Epson FX-286e, FX-86e User Manual

FCC COMPLIANCE STATEMENT

FOR AMERICAN USERS

This equipment generates and uses radio frequency energy and if not installed and used properly, that is, in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, may cause interference to radio and television reception. It has been type tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B computing device in accordance with the specifications in Subpart J of part 15 of FCC Rules, which are designed to provide reasonable protection against such interference in a residential installation. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:

— Reorient the receiving antenna — Relocate the printer with respect to the receiver — Plug the printer into a different outlet so that the printer and receiver are on different

branch circuits.

If necessary, the user should consult the dealer or an experienced radio/television technician for additional suggestions. The user may find the following booklet prepared by the Federal Communications Commission helpful:

“How to Identify and Resolve Radio-TV Interference Problems.”

This booklet is available from the U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. Stock No. 004-000-0345-4.

WARNING

The connection of a non-shielded printer interface cable to this printer will invalidate the FCC Certification of this device and may cause interference levels which exceed the limits established by the FCC for this equipment. If this equipment has more than one interface connector, do not leave cables connected to unused interfaces.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Seiko Epson Corporation. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, Seiko Epson Corporation assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

Graphics created with UniPaint by Unison World Inc. and EPSON 3D-Graph. Apple is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.

Centronics is a registered trademark of Centronics Data Computer Corporation. Epson is a registered trademark of Seiko Epson Corporation. IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation. Microsoft is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. ESC/P is a registered trademark of Seiko Epson Corporation.

Contents

Introduction

About This Manual

Chapter 1

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-1

Unpacking Your Printer

1-2

Selecting the Right Location 1-3 Installing the Ribbon 1-6

Loading Continuous-feed Paper

1-12 Turning On the Printer 1-12 Operating the Control Panel 1-14 SelecType 1-16 Running the Self Test 1-17 Connecting the Printer to Your Computer 1-18 Choosing the Operating Mode with DIP Switches

Chapter 2

Choosing and Loading Paper

2-1 Choosing Paper 2-1 Using Single-sheet Paper 2-6

Reinstalling the Tractor Unit

2-8

The Paper Thickness Lever

Chapter 3

Using the FX with Application Programs

3-1 Printer Selection Menus 3-2

Computer -Printer Communication

3-3 Word Processors

3-4 Spreadsheets

3-6 Graphics Programs 3-6 Programming Languages

Contents

iii

Chapter 4

FX Printer Features

4-1 Quality and Fonts 4-2

Print Size and Character Width

4-2 Pitches and Proportional Spacing

4-3

Special Effects and Emphasis

4-4

Using Different Character Sets

4-5

Page Layout and Other Commands

Chapter 5

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-2 The Print Head 5-3 Pin Labels 5-4 Graphics Commands 5-6 Simple Graphics Programming 5-8 Density Varieties 5-10 Designing Your Own Graphics 5-13 User-defined Characters

Appendix A

Command Summary

A-4 Commands in Numerical Order A-7 Epson (ESC/P) Commands A-36 IBM Printer Emulation Mode Commands

Appendix B

Character Tables

El Epson Mode B-9 Epson International Character Sets B-11 IBM Printer Emulation Mode

Appendix C

Problem Solving and Maintenance

C-1 General Troubleshooting C-3 Troubleshooting Graphics Problems

C-3 Data Dump Mode

C-4 IBM PC BASIC Solutions

C-5 Maintaining Your Printer C-7 Transporting the Printer

Contents

Appendix D

Defaults and DIP Switches

D-1 Default and Initialization Settings D-2 DIP Switch Settings D-3 International Character Sets

Appendix E

Choosing and Setting Up Optional Interfaces

E-1 Compatible Interfaces E-2 Choosing an Interface E-3 Installing an Interface E-6

Inserting the Interface board

E-7 Serial Interface Settings

Appendix F

Technical Specifications

F-1 Printing F-1 Paper F-2 Mechanical F-2 Electrical F-3 Environment F-3 Parallel Interface F-5 Data Transfer Sequence

Index

Contents

Introduction

The FX-86e and FX-286e printers combine all the well-known virtues of previous Epson 9-pin printers with many features normally exclusive to costly 24-pin printers.

The speed of draft printing is 240 characters per second in draft elite

and 200 in draft pica. When you have perfected a document, you

can switch to one of two Near Letter Quality fonts-Roman or

Sans Serif.

Draft printing is extremely fast. NLQ Roman is clear and typewriter-like.

NLQ Sans Serif is crisp and distinctive.

l The SelecType feature gives you access to Near Letter Quality

(NLQ) and condensed print. All you have to do is press the button for the style you want. While the FX is printing, the SelecType panel shows you what choices it’s using.

If you are using software designed for an IBM@ printer, you have the choice of using the FX in Epson mode or IBM printer emulation mode. Even better, you can combine the best of both worlds; the powerful Epson mode commands can now print character graphics like those used by IBM printers and computers.

Loading paper is now easier than ever. Single sheets can be loaded by just moving a lever, and the tractor lets you load a wide range of widths of continuous-feed paper, including labels.

For headings and other emphasis, you can use double-high and

double-wide printing.

Introduction

About this Manual

To make it easier to set up your new FX-86e or FX-286e, this manual includes a lo-step guide. This guide, which is printed on the inside of the back flap, summarizes the first chapter’s setting up instructions.

Chapters 2 through 5 cover the basic and advanced functions, and the appendixes contain reference information, including all the details you need to use any of the printer’s commands, and some advice on

solving problems.

Finally, there is a comprehensive index, and inside the back of the

manual is a pull-out quick reference card containing the information you need most.

Introduction

Chapter 1

Setting Up Your FX Printer

Setting up your new FX is easy. Simply follow the steps in this

chapter.

Note

The FX-86e and FX-286e are basically the same printer except that the

FX-286e can accept wider paper. Therefore, the illustrations in this manual show only the FX-86e.

1 Unpacking Your Printer

First, remove the printer from the box and take off all outside plastic covering and foam supports. Make sure you have received all the parts shown in the illustration below.

Figure 1-1 Printer parts

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-1

Tilt the tractor cover up and remove the two foam pads underneath it. (These pads protect the tractor unit during shipping; be sure to save them.)

WARNING

The printer is protected by a print head protector, a platen protector and two locking tabs during shipping. These protective items must be removed before you turn on the printer. Follow the steps below Figure 1-2.

Also, you should install the paper feed knob. To install the knob, simply push it onto the shaft on the right side of the printer as shown in Figure 1-2.

1. Remove the left locking tab.

2. Remove the print head protector.

3. Move the print head to the left.

4. Remove the right locking tab and the platen protector.

2 Selecting the Right Location

The most important consideration in choosing a location for your printer is that it be close enough to connect a cable to your computer. But also keep the following tips in mind:

1-2

Setting Up Your FX Printer

l Place the printer or printer stand on a solid and level foundation.

Avoid setting it on carpet or on unstable surfaces such as chairs.

l Use a grounded outlet-one that has three holes to match the power

plug on the printer. Don’t use an adapter plug.

Avoid using electrical outlets that are controlled by wall switches. If you accidentally turn off a switch, you could wipe out valuable information and stop your printing.

Keep your printer and computer away from base units for cordless telephones.

Avoid using an outlet on the same circuit breaker with large electrical machines or appliances that might disrupt the flow of power to your printer.

l Choose a place that is clean and away from moisture, dust, and

excessive heat (such as a heater or direct sunlight).

If you are going to use continuous-feed paper, clear enough space around the printer so that the paper has an unobstructed path in and out of the printer. There are three common methods of arranging a printer and continuous paper:

l Using a printer stand with the paper stacked underneath it.

l Using a desk or table as a stand, with the printer near the rear edge

and the paper on the floor or on a shelf.

l Putting the printer on a desk or table and stacking the paper behind

the printer.

3 Installing the Ribbon

To install the ribbon, follow the directions below:

1. Remove the tractor cover that comes installed on the printer. To remove it, simply pull the back of the cover toward you until the cover is vertical. Then lift it up and off the printer.

2. Manually move the print head to the middle of the platen.

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-3

WARNING

The power must be OFF when you move the print head. Moving the print head when the power is ON may damage your printer. If you’ve been using your printer just before changing the ribbon cartridge, be careful not to touch the print head because it becomes hot during use.

3. before installing the ribbon cartridge, turn the small knob on top in the direction of the arrow to tighten the ribbon as shown in Figure 1-3.

Figure 1-3 Tightening the ribbon

4. For the FX-86e, hold the ribbon cartridge by the raised plastic fin

on top of the cartridge; for the FX-286e hold the cartridge by the two plastic tabs. Lower the cartridge into the printer, guiding the two pins on each end of the cartridge into the slots in the printer

frame, as shown in Figure 1-4. Press firmly on each end of the

cartridge to make sure the pins are firmly seated in the slots.

5. Now use the point of a pencil to guide the ribbon into place be-

tween the ribbon guide and the print head as shown in Figure 1-5. (There is also a diagram on the top of the ribbon cartridge itself.)

6. With the cartridge in place, again turn the ribbon knob in the

direction of the arrow to tighten the ribbon.

And that’s it-the ribbon is now installed.

1-4

Setting Up Your FX Printer

Figure 1-4.

Installing the ribbon cartridge

Figure 1-5.

Positioning the ribbon

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-5

Loading Continuous-feed Paper

When you receive your FX, it is set up to print on continuous-feed paper. If you plan to use single-sheet paper, turn to Chapter 2 for instructions on setting up the printer for single sheets. If you have bought the optional automatic sheet feeder, complete the remainder of the setup steps before you install the automatic sheet feeder (which has its own manual).

The FX tractor units are adjustable to accommodate different widths of paper-from 4 to 10 inches on the FX-86e and from 4 to 16 inches on the FX-286e. Before you load continuous-feed paper, prepare the printer in the following manner:

1. Make sure the printer is turned off.

2. Remove the tractor cover that comes installed on the printer. To

remove it, simply pull the back of the cover toward you until it is vertical. Then lift the cover up and off the printer.

3. Install the paper rest as shown in Figure 1-6. This part helps prevent

the paper from catching on the printer cable.

1-6

Setting Up Your FX Printer

Figure 1-6.

Installing the paper

4. Pull both the paper release lever and the paper bail lever toward the

front

rest

of the printer. (Figure 1-6 shows where these levers are.)

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-7

Now you are ready to load the continuous-feed paper. Just follow the

steps below:

1. Using Figure 1-7 as a guide, pull the locking levers on the pin-feed holders forward so that you can move the holders to the left and right.

Figure 1-7.

Pin-feed

locking levers

2. Move the left holder so that the locking lever is about 1/4 inch from the left side and push the locking lever back to lock that holder in place. Leave the right holder unlocked.

3. Open the pin-feed covers as shown in Figure 1-8.

WARNING

Do not use the pin-feed covers to move the pin-feed holders.

1-8

Setting Up Your FX Printer

Figure 1-8.

Open pin-feed cover

4. Guide the paper into the paper slot, and push it through until it comes up between the ribbon guide and the platen. (Moving the paper with a side-to-side motion makes it easier to push the paper through.)

5. Pull the paper up until the top is above the pin-feed holders. Fit the holes on the left side of the paper over the pins in the left holder (as shown in Figure 1-9) and close the cover.

Figure 1-9. Fitting the paper over the pin feeds

Setting Up Your FX Printer 1-9

6. Fit the right side of the paper into the right holder, moving the

holder as needed to match the width of the paper.

7. Close the right cover, making sure the paper has no dips or wrinkles and lock the right holder in place.

Now that you have loaded the continuous-feed paper, prepare the

printer for printing.

1. Push the paper bail lever back.

2. Hold the paper guide above the printer with the edge tab on the

left. Insert the right hinge tab into the right tab slot, as shown in Figure 1-10. Then insert the left tab into the left slot and push the guide back so that it is horizontal.

Figure 1-10

This guide keeps paper that is coming out of the printer from interfering with the paper going in. The guide is also used in the upright position for printing on single sheets of paper.

1-10

Setting Up Your FX Printer

3. With the printer turned OFF, advance the paper with the paper

feed knob on the right side of the printer until the first row of perforations is about even with the top of the ribbon. (See

Figure 1-1 1.)

Figure 1-11.

Setting top of form

This

is the top of

form

position. It makes your printed pages end where you want them to and prevents the printer from printing on the perforations. The paper should be in this position when the power is turned on or when software initializes the printer or sets the page length.

4. Replace the tractor cover.

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-11

Turning On the Printer

Before plugging in the power cord, see that the power switch near the back of the left side of the printer is turned off; then plug the power cord into a properly grounded socket.

WARNING

Before turning on the printer, be absolutely sure you have removed all packing materials. Turning on the printer when the print head cannot move may seriously damage the mechanism.

Now, turn the power ON with the switch on the left side of the printer. When you turn on the printer, three things happen:

l The print head moves back and forth and stops at the left side of the

printer; this is the home position.

The printer is initialized and set to certain default settings (which are fully described in Appendix D).

l The green power light on the control panel comes on.

6 Operating the Control Panel

The control pane! is shown in Figure 1-12.

Figure 1-12.

The FX control panel.

1.12

Setting Up Your FX Printer

The three buttons nearest the front of the printer control advancing the paper and communication with the computer. The four indicator lights show when the printer is turned on and when it is ready to use.

The buttons

There are three large buttons on the control panel.

OFF LINE/ ON LINE

FORM FEED/ ROMAN

LINE FEED/ SANS SERIF

Note

Use the paper feed knob on the right side of the printer only when the printer is turned OFF Using it when the printer is on can damage the printer mechanism.

The green light next to this button indicates that the printer is able to receive and print data from the computer. When the light is off, the printer is off line and cannot receive any data. Press the button to change from on line to off line or from

off line to on line. The printer automatically goes off line when you try to print without paper in the printer. Pressing the button then has no

effect until you load paper. When the printer is off line, this button ejects a

single sheet of paper or advances continuous

paper to the next top of form. When the printer is on line and in NLQ mode, pressing the button selects the Roman font.

When the printer is off line, this button advances the paper one line each time you press

it or continuously if you hold it down. When the printer is turned on, use this button to

advance paper.

When the printer is on line and in NLQ mode, pressing the button selects the Sans Serif font.

The indicator lights

In addition to the ON LINE light, the printer has three other lights.

POWER

READY

Setting Up Your FX Printer

This comes on to show that the printer is connected to the power and is turned on.

This comes on when the printer is on line and ready to print. It normally flickers during

printing.

1-13

PAPER OUT

Also on the control panel are two touch switches that let you choose the print style and size. These are the SelecType buttons, which are described in the next section.

SelecType

The SelecType feature consists of two buttons on the control panel. These buttons select the most used printing features-Near Letter Quality (NLQ) and condensed.

With the two SelecType buttons, you can produce any of the four typestyles shown below:

This comes on when the printer is out of paper.

NLQ can also be condensed for more characters on a line.

Draft is for fast printing and NLQ for higher-quality work. In the

condensed mode all characters are about 60% of their normal width.

Two NLQ fonts are available: Roman and Sans Serif. You select

and

them by using the printer is on line. The FORM FEED button selects Roman, and the

LINE FEED

the NLQ typeface is also available in the

FORM FEED

button selects Sans Serif, A software command to

LINE FEED

Epson mode.

buttons while the

change

NLQ Roman is clear and typewriter-like.

NLQ Sans Serif is crisp and distinctive.

If you want NLQ printing, simply press the

condensed printing, simply press the

When you press either SelecType button, it beeps twice and its

orange indicator light turns on to show that you have selected it. If you

1.14

CONDENSED

NLQ

button. If you want

button.

Setting Up Your FX Printer

want to turn off either mode, press its button again. It beeps once and the indicator light turns off to show that the mode is cancelled.

As you can see, SelecType makes it easy to choose either NLQ or

condensed, and the indicator lights always tell you which modes you’ve

selected.

Trying out SelecType is a simple three-step process:

1. Create a short sample document or file with your favorite application program.

2. Press either or both of the SelecType buttons.

3. Print the document or file using your application program’s print command.

If SelecType Does Not Work

Some applications programs are designed to control all typestyle functions. Before each printing operation, these programs cancel all previous typestyle settings by sending a signal (INIT) or by sending specific control codes to cancel certain typestyles. These signals or control codes may cancel your SelecType settings.

One reset signal, however, does not affect your SelecType settings. This is the ESC @ command.

You can see whether your program is changing your settings by watching the buttons when printing starts. If the lights change, the program is controlling the typestyles.

If your application program changes your SelecType settings, you have two choices:

1. Use the program’s setup procedure (which could be called by another name, such as install) to remove the codes that interfere with your SelecType settings.

2. Use the print control codes for your application program instead of SelecType to control your printing. Most programs that cancel SelecType settings also have sophisticated print control commands that give the same results that SelecType does. The manual for your program should explain the necessary commands.

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-15

Note

Also remember that control codes in your document will override the SelecType settings. Therefore, if you have a code for NLQ in your document and you press the

DRAFT

SelecType button, your printing

will still be in NLQ.

8 Running the Self Test

The FX has a built-in self test that prints out the characters in its

memory so that you can see that the printer is working properly.

The self test also prints the settings of the printer’s DIP switches.

You’ll use this part of the printout in the last section of this chapter.

Before running the self test, make sure that the power is OFF and paper is loaded in the printer. (Use wide paper in the FX-286e to avoid printing on the platen.)

To run the self test in the Near Letter Quality (NLQ) mode, hold down the When the printing starts, release the

The self test first prints the version number of the printer and several

lines of settings that are explained in the last section of this chapter.

Then it prints the characters from its memory. The test continues until

you turn the printer off. Part of a typical self test is shown below.

FORM FEED

button at the same time you turn the printer on.

FORM FEED

button.

Character mode

Shape of zero 0 (Unslashed) 1-2 OFF CG Table Italic6 Protocol mode ESC/P Print Quality Draft 1-5 OFF Country Page Length CSF Mode Skip Perforation None 2-3 OFF Auto LF

!"#$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[

!"#$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\

"#$%&'()*+,1./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\] #$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]~ $%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]!-. &'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]-.a

'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]-.ab

()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]~-.abc

1-16

Normal 1-1 OFF

1-3 OFF 1-4 OFF

U.S.A.

11 inch 2-1 OFF

Invalid 2-2 OFF Depend on I/F

1-6 ON 1-7 ON 1-8 ON

2-4 OFF

Setting Up Your FX Printer

To run the same test in the draft mode, hold down the button instead of the The FX cannot print a draft self test, however, if the NLQ DIP switch is

on. Therefore, if the Print Quality line of the self test printout says NLQ, you cannot print a draft test without changing a DIP switch.

FORM FEED

button while you turn the printer on.

LINE FEED

9 Connecting the Printer to Your Computer

Your FX printer communicates with your computer through a Centronics® compatible parallel interface. If your computer uses this type of interface and you have a suitable cable, you can connect your computer immediately. (Be sure that your cable is a shielded cable.)

If you do not know what kind of interface your computer requires, consult its manual or your dealer. For information on optional interfaces available from Epson, see Appendix E, and for further

information on the standard interface, see Appendix F.

The parallel interface

Before connecting a parallel interface cable, see that both the printer

and computer are turned off. Then plug the connector into the printer.

Next squeeze the clips gently and click them into place.

Some parallel cables have a ground wire. Connect this wire to the ground screw on the printer to protect data from interference. Then plug the other end of the cable into the computer and connect the ground wire on the computer end of the cable if it has one. Figure 1-13 shows a properly connected parallel cable.

Figure 1-13.

Connecting a parallel cable

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-17

10 Choosing the Operating Mode with DIP Switches

The FX has 12 switches that allow you to change many of the printer’s settings to suit your individual needs. You may need to change one or two of them now. These switches, known as DIP (Dual In-line Package) switches, are in the back of the printer. See Figure 1-14.

Figure 1-14.

DIP

switch location

The switches are in two groups and are numbered, as shown in

Figure 1-14. As you can see in the example below, the first part of the self test shows the settings of the switches. You will find your own self test printout helpful as you use this section.

Character mode Normal 1-1 OFF Shape of zero 0 (Unslashed) 1-2 OFF CG Table Protocol mode ESC/P

Italics 1-3 OFF

1-4 OFF Print Quality Draft 1-5 OFF Country Page Length

U.S.A.

1-6 ON 1-7

11 inch 2-1 OFF

1-8

CSF Node Invalid 2-2 OFF Skip Perforation

None

2-3 OFF Auto LF Depend on I/F 2-4 OFF

.!"#$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDBFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[ !"#$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;

<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\

"#$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]

#$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]~

1-18

Setting Up Your FX Printer

Before you change any DIP switch settings, turn the printer around to give you easy access to the switches. Then you can easily turn the switches on and off with a thin pointed object, such as a small screwdriver or the cap of a ballpoint pen. The switches are ON when they are UP, and OFF when they are DOWN.

Note

When you change a DIP switch setting, turn off the power, reset the switch or switches, then turn on the power again. The printer checks and recognizes new settings only at the time you turn the power on.

The operating mode

The FX has two operating modes, ESC/P® and IBM® printer emulation mode. ESC/P stands for Epson Standard Code for Printers, a powerful set of commands developed by Epson and supported by

almost all application software for personal computers. This is the mode that you should find the most useful and valuable for your printing. The rest of this manual refers to the ESC/P mode simply as the Epson mode.

The IBM printer emulation mode is for software that is designed only for IBM printers. It is not necessary to use this mode for your FX to be compatible with IBM computers. As you can see from the list of Epson

and IBM printer emulation mode commands in Appendix A, the

Epson mode has more commands and many more capabilities.

There are only two cases in which you may want to use the IBM printer emulation mode:

1. Your software lists only IBM printers in its printer selection menu.

2. You need to use the following characters and your application software will not print them in the Epson mode:

If you select IBM printer emulation mode with the DIP switch and choose an IBM printer in your software’s printer selection menu, your FX will behave as an IBM printer does. You can use most software that supports IBM printers, but you will notice that the commands do not allow you access to all the features of your Epson printer.

Setting Up Your FX Printer

1-19

DIP switch 1-4 controls the choice of operating modes. Turning the

switch OFF selects Epson mode, and turning it ON selects IBM printer

emulation mode.

The Epson character graphics set

Half of the characters used by IBM PCs and compatibles are special character graphics and international characters. Most previous Epson printers printed italics instead of these characters. With the FX-86e and FX-286e, however, you can print the character graphics without losing italics or any of the power of the Epson commands.

DIP switch 1-3 controls the choice between the italic and the character graphic table (called CG table in the DIP switch printout). Turning the switch ON selects the character graphic table, and turning it OFF selects the italic table. Remember that italics are available even if you select the character graphic table.

Making the choice

The decision you make about the operating mode and the character graphics set depends upon the software you use. For most applications, choose the Epson mode and the Character Graphics set (DIP switch

1-4 OFF and DIP switch 1-3 ON). That way you can set up your software for an Epson printer and have the full power of the Epson

commands.

If you have trouble printing italics, change DIP switch 1-3 to OFF to choose italics instead of character graphics. On the other hand, if you have trouble printing character graphics, change the printer to IBM

printer emulation mode by setting DIP switch 1-4 ON and set your software to match.

WARNING

You must always be careful to set up your printer and software to

match. Although the IBM commands are based on some of the Epson

commands, important differences affect much software. These differences can cause erratic printing. In particular, line spacing and page layout are likely to be wrong, and extra characters may appear.

Other DIP switch settings

Appendix D summarizes all the DIP switch settings in a group of

tables. See that appendix for reference and further information.

1-20

Setting Up Your FX Printer

Chapter 2

Choosing and Loading Paper

The FX printer can accommodate many different sizes and types of

paper, using either its automatic single-sheet loading feature or its

adjustable tractor.

The easy-to-use tractor can handle a wide range of paper widths, and the automatic single-sheet loading feature handles individual sheets quickly and easily. For greater efficiency with individual sheets you can

add an optional automatic sheet feeder.

Choosing Paper

Without any accessories, you can use single-sheet paper from 7¼ to

8½ inches wide (up to 14½ inches on the FX-286e) and continuous paper from 4 to 10 inches wide (up to 16 inches on the FX-286e) including the perforated edge strips.

Carbon copies

If you use multi-part forms or carbon copies in the FX, use no more

than three sheets or parts at a time, with a total thickness of no more than 0.25 mm. Also change the paper thickness setting as described at the end of this chapter.

Using Single-sheet Paper

The automatic sheet loading feature of the FX gives you short

printing times by combining fast loading with fast printing.

If you print large amounts on single sheets of paper, however, you

may find it more convenient to use an automatic sheet feeder. This is

an optional device that holds a stack of paper and inserts a new sheet whenever required, making single sheets as easy and convenient to use as continuous paper. The automatic sheet feeder has its own user’s manual.

Choosing and Loading Paper

2-1

Before you load single-sheet paper the first time, you must prepare the printer by removing the tractor unit and installing the paper guide, as described in the next five steps. (If you have previously loaded continuous-feed paper, you have already done some of the steps.)

Preparing the printer

1. Remove the tractor cover that comes installed on the printer. To remove it, simply pull the back of the cover toward you until it is vertical. Then lift the cover up and off the printer.

2. Be sure that you have removed the protective items as described on page 1-2.

3. Remove the tractor unit. Simply press the release levers (shown in Figure 2-1) with your thumbs, rock the tractor unit back, and lift it off the printer.

Figure 2-1. Removing the tractor unit

4. Move the edge guides on the paper guide to accomodate the

width of the sheet of paper.

2-2

Choosing and Loading Paper

5. Hold the paper guide above the printer. Insert the right hinge tab into the right tab slot, as shown in Figure 2-2. Next, insert the left tab into the left slot. When both tabs are in the slots,

push the guide back so that it is horizontal, and then pull it

toward you until it stops at an angle (about 45 degrees).

Figure 2-2. Installing the Paper guide

Choosing and Loading Paper

2-3

Loading the paper

Now you are ready to load single-sheet paper. Just follow the steps

below:

1. Turn the printer ON first. Do not put the paper in the printer

before you turn it on.

2. Push both the paper release lever and the paper bail lever toward the back of the printer. (Figure 2-2 shows where these levers are.)

3. Make sure the button once.

4. Place the paper on the paper guide as shown in Figure 2-3 below. Push the paper firmly into the printer; then let go of it.

Figure 2-3.

Inserting the paper

ON LINE

light is OFF. If it is ON, press the

ON LINE

2-4

Choosing and Loading Paper

5. Pull the paper bail lever forward. This makes the paper feed into the printer.

6. When the paper stops, push the paper bail lever back.

7. Hold the printer cover vertically and fit the notches in its front corners over the pins at the front of the printer case (as shown in Figure 2-4). Then tilt the cover back into place.

Figure

2-4.

Installing the

printer cover

When you have learned this procedure, you’ll probably leave the cover on when you load single-sheet paper. If you wish, you can raise the cover to the vertical position while you’re loading the paper. The two icons (small pictures) on the printer cover will help you remember the correct positions of the levers.

Now you are ready to print on single-sheet paper.

Choosing and Loading Paper

2-5

If the paper does not load

If the platen (the black roller) turns but the paper does not load, remove the paper from the printer and try again, starting at Step 2. This time press the paper a little more firmly into place.

If nothing happens at all, see that the printer is ON and that the

ON LINE

light is off. Then remove the paper and try again.

Reloading during printing

When you print a document more than one page long using single sheets of paper, there are two different ways your software can allow you to load a new sheet at the end of a page.

If your software sends characters in a continuous stream, the printer stops printing when it reaches the bottom of the paper and sounds the beeper. When this happens, the

automatically.

If your software handles printing page by page, it probably stops

sending characters at the end of a page and prompts you to insert more paper. In this case the

ON LINE

the first thing you should do is press the turn it off.

ON LINE

light goes off

light probably remains on, and

ON LINE

button once to

Once the

ON LINE

light is off, remove the sheet that has just been

printed and load a new sheet in the same way as before.

Reinstalling the Tractor Unit

When you want to switch from single-sheet to continuous-feed paper,

you need to reinstall the tractor unit.

1. Remove the printer cover.

2. Hold the tractor with the gears to the right and fit the rear notches on the tractor unit over the rear mounting pins on the printer, as shown in Figure 2-5.

3. Tilt the tractor unit toward you until the front latches click in place

over the front mounting pins on the printer.

2-6

Choosing and Loading Paper

Figure 2-5.

Reinstalling the

tractor

unit

Choosing and Loading Paper

2-7

The Paper Thickness Lever

You can adjust the FX to accommodate different thicknesses of paper.

You need to do this when you print carbon copies.

Before moving the paper thickness lever, always turn off the power, open the printer cover or the tractor cover, and move the print head to the middle of the printer.

The paper thickness lever (shown in Figure 2-6) has six positions.

Figure 2-6.

Paper thickness

lever

2-8 Choosing and Loading Paper

If you want to change or check the lever, push it toward the platen (the black roller) until it stops. This is the first position. Then pull the lever toward you. You will feel three more click stops. The table below shows which position you should use.

Table 2-I. Paper thickness lever positions

Paper

thickness

Single With 1 copy With 2 copies

*Maximum total thickness IS 0.25mm

Lever

position

2nd 3rd

4th

Position 1 is for thinner paper, and positions 5 and 6 are for thicker paper. These positions should rarely be used. If they are, the printing quality will not necessarily be as good as on paper as specified in the technical specifications.

Always return the lever to the second position when you resume

printing on normal paper.

Choosing and Loading Paper 2-9

Chapter 3

Using the FX with Application Programs

Now that you’ve set up and tested the printer, you need to start

using it with your application programs.

Printer Selection Menus

Most application programs let you specify the type of printer you’re using so that the program can take full advantage of the printer’s features. Many programs provide an installation or setup procedure

that presents a list of printers to choose from. If your application program has a printer selection menu, use the instructions below.

The rest of this chapter covers word processors, spreadsheets,

graphics programs, and programming languages.

Menu selections

If your software has a printer selection menu, simply choose FX-86e or FX-286e. If the menu does not list either of these printers, choose one of the following. They are listed in order of preference.

FX-86e

EX-800 FX-85 FX-80 +

FX-80 FX LX Epson printer Draft printer

If you plan to use the IBM printer emulation mode, choose IBM Proprinter (if you have an FX-86e), IBM Proprinter XL (if you have an FX-286e), IBM Graphics printer, or IBM printer, in that order of preference.

Using the FX with Application Programs

FX-286e

EX-1000

FX-286

FX-185

FX-100+ FX-100 FX LX Epson printer Draft printer

3-1

Note

If your application program does not list the FX-86e or FX-286e, you may want to contact the manufacturer to find whether an update is available.

A quick test

After setting up your application program, print a sample document to be sure the program and the FX are communicating properly. If the document doesn’t print correctly, recheck the program’s printer selection and installation procedure. If you’re still having trouble printing, consult the troubleshooting section in Appendix C.

Computer - Printer Communication

Computers and printers communicate by using codes to represent characters and commands. To be sure the two devices use the same codes, almost all manufacturers of computers, printers, and software use the American Standard Code for Information Interchange, which is usually referred to by its abbreviation, ASCII.

The ASCII standard includes codes for printable characters (letters, punctuation marks, numerals, and mathematical symbols) and 33 other codes called control codes. The control codes are for such functions as

sounding the beeper and performing carriage returns. Because the 33

control codes are not enough to control all possible printer functions,

most printer commands are actually a sequence of two or more codes.

One of the 33 control codes, the escape code, signals the beginning of a sequence of codes. Therefore, most printer commands are

sequences of codes, the first of which is the escape code. This manual uses the ASCII abbreviation ESC for this code.

When using control codes to select printer functions for an

application program or programming language, check the manual for

the program or language to find the appropriate method of inserting

the code into the program. Further details on the methods to use are in the rest of this chapter.

Naming and using commands

The most common way of naming codes or commands is with one of

two numbering systems, decimal or hexadecimal.

3-2 Using the FX with Application Programs

The decimal system is the standard numbering system based on units

of ten, using the numerals O-9.

The hexadecimal, or hex, system is based on units of 16 and is often used by programmers. Instead of using only the numerals 0 through 9, the hex system also uses the letters A through F. For example, the decimal numbers 9, 10, 11, and 12 are 09, 0A, 0B, and 0C in hex.

Since the most frequently used hexadecimal numbers are between 0 and FF hex (0 to 255 in decimal), it’s common to write hexadecimal numbers that are less than 16 with a zero in front, as shown above.

In this book, hex numbers are distinguished from decimal numbers

by the word hex after them (for example, 1B hex). Other common

ways of denoting a hexadecimal number are the following:

1BH $1B &1B &HlB

The Command Summary and the Quick Reference card give both

the decimal and hex numbers for each command.

<1B>H

Word Processors

In many ways, word processors demand the most from your printer. When you create and print a document, you may use many print styles and fonts, add headers and footers, and use bold, italic, and other effects.

Once you have installed your word processor by using the lists on page 3-1, you can ordinarily use a fixed set of printer features by using a word processor command to place markers around the text to be altered. When the document is printed, the markers are recognized and translated into suitable commands for your printer. On your screen some programs show the markers; others display the text as it will appear-for example, in bold or italics.

This method is normally restricted to features that can be found on almost all printers, such as bold and underlining.

Some programs also provide a way of placing complete printer commands in the text. These commands may or may not be visible on your screen. This method has the advantage of allowing you to use any printer command, not just a limited set. To make use of it, however, you need to understand how to use the printer’s commands.

Using the FX with Application Programs

3-3

Check the manual for your word processor to see if you can place

printer commands in your text. If this is possible, use the Command Summary (Appendix A) in this manual to find the command, and use the manual for your word processor to find how to assign the command.

If your FX is not printing correctly, check both the FX and your

word processor and do the following:

Make sure you’ve selected the correct printer.

Carefully read the printer setup and installation information in your

word processor’s manual.

l Check the printer options that may be part of the installation or

setup section (line feeds, interface, etc.).

Make sure your word processor is capable of sending the proper

commands to your printer.

If you’re still having difficulty printing, check the troubleshooting section in your word processor’s manual and Appendix C of this manual.

Spreadsheets

Although spreadsheets seldom use as many printing styles as word processors, they do have some very specific requirements.

Installation and column width

If your spreadsheet program provides a list of printers, use the list on page 3-1 to find the proper selection. If your spreadsheet doesn’t have a printer setup routine, carefully read the program’s manual for information on printing.

A major concern for printing spreadsheets is the width of the printer. The FX-86e is an 80-column printer, and the FX-286e is a 136-column printer. You can, however, increase the number of characters on a line by using one of the modes in Table 3-1. You can turn on condensed with a button on the control panel (see SelecType in Chapter 1), and the other modes are explained in Chapter 4.

3-4

Using the FX with Application Programs

Table 3-1. Characters per line

FX-86e

Normal

Elite

Condensed

Condensed Elite

Therefore, if your spreadsheet asks the number of columns your printer can print, decide which mode you will use and supply the appropriate number from Table 3-1.

132

160

Printer commands

Unlike word processors, spreadsheet programs usually don’t let you change printer commands within a spreadsheet. Instead, one style or mode of printing is used for the whole spreadsheet. With the FX, there are two main ways of sending commands to control the printing of a spreadsheet.

First, almost all spreadsheets have the capability of sending commands to a printer. Look in the manual for your spreadsheet to find out how to send printer commands. Then look in the Command Summary (Appendix A) in this manual to find the proper codes to send.

FX-286e

136

163

233

272

For example, your spreadsheet might use a “setup string” to send printer commands. To prepare a setup string for condensed elite, you would look up the proper command in the Command Summary.

The command for elite is ESC M, and the command for condensed is SI. Because most spreadsheets use the decimal equivalent for the commands, (also given in the Command Summary), a setup string for condensed elite might look like this:

/027/077/015

The number 027 is for the escape code, 077 is for M, and 015 is for SI (condensed).

The second method to choose condensed is one of the SelecType con-

trol panel buttons. The use of this button is described in Chapter 1.

If your spreadsheet is not printing correctly, be sure you have selected

the correct printer if the program asks you to select one.

Using the FX with Application Programs

3-5

If you’re using the program’s print facility, recheck the FX’s Command Summary to make sure you’re sending the correct commands.

If you’re still having difficulty printing, check the troubleshooting section in your spreadsheet program’s manual or Appendix C of this manual.

Graphics Programs

The FX is capable of producing finely detailed graphic images. Although Chapter 5 gives specific information on the graphics commands, the easiest way to take advantage of the FX’s capabilities is with one of the many graphics programs available.

When buying graphics software, always make sure it has a suitable option to allow printouts on an FX printer. Any program with an option for an FX printer should give excellent results, using different dot densities to produce a realistic scale of grays.

Most graphics programs have a printer selection procedure, in which case you should check the lists on page 3-1 to find the proper selection.

Programming Languages

Most users rely on application programs to send commands to the printer. An awareness of programming languages, however, can be

helpful in exploring a printer’s potential or troubleshooting a printing

problem.

For example, if you want to set up your application program to send a command for italic printing, you can use a programming language, such as BASIC or Pascal, to do a quick printout before setting up the program.

If, on the other hand, you’ve set up a program to send a certain command to the printer, but it’s not printing correctly, you can send the same command with a programming language to find whether the problem lies with your application program, the command, or the printer.

3-6 Using the FX with Application Programs

Sending printer commands with BASIC

You can send printer commands with any programming language. The examples in this manual are written in BASIC, because BASIC is included with most computer systems.

In most forms of BASIC, and in particular Microsoft’” BASIC, the normal method of producing printed output is to use the LPRINT statement followed by the text to be printed enclosed in quotation marks, as shown below:

100 LPRINT "This text will be printed."

Individual printer control codes can be sent by using the CHR$ function with the LPRINT statement:

110 LPRINT CHR$(27);CHR$(69);

This line sends ASCII codes 27 and 69 to the printer, selecting emphasized printing.

Most versions of BASIC permit the ASCII codes in the CHR$ function to be given in either decimal (as above) or hexadecimal. Also, if the code corresponds to a printable character, the character itself can be used in quotation marks in the LPRINT statement. The command shown above could therefore be given in two other forms:

LPRINT CHR$(27);"E" LPRINT CHR$(&H1B);CHR$(&H45)

As you can see, Microsoft BASIC uses &H to denote hexadecimal numbers.

If you have another version of BASIC or a different programming language, consult the manual for the language to find the correct formats for these commands.

Using the FX with Application Programs

3-7

Chapter

FX Printer Features

You can obtain many different printing effects with the FX printer, from arranging the printout on the paper to giving extra emphasis to particular words and phrases. This chapter shows you the features you may want to select with your software. Once you have read about the features, you can find their commands in the Command Summary.

SelecType, as you know, controls the printing style of a whole document. Software commands, on the other hand, can change anything from a single character to the entire document.

Quality and Fonts

The most fundamental changes you can make to printing on the FX

are in the print quality and NLQ fonts.

The FX has two levels of print quality: draft and NLQ (Near Letter

Quality). Draft printing is fast, making it ideal for drafts and other preliminary work. NLQ printing takes a little longer, but it produces more fully-formed characters for presentation-quality documents.

The printout below shows the differences between draft, NLQ Roman, and NLQ Sans Serif so that you can compare the different styles and densities:

Draft printing is extremely fast.

NLQ Roman is clear and typewriter-like.

NLQ Sans Serif is crisp and distinctive.

SelecType gives you an easy way of changing the print quality and

NLQ font, but if you prefer to print in NLQ Roman most of the time,

you can select it with a DIP switch (see Appendix D). You can also choose the print quality and NLQ font with software commands.

FX Printer Features

4-1

Print Size and Character Width

To add greater variety to your documents, the FX has two pitches as well as proportional spacing and condensed, double-wide and double-high printing. All can be selected with a software command,

and condensed

can

be selected with SelecType.

Pitches and Proportional Spacing

The two pitches are pica and elite. Pica is 10 characters per inch (cpi)

and elite is 12 cpi. The printout below shows the difference between the

two.

Pica:

Elite:

Another mode is proportional. In this mode the width of the characters varies. Therefore, a narrow letter like i receives less space than a wide letter like W, as you can see in the printout below:

Proportional:

The character tables in Appendix B list the widths of all proportional characters.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz

Pica:

ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz

Double-wide, double-high, and condensed

In addition to the basic pitches and the proportional mode, the FX offers three other modes that change the size of your printing. These modes are double-wide, double-high, and condensed.

The double-wide mode doubles the width of any size of characters. This mode is useful for such purposes as emphasizing headings in reports and making displays, but is usually not suitable for large

amounts of text.

Double-wide pica

Double-wide elite

4-2

FX Printer Features

Another mode for headings and other special uses is double-high,

which is shown below.

This is double high printing

Because of its height you must leave a blank line above a line of double-high. Otherwise the double-high letters will overlap the letters on the previous line.

Pica and elite can be reduced to about 60% of their normal width with the condensed mode. This mode is particularly useful for printing wide spreadsheets because condensed elite allows you up to 160 characters on an B-inch line and 272 on a 13½-inch line.

Condensed can be selected with SelecType, by setting a DIP switch (see Appendix D), or with a software command. Even if you turn condensed on with the DIP switch, you can still turn it off with

SelecType or the software command.

Condensed pica gives more characters on a line. Condensed elite gives you even more.

Widening or narrowing the characters also widens or narrows the spaces between words and letters. Because word processors usually create a left margin by printing spaces, you may need to change the number of characters on a line to keep the margins correct if you change widths. For example, a left margin of five pica characters is the

same as one of six elite characters.

Special Effects and Emphasis

The FX offers two ways of emphasizing parts of your text and also

allows you to use underlining, superscripts, and subscripts. These features can be controlled only by software commands, but many application programs can produce them if they are properly installed.

Emphasized and double-strike modes both slow the printer down slightly to produce bolder text. In emphasized mode, the FX prints each character twice as the print head moves across the paper, with the second slightly to the right of the first. This produces darker, more fully-formed characters.

FX Printer Features

4-3

In double-strike mode, the FX prints each line twice, with the second slightly below the first. This makes the characters bolder. While NLQ is in use, however, double-strike is ignored because NLQ characters are already formed by two passes of the print head.

This is normal NLQ printing

This is emphasized NLQ printing

Superscripts and subscripts are valuable for such purposes as printing footnote numbers or parts of mathematical formulas, and the underline mode provides an automatic way of underlining fully any piece of text. It underlines spaces, subscripts, and superscripts without a break.

The example below shows underlining with text and combined with

superscripts and subscripts in a mathematical formula.

average = (a1 + a2 + . . . . . + an)

Using Different Character Sets

The FX incorporates a new character set: Epson Character Graphics.

This set allows you to take advantage of the power of the Epson mode

commands and still print out the character graphics used by IBM and compatible computers and by much commercial software. For example, if your word processor can include the characters to draw boxes and shade areas, you can produce some very professional effects.

You can select the Epson character graphics set with your software or by setting DIP switch 1-3 ON. For many applications it is best to use the DIP switch instead of the software command because the character graphics are then available as soon as you turn the printer on.

4-4

FX Printer Features

The other important change you can make to the standard character set is to change some characters for ones commonly used in other languages-chiefly European and Scandinavian-such as accented characters and symbols. In Epson mode, eight international character sets can be selected by setting DIP switches 1-6 to 1-8: USA, French, German, UK, Danish, Swedish, Italian, and Spanish. See Appendix D for the DIP switch settings.

In Epson mode,

software command. The additional character sets are the following:

Norwegian, a second Danish set, Japanese, a second Spanish set, and

Latin American. A complete list of these characters is in Appendix B.

Also, all text characters can be printed in italics in Epson mode. You

can use this typestyle for special emphasis or as an alternative typeface.

Italics give emphasis to words.

these eight, and five more, can also be selected by a

They are an attractive alternative style.

Page Layout and Other Commands

The remaining commands in the command summary are not normally needed when using commercial software. You may need some of them if you are using a printer installation program provided with an application package, but most deal with features (such as tabs, margins, and line spacing) that are provided directly by commercial programs and are therefore only useful to you if you want to program the printer using a programming language such as BASIC.

FX Printer Features

4-5

Chapter 5

Graphics and User-defined Characters

The dot graphics mode allows your FX to produce pictures, graphs, charts, or almost any other pictorial material you can devise, and the user-defined character feature allows you or a commercial software program to put special characters in the FX’s memory so that it can print them just as if they were ordinary letters.

Because many commercial software programs use graphics, you may be able to print pictures and graphs like the ones on this page and the next by simply giving your software a few instructions.

The quickest and easiest way to print graphics on your FX is to use a commercial graphics program. With such programs you usually create an image on your monitor and then give a command to send the image to the printer.

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-1

If you use commercial software that produces graphics, all you need to know about dot graphics is how to use the software. If, on the other hand, you wish to do your own programming or merely wish to understand how the FX prints graphics, read on.

The Print Head

To understand dot graphics you need to know a little about how the

FX’s print head works.

The FX’s print head has nine pins. As it moves across the page,

electrical impulses cause the pins to fire. Each time a pin fires, it strikes the inked ribbon and presses it against the paper to produce a small dot. As the head moves across the paper, the pins fire time after time in different patterns to produce letters, numbers, or symbols.

5-2

Graphics and User-defined Characters

Dot patterns

The FX’s print head is able to print graphics in addition to text because graphic images are formed on the FX about the same way that pictures in newspapers and magazines are printed.

If you look closely at a newspaper photograph, you can see that it is made up of many small dots. The FX also forms its images with patterns of dots, as many as 240 dot positions per inch horizontally and

72 dots vertically. The images printed by the FX can, therefore, be as

finely detailed as the one on the first page of this chapter.

In its main graphics mode the FX prints one column of dots for each code it receives, and it uses only the top eight of the nine pins. Therefore, your graphics program must send codes for dot patterns, one number for each column in a line. For each of those columns the print head prints the pattern of dots you have specified.

To print figures taller than eight dots, the print head makes more than one pass. The printer prints one line, then advances the paper

and prints another, just as it does with text.

To keep the print head from leaving gaps between the graphics lines

as it does between the text lines, the line spacing must be changed to

eliminate the space between lines. With a change in line spacing, the

FX can print finely detailed graphic images that give no indication that they are made up of separate lines, each no more than 8/72nds of an inch tall.

Each pass of the print head prints one piece of the total pattern, which can be as tall or short and as wide or narrow as you desire. You don’t have to fill the whole page or even an entire line with your graphics figures. In fact, you can use as little or as much space as you like for a figure and put it anywhere on the page.

Pin Labels

The graphics mode requires a method to tell the printer which pins to fire in each column. Since there are 256 possible combinations of eight pins, you need a numbering system that allows you to use a single number to specify which of the 256 possible patterns you want. This numbering system is shown in Figure 5-1 on the next page.

Graphics and User-defined Characters 5-3

To fire any one pin, you send its number. To fire more than one pin at the same time, add up the numbers of the pins and send the sum to the printer. Therefore, with these labels for the pins, you fire the top pin by sending 128. To fire the bottom pin, you send 1. If you want to fire only the top and bottom pins, you simply add 128 and 1, then send 129.

By adding the appropriate label numbers together, you can fire any combination of pins. Figure 5-1 shows three examples of how to calculate the number that fires a particular pattern of pins.

Figure 5-1. Pin numbering system

128

32 16

8 4

2 1

170

128

8 4 2 1 1

128

128 64 32 16

8 2

2 2

134

With this numbering system, any combination of the eight pins adds up to a decimal number between 0 and 255, and no numbers are duplicated. Before you can put these numbers in a graphics program, however, you need to know the format of the graphics commands.

Graphics Commands

The graphics mode commands are quite different from most other commands. For most of the other modes, such as emphasized and double-wide, one command turns the mode on and another turns it off. For graphics, the command is more complicated because the command that turns on a graphics mode also specifies how many columns of graphics will be printed. After the printer receives this command, it interprets the next numbers as pin patterns and prints them on the paper.

5-4

Graphics and User-defined Characters

The graphics command format

There are several different graphics commands giving different horizontal dot densities and printing speeds. Because the format is almost the same for all the commands, however, the example here keeps things simple by using only the single-density graphics command, ESC K. In single-density graphics, there are 60 dots per inch horizontally.

The command to enter single-density graphics mode is ESC K nl n2. In BASIC the command is given in this format:

LPRINT CHR$(27);"K";CHR$(nl);CHR$(n2);

ESC K specifies single-density graphics, and the next two numbers (nl and n2) specify the

number of columns reserved for graphics.

Column reservation numbers

Even in single-density graphics mode, one 8-inch line can accommodate 480 columns of graphics; in quadruple-density, almost 2000 columns can fit on the same 8-inch line. Since the printer does not use decimal numbers larger than 255, the graphics commands use two numbers for reserving columns.

Because the commands are set up for two numbers, you must supply two even if you need only one. When you need fewer than 256 columns, it is easy to determine nl and n2: nl is the number of columns you are reserving and n2 is zero. For example, to send data for

200 columns of graphics, nl is 200 and n2 is 0.

For more than 256 columns of graphics data, n2 is the number of complete groups of 256 columns, and n1 is the number of columns to complete the line. For example, to send 1632 columns of graphic data, nl is 96 and n2 is 6 because 96 + (6 x 256) = 1632.

You can calculate both nl and n2 by dividing the total number of

columns by 256. The quotient is n2 and the remainder is nl. If you are using a programming language with MOD (modulus) and INT (integer)

functions, you can use the following formulas, in which n is the total

number of columns.

n1 = n MOD 256

n2 = INT (n/256)

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-5

Graphics data

After receiving a graphics command such as ESC K nl n2, the printer prints the number of codes specified by nl and data, no matter what codes they are. This means that you must be sure to supply exactly the right amount of graphics data. If you supply too little, the printer will stop and wait for more data and will seem to be locked. The next data sent will then be printed as graphics, even if it is

really text. On the other hand, if you supply too much graphics data, the excess will be printed as regular text.

as graphics

Simple Graphics Programming

The first example in this section shows how a graphics command,

column reservation numbers, and data can be used to print a single line of graphics. The example is a BASIC program. If you prefer another programming language, the principles are exactly the same.

Therefore, you can easily adapt the program to the language you prefer.

The first line of the program specifies single-density graphics for 40

columns:

100 LPRINT CHR$(27);"K";CHR$(40);CHR$(0);

The second line is the data that is printed as pin patterns. It uses the

number 74 to produce one of the patterns shown in Figure 5-1. The FOR-NEXT loop sends 40 columns of data.

200 FOR X=1 TO

That is the whole program. In BASIC, semicolons at the ends of the lines are very important; they prevent the computer from sending other codes after the ones you specify. In other languages you may have to use a special command to send a single code at a time. Run the program to see the result below. Although it is not as interesting as the examples at the beginning of this chapter, it shows exactly how the mode works.

5-6

40:

LPRINT CHR$(74);: NEXT X

Graphics and User-defined Characters

WIDTH statements

Some software (including most versions of BASIC) automatically

inserts carriage return and line feed codes after every 80 or 130 characters. This is usually no problem with text, but it can spoil your graphics. Two extra columns of graphics are printed in the middle of the ones you send, and are left over and printed as text.

In some versions of BASIC you can prevent unwanted control codes in graphics by putting a WIDTH statement at the beginning of all graphics programs. The format in many forms of BASIC is either WIDTH “LPTl:“, 255 or WIDTH LPRINT 255. Check your software manual for the proper format.

Printing taller patterns

The next example shows how several lines of graphics can be formed

into a figure taller than eight dots. It uses programming techniques for

producing textured or repetitive patterns.

The program is listed below. The lines inside each pair of FOR and NEXT statements have been indented so that you can see how the program works; the spaces are not needed for the program to run.

100 WIDTH "LPTl:", 255 110

LPRINT CHR$(27);"A";CHR$(8);

120

FOR R = 1 TO 6

130

LPRINT CHR$(27);"K";CHR$(100);CHR$(0);

140

FOR X = 1 to 50

150 160

170 180

LPRINT CHR$(170);CHR$(85);

NEXT X: LPRINT

NEXT R

LPRINT CHR$(27);"@"

If you run the program, you will see how it combines six print lines

into a pattern.

There are five basic steps that the program goes through to produce

this kind of pattern.

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-7

1. The computer is prevented from adding any extra characters by the WIDTH statement (line 100).

2. The line spacing is changed to 8/72 of an inch-the height of the dot patterns used in the program (line 110).

3. The program goes through the graphics commands the required number of times (lines 120 and 170).

4. A new graphics command is used for each line printed (lines 130-

160). This part of the program is similar to the last example, but two

columns are printed each time through the loop making a total of

100.

5. The last important thing to do is to reset the printer to its default settings, including the normal line spacing (line 180).

Notice that the graphics command (ESC K) can be in effect for only

one print line. To print more than one line of graphics, the graphics

command must be issued before each line.

Density Varieties

Although all the examples so far in this chapter have been in the single-density graphics mode, there are six other eight-pin densities and two that use all nine pins. Nine-pin graphics is not necessary for most uses, but you can find the command (ESC ^) in the Epson mode command summary.

The four most common eight-pin modes are available in both Epson

and IBM printer emulation modes. Their commands are ESC K, ESC L, ESC Y, ESC Z. In Epson mode, there is also a general-purpose command for any of the eight-pin graphics modes: ESC *. This command is used in the same way as the individual commands, except that before n1 and n2 you must send the code for the graphics mode required. The different modes are summarized in the table on the next

page.

The following example shows how to use the ESC * command to reserve 40 columns for single-density graphics. This uses mode number 0 from the table to achieve exactly the same effect as the first example using ESC K.

LPRINT CHR$(27);"*";CHR$(0);CHR$(40);CHR$(0);

5-8

Graphics and User-defined Characters

Table 5-1. Graphics modes

Option Single-density

Double-density

High-speed double-density*

Quadruple-density*

CRT I Plotter (1:1)

CRT II Double-density plotter

Alternate

Code

ESC K

ESC L

ESC Y

ESC Z

none

Horiz. density

m 0

(dots/in.)

120

240

144

*Adjacent dots cannot be printed in this mode.

Modes 4-7 in the table are special modes that alter the horizontal density to give proportions of a computer monitor (the CRT modes), or to match the vertical density so as to give round circles (the plotter modes).

In two modes, high-speed double-density and quadruple-density, the print head cannot print two consecutive dots with the same pin, so that it can print dots in only half the possible dot positions in any one row. The higher density means that the resolution of the pattern is better than in single-density mode. When you design patterns in these two modes, however, you must see that no dots overlap.

Reassigning a graphics mode

Another graphics command lets you assign a different eight-pin graphics mode to one of the specific eight-pin graphics commands. You can use it with graphics software programs to quickly change the density and proportions of your printouts. Changing the graphics option changes the width without changing the height.

The command for reassigning a graphics mode is ESC ? c m. In this command, c is a letter designating one of the four alternate graphics codes (K, L, Y, or Z) and m is the mode number of the new mode, as listed in Table 5-1.

For example, to change the ESC K command to select the CRT I screen graphics mode, the command in BASIC would be the following:

LPRINT CHR$(27);"?K";CHR$(4);

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-9

A little experimentation should tell you whether the reassigning code

can improve your graphics printouts.

Designing Your Own Graphics

This section takes you through the development of a graphics program. The example is not especially complicated, but it does include the same steps you would use for a more complex figure.

You should plan your figure with dots on graph paper, but before beginning to place the dots, you must decide which graphics density you want. Figure 5-2 shows the differences between three common modes so that you can choose the one you want.

In this figure you can see the main rules for graphic design in the

three densities:

In single-density no dots can be placed on vertical lines.

In high-speed double-density, dots can be placed on vertical lines, but

no dots can overlap.

In low-speed double-density, dots can be placed on vertical lines, and

they can overlap.

Figure 5-2. Designing in different densities

Single

5-10

High-speed

double

Low-speed

double

Graphics and User-defined Characters

Now look at the high-speed double-density design in Figure 5-3. It

should point you in the right direction for your own work.

Figure 5-3.

Arrow

design

After plotting the dots on a grid, you calculate the numbers for each pin pattern by dividing the design grid into separate print lines. For the arrow design, the grid was divided into two lines, each seven dots high. Then each column was examined to calculate the graphics data. The results for the first line are shown in Figure 5-4. The pin values are on the left and the sums at the bottom of each column.

Figure 5-4.

Calculating data

Graphics and User-defined Characters 5-11

The numbers for the second line were calculated in the same way. Once the numbers for the pin patterns are calculated, they are put in the program in DATA statements, separated by commas.

The program works in a similar way to the last example. This time it selects 7/72-inch line spacing because only seven pins are used. Because the data is not repetitive, each column of graphics data is read from the DATA statements and sent to the printer. The design is 41 dot positions wide. Therefore both lines 130 and 140 use the number 41.

100

WIDTH "LPTl:",

255

110 LPRINT CHR$(27);"A";CHR$(7); 120

FOR ROW = 1 TO 2

130

LPRINT CHR$(27);"Y";CHR$(41);CHR$(0);

140

FOR COLUMN = 1 TO

150

160

170 180 190

READ N LPRINT CHR$(N);

NEXT COLUMN LPRINT NEXT ROW

200 END 210

DATA 64,32,80,8,68,2,64,0,64,0

220 DATA 64,0,64,0,32,0,16,0,8,0 230 DATA 8,0,8,0,8,0,8,0,8,0,8,0,8,0

240 DATA 184,64,32,16,8,4,2

250 DATA 8,16,40,64,136,0,8,0,8,0

260

DATA

8,0,8,0,16,0,32,0,64,0,64,0

270

DATA 64,0,64,0,64,0,64,0,64,0,64,0

280

DATA

116,8,16,32,64,128,0

When you run this program, it produces the following printout:

If you want to see the figure in other densities, change the Y in line

130

to L or Z.

5-12

Graphics and User-defined Characters

User-defined Characters

The FX has a command that allows you to define and print characters of your own design. You can design an entirely new alphabet or typeface, create mathematical or scientific symbols, or create graphic patterns to serve as building blocks for larger designs. These user-defined characters work only in draft mode.

Also, you can buy commercial software programs that assist you in creating characters or supply you with sets of characters already created. In addition, some popular application packages make use of the user-defined character function to enhance printouts. (These characters are called download characters in some programs.)

The printout below shows a few user-defined characters to give you

an idea of what can be done, but remember that you can create what

you need or want.

When you define a character of your own, the definition is stored in temporary memory (RAM). The original character with the same code

remains in the printer’s permanent memory (ROM) and you can print either of them when needed.

Design grids

The process of defining a character is much like printing dot graphics

because you send the printer precise instructions on where you want each dot printed. In fact, planning a user-defined character is like planning a small dot graphics pattern.

To design a character you use a grid that has nine rows and eleven columns. Figure 5-5 on the next page shows three of these grids. Most characters do not use the two rows below the heavy line. Those rows are only for characters with descenders, like y and g. Also, even though you can use up to 11 columns, it is best to leave the last two blank for the space between characters.

The grid in the middle of Figure 5-5 shows a plan for a character. Although there are nine pins in the FX print head, you can use only eight of them in a single user-defined character. The design in

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-13

Figure 5-5 uses the top eight, but you can also use the bottom eight by

using the grid on the right as explained later in this section.

Once the character is planned on the grid, you simply add the pin

values for each column together, just as you do for graphics. Then, the

next step in defining a character is to send this information to the

printer.

Figure 5-5.

Design grids

128

64 32

8 4 2

123456789

128

64 32 16

8 4 2 1

123456789

128

64 32

8 4 2 1

123456789

Sending the character definition

The command to define characters is complex:

ESC & 0 nl n2 al dl . . . dn

You can define more than one character with a single command. The values nl and n2 are the ASCII codes of the first and last characters you are defining. If you are defining only one character, nl and n2 are the same. You can use any codes between 32 and 127 or 161 and 254 decimal for nl and n2, but it is best not to define decimal 32, which is the code for a space. You can also use other codes by using the ESC 6 and ESC I commands (see the Command Summary).

An example will show how to specify nl and n2. If, for instance, you want to redefine the characters A to Z, nl is A (or ASCII code 65) and n2 is Z (or ASCII code 90). So the command ESC & 0 AZ (followed

by the appropriate data) would replace the entire alphabet of capital

letters.

5-14

Graphics and User-defined Characters

Following the specification of the range of characters to be defined in this command is one number (al) that specifies the width of the character and whether it uses the top eight pins or the bottom eight pins.

The last part of the character definition is the actual data that defines the dot patterns for each column of each character. Since a character can use up to eleven columns, you must supply eleven data numbers for each character even if some of the columns are blank.

An example character definition program should make the process clear:

100 LPRINT CHR$(27);"x0"; 110 LPRINT CHR$(27);"&";CHR$(0); 120

LPRINT "@@";

130

LPRINT CHR$(l36);

140

FOR I = 1

150

160

READ A: LPRINT CHR$(A);

NEXT I

170 LPRINT "@ @ @ @ @" 180 LPRINT CHR$(27);"%l";CHR$(1);

190 LPRINT "@ @ @ @ @" 200 LPRINT CHR$(27);"%";CHR$(0); 210 LPRINT "@ @ @ @ @" 220 END

230

DATA 32,80,168,84,42,84,168,80,32,0,0

In line 100, the ESC x 0 command selects draft style printing. The actual character definition starts in line 110. The two at signs (@) in line 120 are nl and n2, the range of characters being defined (in this case, a range of one). Line 130 contains a1.

The information about the character design (which is contained in the data statements at the end of the program) is sent to the printer in the loop between lines 140 and 160.

This example program defines a heart and places it in the area of RAM reserved for ASCII code 64, which corresponds to the at sign in the characters in the ROM. The next part of the program (lines

170-210) prints out a three-line sample. The first and third lines contain

at signs; the second line contains the heart that was defined.

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-15

Run the program to see the printout below:

As you can see, both sets of characters (the original ROM characters that the printer normally uses and the user-defined character set) remain in the printer available for your use. The command to switch between the two sets is used in lines 180 and 200 and has the following format:

ESC % n

If n is 0, the normal ROM character set is selected. (This is the

default.) If n is 1, the user-defined character set is selected.

You can switch between character sets at any time, even in the

middle of a line. To try it, place semicolons at the end of lines 170 and

190 in the program above.

Copying ROM to RAM

After running the program above, if you select the user-defined character set and try to print other characters, the only one that will print is the heart. If you send the code for a character that is not defined, it is printed as a space.

In many cases, you will want to redefine only a few of the characters, leaving the rest of the alphabet as it is. As you have seen, it is possible to switch back and forth between the normal character set and the user-defined character set. Normally, it is more convenient to copy all of the standard characters from ROM to the area of RAM that holds the user-defined character set. The format of the command to do this is

as follows:

ESC : 0 0 0

If you use this command at the beginning of a program, then define

the special characters you want to change, you can then select the userdefined character set and use it as your normal character set. There is then no need to switch back and forth between sets.

5-16

Graphics and User-defined Characters

Note

This command will cancel any user-defined characters you have

already created. You must send this command to the printer before you define characters.

Specifying the width and height

The example program uses 136 for al (in line 130 of the definition program), but you can use other values. The number a1 specifies two things: the width of the character and its position on the grid. The width is used when the character is printed in proportional mode.

If you want a character to use the bottom eight pins, use the third grid in Figure 5-5.

A value of 136 is suitable for all characters that use the top eight pins and start in column I and finish in column 9. For a character the same width, but printed with the bottom eight pins, al should be 8. For any other character follow these rules to calculate al :

1. If you design a character narrower than nine columns, you can balance the number of empty columns on either side with the following method: Starting with a1 equal to 8, subtract 1 for every blank column on the right and add 16 for every blank column on

the left.

2. If the character should be printed with the top eight pins, add 128. For example, if a character uses the top eight pins and starts in

column 3 and ends in column 7, the calculation is as follows:

l start with al = 8 l subtract 2 for two blank columns on the right, giving a1 = 6 l add 32 for two blank columns on the left, giving a1 = 38 l add 128 to print with the top eight pins, so that a1 = 166.

Mixing print styles

The user-defined characters can be used in combination with most

print styles (except NLQ, of course). For example, emphasized and double-wide work well with user-defined characters.

Graphics and User-defined Characters

5-17

The sample below shows the heart character printed in two different

styles.

Other considerations

Keep in mind that user-defined characters are stored in RAM, which is not permanent. Whenever the printer power is turned off or your computer sends an initialization (NT) signal, all of the user-defined characters are lost. For example, some computers send an INIT signal each time BASIC is loaded or when certain application programs start up, and most computers do it if you have to reset them. If the program resets the printer with the ESC @ command, the ROM set is selected, but the user-defined characters are not lost.

The IBM printer emulation mode has a different method of defining characters. See page A-45 in the Command Summary if you are

interested.

5-18

Graphics and User-defined Characters

Appendix A

Command Summary

This appendix lists and describes all the commands, both Epson

(ESC/P) mode and IBM printer emulation mode, available on the FX.

The first part of this appendix lists all commands in numerical order and gives the page number where each is fully described. If you know which command you are looking for, consult the numerical list to find the page number where it is described.

The Quick Reference card at the end of the book also contains a list of the commands divided by topic, with page number references that direct you to full explanations of the commands. The numerical list

and the Quick Reference card also show the differences between the

Epson mode and the IBM printer emulation mode.

The second part of this appendix lists and describes Epson mode commands and IBM printer emulation mode commands separately; the commands are divided into the following subjects:

Printer Operation

Data Control

Vertical Motion

Horizontal Motion Overall Printing Style Print Size

Each command has a format section and a comment section. The format section gives the ASCII, decimal, and hexadecimal values for the command; the comment section describes the effect of the command and gives any additional information necessary for using it.

All three formats are equivalent, and it should be easy to pick the one most suited to your purpose.

Note

Some application programs can use control key sequences. See the Control Key chart on page A-3 for information on using these.

Command Summary

Print Enhancement Word Processing Character Sets User-defined Characters Graphics

A.1

For the following commands that use only 0 or 1 for the variable,

either the ASCII codes 1 and 0 or the characters 1 and 0 can be used:

ESC S, ESC U, ESC X, ESC p, ESC W, ESC S, ESC - , and

ESC %

For example, in BASIC you can turn on double-wide with either of

these statements:

LPRINT CHR$(27);"W";CHR$(l) LPRINT CHR$(27);"W";"l"

The simplest type of command consists of a single character to be sent to the printer. For instance, to print in condensed mode the code format is:

ASCII code: SI Decimal: Hexadecimal: OF

This code can be sent from a program by sending the code 15 directly.

More complex commands consist of two or more character codes. For example, to print in proportional mode the code format is the following:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal: In this case n can be either 1 or 0, to begin or end proportional

printing. You can use either of the following commands to turn ON proportional print from BASIC:

ESC

112 n

1B 70 n

LPRINT CHR$(27);CHR$(112);CHR$(l) LPRINT CHR$(27);"p";CHR$(l)

A-2

Command Summary

Control key chart

Some application programs can use control key codes for decimal

values O-27. The table below gives you the proper values. The Control

Key column indicates that you press the control key at the same time you press the key for the letter or symbol in that column. For example, you press the control key and A at the same time to send the value 1.

Some programs that use this system cannot use control-@, and

many programs use the control keys for other purposes.

Dec.

2 3 4 5 6

7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

Hex. Control Key

00 01

02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09

0B 0C 0D 0E

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 1A 1B

B C D

F G H

J K

M N O

S T U V

X Y

[

Command Summary

A-3

Commands in Numerical Order

This section lists all the FX commands, with their decimal and

hexadecimal values. The numbers in the columns on the right are the

page numbers in this appendix where a complete description of the

command can be found. If the Epson and IBM printer emulation mode page numbers are the same, the command is the same in both modes and is described only in the Epson mode section.

BEL BS HT LF VT FF CR SO SI DC1 DC2 DC2 DC3 DC4

CAN DEL ESC SO 14 0E Select double-wide (1 line)

ESC SI

ESC EM 25 19 Automatic sheet feeder on/off

ESC SP

ESC !

ESC #

ESC $

ESC %

ESC & ESC *

ESC -

Beeper

Backspace

Tab horizontally 10 0A Line feed 11 0B Tab vertically 12 0C Form feed 13 0D Carriage return 14

0E Select double-wide (1 line) 15 0F Select condensed mode 17 11 18 18 12 19

20 24

127 7F Delete character

15 0F Select condensed mode 32 20

33 35 36 37 25 38 42 45

Select printer

Cancel condensed mode

Cancel condensed/elite

Deselect printer

Cancel double-wide (1 line)

Cancel line

Set intercharacter

Master select

Cancel MSB control

24 Set absolute print position

Select user-defined set

Define user-defined characters

2A Select graphics mode

Turn underlining on/off

space

A-11 A-11 A-19 A-19 A-20 A-20 A-14 A-14 A-17 A-17 A-13 A-13 A-12 A-12 A-24 A-24 A-23 A-23

A-7 A-7

A-24

A-42

A-8 A-25 A-25 A-12 A-12 A-12 A-24 A-24 A-24 A-24 A-10 A-29 A-22 A-11 A-19 A-31 A-31 A-34 A-28 A-28

A-4

Command Summary

ESC / ESC 0 ESC 1 ESC 2

ESC 2 ESC 3 ESC 4 ESC 4 ESC 5 ESC 5 ESC 6 ESC 6 ESC 7 ESC 7 ESC 8 ESC 9 ESC : ESC : ESC < ESC = ESC = ESC > ESC ? ESC @ ESC A ESC A ESC B ESC C ESC CO ESC D

ESC E ESC F ESC G ESC H ESC I ESC I

2F Select vertical tab channel 48 30 Select l/8-inch line spacing 49

3 1

Select 7/72-inch line spacing A-15 A-15

50 32

50 32 5 1 52 52 34 53 53 54 36 54 36 55 55 37 56 57 58 58

Select l/6-inch line spacing Select programmable line spacing A-38

Select n/216-inch line spacing

Select italic mode A-30 Set top of form

Cancel italic mode

35 Turn automatic line feed on/off

Printable code area expansion A-32 Select international character set

Cancel ESC 6

Select standard character set

38 Disable paper-out sensor A-9 A-9

Enable paper-out sensor A-9 A-9 3A Copy ROM into RAM 3A Select elite pitch

60 3C Select unidirectional mode (1-line) 61

Set MSB to 0

3D Define user-defined characters

Set MSB to 1

63 3F Reassign graphics mode

A-18 A-15 A-15

A-15

A-16 A-16

A-30

A-32

A-31

A-8

A-10

A-11

A-35

64 40 Initialize printer A-7 65

Select n/72-inch line spacing A-16

65 41 66 42 67 67 68 69 45 70 46

71 72 73 73

Set n/72-inch line spacing A-37

Set vertical tabs

A-17 A-17

43 Set page length in lines A-13 A-13

43 Set page length in inches

Set horizontal tabs

A-13 A-13

A-21 Select emphasized mode A-26 A-26 Cancel emphasized mode A-26 A-26

Select double-strike mode A-26 A-26

48 Cancel double-strike mode A-27 A-27 49 Printable code area expansion A-32 49

Select font

A-38

A-39 A-43 A-43

A-41

A-45

A-40

Command Summary

A-5

ESC J

ESC K

ESC L ESC M

ESC N

ESC O ESC

P ESC I’ ESC Q ESC Q3 ESC Q22 ESC R ESC R ESC

SO ESC Sl ESC T ESC U ESC W ESC X ESC Y

4A Perform n/216-inch line feed 75 4B Select single-density graphics 76 4C Select double-density graphics 77 4D Select elite pitch 78 4E Set skip-over-perforation 79

Cancel skip-over-perforation

Select pica pitch

50 Turn proportional on/off (286e)

5 1

Set right margin

8 1

5 1

Deselect printer (86e) 8 1 5 1 82 52 82 83 83 84 85 87 57 88 89

Deselect printer (286e)

International character set

52 Restore default tab settings 53

Select superscript mode

Select subscript mode

Cancel superscript/subscript

55 Turn unidirectional mode on/off

Turn double-wide on/off

58 Set left and right margins 59

High-speed dbl-density graphics

ESC Z 90 5A Quadruple-density graphics

ESC [@ ESC \ ESC \

ESC

ESC ESC _ ESC

a ESC b ESC k

ESC l

ESC p ESC s ESC t ESC

w ESC x

5B Turn double-high on/off (286e)

Set relative position

5C Print characters from symbol set

94 5E Select 9-pin graphics

5E Print 1 character from symbol set 95 5F Turn overscore on/off 97

NLQ justification

62 Set vertical tabs in channels 107 6B Select NLQ font 108 6C Set left margin 112

70 Turn proportional mode on/off

115

73 Turn half-speed mode on/off 116 74 119 120

Select character table

Turn double-high on/off

78 Select NLQ or draft

A-16 A-38 A-33 A-33 A-33 A-33 A-23 A-14 A-14

A-14 A-14 A-22

A-41

A-18

A-37 A-37

A-30

A-40 A-27 A-27 A-27 A-27 A-27 A-27

A-9 A-9

A-25 A-25

A-39 A-33 A-33 A-34 A-34

A-42 A-20

A-44

A-35

A-44

A-43 A-28 A-17 A-21 A-18 A-23

A-8 A-29 A-25 A-21

A.6

Command Summary

Epson (ESC/P) Commands

The following section lists and describes all the Epson (ESC/P)

commands.

Printer Operation Initialization

ESC @

Initialize Printer

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC

27 64

Comments:

Resets the printer mode and clears the buffer of printable data on the print line preceding the command.

Selection DC1

Select Printer

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

DC1

Comments:

Returns the printer to the selected state if it has been deselected by the printer deselect code (DC3).Does been switched off line by pressing the

not select the printer if it has

ON LINE

button.

Command Summary

A-7

DC3

Deselect Printer

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

DC3

19 13

Comments:

Puts the printer into the deselected state until select printer code

(DC1) is received. The printer cannot be reselected with the

button.

Speed

ON LINE

ESCs

Turn Half-speed Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC

115 n

73 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

1: Mode is turned ON.

0: Mode is turned OFF,

(The characters “0” and “1” can also be used.)

Printing direction ESC <

Select Unidirectional Mode (one line)

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC

27 60

1B 3C

Comments:

Printing is normally bidirectional. This command selects unidirectional printing for one line only. (It is cancelled by a carriage return.) The print head moves to the extreme left (home) position, and printing takes place from left to right.

A-8

Command Summary

ESC U

Turn Unidirectional Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC U n

27 85 n

1B 55 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

1: Mode is turned ON.

0: Mode is turned OFF. Text printing is normally bidirectional. This command selects

unidirectional printing for more accurate positioning.

(The characters “0” and “1” can also be used.)

ESC 8

Disable Paper-out Sensor

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B 38

ESC 8

27 56

Comments:

Turns off the paper-out sensor so that you can print to the end of a

single sheet of paper.

ESC 9

Enable Paper-out Sensor

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC 9

27 57

1B 39

Comments:

Cancels ESC 8. Therefore, the printer beeper sounds and printing

stops when the printer reaches a point approximately 3/4 of an inch

from the end of the paper.

Command Summary

A-9

ESC EM

Turn Automatic Sheet Feed Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC EM n

27 25 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

4: Mode is turned ON. 0: Mode is turned OFF.

The variables are the characters “0” (48 decimal or 30 hex) and “4” (52 decimal or 34 hex). Do not use 1 decimal, 01 hex, 4 decimal, or

hex.

The command should not be used unless the automatic sheet feeder is installed. It is ignored if any value other than “0” or “4” is used for n. The command overrides the setting of DIP switch 2-2.

MSB control Note: MSB is the Most Significant Bit. MSB control (ESC = ,

ESC >, and ESC #) characters.

is not valid for graphics or user-defined

ESC = (equal)

Set MSB to 0

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC

27 61 1B 3D

Comments:

Sets the MSB of all incoming data to 0. Some computers always send data with the MSB set to 1, which means that italics or character graphics will always be printed. ESC = can overcome this problem.

A-10

Command Summary

ESC > Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC

27 62

1B 3E

Comments:

Sets the MSB bit of all incoming data as 1.

Set MSB to 1

ESC # Format:

ASCII code: ESC # Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 35

1B 23

Comments:

Cancels the MSB control set by ESC = or ESC ).

Beeper BEL

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 07

BEL

Comments:

Sounds the printer’s beeper.

Cancel MSB Control

Beeper

Command Summary

A-11

Data Control

Carriage Return

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

Comments:

Prints the data in the buffer and returns the print position to the left margin. A line feed may be added if DIP switch 2-4 is ON or the AUTO PEED XT line on the parallel interface is held LOW.

CAN

Cancel Line

Format:

ASCII code: CAN Decimal: Hexadecimal:

Comments:

Removes all text on the print line, but does not affect control codes.

DEL

Delete Character

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 7F

DEL

127

Comments:

Removes the last text character on the print line but does not affect control codes.

A-12

Command Summary

Vertical Motion Form feeding

Form Feed

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

Comments:

Prints the data in the print buffer and advances the paper to the top of the next form according to the current page length.

ESC C

Set Page Length in Lines

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC C n

27 67 n

1B 43 n

Comments:

Sets the page length to n lines in the current line spacing. The value of n must be from 1-127. The top of form position is set to the current line.

ESC C0

Set Page Length in Inches

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC C NUL n

27 67 1B

n n

Comments:

Sets the page length to n inches. The value of n must be from 1-22.

The top of form position is set to the current line.

Command Summary A-13

ESC N

Set Skip-over-perforation

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC N n

27 78 n

4E n

Comments:

The variable n is the number of lines skipped between the last line printed on one page and the first line on the next page. For example, with the standard settings for line spacing (l/&inch), and page length (66 lines), ESC N 6 causes the FX to print 60 lines and then skip 6. DIP switch 2-3 performs the same function. This setting is cancelled by ESC O and also by ESC C or ESC C NUL. The value of n must be from 1-127.

ESC O

Cancel Skip-over-perforation

Format:

ASCII code: ESC O Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 79 1B 4F

Comments:

Cancels the skip-over-perforation set by ESC N. Overrides the setting of DIP switch 2-3.

Line feeding LF

Line Feed

Format:

ASCII code: LF Decimal: Hexadecimal: 0A

Comments:

When this command is received, the data in the print buffer is printed and the paper advances one line in the current line spacing.

A-14

Command Summary

ESC 0

Select l/&inch Line Spacing

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC 0

27 48

1B 30

Comments:

Sets the line spacing to l/8 of an inch for subsequent line feed commands. The 0 is the character zero and not ASCII code 0.

ESC 1 Select 7/72-inch Line Spacing Format:

ASCII code: ESC 1 Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

27 49

Comments:

Sets the line spacing to 7/72 of an inch for subsequent line feed commands. The 1 is the character one and not lower case L or ASCII code 1.

ESC 2

Select 1/64-inch Line Spacing

Format:

ASCII code: ESC 2 Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

27 50

Comments:

Sets the line spacing to l/6 of an inch for subsequent line feed commands. The “2” is the character two and not ASCII code 2. This is the default at power on.

Command Summary

A.15

ESC 3

Select n/2 16-inch Line Spacing

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC 3 n

33 n

Comments:

Sets the line spacing to n/216 of an inch for subsequent line feed commands. The “3” is the The value of n must be from O-255.

character

three and not ASCII code 3.

ESC A

Select n/72-inch Line Spacing

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC A n

27 65 n

41 n

Comments:

Sets the line spacing to n/72 of an inch for subsequent line feed commands. The value of n must be from O-85.

ESC J

Perform n/216-inch Line Feed

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC J n

27 74 n

4A n

Comments:

Advances the paper n/216 of an inch. The value of n must be from O-255. This command produces an immediate line feed but does not affect subsequent line spacing and does not produce a carriage return.

A-16

Command Summary

Vertical tabbing VT

Tab Vertically

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

Comments:

Advances the paper to the next tab setting in the channel selected by ESC /. If no channel has been selected, channel 0 is used. If no vertical tabs have been selected, the paper advances one line.

ESC B

Set Vertical Tabs

Format:

ASCII code: ESC B n1 n2 ... Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B 42 n1 n2 ... 00

27 66 n1 n2 ... 0

NUL

Comments:

Sets up to 16 vertical tabs in the current line spacing. Tab settings are not affected by subsequent changes in line spacing. The tab settings are entered as nl, n2, etc., all from 1-255, in ascending order. The NUL character indicates the end of the command. All settings are stored in channel 0 (see ESC b). ESC B NUL clears the tab settings.

ESC b

Set Vertical Tabs in Channels

Format:

ASCII code: ESC b c n1 n2 ... Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 98 c n1 n2 ... 0 1B 62 c n1 n2 ... 00

Comments:

Functions the same as ESC B, except that the variable c selects a channel for the vertical tabs, which must be between O-7. Therefore, up to eight sets of vertical tabs can be set. The channels are selected by ESC /. To clear the tabs in channel c use ESC b c NUL.

Command Summary

A.17

NUL

Select Vertical Tab Channel

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B 2F c

ESC / c

27 47 c

Comments:

This command is used to select the vertical tab channel, with the value of c from 0-7. All subsequent VT commands use the channel

selected by this command.

Horizontal Motion Margins

ESC l

Set Left Margin

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC I n

108 n

6C n

Comments:

Sets the left margin to n columns in the current pitch. Settings made in the proportional mode are treated as pica. This command clears previous tab settings and all previous characters in the print line. Use lowercase 1 (for left), not the numeral one. The minimum space between the margins is the width of one double-wide pica character.

ESC Q

Set Right Margin

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC Q n

27 81 n 1B 51 n

Comments:

Sets the right margin to n columns in the current pitch. Settings

made in the proportional mode are treated as pica. This command clears previous tab settings and all previous characters in the print line. The minimum space between the margins is the width of one double-wide pica character.

A-18 Command Summary

Print head movement BS

Backspace

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 08

Comments:

Prints out data in the print buffer, then moves the print position one space to the left. Backspacing can be performed up to, but not beyond, the left margin setting. The BS code is also ignored if ESC a 2, or 3 has been sent. In Epson mode, if this code is received immediately after graphics printing, the print position of subsequent data is moved back to the point at which graphics printing started.

ESC $

Set Absolute Print Position

Format:

ASCII code: ESC $ n1 n2 Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

27 36 n1 n2

24 n1 n2

Comments:

This sequence specifies the distance from the currently set left

margin that subsequent characters are to be printed, using this

formula: total number of dots = n1 + (n2 x 256). Each unit equals

1/60th of an inch. The sequence is ignored and the previous setting

remains effective if the position specified is beyond the right margin.

Command Summary

A-19

ESC \

Set Relative Position

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B 5C n1 n2

ESC \ n1 n2

27 92 n1 n2

Comments:

Determines the position (relative to the current position) at which printing of following data will start. To find nl and n2, first calculate the displacement required in 1/120ths of an inch. If the displacement is to the left, subtract it from 65536. Send the resulting number using this formula: total number of dots = n1 + (n2 x 256). The

command is ignored if it would move the print position outside the

current margins.

Horizontal tabbing HT

Tab Horizontally

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 09

Comments:

Advances the print position to the next horizontal tab setting. The default settings are at intervals of eight characters in the default pitch, and tab positions are not affected by subsequent changes in character pitch.

A-20

Command Summary

ESC D

Set Horizontal Tabs

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B 44 n1 n2 . . . 00

ESC D n1 n2 . . .

27 68 n1 n2 . . . 0

NUL

Comments:

This command allows setting of up to 32 horizontal tabs, which are entered as n1, n2, n3, etc. (from 1-137) with the NUL character or

any value less than the previous one terminating the command.

ESC D NUL clears all tabs. The settings on power up or after an

ESC @ command are every eight characters. The tab settings do not change if the character pitch is changed, and for proportional printing the size of pica characters determines the tab positions.

Overall Printing Style

ESC x

Select NLQ or Draft

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC

27 120 n 1B 78 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for

0: Selects the draft mode.

1: Selects the Near Letter

Quality (NLQ) mode.

(The characters “0” and “1” can also be used.)

ESC k Select NLQ Font Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal: 1B 6B

ESC k n

27 107 n

Comments:

This command affects only the Letter Quality typestyle, not draft.

The following values can be used for n:

0 = Roman

1 = Sans Serif

Command Summary

A.21

ESC !

Master Select

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC ! n

27 33 n

1B 21 n

Comments:

Selects any valid combination of the modes in the table below. The variable n is determined by adding together the values of the desired modes from the table.

Table A-1. Muster Select numbers

Dec

Mode

Pica Elite Proportional

Condensed

Emphasized Double-strike Double-wide Italic Underline

Pica cannot be combined with elite, and proportional cannot be condensed. If both proportional and condensed are selected, proportional overrides condensed.

Hex

1 2 4 8

16 10 32 20 64 40

128

00 01

02 04 08

Print Size and Character Width

ESC P Select Pica Pitch

Format:

ASCII code: ESC P Decimal: Hexadecimal:

Comments:

Selects pica pitch (10 characters per inch). Because pica is the default

pitch, this command is normally used to cancel elite.

A-22

27 80

1B 50

Command Summary

ESC M

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC M

27 77

1B 4D

Comments:

Selects elite pitch (12 characters per inch).

Select Elite Pitch

ESC p

Turn Proportional Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC

27 112 n

1B 70 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

1: Mode is turned ON.

0: Mode is turned OFF.

The width of proportional characters varies from character to

character. Therefore, a narrow letter like i receives less space than a wide letter like W. The proportional widths are given in the character tables, which appear in Appendix B. This command overrides condensed.

(The characters “0” and “1” can also be used.)

Select Condensed Mode

Format:

ASCII code: SI

Decimal:

Hexadecimal: 0F

Comments:

Prints characters at about 60 percent of their normal width. For example, the condensed pica mode has 17 characters per inch. Proportional mode cannot be condensed, and proportional will override condensed.

Command Summary

A.23

ESC SI Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC SI

27 15

IB 0F

Comments:

Duplicates the SI command.

Select Condensed Mode

DC2

Cancel Condensed Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

DC2

18 12

Comments:

Cancels condensed printing set by SI, ESC SI, SelecType, or DIP

switch 1-1.

Select Double-wide Mode (one line)

Format:

ASCII code: so Decimal: Hexadecimal: 0E

Comments:

Double-wide mode doubles the width of all characters. This mode is cancelled by a carriage return or DC4.

ESC SO

Select Double-wide Mode (one line)

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC SO

27 14 1B 0E

Comments:

Duplicates the SO command.

A.24

Command Summary

DC4

Cancel Double-wide Mode (one line)

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

DC4

Comments:

Cancels one-line double-wide printing selected by SO or ESC SO, but not double-wide printing selected by ESC W or ESC !.

ESC W

Turn Double-wide Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC W n

27 87 n 1B 57 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

1: The mode is turned ON.

0: The mode is turned OFF. Double-wide mode doubles the width of all characters.

ESC w

(The characters “0” and "1” can also be used.)

Turn Double-high Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC

119 n

1B 77 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

1: The mode is turned ON.

0: The mode is turned OFF. Double-high mode doubles the height of all characters. Superscript,

subscript, and condensed modes are not valid in the double-high mode.

(The characters “0” and “1” can also be used.)

Command Summary

A.25

Print Enhancement ESC E

Select Emphasized Mode

Format:

ASCII

Decimal:

code:

Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC E

27 69

Comments:

Makes text bolder by printing each dot twice, with the second dot slightly to the right of the first.

ESC F

Cancel Emphasized Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC F

27 70

Comments:

Cancels emphasized, the mode selected by ESC E.

ESC G

Select Double-strike Mode

Format:

ASCII code: ESC G

Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 71 1B 47

Comments:

Makes text bolder by printing each line twice, with the second printing slightly below the first. In NLQ the mode is not available but is not cancelled.

A-26

Command Summary

ESC H

Cancel Double-strike Mode

Format:

ASCII code: ESC H Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

27 72

1B 48

Comments:

Turns off the double-strike mode selected by ESC G.

ESC S0

Select Superscript Mode

Format:

ASCII code: ESC S Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 83 0

1B 53 00

NUL

Comments:

Prints characters about two-thirds of the normal height in the upper part of the character space. The ASCII code 0 or the character “0” can be used in this command. It is cancelled with ESC T.

ESC S1

Select Subscript Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC

27 83 1

S SOH

1B 53 01

Comments:

Prints characters about two-thirds of the normal height in the lower part of the character space. The ASCII code I or the character “1” can be used in this command. It is cancelled with ESC T.

ESC T Format:

ASCII code: ESC T Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 84

1B 54

Comments:

Cancels either superscript or subscript.

Command Summary

Cancel Superscript/Subscript

A-27

ESC -

Turn Underlining Mode On/Off

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B 2D

ESC - n

27 45 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

1: Mode is turned ON.

0: Mode is turned OFF.

This mode provides continuous underlining, including spaces.

(The characters “0” and “1” can also be used.)

Word Processing

ESC a

NLQ Justification

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC

27 97 n

61 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

0: Selects left justification.

1: Selects centering. 2: Selects right justification.

3: Selects full justification. The default setting is n = 0. Full justification (n = 3) is performed

when the buffer becomes full or when one of the following is received: CR, VT, LF, FE The commands HT and BS are invalid except in n = 0 mode. For n = 3 there must be no carriage returns within a paragraph. Justification can be used in NLQ only, not draft.

A-28

Command Summary

ESC SP (space)

Set Intercharacter Space

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal: 1B 20 n

ESC SP n

27 32 n

Comments:

Sets the amount of space added to the right of each character, in

addition to the space already allowed in the design of the character. The number of units of space is equal to n, which should be from O-63. Each unit of space is 1/120th of an inch.

Character Sets

ESC t

Select Character Table

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC t n

116 n

1B 74 n

Comments:

The following values can be used for n:

0: Selects italics.

1: Selects Epson Character Graphics.

Selects the character table used by codes 128-255. Selecting Epson Character Graphics does not disable italic printing. Italic printing

can still be selected by ESC 4. Duplicates the function of DIP switch

1-3. Note that the value of n must equal 00 hex or 01 hex; the

characters “0” and “1” cannot be used.

Command Summary

A-29

ESC 4

Select Italic Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC 4

27 52

Comments:

Causes characters from the italic character set to be printed. This command is valid even if the Epson Character Graphics set has been selected by ESC t or the DIP switch 1-3, but character graphics

cannot be italicized.

ESC 5

Cancel Italic Mode

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC 5

27 53

1B 35

Comments:

Cancels the mode selected by ESC 4.

ESC R

Select an International Character Set

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC R n

27 82 n

1B 52 n

Comments:

See Appendix B for full information on international character sets. The following values can be used for

0=USA

1 = France 2 = Germany 3=UK 4 = Denmark I

5 = Sweden

6 = Italy

7 = Spain I

8= Japan

9 = Norway 10 = Denmark II ll=Spain II 12 = Latin America

A-30

Command Summary

User-defined Characters

Note: See Chapter 5 for sample programs and full information on this

topic.

ESC &

Define User-defined Characters

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC &

27 38 0 d1 d2 . . . dn

1B 26 00 d1 d2 . . . dn

NUL d1 d2 . . . dn

Comments:

This command allows characters to be redefined in the currently selected mode.

ESC :

Copy ROM into RAM

Format:

ASCII code: ESC : Decimal:

Hexadecimal: 1B

27 58 0 0 0

NUL NUL NUL

3A 00 00 00

Comments:

This code copies the characters in the ROM into RAM so that specific characters can be redefined.

ESC %

Select User-defined Set

Format:

ASCII

Decimal: Hexadecimal:

code:

ESC %

27 37 n

1B 25 n

Comments:

ESC & is required to define the character set. The following values

can be used for n:

0: Selects the normal set.

1: Selects the user-defined set.

Command Summary

A.31

ESC 6

Printable Code Area Expansion

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC 6

27 54

1B 36

Comments:

Enables the printing of codes 128 through 159 (decimal) as characters, not control codes. This allows the use of these characters

for user-defined characters.

ESC 7

Cancel ESC 6

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC 7

27 55 1B 37

Comments:

This code causes codes 128 through 159 to be treated as control codes. This is the default.

ESC I

Printable Code Area Expansion

Format:

ASCII code: ESC I n Decimal:

Hexadecimal: 1B

27 73 n

49 n

Comments:

ASCII codes 0 to 31 and 128 to 159 are usually not printable. These codes become printable upon input of the ESC I code if n = 1, which allows the use of these codes for user-defined characters. If n = 0, this command returns 0 to 31 and 128 to 159 to nonprintable codes.

A-32

Command Summary

Graphics

Note: See Chapter 5 for sample graphics programs. ESC K

Select Single-density Graphics Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC K n1 n2

27 75 n1 n2

1B 4B n1 n2

Comments:

Turns on eight-pin single-density graphics mode (60 dots per inch). The total number of columns = nl + (n2 x 256).

ESC L

Select Double-density Graphics Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal: 1B

ESC L n1 n2

27 76 n1 n2

4C n1 n2

Comments:

Turns on eight-pin low-speed double-density graphics mode (120 dots per inch). The total number of columns = n1 + (n2 x 256).

ESC Y

Select High-speed Double-density Graphics Mode

Format:

ASCII code: Decimal: Hexadecimal:

ESC Y n1 n2

27 89 n1 n2 1B 59 n1 n2

Comments:

Turns on eight-pin high-speed double-density graphics mode (120

dots per inch). The total number of columns = nl + (n2 x 256).

Command Summary

A.33

ESC Z

Select Quadruple-density Graphics Mode

Format:

ASCII code:

Decimal:

Hexadecimal:

ESC Z n1 n2

27 90 nl n2

1B 5A n1 n2

Comments:

Turns on eight-pin quadruple-density graphics mode (240 dots per inch). The total number of columns = nl + (n2 x 256).

ESC *

Select Graphics Mode

Format:

ASCII code: ESC * m n1 n2 Decimal: Hexadecimal:

27 42 m n1 n2

1B 2A m n1 n2

Comments:

Turns on graphics mode m. See the table below for details on the available modes. The total number of columns = nl + (n2 x 256).

Table A-2. Graphics Modes

*Adjacent dots cannot be printed in this mode.

A.34

Command Summary

Epson FX-286e, FX-86e User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

Introduction

About this Manual

Loading Continuous-feed Paper

Turning On the Printer

SelecType

Choosing Paper

Using Single-sheet Paper

Reinstalling the Tractor Unit

The Paper Thickness Lever

Printer Selection Menus

Computer - Printer Communication

Word Processors

Spreadsheets

Graphics Programs

Programming Languages

Quality and Fonts

Print Size and Character Width

Pitches and Proportional Spacing

Special Effects and Emphasis

Using Different Character Sets

Page Layout and Other Commands

The Print Head

Pin Labels

Graphics Commands

Simple Graphics Programming

Density Varieties

Designing Your Own Graphics

User-defined Characters

Commands in Numerical Order

Epson (ESC/P) Commands