media rol l holders. Pull the media guide s open with your free hand and pl ace the media roll on the roll hold ers and releas e the guides. Orien t the media ro ll so that its printing surface wi ll be up as it passes over the platen (drive) ro ller . . 4. Thread the med ia [...]

  • Page 66

    Cutter Option 54 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 5. Close the media guides by turnin g the guide adju ster knob to the fron t. They should ju st touch, but not restrict. the edges of the media.. 6. Close the prin ter . Press down until the cover snaps closed.[...]

  • Page 67

    55 ZebraNet® 10/100 In ternal (Wired) Print Server Op tion 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 ZebraNet ® 10/100 Internal (Wired) Print Server Option The ZebraNet ® 10/100 Intern al Print Serv er (PS) is an opti onal factory insta lled device that connects the network and your ZebraLink TM -enabled printer . The print server pro vides y[...]

  • Page 68

    ZebraNet® 10/100 Internal (Wi red) Print Server Option 56 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Printer Network Configuration S t atus Label GC420 printers wi th the ZebraNet ® 10/100 Internal Prin t Server option on-bo ard print an additional printer configuratio n status label for information ne eded to establi sh and trouble shoot netwo[...]

  • Page 69

    57 Zebra® KDU — Printer Accessory 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Zebra ® KDU — Printer Accessory The Zebra ® KDU (keyboard display u nit) is a small terminal u nit that interfaces with the printer for accessing EPL la bel forms stored in the pr inter . The KDU is strictly a termi nal and does not ha ve the capability to store d[...]

  • Page 70

    KDU Plus™ — Printer Accessory 58 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 KDU Plus™ — Printer Accessory The KDU Plus™ is a te rminal device wi th memory for storing files a nd maintaining one or more remote print ers. The KDU Plus h as a larg er laptop style keyboard than the Zebra’ s original KDU desi gn. The KDU Plus i s designed [...]

  • Page 71

    59 ZBI 2.0™ — Zebra Basic Interpreter 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 ZBI 2.0™ — Zebra Basic Interpreter Customize and enhance your printer with ZBI 2.0™ optional programming language. ZBI 2.0 allows Zebra printers to run applications and take input from scales, scanners and other peripherals—a ll without a PC or network co[...]

  • Page 72

    ZBI 2.0™ — Zebra Basic Interpreter 60 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ ________[...]

  • Page 73

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 5 Maintenance This section provid es routine cl eaning and mai ntenance proced ures. Content s Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Cleaning the Printhead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 74

    Maintenance Cleaning 62 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Cleaning When you clea n the printer , use one o f the following su pplies that be st suits your ne eds: Y ou can obtain cleaning su pplies at www .zipzebra.com . The cleaning pro cess takes just a coup le of minutes usin g the steps outlined below . Cleaning Supplies Order Quanti[...]

  • Page 75

    63 Maintenance Cleaning 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Cleaning the Printh ead Always use a new cleaning pen on the printhead (an ol d pen carries contaminant s from its previous u ses that m ay damage the pr inthead). When you loa d new media, yo u can also clea n the printh ead. 1. Rub the cleaning pen across t he dark area of the p[...]

  • Page 76

    Maintenance Cleaning 64 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Media Path Considerations Use a cleaning swab to remove debris, d ust or crust that has built -up on the holders, gui des and media path surfaces. 1. Use the alcohol in the clea ning swab to so ak t he debris to break up the adhesive. 2. W ipe the ri dges to remove accumulated deb[...]

  • Page 77

    65 Maintenance Cleaning 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Sensor Cleaning Dust can accumula te on the media sensors. 1. Gently brush or blow dust away wit h a can of compressed ai r . Do not use an air compressor - oil (from the pump) and dirty water will contaminate the printer and printhead. If necessary , use a dry swab to brush away [...]

  • Page 78

    Maintenance Cleaning 66 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Platen Cleaning and Replacement The standard platen (drive roll er) normally does not require cleaning. Paper an d liner dust can accumulate without ef fecting print operation s. Contaminate s on the platen roller can damage the printhead or c ause the media to slip or st ick when[...]

  • Page 79

    67 Maintenance Cleaning 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 3. Lift the pla ten out of the prin ter ’ s bottom frame. 4. Clean the pl aten with the a lcohol moist ened swab. Cl ean from the cent er out. Repeat this process until th e all of the ro ller surface has been cleaned. If there has been heavy adhesive build-up or labe l jam, rep[...]

  • Page 80

    Maintenance Cleaning 68 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 7. Align the plat en with the gear to the left and lower it int o the printer’ s bottom frame. 8. Rotate the pl aten bearing la tch release tabs d own on the right and left sides towa rds the rear of the printer a nd snap them int o place. Allow the printer to dry for one minute[...]

  • Page 81

    69 Maintenance Replacing the Printhead 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Replacing the Printhead If you need to replace the p rinthead, read the procedure and re view the removal and installation steps before actuall y replacing the printhead. Before followi ng the step s in this procedu re, open the prin ter by pull ing the relea se lat[...]

  • Page 82

    Maintenance Replacing the Printh ead 70 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 3. Use the spring to pry the printhead clip of f the right side of the carriage. . 4. Pull the printhead and bracket forward. . 5. Use a #2 Phillips driver to remove the screw t hat holds the ground wire.[...]

  • Page 83

    71 Maintenance Replacing the Printhead 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 6. Unplug both bun dles of printhead wires from their connect ors. Replacing the Print head The new print head comes with the clip and ground screw attached. 1. Align the print head and brack et to plug th e left and right connectors into th e black and white wire b[...]

  • Page 84

    Maintenance Replacing the Printh ead 72 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 2. Attach the ground wire and secure it with the screw . Use a #2 Phillips driver to tighten it. 3. Slip the left end o f the printhe ad spring into the left side of th e ribbon carriage; th en slide the right e nd into the oth er side. The angl e of the “V” fi[...]

  • Page 85

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 6 Troubleshooting This section provides info rmation about printer error report ing that you might need for printe r troubleshootin g. Assorted diagno stic tests are included. Content s S tatus Light Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 86

    S tatus Light Descriptions 74 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 S t atus Light Descriptions What the St atus Light is T elling Y ou LED St atus and Color 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 87

    75 S tatus Light Error Resolutions 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 S t atus Light Error Resolutions The following Status Error Light Resoluti on numbers correspond to the Status Light Description tab le on the previous page. E ach error number may ha ve one or mo re resolution to correct that erro r listed. 1. The printer is not receiv[...]

  • Page 88

    S tatus Light Error Resolutions 76 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 5. The media is out. • Follow the instructions for Loading Rol l Media on page 1 1 in the Gettin g St arted section, and then press t he Feed button to resume printing . The ribbon is out. • The printer has sensed the end of the ri bbon roll. Replace the ribbon. The[...]

  • Page 89

    77 Print Quality Problems 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Print Quality Problems No print on the label. • The media may not be direct t hermal media whic h is required when p rinting witho ut ribbon (i.e. thermal t ransfer). See the test procedure Dete rmining Th ermal Med ia T ype s on page 35 . • The wrong side of the media is fa[...]

  • Page 90

    Print Quality Problems 78 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 There are long tracks of missing print (blank vertical lines) on several labels. • The printhead is dirty . Clean the printhead. • The printhead elem ents 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 91

    79 Print Quality Problems 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 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 has la bel dispensing en abled, the printer ma y be waiting for the lab el to be removed. The liner/web must be properly th [...]

  • Page 92

    Manual Calibration 80 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Manual Calibration Manual calibrat ion is recommend e d whenever you are using pre-pr inte d 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 l ight f[...]

  • Page 93

    81 T ro ubleshooting T ests 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 T roubleshooting T est s Printing a Configuration Label T o print out a listing of the printer ’ s current configuratio n, refer to the on e-flash sequence in Feed Button Modes on page 84 in this section. See App endix: ZPL Configura tion on page 97 to interpre t the label. [...]

  • Page 94

    Resetting the Factory Default V alues 82 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Resetting the Factory Default V alues Sometimes, resetting the printer to th e factory defaults may solve so me problems. Refe r to the four-flash sequence in Feed Button Modes on page 84 in this section. Communications Diagnostics If there is a problem transferri[...]

  • Page 95

    83 Communications Diagnostics 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 The following example of a communications DUMP mode prin ted out. The printout displays hexadecimal d ata 00h-FFh (0-255 d ecimal) with a unique character for ea ch hexadecimal value displayed above the h exadecimal data. The blank lines between t he lines of data are where [...]

  • Page 96

    Feed Button Modes 84 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Feed Button Modes Power Off Modes W ith the printer power off, pr ess and hold the Fee d button wh ile you turn on the power . Flash Sequence Action Amber - Red Flashing Firmware Download Mode - The printer starts rapidly flas h ing red to denote entr y into the Firmware Download mod[...]

  • Page 97

    85 Feed Button Modes 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Power On Modes W ith the printer power on and top cove r closed, pres s 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 star t s[...]

  • Page 98

    Feed Button Modes 86 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ______[...]

  • Page 99

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 A Appendix: Interface Wiring This section provides printer interface con nection information. Content s Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Parallel Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

  • Page 100

    Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface 88 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Universal Serial Bus (USB) Interface The figure below displays the cable wirin g re quired to use the printer’ s USB interface. The printer requires cable or cable pac kagin g that bears the “ Certified USB™” mark to guarantee USB 2.0 compliance. For printe[...]

  • Page 101

    89 Parallel Interface 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Parallel Interface The printer ’ s parallel interface uses the IEEE 1284-A to 1284-B parallel interface cables. the host connector h as a DB-25 pin male connector . The printer conne ctor is a Centroni cs style connector . PRINTER DB -25 Pin No. Centronics Pin No. DB -25 to Centro[...]

  • Page 102

    Ethernet Interface 90 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Ethernet Interface This interface requires a UTP RJ 45 Ethernet cable rated CA T -5 or better . The table below provides the cable’ s pinout assignments. Signal Pin Pin Signal T x + 11T x + T x - 22T x - R x + 33R x + — 44— — 55— R x - 66R x - — 77— — 88— 4 3 2 1 5[...]

  • Page 103

    91 Serial Port Interface 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Serial Port Interface The maximum current avai lable through the serial and/or parallel port is not to exceed a total of 0.75 Amps. When XON/XOFF handshak ing is selected, da ta flow is contro lled by the ASCII control codes DC1 (XON) and DC3 (X OFF) . The DTR control lead wil l [...]

  • Page 104

    Serial Port In terface 92 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ _[...]

  • Page 105

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 B Appendix: Dimensions This section p rovides exte rnal printe r dimensions. Content s External GC420t™ Printer Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 Optional: Label Dispenser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

  • Page 106

    External GC420t™ Printer Dimensio ns 94 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 External GC420t™ Printer Dimensions All dimensions are in inches[...]

  • Page 107

    95 External GC420t™ Printer Dimensions 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 Optional: Label Dispenser Optional: Cutter[...]

  • Page 108

    External GC420t™ Printer Dimensio ns 96 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ ________[...]

  • Page 109

    8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 C Appendix: ZPL Configuration This section provides a basic overview of mana ging printer config uration, the Configuring Status Printout, and Pr inter Memory Printouts. Content s Managing the ZPL Printer Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 ZPL Confi[...]

  • Page 110

    Managing the ZPL Prin ter Configuration 98 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Managing the ZPL Printer Configuration The ZPL printer is designed to allo w you to cha nge printer settings dynamically fo r fast first label out printing . Printer parameters that are p e rsistent, will be reta in ed for following formats to use. Those setting[...]

  • Page 111

    99 ZPL Configuration St atus to Command C ross-reference 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 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 ca n be set by ZPL comma nd. Figure 2 • Configuration Label Printout Sensor[...]

  • Page 112

    ZPL Configuration S tatus to Comma nd Cross-reference 100 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 T able 2 • ZPL Commands a nd Configuration Receipt Callout Cross-Reference From this point in the Configurat ion Receipt l isting, the print out has sensor settin gs and values are displayed t o troublesho ot sensor and medi a operations. These [...]

  • Page 113

    101 ZPL Configuration St atus to Command C ross-reference 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 The configuration set tings listed here resume after th e T AKE LABEL sensor value. These listings contai n printer features seldom chang ed from default or provid e status informati on (e.g. Firmware V ersion). T able 3 • ZPL Commands a nd Conf[...]

  • Page 114

    Printer Memory Management and Related S tatus Reports 102 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 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), object naming , and pr[...]

  • Page 115

    103 Printer Memory Management and Related S tatus Reports 8/15/201 1 GC420t™ User Guide P1039498-001 T able 4 • Object Management and St atus Report Commands Command Name Description ^WD Print Directory Label Prints a list of objects and residen t bar codes and fonts in all addressable memory locations ~WC Print Configuration Label Prints a con[...]

  • Page 116

    Printer Memory Management and Related S tatus Reports 104 P1039498-001 GC420t™ User Guide 8/15/201 1 Notes • ___________ _________ ___________ ____________ ___________ _____________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ___________ _________ ____________ ___________ ___________ ____________________ ____[...]