Datacard SelectTM User Manual
User’s Guide for
ImageCard® Select™ and
UltraGrafix® Select™
Printers
August 2001
Part No. 539123-001
ii
Please note and heed the WARNING and CAUTION labels that have been placed on
the equipm ent for your safety. Please do not attempt to operate or repair this
equipment without ad equate training.
Liability statement
This Datacard® product has been built to the high s tand ards of Datacard Corporation.
See “Safety and compliance” on page A-1 for the statement of liability.
Regulatory compliance
This Datacard product c onforms to regulatory requirements as specified in North
America and Europe. See “Safety and c ompliance” on page A-1 for detailed
regulatory compliance informa tion.
Trademark acknowledgments
Trademark, service mark, and copyright acknowledgments are listed in “Safety and
compliance” on page A-1.
Proprietary Notice
All drawings and information h erein are the property of Datacard Corporation.
Copyright © 2001 Datacard Corporat ion. All rights reserved.
Revision Log: User’s Guide for ImageCard®Select™ and UltraGrafix®Select™ Printers
Revision Date Affected Pages Description of Changes
A Feb. 2001 All Initial release
B Aug. 2001 1-1, 1-3 to 1-5, 1-7, 1- 11, 2-5 to 2-9, 2-
11, 2-14, 3-2, 3-4 to 3-8, 3-10 to 3-12, 4-
2, 4-8 to 4-15, 4-17, 4-37, 5-4, 5-12,
5-15,6-4,6-5,7-2,7-5to7-7,7-11,
7-13, 7-14, A-1, A-2, B-2, B-7, B-9,
B-12, B-13, C-6, E-2
Datacard
11111 Bren Road West
Minnetonka,MN 55343-9015
www.datacard.com
952.933.0333
Fax: 952.935.2314
Add information for directly networked
printer, optional locking card cartridge,
modified spring bar on swing arm, and
updated driver installation.
© 1997-2001 DatacardCorporation. All rights reserved.Printed in the United States of America.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® S elect™ Printers
Contents
Section 1: Operating the Printer
Chapter1:Overview.................................. 1-1
Aboutthismanual ................................ 1-2
Audience........................................ 1-2
AbouttheSelectprinter ........................... 1-2
About Adv anc ed Imaging Technology ............... 1-3
Printer models ................................. 1-3
Printerfeatures ................................ 1-5
Whotocallforassistance ........................ 1-9
Chapter2:Usingtheprinter ........................... 2-1
Loadingcards.................................... 2-2
Loadingtheprintribbon ........................... 2-4
Poweringonthesystem ........................... 2-6
Statuslight ...................................... 2-7
Makingcards .................................... 2-8
Operatingtips ................................ 2-10
Removingcards ................................. 2-10
Responding to messages ......................... 2-11
Shutting dow n the system ........................ 2-13
iii
Chapter3:Usingtheprinterdriver ...................... 3-1
Workingwithprintersettingsanddata ............... 3-2
Tipsforsettings ................................ 3-2
SettingsanddataforWindowsNT ................. 3-2
SettingsanddataforWindowsMeand98 ........... 3-5
SettingsanddataforWindows2000................ 3-6
UsingtheStatusMonitor........................... 3-9
OpeningandusingtheStatusMonitor ............. 3-10
ViewingStatusMonitorinformation ................ 3-11
Chapter4:Maintainingtheprinter ...................... 4-1
Runningacleaningcycle .......................... 4-2
Replacingthecleaningrollersleeve ................ 4-2
Using the printer cleaning ca rd .................... 4-4
Usingthemagneticstripecleaningcard.............. 4-5
Cleaningtheprinterrollers ......................... 4-6
Cleaningtips..................................... 4-9
Cleaningtheprinthead ............................ 4-9
Replacingtheprintheadcartridge ..................4-10
Chapter5:Troubleshooting............................ 5-1
Troubleshootingguide ............................ 5-2
Ifyouthinktheprinterisnotworking ................ 5-2
Makingandevaluatingtestcards.................... 5-3
Printertestcard ................................ 5-4
Windows tes t page . . ........................... 5-5
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
iv
Magnetic stripe test c ard .........................5-7
Problemswithcardappearance ..................... 5-7
Print Module . .................................. 5-8
Topcoat applied using the print ribbon .............. 5-13
Obtainingservice ................................ 5-14
Whentoobtainservice ......................... 5-15
Packing the printer for shipping .................... 5-15
Section 2: Installing the Printer
Chapter6:Beforeyouinstall........................... 6-1
Installationaudience .............................. 6-2
Generalrequirements ............................. 6-2
Selectingthesite ................................. 6-3
Electricalrequirements .......................... 6-3
Physicalrequirements ........................... 6-3
Environmentalrequirements ...................... 6-4
PCandsoftwarespecifications ..................... 6-4
ID system installation sequence ................... 6-5
Chapter7:Installtheprinter ........................... 7-1
Unpacking the printer . . ........................... 7-2
Who to call for assistance .......................... 7-3
Connectingcables ................................ 7-3
Preparingtheprinterfordriverinstallation............ 7-7
Installingtheprinterdriver ......................... 7-7
Changing required printer settings . . . .............. 7-14
Printingsamplecards .......................... 7-15
Setuptips ...................................... 7-16
Optionalsettings .............................. 7-16
Section 3: Reference Information
AppendixA:Safetyandcompliance.....................A-1
Regulatorycompliance ............................A-1
NoticeforUSA(FCCnotice) ......................A-1
Notice for Canada . . . ...........................A-1
NoticeforEurope...............................A-1
Notice to Users of Printers Equipped with
ContactlessSmartCardCoupler ............A-1
Liabilitystatement ................................A-2
Safety ..........................................A-2
Safeenvironment...............................A-2
Safehumaninterface............................A-2
Acknowledgments ................................A-3
AppendixB:Suppliesandcards........................B-1
Personalizationsupplies ...........................B-1
Printribbons...................................B-1
Supply r oll storage . . . ...........................B-2
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® S elect™ Printers
Cards...........................................B-3
Cardspecifications .............................B-3
Cardsize .....................................B-3
Cardmaterial ..................................B-3
StickICards ...................................B-4
Newcardspreferred ............................B-4
Pre-punchedcards .............................B-4
Card quality guidelines ..........................B-5
Cardstoragespecifications .......................B-6
Cleaningsupplies ................................B-6
Printercleaningcard ............................B-6
Replaceable cleaning sl eev e . .....................B-6
Cleaningkits ..................................B-7
Magnetic stripe cleaning card .....................B-7
Cleaningpen ..................................B-7
PrinterdriverCD-ROM.............................B-8
Printercomponents ...............................B-9
Printheadcartridge .............................B-9
Datacable ...................................B-10
Powercord...................................B-11
Smartcardserialcable .........................B-11
Printribboncartridge ...........................B-12
Cardcartridge ................................B-12
ReplacementkeysforoptionalLock ...............B-12
Cleaningrollerspindle ..........................B-13
Relatedpublications .............................B-13
v
AppendixC:PCsettings ..............................C-1
PC se ttings for all oper ating systems . ...............C-2
ConfiguringtheECPparallelport ..................C-2
PC se tting s for Windows 2000 and NT 4.0 .............C-5
Settingparallelportvalues .......................C-6
Settingprinterpermissions .......................C-6
Setting a smart card serial port—Windows 2000 and NT C-8
PCsettingsforWindowsMeand98 ................C-10
Settingparallelportvalues ......................C-10
Setting a smart card serial port—Windows Me and 98 . C-11
AppendixD:Magneticstripeencoding ..................D-1
IATA, ABA, and TTS character sets . . . ...............D-1
NTTcharacterset.................................D-2
Magnetic Stripe settings used b y the Select pr inter . . . . . D-3
MagneticStripeSetup .............................D-3
Appendix E: Installation messages .....................E-1
DriverinstallationforWindowsME,98,andNT .......E-1
DriverinstallationforWindows2000only ...........E-10
Removing th e printer driver for Windows ME, 98, & NT E-11
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
vi
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® S elect™ Printers
1
Overview
This chapter presents the fol lowin g:
• The purpo se of this manual
1
• Who should use this manual
• The Datacard® Select™ Class photo ID printe r with Advanced I maging
Technology™, including a description of t he printer, the models available, and
their components
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
1-2 Overview
About this manual
This manual provides detailed inform ation about the Datacard® Select™ Class photo
ID printer with Advanced Imaging Technology™. The first section provides operators
with information about the printer and how to use it. The second s ec ti on provides
installers with requirements for installation and installation procedures. The t hird
section provides reference information.
This User Guide works with the online e-Guide, which you can see using the desktop
icon installed with the printer driver. Figure 1-1 shows the e-Guide icon.
Figure 1-1: Desktop icon for the e-Guide
Audience
To operate the printer, you must have the following skills:
• Ability to read and understand written and graphical instructions
• Ability to operate a personal computer (PC)
• Experience with Microsoft® Windows® 98, Windows Me, Windows NT®, or
Windows 20 00
• Ability to load supplies
• Ability to perform simple troubleshooting using written an d graphical inst ructions
For the skills needed for installation, see “Installation audience” on page 6-2.
About the Select printer
The Select photo ID printer includes the printer and a printer driver which runs on a
PC. The printer uses s upplies when printing cards, including:
• New Ad va nc ed Imaging Technology print ribbon
• New replaceable cleaning sleeves
• Blank cards
The Select printer prints full-color or monochrome images on one or both sides of
PVC cards . The images printed c an include photos, text, logos, barcodes and
digitized signatures. The printer can also encode data on a card's magnetic s tripe and
program a smart card chip on a card. (These steps are commonly called
“personalizing” the card.) Magnetic s tripe encodi ng a nd smart card programming are
options that can be purchased as part of the printer.
The printer driver rec eives digital information from a card creation ap plication and
processes the data to send to the printer. When the printer receives the data, it prints
User’s Guide for ImageCa rd® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ Printers
Overview 1-3
the card. The driver kee ps track of the progress of the card in the printer and sends
data for the next card as soon as the printer i s ready and the da ta is av ail able.
See “PC and software specifications” on page 6-4 for more information about the
printer driver and the PC on which it runs.
About Ad vanced Imaging Technology
With Adva nced Imaging Technology, processing and printing are enhanced for the
highest quali ty images. Three features of the printer work together to provide the
benefits of Advanced Imaging Technology:
Printribbon: New Premium Print Ribbon for use with Advanced Im aging
Technology™ must be used in the Select Class printer with Advanced Imaging
Technology™.
Printer unit: The printer has been enhanced to provide optimal color printing.
Printer Driver: The printer drive r includes new c olor settings. “Using the Status
Monitor” on page 3-9 provides more information about color settings.
Printer models
Several models of the prin ter are available. ImageCard printers can print full-color or
monochrome images, while UltraGrafix printers can print only m onochrome images .
The printer label provides information about the options in your printer (see
Figure 1-2). The label a lso includes the printer serial number.
Top cover
Printer label
Figure 1-2: Printer label
A printer can be ordered with the following optional modules:
• Duplex m odule. The duplex module extends the lengt h of the printer and flips the
card to automatically print on both sides of the card. The model name includes
the number “2” if th e printer has a duplex module.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
1-4 Overview
• Magnetic stripe module, for either 3-track (IAT) encoding or single-track NTT
encoding. The modul e is installed in-line with the print operation. It encodes data
on the magnetic stripe and then verifies the data.
• Smart card module. The smart c ard module has the following available options:
– Contact c oupler (SC 410)
– Contactless (RF) coupler (“SC 680” on the printer l abel)
– Both contact and contactless couplers (“SC Comb” on the printer label)
– Contact station (“SCCS” on the printer label) with external coupler.
i
A custom smart card application can use the module to initialize and program th e
smartcardchiponacard.
Table 1-1 lists the models and their features.
Table 1-1: Select printer features available
Model name Colors printed
ImageCard
Full color or monochrome No
Select
ImageCard
Full color or monochrome Yes
Select 2
UltraGrafix
Monochrome only No
Select
UltraGrafix
Monochrome only Yes
Select 2
#. Optional
Duplex
module
Magnetic
#
stripe
#
Yes
#
Yes
#
Yes
#
Yes
Smart
Card
#
Yes
#
Yes
#
Yes
#
Yes
#
User’s Guide for ImageCa rd® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ Printers
Overview 1-5
Printer feat ures
Use the information in this sec ti on to identify the f eat ures and controls you use on the
printer.
Duplex and/or Smart Card Modules
Top cover
Status light
Card cartridge
Locks (optional)
Exceptioncard slot
Card outputstacker
Ready button
Outside o f the printer
Find the following on the outside of the printer:
Duplex module
The optional duplex module flips the card to automatically print on both sides of the
card. If the printer includes an optional sm art card module, it is located inside the
duplex m odule or in a duplex housing .
Top cover
The cover protects the internal parts of the printer from dust and debris. It also lessens
the soun d from the printer.
Status light
The status light indicates that the printer power is on, is processing data, is ready to
receive data, or is in an error condition.
Card cartridge
The card cartridge holds blank cards to print. It holds about 100 cards (with a nominal
thickness of 0.030 inches (0.76 mm)). At the bottom of the card cartridge, the
exception card slot allows you to in se rt a s ingle card that is different f rom the cards
inthecardcartridge.
Figure 1-3: Front of the Select printer
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
1-6 Overview
Card outpu t stacker
The card output stacker holds the cards after they have been processed. Both
completed cards and rejected cards go to the card output stacker.
Ready button
The Read y button allows you to pause t he printer while printing a card, to clear an
error condition, to c ancel a print job and delete all data for the job, or to create a
printer test card.
Lock (optional)
The option al lock allows you to lock the ca rd cartridge into position, preventing cards
from being removed without authorization. Some prin ters have two locks to meet the
security requirements of the organizat ion.
Inside the printer
Open the cover to f ind the following on the inside of t he printer.
Top cover
Swing arm
Ribbon tracker
Printhead cartridge
Printer label/serial number
Print ribbon cartridge
Card advance knob
Continuous cleaning roller
(hiddeninthisview)
Figure 1-4: Internal parts of the Select printer
User’s Guide for ImageCa rd® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ Printers
Overview 1-7
Swing arm
The swing arm opens to give you access to the print ribbon cart ridge, continuous
cleaning roller,and printhead cartridge. Push down on the raised end of the swing arm
to open it.
Ribbon tracker
The ribbon tracker measures the m ov ement of the print ribbon as it mo ve s from the
supply spool during printing.
Printhead cartridge
The printhea d, contained in the printhead cartridge, applies heat and pressure, which
transfers dye and other material from the print ribbon to the card. The printhead
cartridge is replaceable.
Printer label/serial number
The printer label includes the printer serial number and information about optional
components of the printer.
Print ribbon cartridge
The print ribbon cartridge holds the print ribbon.
Card ad vance knob
The card advance knob turns to move a c ard along the card transport track. If a card
remains in the printer, use this knob to m ov e the card in the card track.
Continuous cleaning roller
The continuous cleaning roller is a new feature of the Select printer wit h Advanc ed
Imaging Technology. The roller includes a spindle and a r eplaceable cleaning sleeve.
The spind le holds the roller in place. The replac eable cleaning sleeve removes dirt
and debris from the permanent cleaning roller in the printer and should be c hanged
regularly.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
1-8 Overview
Back of the printer
Figure 1-5 shows the back of the Select Class printer:
Data por t
ECP parallel port
USB port
Contactless smar t card port
Contact smart card port
Power switch
Power receptac le
Data Port
Power switch
Power receptacle
Figure 1-5: The back of the Select printer
If the printer includes an optional simplex smart card m odule or duplex module, that
module ex te nds farther than the ports and receptacles.
Find the following on the back of the printer:
The printer includes two data ports. Se lect only one data port to use.
• ECP parallel port
Use the ECP parallel port to connect the printer's data cable to the P C , if the
printer was ordered with a parallel ca ble.
• USB port
Use the USB port to connect the printer's data cable t o the PC, if the printer was
ordered with a U S B cable.
Use the Power s witch to power on or power off the printer.
This is the receptacle for connecting the power cable.
User’s Guide for ImageCa rd® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ Printers
Overview 1-9
Smart card seri al port(s)
On printers equipped with the smart card option, us e these connectors for the serial
cable from the PC or contact station that carries the data t o encode on the smart card
chip. If t he printer does not hav e any smart card options, the ports will not be installed
in the printer.
Who to call for assistance
If you work with a Datacard-authorized distributor or value-added reseller, contact
them for assistance. A v alue-added reseller provides the Select printer as part of an
overall system.
If any contents of the box are missing, contact your distributor o r reseller. If y ou
purchased your printer d irectly from D atacard, contact Datacard. Make sure you have
the serial number when y ou call (see Figure 1-2).
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
1-10 Overview
User’s Guide for ImageCa rd® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ Printers
2
Using the printer
This section describes how to pe rform basic tasks required to
operate the Datacard® Select™ Class photo ID printer with
Advanced Imaging Technology™. It describes:
• Loading cards
• Loading print ribbon
• Powering on the printer
• Making cards
• Removing cards
• Responding to mes sa ges
• Powering off the printer
Begin with the printer set up and the printer driver installed. If the printer is not set up,
see “B efore you install” on page 6-1 and “Install the printer” on page 7-1 to set up t he
printer and install the driver.
2
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-2 Using the printer
Loading cards
Load cards when beginning work or when the card cartridge is low on cards or empty.
You can load cards when the printer power is on or off. You can also load cards while
the printer is printing. To order more cards, contact your card vendor. For information
on card requirements, see “Supplies and cards” on page B-1.
Load cards
i
If the printer has a locking c ard cartridge, unlock the cartridge before removing it.
1 Pull up on the lowe r edge of the card cartridge (see step 1 in Figure 2-1). Lift the
card cartridge up and out of the printer (step 2 in Figure 2-1).
2
1
Figure 2-1: Remove the card cartridge
i
Do not touch the surface of cards before printing them. Handle cards by the edges
or wear gloves to p ro tect cards. Oils on hands can cause discolored printing.
2 Fan cards to separate the ed ges of the cards (see Figure 2-2).
Figure 2-2: Fan cards
3 Place up to 100 blank cards into the card cartridge. (If the cards are thicker or
thinner tha n 0.030 inch (0.76 mm) , the maximum number of cards you can load
varies.)
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
Using the printer 2-3
For magnetic stripe cards, the magnetic stripe faces down and is positioned
toward the side of the printer that ope ns (see Figure 2-3). (For some custom
applications, y ou might receive instructions to place cards in a different
orientation.)
For smart cards, position the card so the chip is up and toward open end of the
card cartridge.
Smart Card Chip
Magnetic Stripe
Figure 2-3: Load cards into the card cartridge
4 Replace the card cartridge in the cavity (step 1 in Figure 2-4). Push the botto m of
the card cartridge t oward the printer unt il it c li c ks into place (step 2 in F igure 2-4).
1
2
iSEL007u
Figure 2-4: Replace the card cartridge
i
If the printer has a locking card cartridge, lock the cartridge after replacing it.
♦
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-4 Using the printer
Loading the print ribbon
The printer uses prin t ribbon with color panels, continuous color, or color and topc oat.
Full-color ribbon (such as YMCKT) must be Premium ribbon, which uses blue ribbon
spools. Monochrome (one color) ribbon on teal ribbon cores can also be used. (Fullcolor ribbon on teal cores cannot be used.)
i
The type of print ribbon you use must matc h the print ribbon setting in the driver.
To order new ribbon, contact your service provider. See “Supplies and cards ” on
page B-1 for information about ribbons available.
Remove the print ribbon cartridge
1 Lift the top cover, as shown in Figure 2-5.
Figure 2-5: Open the cover
2 Press down on the swing arm until it clicks (step 1 in Figure 2-6). The push latch
releases the swing arm. Lift the swing arm until it is fully open (s tep 2 in
Figure 2-6).
2
1
Figure 2-6: Open the swing arm
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
Using the printer 2-5
3 Grasp the ribb on cartridge handle, and lift up to r emove the print ribbon cartridge
(see Figure 2-7). Avoid touching the printhead cartridge and ribbon tracker.
Figure 2-7: Remove the print ribbon cartridge
♦
i
Some users run a cleaning cycle wheneve r the print ribbon is changed. If your site
follows this policy, see “Running a cleaning cycle” on page 4-2 for the steps to
follow, and then return to this section.
Load the print ribbon
1 Remove the used ribbon and the us ed ribbon spools from the ribbon cartridge
shafts.
i
The print ribbon has a negative image of the information printed on the card.
Dispose of print ribbon acc ording to your policy for protecting the data that might
be visible on it.
2 Unwrap the new print ribbon.
3 Slide the full supply roll onto the left ribbon cartridge s haf t (see Figure 2-8).
4 Slide the empty take-up ribbon spool onto the right ribbon cartridge shaft (which
has a gear). Leave very little slack in the ribbon between the ribbon cartridge
spools (see Figure 2-8).
Figure 2-8: Load new print ribbon on the ribbon cartridge
5 Make sure print ribbon unwinds over the top of the print ribbon cartridge, not from
the bottom.
♦
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-6 Using the printer
Replace the print ribbon cartridge
1 Place the ribbon cartridge onto the ribbon cartridge supports (see Figure 2-9).
Make sure the cartridge is securely seated. Avoid touching the printhead cartridge
and ribbon tracker.
Figure 2-9: Replace the print ribbon cartridge
2 Close the swing arm, pressing it down until the push latch clicks into place.
3 Close the cover.
♦
Powering on the system
Use the following procedure to power on the printer and attached PC.
Power on the printer
i
If the printer is connecte d over a network using a print server,see the SmartDriver
Direct Network Installation and User Guide for more information about powering
on the printer.
1 Make sure c ards and all other supplies are loaded. See ot her sections of this
chapter for more information.
2 Remove any prin ted or rejected c ards from the output stacker.
3 Make sure the power cord and data cable are connected. If needed, see
"Connecting cab les” on page 7-3 for more information.
4 Press the printer Power switch to turn on pow er. Observe the printer status light
which lights with a sequenc e of colors and then becomes steady green. See
“Status l ight” on page 2-7 for more informa tion. The printer initializes components
and m akes audible sounds.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
Using the printer 2-7
Figure 2-10: Power on the printer
5 Press the PC Power switch to turn on the power to the PC. Turn on power to any
other eq uipm ent needed.
Status light
The front of the printer has a light that provides information about the printer’s current
state.
Status Light Description
Red Amber Green
♦
Status light
Figure 2-11: Status light
The printer is starting. The printer displays colors
repeatedly w hil e it initializes.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-8 Using the printer
Status Light Description
The printer is rea dy and waiting to print cards.
Steady green
The printer is busy printing cards.
Blinking green
The printer is paused without an error.
Steady amber
The printer has issued a mess age. See the PC
Blinking amber
Steady red
Off
#. If the light blinks amber but no message appears o n the PC, the
following mighthave occurred:
* You used the Power-on/Ready sequence to prin t a t es t card.
Messages are not reported.
* You changed the name of the printer. Remove and re-install the
printer driver to change the printer name.
for the message.
The printer has a problem that requires service.
The printer power is off.
#
Making cards
This section describes several ways to mak e cards using the Select printer.
• Usually, cards are sent from a card creation applica tion, such as Datacard’s ID
Works™ which captures, organizes, and fo rmats the information on the card. A
card creation application is spec ially designed software that handles the types of
information used on cards. S ee “Use a c ard creation application” for the steps to
follow.
• If you do not hav e a card creation application, you can use another PC application
to format the information to print on cards. If you are encodin g magnetic stripe
data, be sure to use an application in which you can save the result and edit it
again, such as Windows W ordP ad™ or Word. See “P rint from a P C application”
for the steps to follow.
E
With any application, test your card design to verify the results.
Use a card creation application
1 Follow the instructions for the c ard creation application to capt ure, format, and
save the data for the card.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
Using the printer 2-9
2 In t he card creation application, send c ards to the printer.
The printer driver rec eives data for each card, prepares the card for printing, and
sends eac h card to the printer in the order received. The printer driver keeps
cards in a queue if the printer is busy.
E
Developers can write card creation applications using the SmartDriver™ Software
Developer’s Kit. This kit can be downloaded from www.datacard.com.
♦
Print from a PC application
1 Selectthe printer settings t hat correspond to the cards to print. See “Working with
printer settings and data” on page 3-2 for more information. Settings might include
the following:
– Enable two-sided printing if you plan to print the front and bac k of the card.
– Set the margins for the area t o print on the card. A setting of E dge-t o-Edge is
the same as a margin of 0.
– Set th e magnetic stripe format and coercivity if y ou plan to encode magnetic
stripe data.
2 In t he application, select the Select printer as the current printer.
3 Usingthe application's page setup feature, set the paper size to CR80 Card 2.13"
x 3.38." Set all the margins to the same value as t he driver. (You can set the
margins in the application wider than the driver, if desired.)
4 Select t he orientation for the card design—either portrait or landscape.
5 Format the text to print using only a TrueType ( ) font. To print using the true
black (K) panel of the print ribbon, use the Black c olor selection. All other colors
are printed using the color panels of the print ribbon if you use a color pr int ribbon.
6 To print on the front of the card, keep data on one page. To print the front and back
of the card, send a two-page document. (Make sure Prin t on Both Sides is set to
Automatic or Manual .)
7 Alsoon the front of the c ard, enter the information to be enc oded on the magnetic
stripe and format the text using one of the following fonts:
– Track 1—Ma gnetic Stripe
– Track 2—Ma gnetic Stripe
– Track 3—Ma gnetic Stripe
– Track NTT—Magnetic Stripe (use only on a P C running a Japanese language
Windows operating system)
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Windows mus t be set to display all fonts. (Some PC’s are s et to display
TrueType fonts only.) See Windows help for more information.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-10 Using the printer
The text for one magnetic stripe track must be on one line. T he text must use t he
default type size of 3.5 or 4 points to keep characters on the same line. To view
the characters , zoom in on the text. Also, follow these guidelines:
– Do not use typographic features, such as letter spacing, on magnetic stripe
text.
– The paragraph style must be Normal.
– The magnetic stripe text, along with gra phics and text to print on the front of
the card, must be on the first page.
8 When the card data is captured and formatted correctly, select the application’s
print function to send the card to print.
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Operating tips
• For the most current i nformation about messages, see the online help for each
message.
• Whenever you are encoding magnetic stripe data or programming smart cards, be
sure to handle incomplete cards according to your policy for handl ing the
confidential data that might be on the card.
• Used print ribbon c ontains negative images of data printed on cards. Be sure to
handle used print ribbon ac c ording t o your policy for handlin g the confidential data
that might be on the card.
Removing cards
The card output stacker holds both completed cards and reje cted cards. Remove
completed cards from the output stacker to distribute printed cards. The card o utpu t
stacker holds about 20 cards.
Remove rejec ted cards as s oon as they are ejected from the printer so you do not
need to sort through all cards to locat e them. Cards are reject ed when a print job is
cancelled or when a problem oc c urs with personalizing a card.
You can remove cards w hen the printer power is on or o ff, or while the printer is
printing. Comp leted and rejected cards are removed in the same way.
Remove cards
1 Lift th e cards from the card output stacker.
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
Using the printer 2-11
Card output stacker
Figure 2-12: Remove cards
2 Dispose of partly processed cards according t o your policies f or handling the
confidential data that might be on the cards.
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Responding to messages
The Select printer provides information to the printer driver about the s tatus of c ards
being processed. If the printer is not able to process and print a card, the printer driver
generates a message on the PC in response to this situation. In most c as es, the
message is displayed on the PC. Some applications manage printer driver messages,
and thos e messages might be different than described in this section.
In some circumstances, the printer might beep a nd the status light blink am ber without
a message appearing on the PC. The most likely causes are:
• Renaming the printer on Windows 2000 (Restart Windows to fix the p roblem )
• Printing a test card in a printer with a magnetic stripe module, when the card does
not have a magnetic s t ripe (use a card with a magnetic stripe and make s ure the
stripe is oriented correctly)
Messages c an be generated from another networked P C . For example, a different
ribbon type can be s elect ed on another networked PC. Chan ge the Ribbon Type
setting to match on both PC s.
Messages include a Help button, where information about recovering from the
situation is available. Typical messages might indicate that the print ribbon needs to
be replaced or that a card is stuck. See the “Fix a printer problem” procedure that
follows.
i
When a message box appears, only use the buttons on the message box, so that
both the printer driver and printer can return to normal operation.
Figure 2-13: Typical message
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-12 Using the printer
If a message appears repeat edly and you cannot reliably correct the situat ion, service
might be required.
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Before you call your service representative, write down the following:
– The message and message number.
– The model of the printer, such as “ImageCard Select 2 with Advanc ed
Imaging Technology.”
– The seri al number of the Select printer located on a label visible when the top
cover is open. See “ Printer label ” on page 1-3.
– The driver version, described in “Working with printer setting s and data” on
page 3-2.
– The firmware version (available on W indows Me and Windows 98).
For more information about obtaining service, see “Obtaining s erv ice” on page 5-14.
Fix a printer problem
1 When a message is displayed on the PC, follow the sug ges ted action. Click t he
Help button (i f present) to identify the likely cause of the problem and the possible
solution.
2 From t he help topic, click the “Open the e-Guide” link to view a list of procedures.
Select the procedure indicated in m es sag e help, and f oll ow the procedure
provided in the e-Guide to fix the problem.
Most parts of the printer designed to be used by t he operator are colored green.
These parts include knobs for clearing jams and h andles of supply cartridges.
3 After f ixing the problem, close th e cover of the printer.
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If the printer has a locking card cartidge, lock the c artridge.
4 Depending on the situation, the message box might be removed automatically or
you might need to respond. Cards still in the printer m ight be ejected.
The mes s age box can have one or more of thes e buttons:
– Retry: Clears the card from the printer. The driver sends the card or cards to
the printer again. If the problem is corrected, normal operation resumes.
– Cancel: Clears the card from the printer. The card is not sent to print again. If
the problem is corrected, normal operation resumes.
– OK: Us ed for a message that occurs when no card was being printed or an
equipment failure. If the problem is corrected, normal operation resumes.
(Power cycle the printer if operation d oes not resume.)
– If the messa ge box disappears automatically, decide whether to return to the
card creation application to s end the card to print again.
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User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
Using the printer 2-13
Shutting down the system
The printer and PC can be left on during lunch time a nd other short breaks . Follow
your security procedures when leaving the printer.
Shut down the printer and system
1 Make sure all cards have completed processing before turning off the power. (You
can suspend the Status Monitor to stop communication between the printer and
driver. See “Using the Status Monitor” on page 3-9.)
2 Press the Power button to turn off power to the printer.
Figure 2-14: Press the power button to power off the printer
3 Follow your policy to secure unprinted card stock, supplies, and printed cards. For
example:
– Remove t he card cartridge.
– Remove th e print ribbon cartridge. Carry c art ridges to a secure location, such
as a safe, a locking drawer, or a l oc king closet.
4 Close PC applications and power off other equipment (including the PC) following
the procedure established.
i
If you will store the printer for several months, remove supplies before s t oring
(including ca rds, print ribbon, and replaceable cleaning sleeve).
♦
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraG rafix® Select™ Printers
2-14 Using the printer
User’s Guide for ImageCard® Select™ and UltraGrafix® Select™ P rinters
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