HP (Hewlett-Packard) DeskJet 9xx User Manual

Pingo-Photo RepPingo-Photo Rep

High Performance, Photo-Quality autoloading CD Printer

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

All Rights Reserved. No part of this document may be copied or reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of Alea Systems, Inc. Alea has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this manual. However, Alea makes no warranties with respect to this documentation and disclaims any implied warranties of MERCHANTABILITY or fitness for a particular purpose. The information in this document is subject to change without notice. Alea assumes no responsibility for any errors that may appear in this document. Alea, the Alea logo design and Pingo Photo and Pingo Rep are trademarks of Alea Systems, Inc.

Initial issue: July 2002 Current revision: 1.13 March 2003

Alea Systems, Inc. 10810 Guilford Road, Suite 103 Annapolis Junction, MD 20701 Tel: (301) 776-3754 Fax: (301) 776-7561 e-Mail: support@alea.com Internet: http://www.alea.com

Macintosh is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Windows 95, 98 and Windows NT are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation HP is a registered trademark of Hewlett-Packard Company

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

1. Introduction to the Pingo-Photo Rep system................................................................................................6

1.1 Software revisions................................................................................................................................6

2. The CD Printer module................................................................................................................................6

2.1 Specifications...........................................................................................................................................7

2.2 Compatibility.............................................................................................................................................7

2.3 System Requirements...............................................................................................................................7

2.4 Cable Requirements.................................................................................................................................7

3. Unpacking the CD Printer and Setting Up.......................................................................................................8

3.1 Unpacking.................................................................................................................................................8

3.2 Printing Environment.................................................................................................................................8

4. Understanding the Printer...............................................................................................................................8

4.1 Printable area using the Pingo Photo........................................................................................................8

4.2 Manufacturing and Testing the Printer.......................................................................................................9

4.3 Ink Cartridge Life......................................................................................................................................9

5. Getting Started...............................................................................................................................................9

5.1 Connecting the Pingo Photo for WINDOWS..............................................................................................9

5.2 Installing the Ink Cartridges.......................................................................................................................9

5.3 Installing the Printer Driver Software (WINDOWS-Parallel)........................................................................9

5.4 Installing the Printer Driver Software (Mac - USB)...................................................................................10

5.5 Graphics Applications.............................................................................................................................10

5.5 Using the Alea Systems Template Files..................................................................................................10

5.6 Recommended Print Settings..................................................................................................................11

5.7 Printing on Standard and Business Card Media......................................................................................11

5.8 Operation of the Pingo Photo printer.......................................................................................................12

5.9 User control panel...................................................................................................................................12

6. CD Template layout .....................................................................................................................................13

7. Printing with Diskus™ or Surething™ label software.....................................................................................14

8. Creating Templates and a Print Mask...........................................................................................................15

9. Troubleshooting the Pingo Photo..................................................................................................................18

10. Printer Maintenance...................................................................................................................................18

10.1 Using and Caring for your print cartridges.............................................................................................19

10.2 Replacing print cartridges .....................................................................................................................19

10.3 Storing Print Cartridges.........................................................................................................................19

10.4 Cleaning Ink Cartridges.........................................................................................................................20

11. Frequently Asked Questions About USB (Universal Serial Bus)..................................................................20

12. Support of Your Printer...............................................................................................................................21

13. Introduction to Pingo-Photo Rep.................................................................................................................22

14. The Pingo Rep robotics..............................................................................................................................22

14.1 System requirements............................................................................................................................23

14.2 Cable requirements...............................................................................................................................23

15. Unpacking and setting up the Pingo Rep....................................................................................................23

15.1 Connecting Pingo-Photo Rep to a PC...................................................................................................27

15.2 Align the CD Printer and run system diagnostics...................................................................................29

15.2.1 How the CDR carrier works.........................................................................................................30

15.2.2 Test the CD Picker switches...........................................................................................................30

15.2.3 Align the CD Printer........................................................................................................................32

16. Replacing ink cartridges.............................................................................................................................33

17. Starting the Pingo Rep Application.............................................................................................................35

17.1 Set up the Pingo Rep options:...............................................................................................................35

17.2 Start the autoloader..............................................................................................................................38

18. Troubleshooting Pingo Rep....................................................................................................................40

18.2 Pingo Photo Error list............................................................................................................................41

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

Alea Systems Limited Warranty Alea Systems warrants to the original purchaser that Alea Systems's unmodified products, other than software,

shall be free from defects in material and workmanship for: 3 years for CD Printing Autoloading Systems excluding the CD-R duplication drives and any print engine which

has a 1 year warranty. This warranty excludes all collateral or consumable items* and commences upon the original purchase date of

such products from Alea Systems or an authorized Alea Systems reseller. Alea Systems software is provided "as is" pursuant to Alea Systems's separate Software License Agreement and Limited Warranty. This warranty is only valid if HP brand ink cartridges are used. The use of any other brand of cartridge will result in this warranty being void.

Alea Systems products requiring Limited Warranty service hereunder should be delivered to a Alea Systems authorized service organization with proof of purchase within the applicable warranty period. Upon receipt of products covered by this Limited Warranty, Alea Systems will, at its option, repair or replace the defective system parts at no cost to the customer.

Alea Systems offers two options at no cost to the customer regarding the CD-R duplication drives. You must choose from the following options:

Send in the drive(s) to Alea Systems for repair, (repairs take approx. 4-6 weeks). Exchange the drive(s) for a refurbished CD-R drive.

There is no cost to the customer except the cost to ship their non-functional item to Alea Systems. All returns of Alea Systems products require a return material authorization (RMA) number, which can be obtained by calling Alea Systems Customer Support with a complete description of failure and error messages. If products are returned by mail, the customer agrees to insure the products or assume the risk of loss or damage in transit. The customer also agrees to prepay shipping charges. Standard warranty turnaround is 4-5 days, except duplication drives (see above). Warranty coverage includes the cost to return the repaired or exchange item via 2 day on part replacements, 3 day on systems and Fed Ex Int'l for shipments outside the US or Canada. This Limited Warranty does not cover the following: (a) routine preventive maintenance, adjustments and cleanings described in the user documentation; (b) any condition necessitating repair or replacement of products that result from (1) operator error, accident, or misuse, (2) damage to the product, (3) improper maintenance, (4) improper physical environments, or (5) the customer's unauthorized alteration, modification, or repair of such products; (c) any failure or defect not reported to Alea Systems within five business days after its occurrence; or (d) any failure or defect determined by Alea Systems not to have resulted from a defect in materials or workmanship.

IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING PERSONAL COMPUTERS: Alea Systems expects that its customers utilize prudent hard drive data back up systems and routines. If a

Personal Computer ("PC") purchased from Alea Systems requires warranty repair work or warranty replacement, Alea Systems does not and will not provide any hard drive data retrieval, recovery, transfer or back-up services. Please back up your hard drive before returning a PC to Alea Systems for such warranty repair or replacement. This warranty expressly excludes liability for lost data.

THIS LIMITED WARRANTY CONSTITUTES YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY AND THE SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE LIABILITY OF ALEA SYSTEMS IN CONNECTION WITH ALEA SYSTEMS'S PRODUCTS AND IS IN LIEU OF ALL OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, AN IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND ALL OTHER OBLIGATIONS OR LIABILITIES OF ALEA SYSTEMS OTHER THAN AS

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

EXPRESSLY SET FORTH HEREIN. NO ALEA SYSTEMS DISTRIBUTOR, AGENT, OR EMPLOYEE IS AUTHORIZED TO MAKE ANY MODIFICATION, EXTENSION, OR ADDITION TO THIS WARRANTY. IN NO EVENT WILL ALEA SYSTEMS BE LIABLE FOR SPECIAL, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE ALEA SYSTEMS'S PRODUCTS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOST PROFITS OR OTHER MONETARY LOSS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, OR LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION, OR ANY CLAIM BY YOU BASED ON A THIRD PARTY CLAIM, EVEN IF ALEA SYSTEMS HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THESE LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

FCC Interference Statement This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) This

device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operations.

Only peripheral computer I/O devices, terminals, printers, etc., tested and complying with Class A limits should be attached to this device with shielded I/O cables.

Finally, any changes or modifications to the equipment by the user not expressly approved by grantee or manufacturer could void the user's authority to operate such equipment.

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

1. Introduction to the Pingo-Photo Rep system

The Pingo Photo system is comprised of three subsystems:

• The CD Printer module

• The Pingo Rep autoloader

• The Pingo Rep control software for Windows

1.1 Software revisions

1.13 The Pingo Rep is now able to print from .PRN file.

1.10 First release of the software

2. The CD Printer module

The Pingo Photo by Alea Systems, inc. is a PC controlled state-of-the-art, tabletop color ink jet printer for printing on the surfaces of printable-surfaced, recordable compact discs. The printer delivers professional CDs without the costs and efforts associated with the silk screen process. With the Alea Pingo Photo , image files are printed directly onto ink-jet printable CD-R media as they appear on the computer screen.

The heart of the Pingo Photo is a modified Hewlett-Packard DeskJet 9xx, 2400 x 1200 DPI ink jet printer engine. The modifications include increasing the "paper thickness" to accommodate the thickness of a CD-R disc and providing the means to properly position a printable CD-R when the printer normally would load a sheet of paper. Load control is derived from the printer's movements; therefore, no special software is required. Any program or system that will print using the HP printer drivers will operate the Pingo Photo. The printer controller functions are totally independent of the data stream between the computer and printer.

The Pingo Photo is controlled by a Windows-based computer running any desktop application with printer output capability. This manual describes the exact placement of text and objects for proper print output to the Pingo Photo. While paint, draw, illustration and page layout applications are best for print output, any application with location-specific output control will work.

The CD-carrier mechanism is designed for precise operation and close-tolerance print placement. Please note that many images, logos and pictures are protected by copyright laws in many countries around the

world. Unauthorized printing is the responsibility of the operator and the manufacturer does not bear any responsibility for the way the equipment is used.

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

2.1 Specifications

Black print resolution: up to 600 DPI with black pigmented ink Color print resolution: up to 2400X1200 using premium photo coating Print Heads: HP PhotoREt ink jet technology Printer Model: HP DeskJet 9xx All needed HP printer drivers are included Interface: 8-bit bi-directional parallel, USB Media: CD-R with inkjet printable surface Print repeatibility: ± 0.002inches Dimensions: 17"W x 19"D x 8"H Weight: 19 pounds Power: 110/220 VAC universal input power Ink cartridges: Black: HP C6615d , Color: HP C6578 (D:19ml, A:38ml)

2.2 Compatibility

The Pingo Photo printer functions as any desktop printer and will therefore print from any application. The option to use templates, masks and layers with some applications will provide easy print setup with graphic images and allow placing of graphic images within the confines of the CD-R's printable surface.

Print location templates are supplied for popular applications. The templates are files saved with wire frames or masks identifying the printer print area. The templates provided on the CD that is shipped with the printer may vary depending upon popularity and consumer demand.

2.3 System Requirements

Any computer with a parallel port or USB port can be used to control the Trace Affex CD-Artist. Depending on the user's requirements, application programs used with the printer may vary from high end graphics to simple page layout and word processing programs. Generally, when the print command is issued, the file to be printed will be spooled to the hard drive allowing the printing to execute as a background operation, with other computer operations returned to the user. Better performance will be attained if at least 100 MB of hard disc space and 128 MB of RAM are available on the computer. Applications using extensive graphics operations will require substantially more memory based on the size of the images being printed. High end graphics professionals will often require 200-400 MB of RAM in a PC.

HP printer drivers are included for Windows operating systems. Mac drivers can be obtained by calling Alea Systems Technical Support at (301) 776-3754. No other special software is required.

2.4 Cable Requirements

The Pingo Photo CD Printer is connected to the PC by one cable: One standard parallel cable: DB25M/Centronics 36M shielded

or One Universal Serial Bus cable (USB) (not supported by Pingo REP)

Note: The power is auto switching to accommodate both 110 VAC and 220 VAC power requirements.

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

3. Unpacking the CD Printer and Setting Up

Included with the Pingo Photo color CD Printer should be the following items: * Alea CD that includes the following:

Pingo Photo Manual CD and Business Card Print Templates Sure Thing Label Software Diskus label software HP Printer Driver Software for PC * HP Ink Cartridges (one combined color and one black starter cartridge) (Replacement C6578 for color and C6615 for black) * Printer Cable * Power Cord

3.1 Unpacking

1. Carefully remove the unit from its shipping container. Save all packing material.

2. Once the unit is out of the shipping box, remove the protective plastic covers and the tape securing the print tray, the cover and the print heads.

PACKAGING NOTE: Please save the packaging materials your printer was shipped in. It's very important to use the same packaging to avoid possible damage during shipment, should you need to move the unit to another location.

3.2 Printing Environment

CD-R printing is a process involving sophisticated and sensitive equipment that is affected by its environmental surroundings. To ensure the best results, Alea recommends that you take the following factors into consideration when choosing a place to operate CD-R printing equipment. By adhering to these guidelines, your print quality criteria should be achieved.

The site chosen should have the following conditions:

• stable and ample electrical power (unstable power may cause equipment failure)

• adequate air circulation

• a relative humidity from 40%-60%, non-condensing

• ambient temperature from 59ºF to 77ºF (15ºC-25ºC)

• print media should be stored and acclimated for a minimum of 24 hours at 59ºF to 86ºF (15ºC-30ºC) and 20%-60% RH

• be free of food and drink. The operator handling the CD-Rs should always do so with clean, lint-free gloves approved for CD handling. Do

not touch either surface with bare hands. Fingerprint oil on the disc will prevent absorption of ink and be visible on the finished product

4. Understanding the Printer

4.1 Printable area using the Pingo Photo

The Pingo photo is designed to print on ink jet printable CDs carried by the tray. The approximate printable area must be defined in all applications used with the Pingo Photo. The area is defined within the portrait letter page settings of the HP page setup dialog box. Any characters or graphics appearing beyond this area should be blocked out with a printable white mask so they will not be printed. Any real print characters appearing on either side of the defined area will cause ink to be deposited on the tray. If ink is deposited on the tray, it must be

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

cleaned (simply wipe the ink off with a moist towel) before the CD is re-introduced into the printer. Failure to follow this procedure may result in damage to the CD-Rs.

The dimensions of the printable area on different media varies significantly from brand to brand. For accurate print placement, templates and masks must be adjusted for each type of media used. Fig. 4-1 depicts the basic placement and printable area that can be used as a starting point to develop a new print mask. Check the specific media dimensions against those above to modify or create application masks. See Section 5 for additional information on creating a print mask.

4.2 Manufacturing and Testing the Printer

To ensure proper coordinated functioning of the significant electronic and mechanical modifications and additions made to the HP printer engine, the printer has been loaded with ink cartridges and actual print tests have been made before packing for shipment. You will notice ink remnants from this print-testing, but the printer has never been used other than for performing these necessary quality assurance tests

4.3 Ink Cartridge Life

Ink cartridge life is a direct function of the print content. The HP DeskJet Printer uses a color cartridge and a black cartridge. The cartridges can be replaced independently to reduce cost. Although the actual quantities of CDs produced will vary widely based on image content and color requirements, for CDs with nominal ink coverage for text and a logo, the cartridges may last up to 500 discs. Full bleed printing where the ink covers 100% of the disc surface may yield as little as 50 CDs from a color cartridge.

The printer will monitor ink usage and provide low-ink warnings and stop the printer when it senses it is out of ink. This is a reasonably good indicator and should be followed.

5. Getting Started

Before actual CD printing can begin, there are several steps to be completed:

5.1 Connecting the Pingo Photo for WINDOWS

Connecting the Pingo Photo to a desktop computer is no different than connecting any other printer. The Pingo Photo is based on the HP DeskJet 9xx ink jet printer and comes with a standard parallel printer cable (USB cable is optional). Please note that the parallel cable is not a SCSI interface cable!

SPECIAL NOTE: It is highly recommended to use the parallel cable connection as the primary connection for the Pingo Photo printer. This will eliminate the possibilities of communication errors between the printer and PC.

With power to both the Pingo Photo and computer turned OFF, connect the parallel cable or USB cable to the computer and then to the printer. Plug in power cord.

5.2 Installing the Ink Cartridges

Turn the printer power on using the printer's power switch. Remove the vinyl tape from both ink cartridges. Open the top cover and insert ink cartridges. Close cradle latch, then close top cover. DO NOT TOUCH OR REMOVE COPPER STRIP ON PRINT CARTRIDGES.

5.3 Installing the Printer Driver Software (WINDOWS-Parallel)

The print driver is located on the Compact Disc labeled Pingo Photo found in the accessory kit. DO NOT run virus protection or other software programs when installing your printer software. Turn on your

computer and wait for Windows to start.

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

Automatic installation: In the Drivers/PC driver directory of the distribution CD, double click on

"install_cda_lpt1.bat". This will install the CD Printer to the LPT1 parallel port. This procedure install the CD Printer driver for Windows NT using parallel connection:

All OS - 1284(Parallel) connection Note: This installation method does not support printer status

• Click Start - Settings - Printers - open Add Printer

• `Add New HW Wizard' window appears

• Configuration (typically My Computer), Click Next

• Port (typically LPT1), Click Next

• Model - Have Disk...

• Browse... (cdrom folder) - enu\drivers\win9x_me\hpfCDAx.inf (Win 95, 98, ME)

enu\drivers\win_nt\hpfCDAn.inf (Windows NT4) enu\drivers\win_2k\hpfCDAk.inf (Windows 2K)

• Select the Pingo Phot model from the drivers listed All OS automatic installation:

5.4 Installing the Printer Driver Software (Mac - USB)

Copy the compressed file, PingoPhoto.set, from the Mac folder located on the PowerPrinter CD-ROM to your local hard drive. Double click on the file to start the decompression. The application, Pingo Photo 4.31 Installer, will now appear. Double click on it to start the installation. Follow the instructions shown to complete the installation. Once installed, go to the chooser to select the printer for printing. You are now ready to begin printing.

5.5 Graphics Applications

A graphics application will be required to use the Pingo Photo printer. Any computer software application can be used to print on a CD. Applications which allow position control (such as graphics applications, e.g. Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, Surething, etc.) will be the easiest to use. If you do not have a graphics application, included is a 30 day trial version of SureThing software (for PC users only) and the Diskus software (for PC users only) which is located on the Compact Disc labeled Pingo Photo.

The Pingo Photo printer comes with templates for use with several graphics applications. They consist of background guides, and where possible, a top-layer mask to block out everything except for the printable surface of the CD-R. We assume that if you choose to use one of the template files provided that: 1) you are a registered user of the graphic application for which the template applies; and 2) you have a working knowledge of the application. The template files are located on the Compact Disc labeled Pingo Photo.

Included templates: Adobe Illustrator, Adobe PhotoShop, CorelDraw and Canvas.

5.5 Using the Alea Systems Template Files

To use the template files provided, simply copy them from Compact Disc labeled Pingo photo to the place on your hard drive where documents are stored (for example a directory entitled "My Documents".) Follow the directions on the "Readme" file that came with the templates. To make your own template, refer to section 5. You may have to adjust your template's placement to fit your printer's specific printing characteristics. This entails moving the background guides, and in some cases the "mask layer" as well. See Fig 4.1 for approximate printable area that must be defined in all applications used with the Pingo Photo.

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

Before the Adapter is

After the Adapter is

5.6 Recommended Print Settings

The Pingo Photo printer has a wide variety of settings that can enhance images, colors, and text. As a minimum quality setting, it is recommended to use any Photo Coat setting as the media type and "Normal" or "Best" for print quality. Additional changes can be made by selecting the Advanced Tab to adjust the sliders for Saturation, Brightness and Color Tone.

5.7 Printing on Standard and Business Card Media

The Pingo Photo offers printing on both 120mm standard size CDs and optional 63mm business card CDs. The CD print surface needs to be ink jet compatible. An optional business card tray insert and clamp adapter is available with each Pingo photo printer to accommodate business card CD printing.

To print on either media type, the media should be loaded printable side facing up. To print on CD-R media place the disc in between the 3 metal tabs and send the print job to the printer. For multiple prints, an operator will need to remove and replace each CD as it is completed. The printer will automatically detect the next disc as it is placed on the carrier tray.

To install the components to print on business card CD's do the following and see diagrams below:

• Place Clamp Adapter on the Carrier Tray so that the open circle on the adapter fits over the holding pin that rises up from the rectangler cut out where the clamp adapter will lay.

• Place the Business Card Insert on the Carrier Tray so that the tabs on the insert are lined up to slide under the square Carrier Tray holes to hold it in place. The smaller holes on the left side of the insert should click into place over the small, raised circles on the Carrier Tray.

placed on the tray

To remove the business card tray, slightly lift up on the tray from the lower left corner with your left hand. While lifting, slightly pushing to the right with your index finger. Page

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

5.8 Operation of the Pingo Photo printer

When the print image and page setup preparations are complete, load a printable CD-R (the CDs must be coated with an ink absorption layer specifically designed for ink jet printing - most major manufacturers offer printable surface CD-Rs in white and silver) into the tray. Verify that the printer is on and ready. Define your print settings (see Section 4.5) and issue the print command. The print image will spool to the system hard disk drive and then begin sending data to the printer. As the printer receives the image data, a load paper command will be issued and the printing will begin.

5.9 User control panel

buttons and lights

The Pingo Photo CD Printer buttons let you turn the printer on and off, cancel a print job, or resume printing. The lights give you visual cues about the state of the printer.

1. Cancel button 2. Print Cartridge Status light and symbol 3. Resume light and button

4.Power button and light

1. cancel button

Pressing this button cancels the current print job.

2. print cartridge status symbol and light

The light above the Print Cartridge Status symbol flashes when a print cartridge is low on ink or incorrectly installed.

3. resume button and light

The light above the Resume button flashes when an action is required such as loading paper or clearing a paper jam. When the problem is fixed, press the Resume button to continue printing.

4. power button and light

The Power button turns the printer on and off. It takes approximately five seconds for the printer to turn on after you press the Power button. The green light above the Power button flashes when printing is in progress.

Caution! Always use the Power button on the front of the printer to turn the printer on and off. Using a power

strip, surge protector, or a wall-mounted switch to turn the printer on and off may cause premature printer failure.

User manual

Alea Systems, Inc. Rev.1.13 Pingo-Photo Rep

DO NOT PLACE ANY

6. CD Template layout

2.700"

8.400"

4.25"

4.724"

PRINTABLE IMAGE OR TEXT BELOW THIS LINE

Fig. 4-1 CD print placement referenced to 8.5 X 11 inch letter page.

The printable area size shown is maximum possible. Actual print area will vary with media type.

Page placement dimensions vary between applications.

Business card CDs (63mm X 80MM) use exactly the same print center coordinates for each printer.

User manual

+ 28 hidden pages