HP (Hewlett-Packard) FB910 User Manual

HP Scitex FB910 Printer

User Manual

0706472 Revision A

Hewlett-Packard Company 11311 K-Tel Drive Minnetonka, Minnesota 55343 United States of America World Wide Web: www.colorspan.com www.hp.com

Technical Support

World Wide Web: www.colorspan.com E-mail: cs.support@hp.com

North America

Voice.........+1 800.925.0563 or +1 952.944.4040

Fax.............+1 952.943.3611 or +1 952.944.8509

Latin America (Español)

Voice..........................................+1 952.943.3627

Fax.............................................+1 952.944.8509

Europe, Middle East, and Africa

Voice.......................................... .+31 23.5622000

Fax..............................................+31 23.5627944

warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.

Printed in the US.

Ink Sales

North America

Voice.........+1 800.723.3002 or +1 952.944.9330

Fax.............................................+1 952.943.8622

Europe, Middle East, and Africa

Voice.......................................... .+31 23.5622000

Fax..............................................+31 23.5631240

Regulatory Statements

DOC (Canada) This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise for digi-

FCC-A This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A

digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in acco rdance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to rad io co mmu nica tions. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference in which case the user will be required to correct the interference at his or her own expense.

This equipment must be installed exactly as instructed in this manual using only the components supplied. If a supplied component ever needs to be replaced, it must be replaced with the same part supplied by the manufacturer. It is your responsibility to follow these instructions in order to maintain compliance with the FCC regulations. Changes or modifications not expressly app rov ed b y the manufacturer could void your authority to operate this equipment. In particular, this device must be operated with shielded cables to maintain FCC compliance.

A booklet is available from the Federal Communications Commission entitled, How to Identify and Resolve Radio-TV Interference Problems (#004-000-00345-

4). Write to the U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402.

tal apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department of Communications.

Normes de Sècuritè (Canada) Le présent appariel numérique n’émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant

les limites applicables aux appareils numériques de la Classe A prescrites dans le réglements sur le brouillage radioélectrique édictés par le Ministére des Communications du Canada.

Telecommunications

Network Statement

Regulatory Statements iii

The VideoNet port on this device is not intended to be connected to a public telecommunications network. Connection of this device to a public telecommunications network in a European Community Member State will be in violation of national law implementing Directive 91/263/EEC on the approximation of laws of the Member States concerning telecommunication terminal equipment, including the mutual recognition of their conformity.

Der VideoNet port ist nicht dafür vorgesehen an ein öffentliches Telefonnetz angeschlossen zu werden. Der Anschluß dieses Gerätes an ein öffentliches T elefonnetz in einem Mitgliedst aat der EU, verstößt gegen nationale Gesetze zur Ausführung der Direktive 91/263/EEC, die sich mit der Annäherung von Gesetzen von Mitgliedstaaten beschäftigt, betreffend Telekommuniktionsanlagen und die gegenseitige Anerkennung ihrer Konformität.

Getting St arted

Getting Started 1-1

Quick Tour

User End

Service End

Fig. 1-1. Input Side view

1. Input media roller height adjusters

2. Endcap cabinet (2a - User End, 2b - Service End)

3. Emergency stop switch

4. Control panel

5. Media fence

6. Multiple sheet positioning pins

7. Media feed belt

8. UV-filtered observation window

1-2 Quick Tour

9. Ink supply access door

10. Ink filter/pump access panel

11. Standby power switch, foot switch port, VideoNet port

Standby power switch

Foot switch port

VideoNet port

12. Fork lift points

13. Sheet Ready foot switch

14. Shop air input (Service End of printer), industrial quick

connect

Hose connection

Drain valve

15. Rigid media input table

16. Roll-fed media supply spool (optional)

17. Roll-fed media foam rollers storage (optional)

Quick Tour 1-3

Service End

User End

Fig. 1-2. Output Side view

1. Access door with UV-filtered observation window (opening any door on the output side will halt printing)

2. Output media roller height adjusters

3. Fork lift points

4. Output table

5. Roll-fed takeup system (optional)

6. Printhead wipe station

1-4 Quick Tour

12 3

14 15

1. Media information

2. Printer status

3. Ink levels

4. Media detector (red=media out, green=media

detected)

5. UV lamps status

6. Vacuum Pressure gauge

7. Media Handling status

8. Printer doors status

9. Stored jobs status

16 17

20 21

Fig. 1-3. Front Page screen

14. Turn On/Turn Off Lamps

15. Media Wizard

16. Load Media

17. Configure & Load media

18. Move Media Forward/Backward

19. Stored Jobs

20. Calibrate

21. Option Settings

22. Tools (maintenance, diagnostics, service

functions)

25‘

10. Sleep/Wake mode

11. Print prime bars

12. Purge printheads

23. About (embedded software version)

24. Online/offline switch

25. Attention messages

13. Print mode

Quick Tour 1-5

Basic Printer Operations

Daily Startup To ensure the functioning or substitution of all inkjets, and opti-

mal output quality, follow this procedure daily:

1. Wake the printer from Sleep mode.

2. Press the Purge key on the control panel to purge the print-

heads. Follow the instructions on the control panel screen. The printer will detect when you open and close the endcap access door, and remove and reinstall the drip tray, to determine when you have completed certain steps in the procedure.

Note When closing the access door on the user endcap

cabinet, the pneumatic supports will pull the door closed when the door is lowered past the horizontal position. Hold on to the door until it is closed to stop it from slamming closed.

3. Clean the media drive belt. See “Clean the Media Drive Belt and Encoder” on page 6-4.

Note Failure to clean the media drive belt daily will allow

any ink on the belt to continue to cure, making later cleaning more difficult.

4. Press the Prime Bars key on the control panel to print the Prime Bars.

Each prime bar is a set of horizontal lines printed by the jets in one printhead, starting with the black head 1 toward th e service end of the carriage, and ending with yellow head 16 toward the user end. Every horizontal line in each prime bar is printed by a single inkjet nozzle.

• If all jets (indicated by a printed line) are working, the

printer is ready to print.

1-6 Basic Printer Operations

• If there are any missing jets, print the Prime Bars again

three or four times until all jets are working.

BlackCyanMagentaYellow

Head 1Head 16

Fig. 1-4. Prime Bars

5. If any missing jets are present after printing the Prime Bars, proceed to the next step, “Recover Jets Part 1” on page 1-8.

Basic Printer Operations 1-7

Recover Jets Part 1 6. Press the Purge key on the control panel to purge the print-

7. Press the Prime Bars key on the control panel to print the Prime Bars.

• If all jets (indicated by a printed line) are working, the

printer is ready to print.

• If there are any missing jets, print the Prime Bars again

three or four times until all jets are working.

8. If any missing jets are present after printing the Prime Bars, print a Recover Jets Pattern (Tools > Maintenance > Print Recover Jets Pattern).

This is a special pattern designed to recover missing i nkjet s. After printing this pattern, the prime bars are printed again.

• If all jets (indicated by a printed line) are working, the

printer is ready to print.

• If there are any missing jets (induca te d by no pr int ed

line), print the Recover Jets Pattern again. If this shows any missing jets, proceed to the next step, “Recover Jets Part 2” on page 1-10.

1-8 Basic Printer Operations

Basic Printer Operations 1-9

Recover Jets Part 2 If any missing jets are observed after printing the Recover Jets

Pattern a second time, Purge the printheads.

9. Press the Purge key on the control panel to purge the printheads. Follow the instructions on the control panel screen. The printer will detect when you open and close the endcap access door, and remove and reinstall the drip tray, to determine when you have completed certain steps in the procedure.

10. Press the Prime Bars key and examine the printed bars.

• If all jets (indicated by a printed line) are working, the

printer is ready to print.

• If the Prime Bars show any missing jets, dab only the

printheads that have missing jets. Dab or blot the printheads with a lint-free cloth moistened with HP Scitex MF50 Flushing Solution.

11. Print the Prime Bars again.

12. Print the Recover Jets Pattern for those printheads with

missing jets. After printing this pattern, the prime bars are printed again.

• If all jets (indicated by a printed line) are working, the

printer is ready to print.

• If there are any missing jets, repea t ste ps 9 throug h 12

two or three times until all jets are working.

13. If the Prime Bars show any missing jets, map them out using the Manual Jet Mapping function (Calibrate > Manual Cali- brations > Manual Jet Mapping). See “Manual Jet Mapping” on page 4-16 for instructions. Select “Report individual hard bad jets” to map out these jets permanently.

Alternatively, you can run AutoJet to automatically map out jets. See “AutoJet” on page 4-3 for instructions.

Y ou can a ttempt to recover the remaining missing jet s again. See “Recover Missing Ink Jets” on page 6-11 for instructions.

1-10 Basic Printer Operations

Basic Printer Operations 1-11

Printing When the printer is connected to a HP RIP, here is how a typical

print job progresses from the client workstation to the printer. If you are using a non-HP RIP, refer to the documentation that accompanies it for details.

1. The operator sends a file to be printed from a client workstation (for example, by copying the file to a Hot Folder).

2. The print job is received by the RIP. Once it reaches the print server, the print job may be reprior-

itized, combined with other jobs, re-routed, or otherwise manipulated. Refer to the online help or manual for instructions.

The raster image processing (RIP) process translates the PostScript language data that comprises the print job into the data required by the printer.

3. The RIP sends the image to the printer for printing, or, depending on its route, to an output queue for printing later.

Tip To avoid the UV lamps warm-up period (approxi-

mately 1-3 minutes), you can turn on the lamps manually before sending the first print job from the RIP or printing a calibration pattern. See the menu at Tools > Turn UV Lamps On. The lamps will turn off automatically after the period of no pr inting defined in the menu at Settings > UV Lamps Idle

Time.

600x300 Printing

The default printing resolution is 600x600 dpi. To print a document at 600x300 dpi, configure the RIP to rasterize print jobs at this resolution (in the HP Software RIP, under the RIP tab of the Port Properties screen). For best results, sele ct a color profile on the RIP that matches the resolution setting of the RIP, and color calibrate at the resolution at which you will be printing. Refer to the Software RIP User Guide (part number 0706399) for instructions.

1-12 Basic Printer Operations

Daily Shutdown DO NOT POWER DOWN THE PRINTER.

The printer will automatically enter a Sleep mode when it has been idle for a user-defined period of time (see page 5-4 and page 5-12 for details).

If the printer must be shipped or power remove d for an extended period, contact Technical Services for instructions.

Basic Printer Operations 1-13

Important Operating Notes

• UV CURE INK IS PERISHABLE. Unlike

other inks used in wide format printing, UV cure ink has a limited shelf life. Plan to rotate your ink stock and use it promptly by the date printed on the ink box.

• DO NOT POWER DOWN THE PRINTER. Constant vacuum

at the printheads is required to prevent ink from flowing from the printheads when not printing. If the printer must be powered down for shipping, contact Technical Services for instructions.

Caution Do not switch off the UV lamp power supply

unless the lamps have fully completed their controlled cool-down cycle (with fans and heat extrac-

tion). Removing power from hot lamps can result in overheating and permanent damage. If sudden removal of power occurs, contact technical support before starting the printer again.

Caution Do not connect any equipment to the line condi-

tioner for the UV power supply, except as specified in this manual.

• To dab the printheads, use only genuine HP Scitex MF50

Flushing Solution. (See “Recover Missing Ink Jets” on page 6-11 for instructions.) DO NOT USE ISOPROYPL ALCOHOL.

• The maximum diameter allowed on the takeup spool is 7.0

inches (178 mm) on a 3-inch core. When the takeup spool has a diameter of 6.5 inches (165.0 mm) or more, the control panel displays a warning about possible print quality issues. The supply-takeup system can support rolls of up to approximately 125 pounds (56.7 kg).

• The media supply may be wound either printed-side-out or

printed-side-in, but the takeup, if used, must be loaded printed-side-in.

• The default head height set to 0.085 inches (2.2 mm) above

the media. (The space below the carriage will be 0.070 inches due to the printhead protection frame around the outside of the carriage.)

1-14 Important Operating Notes

• The Media Wizard stores a set of operational parameters for

predefined and user-defined media types. When you load a new media type, select an existing Media Wizard set, or create a custom set. Media Wizard parameter sets can be selected at any time from the control panel.

• Enable AutoTune during long periods of unattended print-

ing. AutoTune runs AutoJet at user-defined intervals to ensure that all jets are either working or substituted with working jets. (See “AutoTune” on page 4-4 for instructions.)

• Wear cotton gloves when loading media to prevent finger-

prints that could show after printing.

• DO NOT rest or store a media roll on end, or you could

cause edge creases that could strike the printheads during printing.

• DO NOT clean the printhead surfaces with a dry cloth or

paper towel of any kind. Use only a lint-free (Class 100 cleanroom) cloth, such as those supplied with the printer and available from Supplies Sales, moistened with HP Scitex MF50 Flushing Solution.

• DO NOT reprint over any output that has not completely

cured. If ink does get onto the media rollers, clean them with a minimal amount of isopropyl alcohol and dry them thoroughly before printing again.

• DO NOT set heavy objects on the power cord or printer

cable; do not bend the cables or force them into contorted positions.

• DO NOT place heavy objects anywhere on the printer.

• DO NOT print on the media drive belt. If printing on the belt

does occur, clean as soon as possible to avoid buildup. The ink will continue to cure after initial curing by the lamps, making later removal more difficult. See “Clean the Media Drive Belt and Encoder” on page 6-4 for instructions.

• DO NOT attempt to lift the printer by its rail or the media

drive motor. Lift with a fork lift at marked lifting points only.

• DO NOT operate the printer without the endcap cabinets

installed. The endcap cabinets are an integral component of the printer's ESD grounding system. During operation of the printer, they must be attached to the body of the printer with the screws provided in order to avoid an ESD event which could damage printer electronics. The endcap cabinets are

Important Operating Notes 1-15

also required by UL compliance as protection from UV light and moving parts hazards.

• DO NOT rest or store the roll-feed foam rollers (“lift roller”

and “press roller”) on a horizontal surface, or a per sistent flat spot on the roller will be created. When not in use, store the foam rollers in the storage rack provided; see item 16 in Fig. 1-1.

1-16 Important Operating Notes

Safety Warnings English

• UV light — the ultraviolet (UV) curing lamps emit high po wer

UV light. The printer must be operated with all safety shielding installed to protect the operator from eye and skin damage. When operated according to manufacturer’s instructions, safety glasses or other protective cloth in g ar e not necessary.

• Mechanical hazards — Keep fingers away from carriage

and media path. Use a fork lift truck to lift the printer. Do not exceed the maximum weight load of the input or output tables, as printed on the label.

• Ink — read and practice safety guidelines as outlined in the

Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the ink, and post the document in the work area as required by prevailing law. Avoid any contact with skin and eyes. Provide adequate general and local exhaust ventilation. Avoid breathing vapors. Respirator protection may be required under exceptional circumstances when excessive air contamination exists. None of the component substances have established exposure standards per OSHA, NIOSH or ACGIH.

• Electrical — WITH THE POWER SWITCH IN THE OFF

POSITION, POWER MAY STILL BE SUPPLIED TO THE PRINTER COMPONENTS. To completely cut po we r fro m the printer, you must unplug the power cord from the power outlet.

• Ozone — the high power UV light emitted by the curing

lamps reacts with oxygen and produces ozone. This formation tends to be greatest during lamp start-up. The printer should be operated in a well-ventilated area to avoid minor effects such as headaches, fatigue, and dryness of the upper respiratory tract. Normal air movement will mix the ozone with fresh air, causing it to revert back to oxygen.

• Hazardous waste — THE PRINTER ELECTRONICS

ASSEMBLY CONTAINS A LITHIUM BATTERY DEVICE. THERE IS A DANGER OF EXPLOSION IF THE BATTERY IS INCORRECTL Y REPLACED. The battery must be replaced only by authorized service provide rs , an d mu st be replaced only with the same or equivalent type. Dispose of this lithium battery device in accordance with local, state (or province), and Federal (or country) solid waste requirements.

Important Operating Notes 1-17

Deutsch

• UV-Licht – die ultravioletthärtenden Lampen strahlen Hochleistungs-UV-Licht ab. Der Drucker muss mit allen installierten Sicherheitsabschirmungen betrieben werden, um den Bediener vor Augen- und Hautschäden zu schützen. Sicherheitsbrillen oder andere Schutzkleidung ist nicht erforderlich, wenn gemäß den Herstelleranweisungen gearbeitet wird.

• Mechanische Risiken – Halten Sie die Finger fern vom Laufwagen und von der Medienzuführung. Überschreiten Sie nicht die maximale Gewichtsauslastung der Eingabe- oder Ausgabetische, die auf dem Etikett aufdruckt sind.

• Tinte – lesen und beachten Sie die Sicherheitsrichtlinien, wie sie im Material-Sicherheitsdatenblatt (MSDS) für die Tinte dargestellt sind und bringen Sie das Dokument, wie von der aktuellen Rechtsprechung gefordert, im Arbeitsbere ich an. Vermeiden Sie jeden Kontakt mit Haut und Augen. Stellen Sie ausreichende generelle und lokale Absaugvorrichtungen bereit. Vermeiden Sie das Einatmen von Dämpfen. Eine Atemschutzmaske könnte unter außergewöhnlichen Umständen, wenn erhöhte Luftverschmutzung besteht, erfoderlich sein. Keine der Bestandteile hab en Gefahrenstandards nach OSHA, NIOSH oder ACGIH etabliert.

• Ozon – das Hochleistungs-UV-Licht, das von den Aushärtungslampen abgegeben wird, reagiert mit Sauerstoff und produziert Ozon. Diese Entwicklung ist am größten, während die Lampe hochgefahren wird. Der Drucker sollte in einem gut gelüftetem Umfeld betrieben werden, um geringfügige Auswirkungen, wie Kopfschmerzen, Müdigkeit und Austrocknen der oberen Atemwege zu vermeiden. Die normale Luftbewegung vermischt das Ozon mit Frischluft, wodurch es wieder zu Sauerstoff umgewandelt wird.

Español

• Luz UV — Las lámparas de curado ultravioleta (UV) emiten luz UV de alta intensidad. La impresora debe ser manejada con filtros de seguridad instalados para prot eger al operador de posibles daños en ojos y piel. Si la operativa del equipo se ajusta a las instrucciones del fabricante no será necesario el uso de gafas de seguridad ni vestimenta de protección.

1-18 Important Operating Notes

• Riesgos mecánicos — Mantener los dedos fuera del camino tanto del cabezal como del soporte. No debe excederse el peso máximo de carga de las mesas de entrada y salida, según lo especificado en la etiqueta.

• Tinta - Lea y ponga en práctica las recomendaciones de seguridad recogidas, en la Hoja de Datos de Seguridad del Material (Material Safety Data Sheet - MSDS), para la tinta y exponga dicho documento en el área de trabajo, tal y como requiere la legislación vigente. Evite todo contacto con piel y ojos. Asegúrese de disponer de una adecuada ventilación y extracción tanto general como local. Evite la inhalación de vapores. Un respirador de protección puede llegar a ser necesario, bajo circunstancias excepcionales, cuando exista una excesiva contaminación del aire. Ninguna de las sustancia s componentes tienen estándares de exposición establecidos por OSHA, NIOSH o ACGIH.

• Eléctrico — CON EL INTERRUPTOR DE POTENCIA EN POSICIÓN "OFF", LA POTENCIA PUEDE SEGUIR SIENDO SUMINISTRADA A LOS COMPONENETES DELA IMPRESORA. Para cortar totalmente el suministro de corriente a la impresora, deberá desenchufar los cables de potencia de las tomas.

• Ozono — La luz UV de alta intensidad emitida por las lámparas de curado reacciona con el oxígeno y produce ozono. Esta reacción tiende a ser de mayor relevancia durante el proceso de arranque de lámparas. La impresora deberá ser operada en un área bien ventilada para evitar pequeños efectos secundarios como dolor de cabeza, fatiga y sequedad de las vías respiratorias superiores. El movimiento normal del aire mezclará el ozono con aire fresco, haciendo que reaccione de forma inversa, a oxígeno.

• Residuos Peligrosos — EL GRUPO ELECTRÓNICO DE LA IMPRESORA CONTIENE UNA BATERÍA DE LITIO. EXISTE RIESGO DE EXPLOSIÓN SI LA BATERÍA ES REEMPLAZADA DE FORMA INCORRECTA. La batería debe ser reemplazada únicamente por personal técnico autorizado y sólo por otra igual o equiva lente. De shágase de esta batería de litio según los requisitos de tratamiento de residuos sólidos establecidos por su localidad, provincia y país.

Important Operating Notes 1-19

Français

• Lumière UV — Les lampes à séchage ultraviolet (UV) diffusent une puissance de lumière UV importante. L'imprimante doit être utilisée en tenant compte de toutes les mesures de sécurité mises en place pour protéger l'opéra teur de blessures aux yeux et sur la peau. Quand vous utilisez l'imprimante, les lunettes de protection et vêtements de protection ne sont pas nécessaire.

• Risques mécaniques — Garder les mains éloignées du chariot et du chemin papier. Ne pas dépasser le poids maximum pour des tableaux en entrée et en sortie, comme indiqué sur la fiche.

• Encre — Concernant les encres, lire et respecter toutes les mesures de sécurité comme indiqué dans le Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) et placer ce document dans l'espace de travail comme requis par la loi. Eviter tout contact avec les yeux et la peau. Mettre en place une ventilation générale et locale adéquate. Eviter de respirer les vapeurs. Des protections respiratoires peuvent être nécessaires dans des circonstances exceptionnelles lorsque qu'une contamination excessive de l'air existe. Aucun des composant standard n'a été établi comme une menace our OSHA, NIOSH ou ACGIH.

• Electricité — Lorsque la touche ON/OFF est sur la position OFF , l'électricité est quand même fourni e aux composants de l'imprimante. Pour éteindre totalement l'imprimante, il faut débrancher le câble électrique de la prise.

• Ozone — L'émission importante de lumière UV émise pour le séchage par les lampes réagit à l'oxygène et produit de l'ozone. Cette réaction tend à être plus importante au moment du démarrage des lampes. L'imprimante doit être utilisée dans un espace ventilé pour éviter des réactions mineures de type maux de tête, fatigue, sécheresse de la partie supérieure de l'appareil respiratoire. Un mouvement normal de l'air mixe l'ozone avec de l'air frais pour revenir à de l'oxygène.

• Déchets hasardeux — Le système électronique de l'imprimante contient une batterie en lithium. Il y a un danger d'explosion si la batterie n'est pas correctement remplacée. La batterie doit être remplacée par du personnel autorisé p ar le fournisseur et doit être remplacée par un type de batterie

1-20 Important Operating Notes

identique ou équivalent. Se débarrasser de cette batterie en lithium en accord avec la réglementation de gestion des déchets locale, régionale ou gouvernementale.

Italiano

• Luce Ultravioletta (UV) — Le lampade UV, emettono raggi ultravioletti ad alta intensita'. Bisogna operare il plotter con tutti i filtri di protezione installati, per proteggere l'operatore da eventuali esposizioni dannosi agli occhi e alla pelle. Se ci si attiene alle disposizioni e istruzioni d'uso del fabbricante, non sono necessary occhiali o ulteriori materiali aggiuntivi di protezione.

• Rischi parti meccaniche in movimento — Tenere le dita e le mani lontano dal movimento del supporto delle testine di stampa. Non eccedere il peso massimo consentito sui tavoli di supporto, come specificato sulle etichette.

• Inchiostri — Leggere attentamente le istruzioni e le raccomandazioni degli inchiostri contenute nella documentazione (Material Safety Data Sheet-MSDS) e metterlo in chiara esposizione all'interno dell' area di lavoro come prevede la normativa di legge. Evitare qualsiasi contatto con gli occhi e la pelle. Assicurarsi che l'ambiente di lavoro sia sufficentemente ventilato. Evitare di respirare le emissioni di vapori. L'uso di una maschera di protezione potrebbe essere necessaria in una situazione eccezionale con un eccessiva contaminazione dell'aria. Nessuna delle sostanze contenute negli inchiostri tiene emissioni standard come descritte da OSHA, NIOSH o ACGIH.

• Sistema elettrico — Anche se l'interruttore di accensione si trova nella posizione spenta (OFF) potrebbe comunque fornire tensione a componenti del plotter. Per staccare totalmente la tensione elettrica, scollegare completamente I cavi di alimentazione dalle relative prese.

• Ozono — La elevate intensita' ultravioletta delle lamp ade UV, reagisce con l'ossigeno e produce ozono. Questo processo tende ad essere piu' elevato nella fase di riscaldamento d elle lampade. Il plotter deve operare in un area ben ventilata, per evitare leggeri disturbi, tipo mal di testa, affaticamento e irritazione delle vie respiratorie superiori.Con l'emissione di aria fresca, l'ozono reagisce e si ritrasforma in ossigeno.

Important Operating Notes 1-21

• Residui pericolosi — All' interno del gruppo elettrico del plotter, si trova una b atteria al litio il qua le se non sostituit a in maniera corretta puo' rischiare di esplodere. Per t ale motivo, solamente personale tecnico specializzato deve eseguire tale operazione. Per lo smaltimento della batteria usata o danneggiata, verificare le modalit a' locali, provinciali o nazionali in materia.

1-22 Important Operating Notes

Chapter 2

Printing

This chapter shows you how to set print mode and media options, load media, and print:

• Configure Printing (page 2-2)

• Configure Media (page 2-6)

• Load and Print on Rigid Media (page 2-8)

• Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media (page 2-15)

• Printing Tips (page 2-21)

• Checking Jet Health (page 2-23)

Printing 2-1

Configure Printing The printer can print in several different modes for the combina-

tion of quality, resolution, and speed that you require.

Mode

Billboard Quality with 600x300 dpi jobs 811 sq. ft/hr (74.3 sq. m/hr) No

with 600x600 dpi jobs 438 sq. ft/hr (40.7 sq. m/hr) No Production Quality

with 600x300 dpi jobs 438 sq. ft/hr (40.7 sq. m/hr) Yes with 600x600 dpi jobs 225 sq. ft/hr (20.9 sq. m/hr) Yes High Quality

with 600x300 dpi jobs 225 sq. ft/hr (20.9 sq. m/hr) Yes with 600x600 dpi jobs 112 sq. ft/hr (10.4 sq. m/hr) Yes

Maximum Speed (bidirectional printing)

Jet Replacement

Jet replacement refers to the printer’s ability to locate and replace inkjets that are clogged or misfiring. High Quality mode has the best jet replacement, Billboard Quality mode has the highest speed, but without jet replacement.

The current print mode is shown in the top center of the control panel. To change the print mode, follow these instructions.

1. On the control panel, press the Print Mode key.

The print mode menu appears, with these options

• Billboard Quality

• Production Quality

• High Quality

2. Press a print mode to select it.

A menu appears with these options:

• Bidirectional

• Unidirectional - Print From User to Service Side

• Unidirectional - Print From Service to User Side

The printer can print in both directions (bidirectional) or in one direction only (unidirectional). Unidirectional printing can

2-2 Configure Printing

occur in either direction. Printing occurs at about half the speed of the corresponding bidirectional pr int mod e. Unidirectional printing eliminates the bidirectional misalignment that occurs when printing on media that is not perfectly flat.

Tip The service hours for each lamp is shown on the

printing direction screen. If you are selecting a unidirectional mode, and the user-side lamp has a much larger number of service hours than the service-side lamp, rebalance these hours by selecting Unidirec- tional - Print From User to Service Side. This will turn off the user-side (trailing) lamp and cure with the service-side (leading) lamp only.

If the service-side lamp has more hours than the user-side lamp, select Unidirectional - Print From

Service to User Side.

Service-side lamp

Service end

User end

Fig. 2-1. Printhead carriage

User-side lamp

3. Press a direction option to select it.

In Production and High Quality modes, a menu appe ars with these options:

• Normal — prints at full speed.

• Sharp Edge — improves the appearance at the edges of

larger text, colored borders, graphics, and images by directing the inkjet overspray into the printed area. This mode requires an additional print pass than Normal mode. (Not available with unidirectional printing or in Billboard mode.)

Configure Printing 2-3

• Fine Text — prints at half the normal head speed to

improve the output quality of fine text and line art by eliminating overspray.

Caution Printing in Fine Text mode, which prints at 50% of

the speed of the "normal" Production and High Quality modes, may expose the media to excessive heat from the UV lamps, which could result in bowing of the center of the media, and possible contact with the printheads. Thinner rigid media such as fluted polypropylene (Coroplast) are susceptible. To avoid warping, set a media delay in Printer Set- tings > Printing Delay, or in a custom Media Wizard parameter set for Fine Text printing.

This could also be an issue with Sharp Edge printing, although this mode prints at 80% speed, so it is less susceptible to excessive heat buildup.

4. Press an option to select it. The UV lamps settings appear.

Fig. 2-2. Select Lamp Mode screen

2-4 Configure Printing

5. Configure the UV lamps operation by touching the “High,” “Low,” or “Shuttered” options for the leading and trailing lamps. Buttons will appear or disappear to present only valid combinations (for example, you cannot set both lamps to Shuttered).

• For standard media listed in the Media Wizard, leave the

lamp settings at their default values, then adjust as needed.

• Faster print modes require higher lamp settings to ensure

sufficient curing.

• If the ink is not curing, increase the setting. The lamps

will gradually lose curing effectiveness, so increasing the setting eventually may become necessary. (For infomation about UV lamp life, see “Replacing UV Lamp Bulbs” on page 6-19.)

• If the media is wrinkling or warping from the heat of the

lamps, lower the setting.

6. Press Proceed to save the settings and return to the Front Page, or Cancel to restore the previous print mode settings.

Configure Printing 2-5

Configure Media Before the printer will accept a print job, it must be configured for

a specific media type. The currently-configured media type, if any, is displayed in the upper left corner of the control panel.

1. If the control panel displays the media type you intend to print, press the Load key and go to “Load and Print on Rigid Media” on page 2-8. Otherwise, go to step 2.

2. From the Front Page screen, press the Configure & Load key.

The Select Media to Load menu appe ars. T he list o f media ends with the option Create Media Type.

Tip Start by using one of the standard media types. If

you are not using a standard media type, select the standard media type that most closely matches the media you are using. Then only if necessary, create a new media type using the standard type you selected as a starting point, and adjust it as needed.

3. Press a media name, or Create Media Type.

• If you pressed a media name, a list of settings appears.

• If you pressed Create Media Type, the control panel dis-

plays a list of settings for you to configure.

For each media type, the Media Wizard stores the following settings (as indicated, some settings apply to either roll-fed or cut sheet media only):

• Media Name — for user-defined media, use the alpha-

betic keyboard displayed on the control panel to enter the media name. (S tandard media names cannot be changed.)

• Feed Method — Cut Sheet or Rollfed (with optional

media handler installed) or Roll-Fed.

• Rollers — sets whether the Input and Output media roll-

ers are used (yes) or not used (no).

• Weight — sets the media belt drive motor and media

advance amount to handle Light (up to 50 pounds/22 kg) or Heavy (50-250 pounds/22-113 kg) media.

2-6 Configure Media

Caution The input and output tables ar e rated at a maximu m

load of 80 pounds (36 kg). Do not exceed this maximum load.

Note The printer senses the weight of the media before

printing begins. If a heavy board (over 50 pounds/23 kg) is detected while the printer is set to Light, the printer automatically switches to the Heavy setting. This cannot be changed during printing. Printing in Heavy mode is slower than in Light mode due to the shorter media advances, but reduces the chance of damage to the media belt drive motor.

• Visible to Printer — if Yes, the media sensor and image

sensor will be used. If No, the media sensor and image sensor will not be used (with clear films, for example).

• Print Mode — quality and direction settings (see “Config-

ure Printing” on page 2-2).

• UV Lamps — see “Configure Printing” on page 2-2 for

the possible UV lamp settings.

• Vacuum — this option turns on the vacuum fans, and

displays , and ) keys on the control panel. Press , and ) to raise or lower the fan speed for each zone (input zone, between the pinch rollers, and print zone). Observe the media as the fan speed changes. If the media is lifting off the belt, increase the fan spe ed. If the media advance seems impeded by the vacuu m , decrease the fan speed.

• Printing Delay — press the , and ) keys on the con-

trol panel to increase or decrease the delay (seconds per print swath). To increase throughput, decrease the delay.

4. Press Proceed to load the media, or press Cancel to discard your changes.

Media Wizard To view or delete settings for an existing media type, press the

Media Wizard key. The Media Wizard also lets you create a

media type without configuring it as the currently-loaded media.

Configure Media 2-7

Load and Print on Rigid Media

1. At the end of the Configure Media process (see “Configure

Media” on page 2-6), press the Proceed key on the control panel:

OR from the Front Page screen, press the Load Media key. Before you can load media, you must configure the media

as explained in “Configure Media” on page 2-6.

2. On the control panel menu, press one of the following media rollers options:

• Flat Media — media rollers optional, which may not be

needed for unwarped media (the media drive belt and vacuum are sufficient for unwarped media)

• Warped Media, Hold Down — media rollers used to pre-

vent warped media from striking the printhead carriage and keep the media feeding properly. When the media rollers are used, the printable length is reduced by several inches at the leading and trailing edges, to allow the rollers to hold down the media during printing.

Note The media rollers are not lowered onto the media

with any force or pressure, other than their own weight. They are designed to hold down lighter weight media with a moderate amount of warping. They may have no effect on heavier, badly warped media. For best results, use flat media.

3. On the menu, press the media thickness that is closest to the thickness of the media you are loading.

4. Load the sheet of media onto the input table, sliding it forward against the media alignment bar (under the rail), then left along the media alignment bar until the media touches the media fence.

5. Press the Sheet Ready foot pedal or button on the control panel, or Cancel to cancel the media load process.

At this point you can also adjust the vacuum fans in each zone, and the printhead height clearance from the media. If

2-8 Load and Print on Rigid Media

the sheet warped or not being held down, you may want to increase the vacuum or raise the head height. A lower head height reduces overspray, but increases the chance of the carriage or printheads striking the media.

6. Verify the height of the media rollers shown on the control panel, and adjust if necessary.

Check and adjust the right and left sides of both media rollers (input and output). The rollers should just touch the media or remove any warping.

Note Do not lower the rollers too far. On narrow media

(less than 98 inches/2.5 m), it is possible to lower the input roller below the height of the media on one side, causing the media to skew.

7. Press the Proceed key.

8. Enter the media length.

9. Enter the number of sheets:

• Single sheet

• N-UP

10. Measure media width. The margin and imageable area are displayed, and you can

adjust them.

11. Press the Proceed key.

12. Press the Go Online key.

13. Send a print job from the RIP.

For multiple copy jobs, the printer control panel will prompt for the next sheet a short time before the previous sheet is done printing. Load the subsequent sheet as before, and press the Sheet Ready foot pedal or control panel button. The printer prints on the next sheet and will use the same option settings on all of the copies in the print job.

Load and Print on Rigid Media 2-9

Quick Load After printing a job, if the next job will be printed on the same

type of media with the same settings and dimensions, you can skip these settings with Quick Load.

1. Press the Load Media key on the Front Page screen. The control panel displays a menu with a Normal Load and

Quick Load option. If the media type or dimensions are different from the previous job, you must select Normal Load.

2. Press the Quick Load key.

3. Load the media against the media alignment bar.

4. Press the Sheet Ready foot pedal or Ready button on the

control panel. The printer is ready to receive the next job from the RIP.

Multi-Sheet N-UP Multi-sheet N-UP allows you to print a multiple-copy job on multi-

ple sheets across the belt, and multiple rows of sheets, until the job is complete.

To print multi-sheet N-UP, load multiple sheets on the printer, then send a print job from the RIP with a quantity greater than or equal to the number of sheets you loaded. The printer will prompt you to load more sheets until the number of copies you specified has been printed. You can also print Stored Jobs as multi-sheet N-UP (see “Stored Jobs” on page 2-11 for details).

This type of printing works best with an image that has wide margins on all four edges, but edge-to-edge printing is also possible with the appropriate printer settings, and by carefully matching the dimensions of the image to the dimension s of the media sheets.

Margins

When printing a multi-sheet N-UP job, the image positioned horizontally (left-right) as defined under the menu option: Printer

Settings > Margin Settings > Margins.

Using the Camera to Locate the Sheets

The camera is used to locate the position of each sheet as part of the load process. You can set the printer camera to either "measure all sheets" or "measure the first sheet only:"

2-10 Load and Print on Rigid Media

• Measure all sheets — each sheet in every row of sheets will

be measured, and reported to the server. This aids in accurate placement of edge-to-edge images. In this mode, use of the alignment pins is unnecessary.

• Measure first sheet only — only the first row is measured,

and those measurements are used for all subsequent rows. Use the alignment pins to locate the sheets in subsequent rows. This speeds throughput by eliminating the measurement step for each row.

“Incomplete” Rows

You can print any number of copies in a multi-sheet N-UP job, even if the total number does not divide evenly into the number of sheets per row . Typically, only the last row would have a different number of sheets.

For example: in a twenty-sheet job, you might be able to fit th ree sheets in each row, so you might print six rows of three sheets, plus one row of two sheets (6x3=18, 1x2=2, 18+2=20). If the last row is a partial row , load the sheet s from the user end toward th e service end.

Stored Jobs Whenever the printer receives a print job from the RIP, the jo b is

automatically stored in the printer’s memory, on a rotating firstin-first-out (FIFO) basis. You can “lock” a job to prevent it from being rotated out, but this reduces the amount of memory available for subsequent jobs to be saved.

The printer can store up to ten jobs, with a total area of approximately 98 x 98 inches (2.49 x 2.49 m). Jobs RIPed at 600x300 dpi will take less memory to store than jobs RIPed at 600x600 dpi. If power is removed or the printer is restarted, these job s are lost from the printer memory.

If a job is too large to be saved, it is simply discarded from memory after printing. If a complete print job has been received from the RIP and you pause or cancel the print, it will still appear in the Stored Jobs listing.

Stored Jobs can be viewed and managed from the contr ol panel. The Front Page screen shows the following summary of the stored jobs on the printer:

• Number of jobs stored and locked

Load and Print on Rigid Media 2-11

• Available area for storage — the a rea (size ) of ne w pri nt jobs

that can be saved in the printer’s memory. Previously-stored, unlocked jobs will be deleted to make room for new jobs. Locking a stored job reduces the Available space.

• Free area for storage — the Avai lable area mi nus the area of

jobs that are currently stored in the printer memory. This is the largest job that can be stored without deleting previously stored jobs.

To print or manage Stored Jobs:

1. Press the Stored Jobs key on the Front Page screen.

The Stored Jobs screen appears.

Fig. 2-3. Stored Jobs screen

• To view the properties of a Stored Job, or to print a

Stored Job, press the key above its file name.

• To set up a two-sided print job using Stored Jobs,

press the Print Two Sides key. The printer will prompt you to select a Stored Job for the front and back of the sheet. After printing, side one of the sheet will be ejected to the input side of the printer, and you will be prompted to flip over and reload the sheet for printing side two.

2-12 Load and Print on Rigid Media

After printing, the sheet will be ejected to the output side of the printer.

• To view a log of the activity in the Stored Jo bs ar ea of

the printer’s memory, press the Job Status key.

2. When you press the key to display a Stored Job property page, a screen similar to the following appears (exact det ails will vary by print job):

Fig. 2-4. Stored Jobs properties screen

• To print the job, press the Print Job key. The printer will

prompt you for the number of copies to print. If you have multiple sheets loaded, each copy will print on a separate sheet, and the printer will prompt for additional sheets until the number of copies requested have been printed.

• To lock or unlock the job, press the appropriate key.

Locking a job prevents it from being deleted, but subtracts from the available memory for Stored Jobs.

• To delete the job, press the Delete Job key.

Load and Print on Rigid Media 2-13

Note If you want to print on a media type that is different

from the media specified in a Stored Job, or if you must re-linearize the printer, do not reprint the Stored Job. For the best color, re-send the job from the RIP instead.

When printing a job, the printer checks that the currently loaded media matches the media type that was loaded when the job was stored. If different, a warning is raised. You can choose to not print the job, or ignore the warning and print anywa y. Printing on a media type that is different from the original media may result in a noticeable color shift. Performing a linearization and then reprinting a Stored Job may also result in a color shift.

2-14 Load and Print on Rigid Media

Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media

If the optional roll-fed media supply and takeup system is installed on the printer, you can print on roll-fed media.

Fig. 2-5. Media route in the takeup system

1. If installed, detach the rigid media input and output tables from the printer, and set them aside.

2. If you will be using the takeup system, install the takeup spool (see

3. Load the media centered onto the supply spool

Note To prevent fingerprints from showing on printed out-

4. Load the supply spool onto the supply system bracket.

You can print on either side of the media by loading the spool so the media spools off the bottom of the roll or the top of the roll.

u in Fig. 2-5).

put, wear gloves while handling the media.

5. Configure the media as explained in “Configure Media” on page 2-6. At the end of the Configure Media process, press the Proceed (!) key on the control panel.

Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media 2-15

OR If the media is already configured, from the Front Page

screen of the control panel, press the Load key. The printer displays a menu with the following options:

• New Load — loads a new media, discards previous

settings (see page 2-16).

• Restore Loaded State — loads media using the previ-

ously-used settings when rollfed media is already loaded in the printer but the printer is not in a loaded state. This can happen if the printer goes to sleep or is rebooted, or if you press the Unload key on the front panel, but not physically remove the media from the printer (see page 2-19).

Follow the procedure on the next sections that corresponds to the load option you choose.

New Load 6. On the Select Thickness Units screen, press the option that

corresponds to the units you will use.

7. On the Enter Media Thickness screen, enter the media thickness, or press the Esc key to use the default thickness.

8. As prompted by the control panel, remove the foam press roller, then press the Proceed (!) key.

9. Pull the media from the roll, pull it over the foam lift roller (the foam press roller lay it on the belt up to the input media roller

10. On the control panel, press the upper (forward) Advance Media arrow key to advance the media, with the vacuum

fans on. You may need to hold the media down on the belt until the

vacuum grabs it.

• If using the takeup system, advance the media until it

hangs on exit side down to the takeup roller. Do not tape

the media to the core at this time.

• If not using the takeup system, advance the media at

least past the output media roller

2-16 Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media

p should not be in position yet) and

r. During printing,

make sure that the media does not fall behind takeup rollers

st and u.

11. On the control panel, press the Turn Off Fans key.

Fig. 2-6. Load roll-fed media

12. Hold the upper (forward) Advance Media key down for about five seconds.

This will help smooth out wrinkles and equalize the tension of the media across the belt.

Since the fans are off, the media should not advance. If the media moves, hold on to the media with your right hand while pressing the Advance Media key with your left hand.

13. On the control panel, press the Turn On Fans key.

14. Lower the input

est positions. Use the adjustment cranks on both the user and service

ends to lower the rollers at both ends. This will help keep wrinkles out of the media.

Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media 2-17

q and output media rollers r to their low-

15. Check for wrinkles in the media across the full length and width of the belt.

If you see any wrinkles, turn off the fans and smooth them out with your hand. Repeat steps 11 through 15 until no wrinkles are visible.

16. Place the foam press roller

17. If you are not using the takeup system, go to step 23.

18. Align the cardboard takeup core to the media and tighten the

collets to lock the core in place.

19. Lift the first dancer bar upper position.

20. Pull the media under the first dancer bar, over second dancer bar

roller Looking down the length of the takeup roller from the user

end, the roller rotates clockwise. Ensure that the media is wrapped as shown in Figure 2-5 on page 2-15.

21. Tape the end of the media to printer side of takeup roller, starting in the middle and working out to both ends.

Be sure to maintain even tension across the width of the media.

22. Release the dancer bar locking lever.

t, and down to the printer side of takeup

p into operating position.

s (with the gears), and lock in the

23. Press the Proceed key.

24. Enter the media length or press the Esc key for an unde-

fined length. The printer measures the media width.

25. On the Front Page screen, press the Proceed key. The Front Page screen appears on the control panel.

2-18 Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media

26. Press the Go Online key. The printer is now ready to receive a print job from the RIP.

Restore Loaded State 27. As prompted by the control panel, remove the foam press

roller, then press the Proceed (!) key.

28. Press the upper (forward) Advance Media key to advance the media to the takeup spool and/or past any printed area of the media.

29. On the control panel, press the Turn Off Fans key.

30. Hold the upper (forward) Advance Media key down for

about five seconds.

31. On the control panel, press the Turn On Fans key.

32. Press the Proceed key.

33. Check for wrinkles in the media across the full length and

width of the belt. If you see any wrinkles, turn off the fans and smooth them

out with your hand. Repeat steps 29 through 33 until no wrinkles are visible.

34. Place the foam press roller

35. If you are not using the takeup system, or if the media is

already loaded in the takeup, go to step 41.

36. Align the cardboard takeup core to the me dia and tighten the collets to lock the core in place.

37. Llift the first dancer bar upper position.

38. Pull the media under the first dancer bar, over second dancer bar roller

Looking down the length of the takeup roller from the use r end, the roller rotates clockwise. Ensure that the media is wrapped as shown in Figure 2-5 on page 2-15.

Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media 2-19

t, and down to the printer side of takeup

p into operating position.

s (with the gears), and lock in the

39. Tape the end of the media to printer side of takeup roller, starting in the middle and working out to both ends.

Be sure to maintain even tension across the width of the media.

40. Release the dancer bar locking lever.

41. Press the Proceed key.

42. Enter the media length or press the Esc key for an unde-

fined length. The printer measures the media width.

43. Press the Proceed key. The Front Page screen appears on the control panel.

44. On the Front Page screen, press the Go Online key. The printer is now ready to receive a print job from the RIP.

2-20 Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media

Printing Tips • Rigid cut-sheet media — use only flat, unwarped, undam-

aged sheets, with parallel opposite edges and 90

• Curing continues for 24-48 hours — the UV ink will con-

tinue to cure for a day or two after printing. Maximum durability and adhesion is achieved after the ink is fully cured.

° corners.

• Pausing printing — to pause printing, press the

key. While printing is paused, you can:

• Perform a Standard Purge of one or more colors, to

restore missing inkjets.

• Change media settings (vacuum, print delay).

• Pause-swap inks (see “Pause Swapping Ink,” below).

Caution Synthetic media commonly used for inkjet printing

can build up a static charge, especially in environments with low relative humidity. This charge can pose an electrostatic discharge (ESD) hazard to persons, the printer, and other equipment. It can be safely discharged by draping a grounded chain or tinsel over the top of the stack of media.

• Printing roll-fed media without the takeup — cured out-

put is dry to the touch immediately, so roll-fed output can be allowed to collect on the floor (for example, during unattended printing) without using the takeup system, with no damage to the output.

• Lighter, smaller media rolls — for lighter, smaller rolls of

media, you can use the rigid media tables and media rollers to feed the media like rigid media.

 (Pause)

Printing Tips 2-21

Pause-Swapping Ink You can replace one or more ink boxes during a print by pausing

the printer:

1. On the printer control panel, press the

2. Remove the old profiler.

This signals to the printer that the ink box is being replaced.

3. Disconnect and remove the old ink box.

4. Install and connect the new ink box.

5. Install the profiler that was included with the new ink box.

6. Repeat steps 2 through 5 for any other ink boxes you want

to replace.

7. On the printer control panel, press the

 (Pause) key.

 (Resume) key.

2-22 Printing Tips

Checking Jet Health When AutoJet detects a missing jet, it attempts to replace it with

a working jet on the same or another printhead (in Production and High Quality modes). In this way, printing occurs with all jets for maximum quality.

When you notice a decrease in print quality, one or more inkjets may be clogged. To recover clogged jets:

1. Print a Prime Bars pattern to determine whether there are

any missing jets (see below).

2. Run AutoJet (page 4-3) or Manual Jet Mapping (page

4-16).

3. If there are any missing jets, Print Jet-Out Lines (see

below).

Repeat this process until all jets are working or substituted fo r another jet.

Print Prime Bars 1. From the control panel Front Page screen, press the Prime

Bars key.

The control panel displays a prompt asking you to enter the total width of the prime bar pattern you wish to print.

2. Enter a width for the prime bar pattern by pressing the )

and , keys.

3. Press the ! (Proceed) key to continue.

The printer prints the prime bar pattern. The prime bars will show correctly working jets with a solid line, and missing jets with no line.

Map Out Missing Jets If the Prime Bars (above) reveal a blank lines, the corre sponding

jets should be mapped out. When all missing jets have been substituted, printed output will appear as if all jets are working.

You can map jets out temporarily (“soft bad jet s”) or perman ently (“hard bad jets). For instructions, see “AutoJet” on page 4-3 or “Manual Jet Mapping” on page 4-16.

Checking Jet Health 2-23

Print Jet-Out Lines 1. From the control panel Front Page screen, press the Cali-

brate key.

The Calibrate menu appears.

2. Press Manual Calibrations. The Manual Calibrations menu appears.

3. Press Print Jet-Out Lines. The Jet-Out Lines pattern prints. Substituted jet s are marked

with a black square.

2-24 Checking Jet Health

Chapter 3

This chapter describes how to use the ink.

• Ink System Overview (page 3-2)

• Loading Ink (page 3-5)

Ink

Ink 3-1

Ink System Overview The printer’s ink system consists of the following components:

• Ink boxes — bag-in-box supply of UV cure ink, suitable for

both flexible and rigid media applications.

Note Unlike other inks used in wide format printing, UV

cure ink has a limited shelf life. Plan to rotate your ink stock and use it promptly by the date printed on the ink box.

• Flushing solution — used to moisten a lint-free cloth for

cleaning the printheads, also in automated flushing of the printheads. It has no properties that work against the ink to soften or reliquify cured ink, or any other similar cleaning properties. It does not react with the ink, making it suitable for use as a lubricating agent for cleaning.

Caution Use only genuine HP inks and Flushing Solution in

the printer. Use of any other inks or cleaning fluids COULD DAMAGE THE PRINTER AND WILL VOID THE WARRANTY.

• Profilers — provided with each ink box, they contain infor-

mation about the ink and must be installed together with their corresponding box. Profiler data are used to track ink levels, and to help ensure optimal output quality and compatibility with printer components.

• Ink tubes — carry ink to the printheads, they are opaque to

prevent ink curing before printing.

• Printheads — permanent piezo-based printheads.

• Vacuum/Pressure (VP) System — provides vacuum to

maintain negative pressure at the printheads, and pressure to purge the ink tubes and printheads.

• UV lamps — provide the high-intensity ultraviolet light

required to cure the ink.

3-2 Ink System Overview

UV Lamps The printer’s two UV lamps (on the left and right sides of the

printhead carriage) emit the high-intensity ultraviolet light that is necessary to cure the UV ink. The lamps have shutters, which close when lamps are not over the media. This prevents the lig ht from causing the ink in the drip tray, on the printheads, and elsewhere off the media from curing.

You should be aware of the following characteristics of these lamps when operating the printer:

WARNING UV light hazard. The UV parking station must be

installed during printing. Excess exposure to highintensity UV light can result in photokeratitis (also known as snowblindness or welder’s flash). AVOID LOOKING DIRECTLY AT TH E UV LAMPS .

VORSICHT UV Licht hoher Intensität. Bitte vermeiden Sie es,

direkt in die Lampen zu schauen.

• UV light exposure — the printer is designed with shields,

louvers, and other features to protect the operator from exposing the eyes and skin to high levels of UV radia tion. Do not look directly at the UV light.

• High/low lamp operation — the UV lamps are operated at

high intensity only when curing the ink. When the carriage is not directly over the media, the lamps are switched to a lower intensity.

• Warm-up/cool down cycle — the UV lamps take about one

minute to warm up to operating temperature, and about three minutes to cool down fully. After printing, the lamps must fully complete their controlled cool-down cycle before warming up again for the next print job (for a total elapse d time of about four minutes). During each cycle, a countdown timer that shows the time remaining appears on the control panel.

To save time, you can manually switch on or off the lamps on via the control panel (T ools > Turn UV Lamps On/Off).

Ink System Overview 3-3

Caution Do not switch off the UV lamp power supply

unless the lamps have fully completed their controlled cool-down cycle (with fans and heat extrac-

tion). Removing power from hot lamps can result in overheating and permanent damage. If sudden removal of power occurs, contact technical support before starting the printer again.

• Lamp replacement — the UV lamps will gradually lose their

intensity and therefore their ability to cure the ink. At that point, you can switch the lamp intensity from Low to High, but they will eventually have to be replaced. For details, see step 5 on page 2-5 and “Replacing UV Lamp Bulbs” on page 6-19.

• Unidirectional printing — when printing for long periods in

one direction (unidirectionally), the curing ability of the lamps will become unbalanced, which could result in insufficient curing or printing anomolies. To avoid this, occasionally switch between Unidirectional Left and Unidirectional Right printing (see “Configure Printing” on page 2-2).

3-4 Ink System Overview

Loading Ink

When to Load Ink The amount of ink in each ink box is shown in bar gr aphs on the

control panel. The control panel notifies you when it is time to exchange an empty ink box with a new one.

Note A small amount of ink may drip from the connectors

when disconnecting and connecting them. To protect your hands from ink stains when unloading and loading ink boxes, wear latex or nitrile gloves.

Unloading an Empty

Ink Box

1. Open the ink supply access door.

2. Remove the profiler corresponding to the ink you are

replacing.

3. Lift the box out of its holder and turn the bo x upside do wn so the ink tube is pointing up.

4. Push the button at the end of the ink tube connector and disengage the tube from the ink box.

5. Remove and dispose of the ink box (refer to the MSDS for proper disposal procedures).

Loading a Full Ink Box 1. Open the new ink box and locate the supply connector.

Fig. 3-1. Ink box with supply connector

Loading Ink 3-5

2. Connect the ink supply tube to the ink box. Grasp and squeeze the ink tube connector as shown,

engage the connector to the ink box, and release the connector. Ensur e that the connectors are firmly engaged before proceeding.

Fig. 3-2. Connecting the ink tube to the ink box

3. Invert and install the ink box into position in the holder. The position for each ink color is shown on a label below the

ink box holder and on the profiler docking station.

4. Install the profiler in the corresponding docking station slot.

5. Close the ink supply access door.

3-6 Loading Ink

Pause-Swapping Ink You can replace one or more ink boxes during a print by pausing

the printer:

1. On the printer control panel, press the

2. Remove the old profiler.

This signals to the printer that the ink box is being replaced.

3. Disconnect and remove the old ink box.

4. Install and connect the new ink box.

5. Install the profiler that was included with the new ink box.

6. Repeat steps 2 through 5 for any other ink boxes you want

to replace.

7. On the printer control panel, press the

 (Pause) key.

 (Resume) key.

Loading Ink 3-7

3-8 Loading Ink

Chapter 4

Calibrating the Printer

This chapter explains how to calibrate the printer for the best possible output:

• When to Calibrate (page 4-2)

• AutoJet (page 4-3)

• AutoTune (page 4-4)

• Auto Calibrations (page 4-6) — AutoBiDi Calibration, AutoH2H

(Head-to-Head) Calibration, AutoJet Calibration, Full AutoSet

• Manual Calibrations (page 4-9) — Manual BiDi Registration, Manual

X Head Registration, Manual Jet Mapping, Media Feed, Jet Status Lines, Default Registration Data

• Linearization (page 4-24)

Calibrating the Printer 4-1

When to Calibrate The printer features several types of calibrations. Some should

be run routinely, others only when necessary:

When to run Calibration Function

When printing a large group of print jobs

When loading a new media (but not when loading a new roll of the same media)

Banding (roll-fed printing) Media Feed (page 4-21) Calibrates the media advance. Poor output quality (apparent mis-

registration of colors, banding)

When printheads have been moved or replaced

AutoTune (page 4-4) Automatic jet maintenance during

extended printing periods.

Linearization (third-party RIP manual or HP RIP documentation)

Auto Calibrations (page 4-6) Calibrates the printhead positions

Auto Bidirectional (page 4-6) or Manual Bidirectional (page 4-13)

Linearization of colors. Note: For maximum accuracy, the

photodiode must be cooled by its fan before reading color patches. If the left UV curing lamp has been on for longer than 10 minutes, the photodiode cooling fan runs for 12 minutes before taking readings; otherwise the fan runs for 7.5 minutes. The control panel displays a countdown timer while the photodiode is cooling.

and inkjets. You can also run the Manual Calibrations if necessary.

Head calibration, run Manual when calibrating transparent or other media that the onboard digital image sensor cannot calibrate.

4-2 When to Calibrate

AutoJet AutoJet detects individual inkjets that are misfiring or not firing at

all. During subsequent printing, the printer compensates for these jets by using other jets in their place, ensuring maximum print quality without reducing print speed.

You can also identify and map missing jets manually from the Manual Calibrations menu (see “Manual Jet Mapping” on page 4-16). You may want to manually map weak or misdirected jets that AutoJet does not detect and substitute.

Jet replacement is not available in Billboard mode.

To run AutoJet:

• Select AutoJet Calibration from the Auto Calibrations menu

(see “Auto Calibrations” on page 4-6), or

• Run AutoJet automatically with the AutoTune scheduler (see

“AutoTune” on page 4-4)

Tip AutoJet does not work with transparent media, nor

with many translucent media. In this case, run Manual Jet Mapping, or map jets on opaque media before loading transparent or translucent media for printing.

1. Press the Calibrate key from the Front Page screen, then

press Auto Calibrations > AutoJet Calibration in the menu.

2. The printer prints the AutoJet test pattern.

3. The printer reads the AutoJet test pattern and maps any

missing jets to available working jets. The control panel shows the progress of this operation as

the percentage completed.

4. The printer prints an AutoJet report.

AutoJet 4-3

AutoTune AutoTune runs AutoJet maintenance automatically at intervals

you specify . You can use the Quality Check Mode feature to handle AutoJet errors (with or without user intervention). AutoTune is shown on the menu only when roll-fed media is loaded.

1. On the Front Page screen, Calibrate key, then press Auto- Tune on the menu.

The control panel displays the AutoTune status (off or current interval).

2. Press , or ) to set the AutoTune interval.

3. Press ! (Proceed).

The control panel displays a confirmation message: Setting completed.

4. Press the  (Menu Out) key repeatedly until the F ront Page screen is displayed. Press the Online/Offline button to return the printer to the Ready state.

Note When AutoTune is enabled, it will be executed as

scheduled regardless of whether you initiate it manually from the control panel.

Quality Check When you run AutoJet manually, the software notifies you if

there are any jet or alignment problems so that they can be addressed. When AutoTune runs AutoJet at scheduled intervals, you can use the Quality Check feature to handle AutoJet errors.

When Quality Check is enabled, if any missing jets are found that are not substituted by a working jet, or if the BiDi calibration has not been performed, the operator can be alerted by the control panel or the job can be routed to the Attention queue on the HP print server.

1. On the Front Page screen, press the Settings key, then press Quality Check from the menu.

The control panel displays the Quality Check options.

4-4 AutoTune

• Attended Mode — user must press ! (Proceed) to

acknowledge the error and print the job (if one is pending), or  (Cancel) to cancel printing.

• Unattended Mode — no user acknowledgment of

errors is required. When a quality check fails, print jobs are sent to the HP print server’s Attention queue with a disposition of “Uncalibrated Printer” (this feature may not be supported by non-HP RIPs).

• OFF — no quality check is performed, all jobs will print.

2. Select a Quality Check option.

3. Press the  (Menu Out) key repeatedly until the Front Page

screen is displayed. Press the Online/Offline button to return the printer to the Ready state.

AutoTune 4-5

Auto Calibrations The printer’s piezo printheads are aligned at the factory. Head

and bidirectional calibrations should be necessary only rarely (for example, when the heads have been moved within the carriage or replaced).

1. Press the Calibrate key from the Front Page screen, then press Auto Calibrations in the menu.

2. Select one of the Auto Calibrations.

• AutoBiDi (bidirectional) Calibration — ensures that

every working jet fires at precisely the same location (regardless of the carriage direction of travel).

• AutoH2H (head-to-head) Calibration — ensures

that the printheads are in alignment relative to each other.

• AutoJet Calibration — locates and substitutes miss-

ing jets for working jets. This is the same calibration performed as when you press the AutoJet button on the Front Page screen (see “AutoJet” on page 4-3).

• Full AutoSet — runs all three calibrations in

sequence. The printer prints a test pattern then reads it and makes The necessary adjustments or jet substitutions. After completing the calibration(s), a report is printed that shows:

• Calibration results — a summary such as SUC-

CESSFUL CALIBRATION or an error message

• Header showing the date and time, software ver-

sion, and printer type

• Calibration detail — the calibration data for each

head. The AutoJet detail reports how many jets were mapped out by AutoJet, how many are permanently mapped out by the operator, and whether the head is usable (from a jetout standpoint) in the various print modes. The higher quality modes (Production and High Quality) use jet replacement, so they can print successfully with a greater number of jets out than can Billboard mode.

4-6 Auto Calibrations

• AutoSet Summary — when enabled, a table of the

results of the Full AutoSet calibration is printed after the AutoSet test patterns. When you enable the AutoSet Summary, you can show or hide the detailed calibration data.

Auto Calibrations 4-7

Fig. 4-1. Auto calibration patterns and reports

4-8 Auto Calibrations

Manual Calibrations When you run the calibrations from this menu, you evaluate the

calibration test patterns visually and enter the calibration values via the control panel.

Note The manual BiDi and X head calibrations are time-

consuming and can be error-prone, but is necessary when calibrating transparent media or other media that the printer’s digital image sensor cannot calibrate.

Before calibrating the printer, first clean the printhead jets. See “Checking Jet Health” on page 2-23 for tips on detecting and recovering missing jets.

1. Press the Calibrate key from the Front Page screen, then press Manual Calibrations in the menu.

The Manual Calibration menu consists of these options:

• Manual BiDi Registration (page 4-13) — the man-

ual version of AutoBiDi Calibration.

• Manual X Head Registration (page 4-10) — the

manual version of AutoH2H Calibration.

• Manual Jet Mapping (page 4-16) — the manual ver-

sion of AutoJet.

• Jet Status Lines (page 4-21) — prints a quick test

pattern that shows which jets are out.

• Media Feed Calibration

• Print Jet-Out Lines — prints a version of the Prime

Bars in which missing jets that are replaced are marked with a black square.

• Default Registration Data (page 4-23) — sets all

registration data to zero.

After calibration and jet mapping, perform a linearization or color calibration (as supported by your print server or RIP).

Manual Calibrations 4-9

Manual X Head

Registration

Precise positioning of each drop of ink is essential for optimal print quality. This is possible only if you register all printheads in the printhead assembly to each other in the X (along the length of the platen) direction.

This is a two-part process:

• Print a registration pattern.

• Enter the X registration data for each head.

Note This is the manual version of AutoH2H Calibration

(see “Auto Calibrations” on page 4-6 for details).

1. Press the Calibrate key from the Front Page screen, then press Manual Calibrations in the menu.

2. Press Manual X Head Registration in the menu. The control panel asks whether you want to print a manual

head-to-head calibration page.

• If you have a calibration pattern from a recent print,

you can use it to calibrate the heads. Press ( (Cancel) and go to the next step.

• If you need to print a new calibration pattern, press !

(Proceed). The printer prints a calibration page.

When the calibration page has printed, the control panel displays this prompt:

Take readings from left side of pattern.

3. Press the ! key. The control panel displays this message:

X Direction Registration

Head 2: +0

4. Examine the X direction pattern (in the left-hand group of patterns) for the current head, and determine which pattern of colored and black lines are the closest to perfec tly aligned.

4-10 Manual Calibrations

Use a printer’s loupe or magnifying glass if the patterns are difficult to see.

Fig. 4-2. Sample head calibration patterns

5. Press the , or ) control panel keys repeatedly until the number next to the pattern that is closest to aligned perfectly is displayed.

For example, if pattern -1 is the closest aligned, press the ) key to change the display to:

X Direction Registration

Head 2: -1

If a printhead is extremely out of alignment, there may be no pattern in alignment. Since the black vertical bars are five pixels apart, you can add +5 or -5 to a pattern number to shift the colored bars up or down by one black bar. Alternatively, you can repeatedly perform the X calibration, which

Manual Calibrations 4-11

will move the head in smaller increments, until the head is aligned.

6. Press ! (Proceed). The control panel message increments the head number by

one.

7. Repeat steps 4 through 6 for each of the heads. When you have entered registration values for all of the pat-

terns, the control panel displays this message:

Registration successful.

4-12 Manual Calibrations

Manual BiDi Registration Bidirectional registration is a method to align each of the print-

heads so that dot placement is accurate in both directions along the X axis (along the direction of printhead travel).

The bidirectional registration pattern consists of a series of vertical lines. Half the pixels in this pattern are printed in one direction, half of them in the other direction. When the pixels ar e accurately aligned, the pattern is clear. When the dots are not aligned, the pattern appears fuzzy and ill-defined.

Note AutoBiDi Calibration is the automatic version of this

calibration. Try AutoBiDi first before running this manual calibration (see “Auto Calibrations” on page 4-6 for details).

1. Press the Calibrate key from the Front Page screen, then press Manual Calibrations in the menu.

2. Press Manual BiDi Registration on the menu. The control panel displays this prompt:

Print a manual bidi registration page?

3. Press ! (Proceed). The printer prints the calibration pattern you selected.

4. When the calibration page has printed, the control p anel di splays this prompt:

Bidi registration

Head 1: 0

5. Examine the BiDi Registration pattern for the current head, and determine which pattern is the closest to perfectly aligned.

Manual Calibrations 4-13

Use a printer’s loupe to select the pattern, since the lines in the patterns may be difficult to see.

Fig. 4-3. BiDi Registration pattern

6. Press the , or ) control panel keys repeatedly until the number next to the pattern that is closest to al igned perfectly is displayed.

For example, if pattern +2.0 is the closest aligned, press the , key to change the display to:

Bidi registration

Head 1: +2

If a printhead is extremely out of alignment, there may be no pattern in alignment. Since the black vertical bars are nominally five pixels apart, you can add +5 or -5 to a pattern number to shift the colored bars right or left by one black bar. Alternatively, you can perform the BiDi Registration repeat-

4-14 Manual Calibrations

edly, which will move the head in smaller increments, until the head is aligned.

7. Press ! (Proceed). The control panel message increments the head number by

one.

8. Repeat steps 5 through 7 for each of the twelve heads. When you have entered registration values for all heads, the

control panel displays this message:

Registration Successful

Manual Calibrations 4-15

Manual Jet Mapping Jets that are missing or misfiring are usually detected by the

AutoJet calibration. Alternatively, you can map out je ts manually using the Manual Jet Mapping function. You may want to manually map weak or misdirected jets that AutoJet does not substitute.

Tip AutoJet is the automatic version of this calibration

(see “AutoJet” on page 4-3 for details).

Tip For best results, print the prime bars and purge the

printheads as necessary to ensure the maximum number of working jets. See “Checking Jet Health” on page 2-23 for instructions.

1. Press the Calibrate key from the Front Page screen, then press Manual Calibrations in the menu.

2. Press Manual Jet Mapping in the menu. The control panel displays this message:

Print Jet Map?

If you have a calibration pattern from a recent print, you can use it to calibrate the heads. Press ( (Cancel) and go to the next step. Otherwise, press !.

4-16 Manual Calibrations

The printer prints a jet map test pattern.

Fig. 4-4. Sample jet mapping pattern (Head 1 of 16)

• If a line segment is missing or broken, the jet number

shown next to it is out.

• If a line segment is marked with a code letter:

R — no replacement S — user disqualified “soft” jetout H — user disqualified “hard” jetout D — disqualified (and replaced) by AutoJet

Manual Calibrations 4-17

3. When the calibration pattern has printed, the control panel displays a menu with the following options:

• Report individual soft bad jets — enables you to

report a “soft” bad jet, which can be automatically reenabled if AutoJet finds it working.

• Report individual hard bad jets — enables you to

report a “hard” bad jet, which will not be checked or reenabled by AutoJet.

• Clear individual bad jets — enables you to clear

(mark as good) a jet.

• View current bad jets — lists the bad jets on a given

printhead.

• Clear all bad jets — clears (marks as good) all jets

currently marked as unusable.

A “soft” bad jet is a jet that you believe is temporarily out, based on past performance. A “hard” ba d jet is a jet that you believe is permanently out.

Select an option and follow the corresponding procedure below.

Report Individual Bad Jets

When you select Report Individual Bad Jets, the control panel displays the following prompt:

Head 1:

Press Proceed to report a bad jet.

4. Press , and ) to select a head number, then press ! (Proceed).

The control panel displays a numeric keyboard that you can use to enter the number of the bad jet.

5. Enter the jet number, then press the Enter key.

6. When you are finished entering jet numbers, press the Esc

key. The control panel displays the head selection message

again.

4-18 Manual Calibrations

7. Press , and ) to select the next head number, then press ! (Proceed).

8. Repeat steps 5 through 7 for each head containing bad jets you want to report.

9. When you are finished reporting bad jets, press (. The control panel displays the previous menu.

Clear Individual Bad Jets

When you select Clear Individual Bad Jets, the control panel displays the following prompt:

Head 1:

Press Proceed to clear a bad jet.

10. Press , and ) to select a head number, then press ! (Proceed).

The control panel displays a numeric keyboard that you can use to enter the number of the bad jet.

11. Enter the jet number, then press the Enter key.

12. When you are finished entering jet numbers, press the Esc

key. The control panel displays the head selection message

again.

13. Press , and ) to select the next head number, then press ! (Proceed).

14. Repeat steps 11 through 13 for each head containing bad jets you want to clear.

15. When you are finished clearing bad jets, press (. The control panel displays the previous menu.

View Current Bad Jets

When you select View Current Bad Jets, the control panel displays the following prompt:

Press Proceed to view bad jets.

Manual Calibrations 4-19

Head 1:

16. Press , and ) to select a head number, then press ! (Proceed).

The control panel displays a message that lists the bad jets by number.

17. Press ! to return to the head selection screen.

18. Repeat steps 16 and 17 for each head you want to check for

bad jets.

19. When you are finished clearing bad jets, pre ss (. The control panel displays the previous menu.

Clear All Bad Jets

When you select Clear All Bad Jets, the control panel displays the following prompt:

Are you sure you want to clear

ALL reported bad jets?

• Press ( to cancel this function, or

• Press ! (Proceed). The control panel displays this

message:

Do you want to clear the hard bad jets?

• Press No to clear the soft bad jets only.

• Press Yes to clear both the hard and soft jets.

The control panel displays this message:

All reported bad jets have been cleared.

20. Press ! (Proceed). When you have finished mapping jets, the following sum-

mary appears on the control panel:

x soft jets currently reported bad.

x hard jets currently reported bad.

x new soft bad jets reported.

x new hard bad jets reported.

x previous soft bad jets cleared.

x previous hard bad jets cleared.

where x is the number of jets.

4-20 Manual Calibrations

Jet Status Lines This option prints the Manual Jet Mapping test pattern (see Fig.

4-4 on page 4-17) that shows which jets are working, and which jets are out, but does not run the Manual Jet Mapping calibration (see “Manual Jet Mapping” on page 4-16 for information).

Media Feed Calibration This calibration allows you to calibrate the accuracy of the media

advance. Inaccurate media advance can result in blank spaces between print swaths (too much advance) or overlapping swaths (too little advance). The Media Wizard stores this value by media type, and displays a media feed number (MFN), which you can record for subsequent entry.

The media feed number enables you to quickly specify a known good media feed setting without recalibration. For example, you could keep a list of media feed numbers by media type, or by media type and full, half, and nearly empty supply rolls.

Tip Y ou can also adjust the media adva nce while a print

job is printing. Repeatedly press the increase advance or decrease advance button shown on the control panel to eliminate blank spaces or overlap between print swaths. When you do this, the media feed number displayed on the control panel changes accordingly.

1. On the Manual Calibrations menu, highlight Media Feed.

2. Press the  (Menu In) key to select the option. Stitch pa ttern — First, allow the printer to print the following

number of swaths, depending on the mode you want to calibrate:

• 16 swaths in High Quality mode, or

• 8 swaths in Production mode, or

• 4 swaths in Billboard mode

Next, press the , key to increase the advance until you see blank spaces between swaths.

Finally, press the ) key to decrease the advance until the blank spaces are eliminated, but avoid dark lines between swaths (which indicate overlap). This method allows for the

Manual Calibrations 4-21

tendency of the media advance to gradually decrease as the size of the supply roll decreases.

You can pause and resume the printing of the stitch pattern. 34-inch (900 mm) calibration — prints a 34-inch (or 900

mm) test pattern so you can verify its le ngth with an accurate metal ruler. Cut the pattern from the media web, then measure and adjust the media advance as needed until the pattern is exactly 34 inches (900 mm) long.

10-inch (250 mm) calibration — prints a 10-inch (or 250 mm) test pattern so you can verify its le ngth with an accurate metal ruler. This is not as precise as the 34-inch (900 mm) calibration, but it uses less media. Measure and adjust the media advance as needed until the pattern is exactly 10 inches (250 mm) long.

Fig. 4-5. Measure between the calibration marks

4-22 Manual Calibrations

Tip To avoid cutting the 10-inch (250 mm) pattern from

the media web, copy the marks from the printed pattern to the long edge of a letter-size (or A4) sheet of paper. Then measure the transferred marks and adjust the media advance as needed until the marks are exactly 10 inches (250 mm) apart.

Tip Run the 34-inch or 10-inch calibration first, then run

the stitch pattern version to fine-tune the media advance accuracy.

Input MFN — enter the Media Feed Number that was displayed after a previous media feed calibration, to return to that setting without performing the calibration again.

Print Jet-Out Lines This option prints a version of the Prime Bars in which missing

jets that are replaced are marked with a black square.

Default Registration Data This option resets all registra tion dat a. Sin ce there is no re gistra-

tion data after running this option, all calibration values must be reestablished by running the calibrations.

Manual Calibrations 4-23

Linearization As the density of an image varies from highlight s to sha dows, or

from lighter tints to darker tints, the printer should accurately reproduce these areas in a predictable, or linear, fashion. The process of linearization (or color calibration) involves printing and reading color test patches, and calibrating the printer to ensure that the expected and printed densities will match. This in turn will ensure optimal color matching.

You should perform a color calibration when:

• You notice a shift (change) in color output

• Changing media types

• Changing print mode (only if the most precise color match-

ing is required)

Color calibration is a feature of the print server or RIP connected to the printer. Refer to the documentation that accompanies the RIP for further information.

4-24 Linearization

Chapter 5

Using the Control Panel

This chapter describes the functions of the control panel.

• Overview (page 5-2)

• Front Page (page 5-3)

• Menu Tree (page 5-7)

• Menus (page 5-8)

Using the Control Panel 5-1

Overview The touch-screen control panel shows you the printer’s current

status, and enables you to interact with the printer when changing media and ink, respond to an error condition, or configure options.

The control panel provides various forms of online user assistance:

The ? button provides an explanation of the current function, with some guidance for what to do next.

The ATTN (Attention) key blinks on the control panel when the printer detects an error condition, potential error condition, or when you make a change that suggests recalibration or other action to ensure best print quality. There are two types of ATTN messages:

• Actions — the printer has detected an error condition that

stopped printing or will prevent printing from starting. You must correct the error before the printer will be ready to print.

• Warnings — the printer has detected a condition that, if left

unaddressed, could result in substandard prints or a condition that will require an action before printing can continue. Any action on your part is optional. Printing is not interrupted for a Warning message.

When the printer issues one of these messages, the ATTN key will blink, and an alert beep will sound (unless disabled, see page 5-13). Press the ATTN key to display a list of message titles, and select a title to display a detailed cause-and-recovery screen.

If you choose to not correct a Warning condition and resume printing, the ATTN key will remain displayed, but will not blink until the printer issues a new Warning or Action message. The messages can be dismissed by correcting the condition, or by pressing the applicable key on the detail screen.

Tip To disable the ATTN key, switch to Expert Mode.

Expert mode routes most messages to an Actions & Warnings menu option. See page 5-12 for instructions on choosing Expert mode.

5-2 Overview

Front Page The Front Page is the primary control panel interface. The most

common operations can be initiated from this screen.

12 3

14 15

11 12

20 21

16 17

25‘

1. Media information — media name, size, print area, pr int able

length

2. Printer status

• Printer model

• Printer name — the name of the printer as defined on the

print server or under the menu at Printer Settings >

Printer Name

• Network status

• Current print mode

3. Ink levels — numeric and graphic ink levels; line marks “low ink” level

4. Media detector (red=media out, green=media detected)

5. UV lamps status (U=user side, S=service side) — black=off,

yellow=on, blinking=warming up

Front Page 5-3

6. Vacuum Pressure — graphical and numeric indication of vacuum pressure; green region is nominal

7. Media Handling

• Input media roller up or down

• Media alignment bar up or down

• Output media roller up or down

8. Output side door status (open or closed) — monitors the doors on the output side of the printer and endcap cabinets

9. Stored Jobs — displays status information for the Stored Jobs area in the printer’s memory: number of Stored Jobs, amount of available and free memory. See “Stored Jobs” on page 2-11 for details.

10. Sleep/Wake mode — Sleep powers down the UV lamps, ionizer bar, prin theads, carriage, ink pumps, and media dr ive motors, but maintains vacuum to the printheads to prevent ink leakage. (The ionizer bar is not switched off in Sleep mode, but may be turned off manually at its powe r supply, inside the cover on the service end of the stand.) During Sleep mode, the carriage is moved back and forth a short distance to prevent flat spots from developing on its wheels. Wake powers up the printer components. The printer goes into sleep mode automatically after a user-defined period of time (see page 5-12), and “wakes” automatically when a print job is received or a printer operation is performed from the control panel.

Caution If printhead vacuum is lost during Sleep Mode, ink

will begin to seep from the printheads and onto the drip tray.

To prevent ink leakage during an unexpected power outage, use the vacuum/pressure system’s 24 volt auxiliary power supply and connect it to an uninterruptable power supply (UPS). See Appendix A for specifications. It is not necessary to connect the entire printer to a UPS, only the vacuum/pressure system needs to be connected to avoid ink seepage.

5-4 Front Page

11. Print prime bars — fires all jets by drawing a set of lines called prime bars. This is a good way to inspect and prepare the jets for printing after they have been idle (see “Print Prime Bars” on page 3-9). You can also print a similar pattern called Print Jet-Out Lines, which shows which jets have been detected and replaced by AutoJet (see page 3-12 for details).

12. Purge printheads — purges the printheads to help recover missing jets. Follow a purge with a m anual dab or blot of the printheads (do not wipe) with a lint-free cloth.

13. Print mode — sets print quality mode. See “Configure Printing” on page 2-2 for instructions.

14. Turn On Lamp s/Turn Off Lamps — enables you to manually switch the lamps on and off.

15. Media Wizard — displays the Media Wizard.

16. Load (visible when media is not loaded) — lo ads media. See

“Load and Print on Rigid Media” on page 2-8, or “Load and Print on Roll-Fed Media” on page 2-15, for instructions.

17. Configure & Load — configures the printer for a media type. See “Configure Media” on page 2-6 for instructions.

18. Move media forward/backward — press the ) key to advance the media forward. When you press and hold the ) key , the media moves faster. Press the , key to reverse the media back onto the supply spool. When you press and hold the , key, the media moves faster.

19. Jobs — print and managed Stored Jobs. See “Stored Jobs” on page 2-11 for instructions.

20. Calibrate — displays the Calibrate Printer menu.

21. Option settings — displays the Printer Settings menu.

22. Tools — displays the Tools menu.

23. About — displays the embedded software version.

24. Online/offline switch — switches network communications

on and off between the printer and RIP.

Front Page 5-5

25. Attention messages — blinks on the control panel when the printer detects an error conditio n, potential error condition, or when you make a change that requires recalibration or other action to ensure best print quality. See “Overview” on page 5-2 for more information.

5-6 Front Page

Menu Tree This menu tree reflects version 2.30 of the embedded printer

software. Refer to the Release Notes for more recent versions. Options shown in italics are dynamically hidden depending on the printer mode.

Calibrate Printer

Auto Calibrations

AutoBidi Calibration AutoH2H Calibration AutoJet Calibration Full AutoSet AutoSet Summary

Manual Calibrations

Manual Bidi Registration Printhead X Calibration Manual Jet Mapping Jet Status Lines Media Feed Calibration Print Jet-Out Lines Default Registration Data

AutoTune (Rollfed printing only)

Printer Settings

Special Modes (sheetfed printing)

Edge-To-Edge (Sides Only)

Edge-To-Edge (All 4 Edges) Vacuum Control Printing Delay Margins Space Between Prints (Rollfed) Print Position Measure Media (Sheetfed) Print White Space Head Height off Media Eject Sheets to Input Side (Sheetfed) Purge Type Top Gutters Quality Check Sleep Wait Time Expert/Novice Messages Localization

Units of Measure

Tim e Format

Date Format

Vacuum Pressure Units Use Thickness Sensor Low Ink Warning UV Lamps Idle Time Support Rollfed Printer Name Restore All Defaults

Tools

System Information Maintenance

Perform An Air Purge Print Recover Jets Pattern Access Printheads Print Jet-Out Lines Print Media Skew Lines Reset Reservoir Filters Reset UV Lamp Hours Printheads Procedures

Load Ink In All Heads Fill Heads with Ink Empty Heads (Fill with Air)

User Diagnostics

Printhead Jet Statistics VideoNet Status VideoNet Connection Carriage Motion Calibration Vacuum Pressure Warnings and Actions List Error History Log Error History Log System Info

Warnings & Actions (In Expert Mode only)

Service Printer

Print Menus

Menu Tree 5-7

Menus The printer’s less-often used functions ar e accessed via the

menus. The printer has these menus and functions:

• Calibrate Printer (see below)

• Printer Settings (page 5-10)

• Tools (page 5-14)

• Warnings & Actions (page 5-16), shown in Expert Messages

Mode only

• Print Menus (page 5-16)

• Service Menus — for use by factory, technical support, and

authorized service providers

Calibrate Printer To display this menu, press the Calibrate button on the Front

Page screen. For instructions on using these options, see Chapter 4, Calibrating the Printer.

• Auto Calibrations — see “Auto Calibrations” on page 4-6

for instructions.

• Auto Bidi Calibration — ensures that every working jet

fires a pixel at precisely the same location, in both directions of travel

• Auto H2H Calibration — aligns the printheads relative to

each other

• AutoJet Calibration — locates and substitutes missing

jets for working jets

• Full AutoSet — runs AutoJet, AutoBiDi, and AutoH2H in

sequence

• AutoSet Summary — when enabled, a table of the results

of the Full AutoSet calibration is printed after the AutoSet test patterns. When you enable the AutoSet Summary, you can show or hide the detailed calibration data.

5-8 Menus

• Manual Calibrations — allows you to calibrate the printer

visually, without the printer’s digital imaging sensor. Inaccurate judgments by the operator during these tests could result in substandard output. See “Manual Calibrations” on page 4-9 for instructions.

• Manual Bidi Registration

• Manual X Head Registration

• Manual Jet Mapping — the manual version of AutoJet

• Jet Status Lines — prints the Manual Jet Mapping pat-

tern without running the calibration

• Media Feed Calibration

• Print Jet-Out Lines — prints a version of the prime bars

(see page 5-3), in which missing jets that are replaced are marked with a black square.

• Default Registration Data — resets all registration data.

Since there is no registration data after running this option, all printhead calibration values must be reestablished by running the calibrations.

• AutoTune (roll-fed media only) — schedules jet mainte-

nance to run automatically after a certain number of prints have printed. See “AutoTune” on page 4-4 for instructions.

Menus 5-9

Printer Settings To display this menu, press the Settings button on the Front

Page screen. Printer Settings enables you to set many options that control how the printer operates. Settings saved by the Media Wizard are indicated by

MEDIA WIZARD • Vacuum Control — turns on the vacuum fans, then allows

you to raise or lower the fan speed. Raise the speed if the media is warped and rising off the platen, lower the sp eed if the media is buckling or wrinkling. Turn off the vacuum fans for lightweight media. There are three vacuum zones:

• Input Zone — from the media alignment bar to about half-

way to the input end of the media drive belt. This zone is automatically turned off during the media load process until the SHEET READY foot switch is depressed.

• Pre-Print Zone — from the media alignment bar to just

before the printhead carriage.

• Print Zone — under the printhead carriage.

MEDIA WIZARD • Printing Delay — slows throughput (media advance speed)

to allow the media to cool between passes, preventing warp ing of rigid media or curling of roll-fed media.

• Gutter Settings — determines the appearance of the top

and side gutters:

MEDIA WIZARD in the margin.

• Top Gutters — allows you to turn On or Off the gutter

data at the top edge of the print, which shows the job name, ink, media, date and time printed, print mode, lamps setting, printer, embedded software version, plus write-in blanks for other data.

• Side Gutters — sets the side gutter pattern to Narrow,

Medium, or Wide sizes, or turns them Off. Side gutter patterns help keep the inkjets open by firing ink through them in a pattern outside the printed image area.

• Margin Settings

• Space Between Prints (roll-fed) — sets the blank space

between print jobs, between 0 and 10 inches (25 cm).

5-10 Menus

• Margins:

•Right and Left Margin — sets the amount of blank

space for the right and left margins, between 0.25 and 5 inches (6-127 mm) for roll-fed media, and between 0 and 5 inches (0-127 mm) for rigid cutsheet media.

•Leading Margin — defines the margin on the leading

edge of cut-sheet media, between 0 and 15 inches (0-38 cm).

•Trailing Margin — defines the margins on the trailing

edge of cut-sheet media, between 0 and 15 inches (0-38 cm).

When you set the margins to zero (edge-to-edge print-

ing on cut-sheet media), the printer prompts you for an Overprint value. This is the distance beyond the edge of the media to print, to help avoid a blank strip if the sheet is slightly skewed, not perfectly rectangular, or other error is present.

Note If you load roll-fed media after printing on cut-sheet

media, the printer automatically resets the margins to 0.25 inches (6 mm). You can still change them at any time.

Tip You can position an image anywhere on the media

by setting the right margin (horizontal or x distance from the right edge) and leading margin (vertical or y distance from the leading edge). Since the image appears upside down as it emerges from th e printer, the upper left corner of the image will appear at this point.

• Print Position — when the printed image does not span the

entire width of the media, positions the printed image flush left (nearest the control panel or user side), flush right, or centered on the media.

• Print White Space — provides the option of causing the

printer to advance the media past white space in th e document file without the usual “printing” carriage motion. The

Menus 5-11

printer will finish curing any printed areas before skipping white space.

• Head Height off Media — automatically raises the rail to set

the printhead clearance from the media, at th e he igh t you specify. A lower height reduces overspray, but increases the chances for a head strike on the media. Bidi calibration is automatically adjusted for changes in this value.

• Eject Sheets to Input Side — after printing, reverses the

media feed and ejects the printed sheet out the input side. This makes it possible for the operator to perform all operations on the input side of the printer, and makes the workflow for two-sided printing more efficient. (Two-sided printing of Stored Jobs always ejects out the output side. See “Stored Jobs” on page 2-11 for details.)

• Purge Type — Select Low Volume to clear most jet-outs, or

High Volume to clear stubborn jet-outs (default, expels more ink).

• Measure Media — for cut-sheet media, you can choose var-

ious levels of precision for finding the left (user end), right (service end), and front edges of the media.

• Minimal — measures the width of the media once and

finds the front right edge; no skew detection

• Standard — measures the width of the media once, and

finds the front edge in two places to estimate skew

• One Edge — measures the user- and service-end edges

on the first sheet, user-end edge only on subsequent sheets, and the front right edge (no skew detection). For single-sheet jobs only, not available for multi-sheet N-UP. Works best on jobs with wider margins.

• Maximal — measures the width of the media in two

places to estimate skew

Choose Minimal for fastest throughput, Maximal for greatest precision and skew detection when printing edge-to-edge.

• Quality Check — determines how AutoTune errors are

handled (see page 4-4).

• Sleep Wait Time — sets the period of time to wait for a print

job before going into Sleep mode (see page 5-4).

• Expert/Novice Messages — Novice mode presents an

ATTN (Attention) key with Warnings (alerts that do not prohibit printing) and Actions (conditions that require user inter-

5-12 Menus

vention before printing can proceed). Expert mode presents Actions only, presents fewer “press Proceed” prompts after an Action has been addressed. The default is Novice mode.

When in Expert mode, active Warnings and Actions can be displayed by selecting Warnings & Actions from the menu, since Warnings will not cause the ATTN key to appear in Expert mode. See “Overview” on page 5-2 for further information about Actions and Warnings.

• Localization — sets English or Metric units of measure,

time and date formats, and vacuum pressure units, for data displayed by the control panel.

• Low Ink Warning — defines the amount of ink remaining in

the ink box supply at which the printer will display a “low ink” message on the control panel.

• Support Rollfed — enables or disables support for the roll-

fed media supply and takeup system. If the system does not appear to be working, check this menu item.

• UV Lamps Idle Time — sets the amount of time the lamps

will stay on after printing before they are automatically turned off by the printer. The idle time can be set from 1 to 10 minutes. Increase the idle time if you are printing several jobs and waiting for the lamps to warm up between prints. Decrease the idle time if printing single jobs.

• UV Lamps Warm-Up Time — if both UV lamps have not

warmed up completely when the first print begins printing, printing anomolies are likely to occur due to insufficientlycured ink. This option allows you to extend the warm-up period to ensure that both lamp s have warmed up enough to cure the ink completely. The current warm-up period is displayed on the Front Page printer status pages.

• Printer Name — displays a keypad to change the printer

name displayed on the control panel and RIP.

• Restore All Defaults — restores all Printer Configuration

settings to their factory default values, and zeroes all registration data. After running this option, all printhead calibration values must be reestablished by running AutoSet or manual calibrations.

Menus 5-13

Tools To display this menu, press the Tools button on the Front Page

screen.

• Turn UV Lamps On/Off — enables you to turn on or off the

UV lamps manually instead of automatically when the printer detects a print job. For example, you may want to tur n on the lamps to allow them to warm up before sending a print job from the RIP.

• System Information — displays current status information

for the printer.

Maintenance

• Perform An Air Purge — purges the printheads with air, as

specified under Purge Type (see page 5-12).

• Print Recover Jets Pattern — prints a special pattern

designed to recover missing inkjets. After printing this pattern, the prime bars are printed.

• Access Printheads — moves the printhead carriage to the

service end for inspection or cleaning.

• Print Jet-Out Lines — prints a version of the prime ba rs

(see page 5-3), in which missing jets that are replaced are marked with a black square.

• Print Media Skew Lines — continuously prints a swath of

parallel lines across the width of the media, in alternating directions, until you stop the print. If the swaths are not parallel to each other, the media is skewed (not feeding straight). If there is a noticeable space between swaths, or if they overlap, the media advance shou ld be calib ra te d.

• Reset Reservoir Filters — after you replace the filters,

select this option to reset the ink counts to zero. See “Replace Ink Filters” on page 6-15 for instructions.

• Reset UV Lamp Hours — resets the lamp’s elapsed operat-

ing time clock to zero. The printer displays a warning message when the UV lamps have been in service for a certain period. They should be replaced when they are no longer curing the ink. To view the total operating time for each lamp, press the Status key on the Front Page, and advance to the page where this is listed.

5-14 Menus

HP (Hewlett-Packard) FB910 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

Regulatory Statements

DOC (Canada) This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise for digi-

FCC-A This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A

Related Documentation

Getting St arted

Quick Tour

Basic Printer Operations

Daily Startup To ensure the functioning or substitution of all inkjets, and opti-

Recover Jets Part 1 6. Press the Purge key on the control panel to purge the print-

Recover Jets Part 2 If any missing jets are observed after printing the Recover Jets

Printing When the printer is connected to a HP RIP, here is how a typical

600x300 Printing

Daily Shutdown DO NOT POWER DOWN THE PRINTER.

Important Operating Notes

Safety Warnings English

Deutsch

Español

Français

Italiano

Printing

Configure Printing The printer can print in several different modes for the combina-

Configure Media Before the printer will accept a print job, it must be configured for

Media Wizard key. The Media Wizard also lets you create a

Load and Print on Rigid Media

Quick Load After printing a job, if the next job will be printed on the same

Multi-Sheet N-UP Multi-sheet N-UP allows you to print a multiple-copy job on multi-

Margins

Using the Camera to Locate the Sheets

“Incomplete” Rows

Stored Jobs Whenever the printer receives a print job from the RIP, the jo b is

New Load 6. On the Select Thickness Units screen, press the option that

Restore Loaded State 27. As prompted by the control panel, remove the foam press

Printing Tips 2-21

Pause-Swapping Ink You can replace one or more ink boxes during a print by pausing

Checking Jet Health When AutoJet detects a missing jet, it attempts to replace it with

Print Prime Bars 1. From the control panel Front Page screen, press the Prime

Map Out Missing Jets If the Prime Bars (above) reveal a blank lines, the corre sponding

Print Jet-Out Lines 1. From the control panel Front Page screen, press the Cali-

Ink System Overview The printer’s ink system consists of the following components:

UV Lamps The printer’s two UV lamps (on the left and right sides of the

Loading Ink

When to Load Ink The amount of ink in each ink box is shown in bar gr aphs on the

Loading a Full Ink Box 1. Open the new ink box and locate the supply connector.

Pause-Swapping Ink You can replace one or more ink boxes during a print by pausing

Calibrating the Printer

When to Calibrate The printer features several types of calibrations. Some should

AutoJet AutoJet detects individual inkjets that are misfiring or not firing at

AutoTune AutoTune runs AutoJet maintenance automatically at intervals

Quality Check When you run AutoJet manually, the software notifies you if

Auto Calibrations The printer’s piezo printheads are aligned at the factory. Head

Manual Calibrations When you run the calibrations from this menu, you evaluate the

2. Press Manual X Head Registration in the menu. The control panel asks whether you want to print a manual

Manual BiDi Registration Bidirectional registration is a method to align each of the print-

Manual Jet Mapping Jets that are missing or misfiring are usually detected by the

Report Individual Bad Jets

Clear Individual Bad Jets

View Current Bad Jets

Clear All Bad Jets

Jet Status Lines This option prints the Manual Jet Mapping test pattern (see Fig.

Media Feed Calibration This calibration allows you to calibrate the accuracy of the media

Print Jet-Out Lines This option prints a version of the Prime Bars in which missing

Default Registration Data This option resets all registra tion dat a. Sin ce there is no re gistra-

Linearization As the density of an image varies from highlight s to sha dows, or

Using the Control Panel

Overview The touch-screen control panel shows you the printer’s current

Front Page The Front Page is the primary control panel interface. The most

Menu Tree This menu tree reflects version 2.30 of the embedded printer

Menus The printer’s less-often used functions ar e accessed via the

Calibrate Printer To display this menu, press the Calibrate button on the Front

Printer Settings To display this menu, press the Settings button on the Front

Tools To display this menu, press the Tools button on the Front Page

Maintenance