Intermec PB41 User Manual

Quick Start Guide

PB41
4-Inch Belt Printer

Intermec Technologies Corporation

Corporate Headquarters Technical Communications
6001 36th Ave. W. 550 Second Street SE

Everett, WA 98203 Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
U.S.A. U.S.A.

www.intermec.com

The information contained herein is proprietary and is provided
solely for the purpose of allowing customers to operate and
service Intermec-manufactured equipment and is not to be
released, reproduced, or used for any other purpose without
written permission of Intermec.

Information a nd specifications contained in this document are
subject to change without prior notice and do not represent a
commitment on the part of Intermec Technologies Corporation.

E 2003 by Intermec Technologies Corporation. All rights re­served.

The word Intermec, the Intermec logo, Norand, ArciTech,
CrossBar,DataCollectionBrowser,dcBrowser,Duratherm,
EasyCoder, EasyLAN, Enterprise Wireless LAN, EZBuilder,
Fingerprint, i-gistics, INCA (under license), InterDriver,
Intermec Printer Network Manager, IRL, JANUS, LabelShop,
Mobile Framework, MobileLAN, Nor*Ware, Pen*Key,
Precision Print, PrintSet, RoutePower, TE 2000, Trakker
Antares, UAP, Universal Access Point, and Virtual Wedge are
either trademarks or registered trademarks of Intermec
Technologies Corporation.

Throughout this manual, trademarked names may be used.
Rather than put a trademark (™ or ®)symbolinevery
occurrence of a trademarked name, we state that we are using
the names only in an editorial fashion, and to the benefit of the
trademark owner, with no intention of infringement.

There are U.S. and foreign patents pending.

2 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Packing L ist

Checktoensurethatyoureceivetheseitems:

R

S Intermec

Bluetooth radio

S Intermec

belt ) Printer with 802.11b radio

S One roll of paper (in printer)

S Two Battery Packs (installed)

S Compliance Statement

S Warranty Card

S 802.11b Radio Card (802.11b printer only). Card is packed

in a bag taped to the inside of the printer box.

*Bluetooth is a trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc., U.S.A.

Common Accessories List

Cable Part Number

Data Cable (Hirose to RJ -11) 321-578-001

Power Adapters Part Number

U.S. AC Adapter, 12 volt DC 320-066-042

English AC Adapter, 12 volt DC 320-066-043

European AC Adapter, 12 volt DC 320-066-044

Australian AC Adapter, 12 volt DC 320-066-045

Cigarette Lighter Adapter, 12 volt 320-066-033

Supplies Part Number

Replacement Li-Ion 7.2V 2200 mAh Battery 320-088-101

Battery Eliminator 851-074-001

Thermal paper 130’/roll, 50/case 320-081-011

4-Inch Cleaning Cards (100 per pack) 320-070-013

Individual Cleaning Card 320-066-013

PB41A0B240 (4-inch thermal belt ) Printer with

OR

R

PB41A27040 or PB41A27042 (4-inch thermal

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

3

Getting Familiar with Your PB41 Printer

PB41 Printer with 802.11b Radio Pod

Papertearbar

Radio On/Off
blue illuminating
button

802.11b radio
card pod

Self-Test button

Charge indicator

Paper
release lever

Battery packs

DC power jack

RJ-11 port

4 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

PB41 Printer with Bluetooth Module

Radio On/Off
blue illuminating
button

Papertearbar

Battery packs

Self-Test button

Charge indicator

Paper
release lever

RJ-11 port

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

DC power jack

5

Installing 802.11b Radio Card (if
applicable)

Note: This information applies only if you have a
PB41 Printer with an 802.11b Radio.

Before installing the 802.11b Radio C ard ensure
that the protective battery tab strips are in place
or remove the batteries before installing the radio
card.

Your PB41 Printer with an 802.11b radio has been configured
at the factory. FCC mandates that the radio card not be
installed for shipment. The following information guides you
through the process of installing the radio card.

The radio card is packed separately in an anti-static plastic
bag taped to the inside of the printer box.

1 Remove the radio card cap.

2 With the logo facing down, insert the radio card between the

foam and the radio card strap.

6 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

3 Carefully push the card into the connector until it is fully

seated.

4 Replace the radio card cap.

Before Using Your Printer For The First
Time

Remove the protective tab strips underneath the batteries. They
are placed there to keep your printer from discharging during
shipment.

5 Push against the battery lock tab and lift the battery up be-

fore pulling on the protective tab strips. These tabs prevent
the battery contacts from touching and therefore, no charging
occurs.

6 If your printer won’t charge after removing the protective

tabs, check for and remove any residue in the battery pin
area.

Battery contact protective
tab strip (one for each pack)

Battery lock tabs
(one on each side)

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Center battery
support posts

Battery pack

Battery contact
protective tab strips (removed)

7

Charging the Lithium Ion Batteries

S The printer battery charges in about three hours.

LED Battery Indicators

LED State of Charge Action

Solid Red In Progress Waiting for green LED

Green Complete Remove Charger

Slow Red Flashing Low Temperature or

battery is disconnected

Fast Red Flashing High Temperature Change environment

Slow Red and Orange
Flashing

Fast Red and Orange
Flashing

Slow Orange Flashing Timeout Restart charge

Fast Orange Flashing Internal Error Remove battery to pow-

Low Voltage Wait for solid red

High Voltage Wait for solid red

Change environment or
connect battery

er down completely and
reconnect. Or unplug
from charging source,
wait 15-20 seconds, and
reconnect.

Beep Indicator

Number of Beeps Indicates

One Printer has come out of sleep mode

Two Printer is out of paper

Three Battery is low

One long beep No program in printer, only boot code

Double beep (chirping sound) Radio is turning Off

1 short beep RF power is On (when blue radio but-

ton is pressed and power turned Off).

2 short beeps RF power is off (when blue radio but -

ton is pressed and power turned On).

1 long beep Boot code is starting or restarting

(when downloading new firmware).

5 short beeps Communication error from applica-

tion. Reset application.

8 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Beep Indicator (continued)

IndicatesNumber of Beeps

8 short beeps CRC error in firmware. Redownload

firmware.

10 short beeps Error writing to communication con-

troller firmware. Redownload firmware.

DeterminingCurrent Battery Power

To determine the current charge on each battery pack, print out
a self-test by pressing and holding the red self-test button for
four seconds. If the battery is good, you will see the abbreviation
for the word “GOOD” next to the Battery voltage (Batt1 or
Batt2) print out.

This printer has a built in low battery detector. When the print­er’s battery voltage is low, the printer beeps three times, indicat­ing a Low Battery Warning. This only happens if the printer is
awake.

Printer Self-Test

Push the red button and hold for about four seconds to print a
self-test.

Self-Test button

The following is an explanation of the S elf-Test print-out.

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

9

802.11b Self-Test Print-out Explanation

Test Item Description

F/W Ve r The internal software version (6.46 or greater)

Timeout The seconds between printing and sleep mode

RF Timeout Never

Baud Rate The speed at which the printer receives data

Parity Odd, Even, or None

Data Bits Matches with computer sending data to printer

Handshake The way the printer handles flow control from host

Burn Adj Amount of heat used to print on the thermal paper

Beeper May be turned On or Off

Chrg Beep May be turned On or Off

Batt1 Volt Current voltage of the first battery pack

Batt2 Volt Current voltage of the second battery pack

Printhd Tmp Temperature of the printer head (between 0 and 50

degrees)

Flash/RAM 1Mbor4MbFlash/1Mbor4MbRAM

Boot Ver Boot sector firmware

ComCtl Ver Communication Controller Version

802.11b Config Bar code shows MAC address for 802.11b device;
Network Type Ad hoc (op ting not to communicate
through an access point but instead communicating
through other ad hoc printers; Station Name is the
specific name for your printer (i.e. serial number);
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) if
On this is the only way to determine IP address; IP
Ad=> bar code and human readable IP address also
shows Subnet Mask, Gateway, and Port addresses;
Encryption (open is unsecured, 40-bit or 128-bit
encryption enabled) if enabled then Key Selected;
Key Selected 1-4 equivalent to a password for your
device.

Available Fonts LOC shows whether a font is Resident (R) or

Downloaded (D); CPI shows characters per inch;
DESCRIPTION describes the font; Version and
DATE of font loads; NAMES give the “Easy Print”
name, the Line Printer name, and the hexadecimal
equivalent of that name.

10 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

802.11b Self-Test Print-out Explanation (continued)

DescriptionTest Item

Available Graphics LOC shows whether a font is Resident (R) or

Downloaded (D); DESCRIPTION describes the
graphic; Version and DATA of graphic program
load;NAMES give the “Easy Print” name, the Line
Printer name, and the hexadecimal equivalent of that
name.

Available Bar Codes All supported barcodes are displayed. “DE-

SCRIPTION” describes the graphic. “NAMES”
give the “Easy Print” name, the Line Printer name,
and the hexadecimal equivalent of that name.

Bluetooth Self-TestPrint-out Explanation

Test Item Description

F/W Ve r The internal software version (6.46 or greater)

Timeout The seconds between printing and sleep mode

RF Timeout Never

Baud Rate The speed at which the printer receives data

Parity Odd, Even, or None

Data Bits Matches with computer sending data to printer

Handshake The way the printer handles flow control from host

Burn Adj Amount of heat used to print on the thermal paper

Beeper May be turned On or Off

Chrg Beep May be turned On or Off

Batt1 Volt Current voltage of the first battery pack

Batt2 Volt Current voltage of the second battery pack

Printhd Tmp Temperature of the printer head (between 0 and 50

degrees)

Flash/RAM 1Mbor4MbFlash/1Mbor4MbRAM

Boot Ver Boot sector firmware

ComCtl Ver Communication Controller Version

Bluetooth RF Config Bar code shows MAC address for Bluetooth device;

BT Device Name; BT Service Name; BT Profile;
Class of Device; Discoverable; Connectable; Bond­able; Authentication; Encryption; Passkey

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

11

Bluetooth Self-TestPrint-out Explanation (continued)

DescriptionTest Item

Available Fonts LOC shows whether a font is Resident (R) or

Downloaded (D); CPI shows characters per inch;
DESCRIPTION describes the font; Version and
DATE of font loads; NAMES give the “Easy Print”
name, the Line Printer name, and the hexadecimal
equivalent of that name.

Available Graphics LOC shows whether a font is Resident (R) or

Downloaded (D); DESCRIPTION describes the
graphic; Version and DATA of graphic program
load;NAMES give the “Easy Print” name, the Line
Printer name, and the hexadecimal equivalent of that
name.

Available Bar Codes All supported barcodes are displayed. “DE-

SCRIPTION” describes the graphic. “NAMES”
give the “Easy Print” name, the Line Printer name,
and the hexadecimal equivalent of that name.

Paper Loading

Out of Paper

The PB41 Printer sounds two quick beeps when it runs out of
paper. If the printer is out of paper, the printer suspends opera­tion until paper is present and the lever is down. The printer
continues to communicate with the mobile computer as long as
it does not “time out.” Once the printer restarts, it finishes the
rest of the print job from where it left off.

RemovingPaper Core f rom your PB41 Printer

1 Unsnap the latch and lift up the cover.

2 Wrap your index finger around the empty paper core and pull

up. The paper rod will snap out.

3 Remove the empty paper core and discard.

Paper Loading

Standard Paper

If you are using standard paper, you can load the paper auto­matically or manually. Experiment to find out which method is
best for you.

12 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Liner’ed Labels

If you are using liner’ed paper, it is best to use the manual paper
loading method.

Automatic Paper Loading

1 Press the red self-test button to wake the printer.

2 With the loose, clean edge of the paper coming from the bot-

tom of the roll, insert the edge of the paper between the roller
and the platen.

3 Pushing the button a g a in while the printer is a wake causes

the mechanism to feed about one inch of paper.

4 Insert the paper into the paper well with it resting on the pa-

per rod clips.

Manual Paper Loading

1 Lift up the paper release lever. This takes the pressure off the

platen. Make sure you have a clean edge on the new paper
roll.

2 Taketheedgeofthepaperandfoldit45degrees.

3 Insert the tip of the paper between the roller and the platen.

4 Push on the paper until the tip is peeking out the other side.

(If it seems too tight to insert the tip, lift up the paper release
lever and turn the gear to advance the paper).

5 Grab the tip and pull it through until the paper is straight.

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

13

6 Push down the paper release lever and insert the paper into

the paper well with it resting in the paper rod clips.

7 Press the red button while the printer is on and it will feed

paper. You will need about two inches of paper coming out of
the mechanism.

8 Lower the cover while placing the extra paper though the tear

bar.

9 Close Latch Cover and tear off extra paper.

Turning the Radio ON and OFF

1 To turn the radio on, push the blue illuminating button, or

plug the serial cable into the printer.

S You can tell the radio is on when the light is O N and the

radio is off when the light is OFF.

S The blue illuminating button does a slow flash or blink when

the radio is ON and the printer controller is asleep.

S The blue illuminating button flashes or blinks at a faster rate

when the radio is ON and the printer controller is awake.
You may hear a single beep when the printer is ready to print.

Note: Once the radio is turned ON, the radio stays
“ON” and also always stays in the “listen” mode.
When the radio is turned “OFF”, the radio shuts
down and the printer becomes a serial printer.

Radio On/Off
blue illuminating
button

14 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

2 To turn the radio off push the blue illuminating button

again.

S Pressing the blue illuminating button to turn the radio off

you will hear a double beep (sounds like a chirp).

ReplacingABatteryPack

UseonlythebatterypackdesignedforyourPB41
Printer. Use only the Intermec 2200 mAh Li-Ion
battery p/n 320-088-101. Using any other battery
may present a risk of fire or explosion. The
battery used in your PB41 Printer may present a
fire or chemical burn hazard if mistreated. Do not
disassemble, heat above 212°F ( 100°C), or
incinerate.

1 Open the cover and push the battery lock tabs away while

lifting up the battery. The battery pack fits very tightly so it
takes some effort to remove them.

2 Insert the new battery by putting the non contact area of the

battery in first towards the center.

3 Push down on the battery near the battery lock tabs. Ensure

that the battery is completely seated and tab fits over the top
of the battery.

4 Charge the new battery.

5 Properly dispose of the old battery and keep batteries away

from children.

Battery lock tabs
(one on each side)

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Center battery support posts

Battery packs

15

PB41 Battery Eliminator

The PB41 Battery Eliminator was designed exclusively for the
PB41 Printer. This device removes the need to have the battery
packs in your printer. The Battery Eliminator allows the PB41
toacceptpowerfromeitheranACorDCsource.

A typical installation would h a ve the PB41 Printer mounted in a
vehicle and the Battery Eliminator receiving power from the ve­hicle battery.

In scenarios where portability is not required, the Battery Elimi­nator saves you from purchasing printer batteries. The Battery
Eliminator removes temperature concerns when charging or us­ing your printer with battery packs.

Installing the Battery Eliminator

1 Remove the battery packs from your printer.

2 Install the Battery Eliminator into one of the battery pack

slots.

3 Connect the Battery Eliminator cable to the In-line Adapter

cable (p/n: 852-052-102).

4 Connect the In-line Adapter to the Truck Power Cable (p/n:

206-875-xxx). The Truck Power Cable installs to your ve­hicle battery and is routed into the cab of your vehicle.

In-line Adapter

Connects to truck
power cable

Battery Eliminator

16 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Using Your Printer with Serial Connection

1 Attach the Mobile Computer to Printer cable.

2 As you use the printer the power comes from the battery in

the printer. When the printer battery runs down the printer
will not operate until the battery is recharged.

PB41 Printer using Wireless Printing

Serial/Wireless Mode

Your printer comes to you as a serial mode printer. To switch
the mode to Wireless Printing it is necessary to press the blue
illuminating button on the printer.

Printer Self-Test

1 Press the Paper Advance (red) button for at least five seconds

to run a Self-Test. Verify that the RF Module Power is On.

S This means you will be holding it long enough to hear the

beep and complete a paper advance.

S The self-test indicates the current state (802.11 or Blue-

tooth) for your printer.

Note: When shipping your printer via air freight,
turn the wireless printing mode off and set to serial
so that the radio is not enabled.

Mobile Computer Preparation

Refer to the Bluetooth setup instructions included in your mo­bile computer documentation.

Maintenance and Troubleshooting

Cleaning the Interior

Dirt, adhesive, and residue collect on the print head of the
printer and need to be removed. Clean your printer once a
month if you use it frequently, or once every three months if
used infrequently.

Cleaning the Exterior

When the outside of your portable printer needs cleaning, use a
soft cloth and mild cleanser if necessary. Do not use abrasive

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

17

cleanser, chemicals or scrubbing pads, as your printer’s finish
could become marked.

Troubleshooting

PaperLoading Problems

If the paper feed mechanism does not feed correctly on the first
part of a new paper roll, remove two to three feet of paper from
theoutsideoftheroll.Thelengthofpaperrollscanvarybyas
much as five feet, making the roll too thick for the printer to
accommodate.

If the printer is out of paper (or the paper release lever is in the
up position) this condition interrupts a batch of receipts, and
the printer suspends operation until the condition is fixed. The
printer continues to communicate with the mobile computer as
long as it does not “time out.”

Once the printer is operational, the suspended print batch (if
any) continues to print, ensuring that all receipts are properly
printed.

Not Printing

1 Print a self-test. If the self-test will not print, check battery

voltage by plugging the printer into a wall outlet using the
AC adapter. Repeat the self-test, and check the Battery Volt­age print out. Charge battery if necessary or replace.

Note: If the battery is depleted, it may take 5-10
minutes of charging before the printer can print a
self-test.

2 Make sure the paper is properly installed (with lever closed).

3 Turn the print head knob to ensure that paper is not

jammed.

4 Check cable connections. Make sure the modular connector

is inserted and clipped in.

5 Check to see if your cable has been damaged by excessive

pulling.Acablemayalsobedamagedifitisbentatsharp
angles.

6 Use only the recommended battery pack for the printer.

7 Printer will not print on wrong side of paper. Re-load if nec-

essary.

18 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Print Roller Appears Dirty

Extended use in dirty environments and linered label printing
can cause the print head to become dirty or sticky. We offer two
cleaning options, a roller cleaning kit or individual cleaning
cards. These are available through our Supply Sales department
(1-800-255-6292).

Print is too Light

If you are not getting satisfactory darkness, connect your printer
to the personal computer containing your Configuration Pro­gram and click on the Paper Options button. Adjust the Dark­ness setting to a higher percentage until the print is dark and
crisp. Refer to the Intermec Portable Printers Technical Reference
Manual ( p/n: 978-018-001) Section 4 for more details.

Charging Problems

Usingan AC Adapter

If the printer does not respond when it is connected to an AC
adapter, there could be a problem with the adapter or with the
wall outlet.

Note: If the battery is depleted, it may take 5-10
minutes of charging before the printer can print a
self-test.

Usinga CigaretteLighter Adapter

If the printer does not respond when it is connected to a ciga­rette lighter adapter, it is possible that the fuse may be blown.
To check, remove the cigarette lighter adapter from all power
supplies and unscrew the cover over the pin. Pull out the fuse. If
the elements in the fuse appear broken, replace the fuse.

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

19

Specifications

Printer Specifications

Item Spec Detail

Dimension 7.12 x 6.60 x 3.25 in.

167 x 172 x 85.5 mm)

Weight 22.88 oz.(652 g) with battery and paper. 33.88 oz

(969 g)with two batteries and paper

Print Method Direct Thermal

Paper Medium Thermal paper

Paper Width 4.4 inch (112 mm)

Operating Temperature -4°F to +122°F(-20°C to +50°C)

Interface RS-232C, 6 -pin modular data jack Flash re-pro-

grammable configurable settings. Downloadable
fonts and barcodes

Characters Full IBM and international character sets

Protocol Easy Print Protocol for Bar Codes, Stored Graph-

ics, Rotated Fonts.

Power 2200 mAh Li Ion cell pack

Bluetooth Infineon Bluetooth, internal antenna, Class II,

ROK104

802.11b Cisco Aironent 350 Series

Warranty One year, includes print head. Extended warranty

available.

20 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

Global Services and Support

Warranty Information

To understand the warranty for your Intermec product, visit the
Intermec web site at http://www.intermec.com and click Service
& Support. The Intermec Global Sales & Service page appears.
From the Service & Support menu, move your pointer over
Support,andthenclickWarranty.

Disclaimerofwarranties:Thesamplecodeincludedinthisdoc­ument is presented for reference only. The code does not neces­sarily represent complete, tested programs. The code is provided
“as is with all faults.” All warranties are expressly disclaimed,
including the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness
for a particular purpose.

Web Support

Visit the Intermec web site at http://www.intermec.com to
download our current manuals in PDF format. To order printed
versions of the Intermec manuals, contact your local Intermec
representative or distributor.

Visit the Intermec technical knowledge base (Knowledge Cen­tral) at http://intermec.custhelp.com to review technical infor­mation or to request technical support for your Intermec prod­uct.

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

21

Telephone Support

These services are available from Intermec Technologies Corpo­ration.

In the U.S.A. and Canada
call 1-800-755-5505 and

Service Description

Factory Repair and
On-site Repair

Technical Support Get technical

Service Contract
Status

Schedule Site Surveys
or Installations

Ordering Products Talk to sales

Request a return
authorization
number for
authorized service
center repair, or
request an on-site
repair technician.

support on your
Intermec product.

Inquire about an
existing contract,
renew a contract, or
ask invoicing
questions.

Schedule a site
survey, or request a
product or system
installation.

administration,
place an order, or
check the status of
your order.

choose this option

1

2

3

4

5

Outside the U.S.A. and Canada, contact your local Intermec
representative. To search for your local representative, from the
Intermec web site, click Contact.

interoperability with other 802.11b wireless LAN devices.

22 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

This product with an IEEE 802.11b radio installed is Wi-Fi certified for

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide

23

Corporate Headquart ers

6001 36th A venue West
Everett, Washington 98203

U.S.A.

tel [phone]

fax [phone]

www.intermec.com

E 2004 by Intermec Technologies Corporation. All rights reserved.

PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide March 2004

*962018027B*

PN: 962018027B

24 PB41 Printer Quick Start Guide