Paxar TC6035PR User Manual

MONARCH

DOS-based

PATHFINDER

System



Ultra



Each product and program carries a respective written warranty, the only warranty on which the customer can rely. Monarch reserves the right to make changes in the product, the programs, and their availability at any time and without notice. Although Monarch has made every effort to provide complete and accurate information in this manual, Monarch shall not be liable for any omissions or inaccuracies. Any update will be incorporated in a later edition of this manual.

©1998 Monarch Marking Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form by any means, without the prior written permission of Monarch Marking Systems, Inc.

WARNING

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 accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. 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 own expense.

CANADIAN D.O.C. WARNING

This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise emissions from digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department of Communications.

Le présent appareil numérique n’émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant les limites applicables aux appareils numériques de la classe A prescrites dans le Réglement sur le brouillage radioélectrique édicte par le ministère des Communications du Canada.

Trademarks

Monarch, Pathfinder, and Ultra are registered trademarks of Monarch Marking Systems, Inc. 6035 is a trademark of Monarch Marking Systems, Inc. Microsoft and MS-DOS are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft in the U.S. and other countries. TrueType is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Hewlett-Packard is a registered trademark of Hewlett-Packard Company. CG Triumvirate and CG Triumvirate Bold are trademarks of AGFA Corporation. Adobe and Acrobat are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated which may be registered in certain jurisdictions.

Monarch Marking Systems P.O. Box 608 Dayton, Ohio 45401

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GETTING STARTED

About This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

Standard Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

Creating an MPCLII Format Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2

Using MPCLII Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4

MPCLII Punctuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4

Standard Syntax Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5

DESIGNING A FORMAT

Starting with a Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2

Determining Format Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Determining the Print Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Drawing Rough Sketches. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4

Using Supply Layout Grids. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4

Considering Field Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5

Considering Fonts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

Using the Format Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

Filling in the Format Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

DEFINING FIELDS

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1

Defining the Format Header . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2

Defining Text Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3

Defining Bar Code Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7

Defining Constant Text Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12

Defining Line Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-15

Line Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16

Defining Box Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18

DEFINING FIELD OPTIONS

Applying Field Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2

Combining Field Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2

Option 1 (Fixed Data). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3

Option 4 (Copy Data) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4

Merging Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5

Sub-Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6

Option 31 (Calculate Check Digit) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6

Option 50 (Bar Code Density) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6

Option 51 (PDF417 Security/Truncation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7

Option 52 (PDF417 Width/Length) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8

Option 61 (Re-image Field) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-9

Using Check Digits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-9

Sum of Products Calculation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-10

Sum of Digits Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-12

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1

PRINTING

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1

Defining the Batch Header. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2

Defining the Batch Control Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3

Defining Batch Data Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4

Merged or Sub-Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4

Downloading Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5

Sequential Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5

Batch Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5

Batch Quantity Zero Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5

Defining the Print Control Packet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6

Clearing Packets from Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7

CREATING GRAPHICS

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1

Overview of Bitmapped Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2

Determining a Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2

Designing Bitmapped Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3

Special Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3

Using the Hex Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3

Using the Run Length Encoding Method. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5

Determining How to Store the Image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7

Using RAM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8

Using Temporary Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8

Creating a Graphic Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9

Positioning the Graphic Image. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9

Defining the Graphic Header . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11

Creating Bitmap Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-13

Creating Next-Bitmap Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-14

Creating Duplicate Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-15

Sample Hex Graphic Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-16

Sample Run Length Graphic Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-17

Placing the Graphic in a Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19

Defining the Graphic Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19

Sample Bitmap Graphic Image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21

TROUBLESHOOTING

Troubleshooting Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2

If You Receive an Error Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2

Calling Technical Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2

Data Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3

Format Errors (1 - 99) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3

Batch Errors (100 - 199) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-6

Rule Errors (200 - 249) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-6

Online Configuration Errors (250 - 299) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8

Check Digit Errors (300 - 324). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-9

Graphic Errors (325 - 399) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-9

General Packet Errors (300 - 324). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10

Data Formatting Failures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12

Machine Faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1

iii

PRINTER OPTIMIZATION

Adjusting the Print Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-2

Reducing Imaging Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-3

General Format Tips and Hints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-5

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1

SAMPLES

FONTS

SYMBOL SETS/CODE PAGES

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1

Sample UPCA Format Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2

Sample Fixed Character Format Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-1

Standard Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2

Monospaced Font Magnification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-3

Proportional Font Magnification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-4

Using Font Numbers in Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-17

Locating the Font Number in a Font Packet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-17

Supported Symbol Sets and Code Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-1

Selecting a Symbol Set or Code Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-2

Selecting the Internal Symbol Set. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-2

Selecting the 437 Code Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-2

Using Code 128 Function Codes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-2

ASCII Symbol Set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-3

Code Page 437 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-4

Dot to Run Length Encoding Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-5

ON (Black) Dots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-5

OFF (White Dots) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-5

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-1

FORMAT DESIGN TOOLS

Batch Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-2

Check Digit Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-3

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-1

GETTING STARTED

Before you read this manual, review the printer information in the Equipment Manual.

About This Manual

This manual is for the developer creating the application for the printer.

You must develop an application that uses the packets

you create. Refer to the Programmer Manual for

information about developing an application.

Use this manual to design and print your own custom formats on the Monarch® 6035 printer. This chapter creates a sample MPCLII packet.

Standard Features

The following features are standard on the 6035 printer: 192 dots per inch (DPI) printhead, 2 inch by 4 inch maximum print image,

1.8 inches per second (IPS) maximum print speed, baud rate up to 115K, center-justified printing, 4-line display, alphanumeric keypad, scanner, and 1 Meg memory with an additional 2 Meg flash ROM.

Getting Started

1-1

Creating an MPCLII Format Packet

A format defines which fields appear and where the fields are printed on the label. The printer requires this information in a special form, using Monarch This section describes how to create a sample MPCLII format packet.

Make sure supplies are loaded, you have a fully charged battery, and you have an application in the printer. Refer your Equipment Manual for more information.

For detailed information about the format header, text, constant text, and bar code fields, see Chapter 3, "Defining Fields." For information about batch packets, see Chapter 5, "Printing."

Type the following format header, in any text editor:

{F,25,A,R,M,508,508,"FMT-25" p

Type the following constant text field:

C,250,80,0,1,1,1,W,C,0,0,"MONARCH MARKING:",0 p

Type the following bar code field:

Printer Control Language II (MPCL).

1-2

Getting Started

B,1,12,F,110,115,1,2,120,5,L,0 p

Type the following text field:

T,2,18,V,30,30,1,1,1,1,B,C,0,0,0 p }

You have created a format packet for your MPCLII printer. Now, a batch packet must be created before you can print the format.

Type the following batch header, after the text field line:

{B,25,N,1 p

Type the following bar code data:

1,"12345678901" p

Type the following text field data:

2,"DAYTON, OHIO" p }

Save your file as SAMPLE.FMT.

For your application to use the format, use the

PCL library functions in

the Programmer Manual.

Getting Started

1-3

Using MPCLII Conventions

Here are some guidelines to follow when using MPCLII.

MPCLII Punctuation

Use the following symbols when creating MPCLII packets:

{ start of header

} end of header

p field separator. Depending on the character

set you are using, this character may appear differently, but it should always be hex 7C.

, parameter separator

"ABC" Quotation marks enclose character strings.

Empty quotes ("") identify null strings or unused fields.

‘comment‘ Grave accents enclose comments. Any data

enclosed in grave accents is ignored. Do not embed comments within a quoted string. Grave accents are also used to reject mainframe data.

1-4

Getting Started

These MPCL characters are the default.

Standard Syntax Guidelines

When creating MPCLII packets:

Begin each packet with a start of header ({).

End each packet with an end of header (}).

Define no more than 50 fields in a format. Each p indicates one field. However, options are not counted as fields.

The field number (0 to 999) must be unique. Monarch recommends starting at 1, instead of 0.

Do not use a field number more than once per format.

Define all fields in the order you want to image/print them.

Separate all parameters with a Parameter Separator (,).

End each field with a Field Separator ( p ).

Enter all information in CAPITAL letters, except words or phrases within quotation marks.

Include all parameters for a field unless documented as optional.

Define non-printable text fields before the field to which they apply.

Define options immediately after the field to which they apply.

Multiple options can be used with most fields. Options can be used in any combination except as noted with each definition.

Keep in mind that proportionally spaced fonts need wider fields than monospaced fonts. For variable field data, use a letter "W" to determine the maximum field size.

Do not place a new line (return) or any other non-printing character in a character string. However, a carriage return or line break after each p makes your formats easier to read. T,1,20,V,30,30,1,1,1,1,B,C,0,0,0 p T,2,10,V,50,30,1,1,1,1,B,C,0,0,0 p

Spaces are ignored, except within character strings.

Getting Started

1-5

1-6

Getting Started

DESIGNING A FORMAT

This chapter describes how to

determine what kind of information to use in your format.

use the Supply Layout Grid and Format Worksheet.

categorize data into field types.

select fonts to use in your format.

Designing a Format

2-1

Starting with a Design

Before you create a format packet, you must design your label. There are several steps to designing a custom label:

Decide which fields should appear on your label. See

"Determining Format Contents" for more information.

Determine your label size. Labels are available from Monarch

in a wide variety of sizes. Your application and the amount of data you need to print determines the supply size. Contact Monarch Marking for more information.

Draw a rough sketch of your label. You may want to draw

several variations to see what works best. See "Drawing Rough Sketches" for more information.

Identify the field types that appear on your label. See

"Considering Field Types" for more information.

Decide which fonts you want to use. See "Considering Fonts"

for more information.

Fill out your Format Worksheet. See "Using the Format

Worksheet" for more information.

2-2

Designing a Format

At this point, you are ready to use your format.

Create a format packet, based on how you filled out your

worksheet. See Chapter 3, "Defining Fields," for more information.

For your application to use the format, use the PCL library

functions in the Programmer Manual.

Execute your application.

Determining Format Contents

Before you lay out your format, you need to make a few decisions. For example:

How large is your supply?

Which fonts do you want to use?

Do you want to include a bar code?

Do you want to include graphics?

Determining the Print Area

The print area varies, depending on the size of your supply. Below are the maximum and minimum print areas. Notice that the top edge of the supply exits the printer first.

Unit of Measure

English (1/100")

Metric (1/10mm)

Dots (1/203 dots)

Maximum Supply Size

200 x 400 183 x 365 120 x 55 109 x 46

508 x 1016 465 x 927 305 x 140 277 x 117

384 x 768 352 x 701 230 x 106 208 x 88

Maximum Print Area

Minimum Supply Size

Minimum Print Area

For exact print area measurements of your

supply, see the supply layout grids in

Appendix D.

Use the following formulas to convert inches to dots and metric:

Dots = inches x 192 Metric (1/10mm) = inches x 254 English (1/100 inch) = 100 x (dots/192) Dots = Metric (1/10 mm) x 756/1000

Designing a Format

2-3

Drawing Rough Sketches

After you decide what information you want to print, sketch how you want the information to appear on the label. Note any areas that are preprinted on the label, such as a logo.

As soon as you know what information to include on the label, and you have a rough sketch, you can use a supply layout grid to help you layout and size your label. If you do not want to use a grid, go to "Considering Field Types" to choose what information you want on your label.

Using Supply Layout Grids

A supply layout grid contains measurement markers. These markers help you accurately position information on your label.

Decide whether you want to design formats using English, Metric, or Dot measurements. Choose from the following grids:

English

The English grid is measured in 1/100 inches.

Metric

The Metric grid is measured in 1/10 millimeters (mm).

Graphic

The printer uses dots to print images on a label. The printhead has 192 dots per inch (DPI).

Supply Layout (dpi)

192

768

672

576

480

384

288

192

0.0

192

0.0

384

192

288

768

672

576

480

384

288

192

0.0

2-4

Designing a Format

If you want to use supply layout grids, a copy of each is in Appendix D, "Format Design Tools."

Considering Field Types

After you select a supply size, the next step in designing a format is to decide what information you want to print on the label. For example, you may want to print your company name, price of an item, and a bar code that combines information from other places. Everything you want to print falls into one of the following categories.

Field Type Description Examples

Text Contains letters, numbers, or

symbols you want to print.

Bar Code Used for printing bar codes

that can be scanned.

Constant Text Prints fixed characters that

print without changing.

Line or Box Highlights or separates items. line marking out the regular

Graphic Contains a bitmap image or a

compliance label overlay.

item number, item description, department number, price, date

item or serial numbers, zip codes, information you don’t want to have visible to customers

company name, company address

price, border around the supply

logos

All of the above field types except graphics

are discussed in Chapter 3. See Chapter 6,

"Creating Graphics" for information on

including graphics in your format.

Designing a Format

2-5

Considering Fonts

When working with fonts, you have three considerations:

font appearance

font size (bitmapped)

font spacing (monospaced or proportional)

See Appendix B, "Fonts," for samples of each font.

Using the Format Worksheet

The Format Worksheet is divided into sections that list the field types. Each section has boxes to fill in with parameters that define your format. A format worksheet is included in Appendix D, "Format Design Tools."

Filling in the Format Worksheet

Decide what type of field to use on your label.

Make a copy of the Format Worksheet.

2-6

Designing a Format

Define the Format Header.

Define options as you require them. See Chapter 4, "Defining

Field Options" for more information.

DEFINING FIELDS

This chapter provides a reference for defining

the format header

text and constant text

bar code fields

line and box fields.

Defining Fields

3-1

Defining the Format Header

A Format Header begins a format file.

Syntax

{F,format#,action,device,measure,length, width,"name" p

F1. F Format Header.

F2. format# Unique number from

F3. action Enter A to add a new format to the printer.

F4. device Format storage device. R is the only valid value.

F5. measure Unit of measure. Options:

English, measured in 1/100 inches

Metric, measured in 1/10 mm

Graphic, measured in dots

F6. length Supply length, top to bottom, in selected units.

English Metric Dots

F7. width Supply width, from left to right, in selected units.

English Metric Dots

F8. "name" Format name (optional),

quotation marks.

55 - 400 140 - 1016 106 - 768

120 - 200 305 - 508 230 - 384

to identify the format.

0-999

characters, enclose within

0-8

3-2

Defining Fields

Example:

{F,1,A,R,E,300,200,"TEXTILES" p

Format 1 ("TEXTILES") uses a three inch long by two inch wide label.

Defining Text Fields

Create a separate definition for each text field. If text falls on two lines, each line of text requires a separate definition.

Syntax

T,field#,# of char,fix/var,row,column, gap,font,hgt mag,wid mag,color,alignment, char rot,field rot,sym set

T1. T Text Field.

T2. field# Unique number from

T3. # of char Maximum number of printed characters (

to identify this field.

0-99

0-2710

) in the field.

T4. fix/var Fixed or variable length field. Options:

Fixed length

Variable length

T5. row For monospaced fonts, distance from bottom of print area to

the pivot point. The pivot point varies depending on how text is justified.

0 (TOP)

3 (RIGHT)

2 (BOTTOM)

1 (LEFT)

End-Justified

1 (LEFT)

0 (TOP)

2 (BOTTOM)

3 (RIGHT)

Left/Center/Right-Justified

2 (BOTTOM)

0 (TOP)

3 (RIGHT)

1 (LEFT)

Balanced

For proportionally spaced fonts, distance from bottom of print area to baseline of characters in field.

English Metric Dot

0 - 365 0 - 927 0 - 701

Defining Fields

3-3

T6. column Distance from the left edge of the print area to the pivot point

to find the column location.

English Metric Dots

T7. gap Number of dots between characters (192 dots per inch).

Range:

NOTE:

Any number other than 0 or the default number affects your field width. Default spacing:

Letter Gothic Bold 6pt. Letter Gothic Bold 9pt. Reduced All other fonts

T8. font Style of font. Options:

CG Trium Bold CG Trium Bold Cond

1000 1001 1002 1003 1004 1005

0 - 183 0 - 465 0 - 352

0-99

For monospaced fonts, the additional spacing is added to the existing inter-character gap. This is also true for proportionally spaced fonts, but remember that the inter-character gap varies with character combinations.

1 dot 2 dots 1 dot varies with each letter

6.5 pt 8 pt

10 pt

12 pt 18 pt 22 pt

1006 1007 1008 1009 1010 1011

6.5 pt 8 pt 10 pt 12 pt 18 pt 22 pt

3-4

Defining Fields

Letter Gothic Bold Reduced

1012 1013

NOTE:

6 pt 9 pt

Point sizes greater than 12 include only the following special characters: 0123456789#$%&(),./@DFKLMPS\kprö¢£¥. All other point sizes use the whole symbol set. This information may not apply to optional fonts.

Internal Font

T9. hgt mag Height magnifier,

proportionally spaced fonts, because characters lose smoothness at higher magnifications.

(times). Use a magnifier of 1 with

1-7

T10. wid mag Width magnifier,

not have a set width. To estimate the size of your field, use the letter "W" for the widest field or an "L" for an average width field. Find your selected font and the desired width in Appendix B, "Fonts."

T11. color Options for standard printer fonts:

Opaque, Normal, Black, Normal

Opaque, Normal, White, Normal

Transparent, Normal, Black, Normal

Transparent, Normal, White, Normal

Opaque, Normal, White, Normal

NOTE:

There are two types of field color overlay attributes: Transparent The overlay field (text or constant text) does

Opaque The overlay field blocks out (or "erases")

Solid black print should not exceed 30% on a given square inch of the label, or the printhead life may be decreased.

(times). Proportionally spaced fonts do

1-7

not block out (or "erase") existing fields.

existing fields.

Line field blocked out by opaque field using attribute B

Line field not blocked out by transparent field using attribute O

Field placement in the packet is an important consideration when using field color attributes. If a line field is defined before the overlay (text or constant text) field, the line field is blocked out by the overlay field, depending on the overlay field’s color attribute. If a line field is defined after the overlay field, the line field is not blocked out by the overlay field, regardless of the overlay field’s color attribute.

Defining Fields

3-5

T12. alignment Options:

Align on left side of field.

Center text within field (monospaced fonts only)

Align on right side of field (monospaced fonts only)

Align at midpoint of field

Align at endpoint of the field

Use L, B, or E for any font.

T13. char rot Character rotation. The field or supply does not rotate, only

T14. field rot Field rotation. Field rotation rotates the whole field, not just

T15. sym set Symbol set. Use 1 (ASCII Symbol Set)

the characters do. Options:

Top of character points to top of field

Top of character points to left of field

Top of character points to bottom of field

Top of character points to right of field

the characters. Rotation is affected by the pivot point, which varies depending on how text is justified. Lower left corner of field is the pivot point. Options:

Top of field points to top of supply

Top of field points to left of supply

Top of field points to bottom of supply

Top of field points to right of supply

See Appendix C, "Symbol Sets/ Code Pages" for more information.

3-6

Defining Fields

Example:

T,2,10,V,250,50,0,1,1,1,B,C,0,0,0 p

Defines a text field (field #2) with a variable length of up to 10 characters. The field begins at row 250, column 50. There is no additional gap between characters, and the Standard font is used without any additional magnification. The printing is black on white and centered. No field or character rotation is used. The internal symbol set is used.

Defining Bar Code Fields

Each bar code field requires a separate definition.

Syntax

B,field#,# of char,fix/var,row,column, font,density,height,text,alignment, field rot p

B1. B Bar Code Field.

B2. field# Unique number from

B3. # of char Maximum number of characters. If the bar code uses a check

digit, allow an extra character for the check digit. The actual maximum number of characters is limited by the size of the label and bar code density. Range:

B4. fix/var Fixed (F) or variable (V) length field.

Bar Code Number of Characters Fixed or

UPCA

UPCA+2

UPCA+5

UPCA+Price CD

UPCE or LAC

UPCE+2

UPCE+5

EAN8

EAN8+2

EAN8+5

EAN13

EAN13+2

EAN13+5

EAN13+Price CD

Interleaved 2 of 5 or Interleaved I 2 of 5 with Barrier Bar

Code 39 or MOD43

to identify this field.

0-99

0-2710

12 F

14 F

17 F

12 F

10 F

13 F

15 F

18 F

13 F

0 to 2710 F or V

Var iable

Defining Fields

3-7

Bar Code Number of Characters Fixed or

Codabar (NW7)

Code 128

Code 93

Code 16K

MSI

Maxicode

PDF417

POSTNET

Var iable

0 to 26 F or V

0 to 2710 F or V

0 to 2710 V

0 to 14 F or V

15 to 99 F

0 to 2710 F or V

0 to 11 F

B5. row Distance from bottom of the print area to the pivot point of the

field. The pivot point varies, depending on how the field is justified. Pivot points:

Left/Center/Right-Justified Fields

Balanced Fields

Remember to include text or numbers that may appear with the bar code for the row measurement.

English Metric Dots

0 - 365 0 - 927 0 - 701

End-Justified Fields

3-8

Defining Fields

B6. column Distance from the lower left edge of the print area to the pivot

point.

English Metric Dots

NOTE:

B7. font Bar code. Options:

UPCA

UPCE

Interleaved 2 of 5

Code 39 (no check digit)

Codabar

EAN8

EAN13

Code 128

MSI

UPCA +2

UPCA +5

UPCE +2 check digit)

UPCE +5

0 - 183 0 - 465 0 - 352

Allow a minimum of of bar code and label edges or other data. Two-dimensional barcodes cannot be scanned (MaxiCode, PDF417, Code 16K and POSTNET).

inch between the scan edge

1/10

14 15 16 17 21 22 23 31 32 33 40

41 44 50

EAN8 +2 EAN8 +5 EAN13 +2 EAN13 +5 LAC POSTNET Code 93 Code 16K PDF417 Maxicode Code 39 (MOD 43

UPCA & Price CD EAN13 & Price CD Interleaved 2 of 5 with Barrier Bar

B8. density Bar code density. Use the following table for the bar code

density.

Defining Fields

3-9

Barcode

Ty pe

UPCA +2/+5

Price CD UPCE +2/+5 4 120% 3/15.6 9/12 EAN8 +2/+5 4 120% 3/15.6 10/13 EAN13 +2/+5

Price CD Interleaved 1 1.0 21/109.4 1:3.0 0 to 2 of 5 2 2.0 12/62.5 1:2.5

or I 2 of 5 4 4.0 6/31.3 1:2.5 with 5 5.3 4/20.8 1:3.0 Barrier Bar 6 6.0 4/20.8 1:2.5

Code 39 1 1.3 10/52.1 1:2.5 0 to or MOD 43 2 1.7 8/41.7 1:2.5 $%*+-./

Codabar 2 2.0 8/41.7 1:3.0 0 to (NW7) 3 2.9 6/31.3 1:2.5 0 to 9

Code 93 3 3.6 6/31.2 N/A 0 to

Density

Selector

4 120% 3/15.6 14/17

4 120% 3/15.6 15/18

3 3.0 7/36.5 1:3.0

7 7.1 3/15.6 1:3.0 8 8.3 3/15.6 1:2.3 9 9.1 3/15.6 1:2.0 10 10.6 2/10.4 1:3.0 11 10.6 2/10.4 1:3.0

13 13.7 2/10.4 1:2.0

3 3.3 4/20.8 1:2.5 0 to 9 4 4.0 3/15.6 1:3.0 A to Z 6 6.0 2/10.4 1:3.0

11 3.7 4/20.8 1:2.0 12 12.0 1/5.2 1:3.0 20 2.8 5/26.0 1:2.2

4 4.3 4/20.8 1:2.5 : 5 4.7 4/20.8 1:2.0 a to d 7 7.7 2/10.4 1:3.0

9 9.6 2/10.4 1:2.0

4 4.3 5/26.0 5 5.3 4/20.8

10 10.7 2/10.4

Density

(% or cpi)

80% 2/10.4 N/A 11 or 12 1,5,6 0 to 9

80% 2/10.4 N/A 6 or 7 1,5,6 0 to 9

80% 2/10.4 N/A 7 or 8 1,5,6 0 to 9

80% 2/10.4 N/A 12 or 13 1,5,6 0 to 9

12.0 2/10.4 1:2.5

6.6 2/10.4 1:2.5

8.4 2/10.4 1:2.5

7.1 3/15.6

Narrow

Element

(dots/mils)

Narrow to

Wide

Ratio

Data

Length

2710

Appearance

Codes

Available

or 8

Char

0 to 9

SPACE

$%*+-./

00H to FFH

Set

3-10

Defining Fields

Barcode

Ty p e

Code 128 20 3.5/7.0 5/26.0 N/A 0 to or 4 4.4/8.7 4/20.8 CODE 16K 6 5.8/11.7 3/15.6

MSI 4 4.0 4/20.8 1:2.0 0 to

Density

Selector

5 5.3 3/15.6 1:2.0 14

Density

(% or cpi)

8.7/17.5 2/10.4

6.9 2/10.4 1:2.5

Narrow

Element

(dots/mils)

Narrow toWide

Ratio

2710

Data

Length

Appearance

Codes

Available

Char

Set

00H to 7FH

0 to 9

Barcode

Ty p e

POSTNET

Barcode

Ty p e

PDF417

(Security Levels 1 to

Maxicode 7 N/A N/A N/A 15-99 8 00H to

Density

Selector

(fixed at

4.3 cpi)

Density

Selector

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Narrow

Element

(dots/mils)

24/125.0 10/52.1 4/20.8

Element

Width

(dots/mils)

2/10.4 2/10.4 2/10.4 3/15.6 3/15.6 3/15.6 4/20.8 4/20.8 4/20.8

NOTE:

Values in bold indicate the default.

Short

Element

(dots/mils)

Row

Height

(dots/mils)

2/10.4 4/20.8 6/31.3 3/15.6 6/31.3 9/46.9 4/20.8 8/41.7 12/62.5

(dots/mils)

(5 dot gap)

1:1 1:2 1:3 1:1 1:2 1:3 1:1 1:2 1:3

Element

Width

Aspect

Ratio

Data

Length

0,5,6,9 or 11

Data

Length

0 to 2710

Appearance

Codes

Available

Appearance

Codes

Available

Char

Set

0 to 9

Char Set

00H to FFH

FFH

B9. height Bar code height, in 1/100 inches, 1/10 mm, or dots. Minimum

values: English Metric Dots

1 2 1

B10. text Appearance of text with bar code. For UPC and EAN only use

. For all others, use 8. Options:

1-7

No check digit or number system

Number system at bottom, no check digit

Check digit at bottom, no number system

Check digit and number system at bottom

No text, bar code only

Defining Fields

3-11

B11. alignment Choose L, R, C, B or E to align the bar code data correctly in

B12. field rot Field rotation. Field rotation rotates the whole field, not just

the field. For I2 of 5, Code 39 (Mod 43), Codabar, and MSI, you can use L, R, C, B or E. For all other bar codes, use L.

the characters. Rotation is affected by the pivot point, which varies depending on how text is justified. Lower left corner of field is the pivot point. Options:

Top of field points to top of supply

Top of field points to left of supply

Top of field points to bottom of supply

Top of field points to right of supply

NOTE:

Example:

Serial bar codes printed at speeds greater than 2.5 IPS may not scan properly.

B,3,12,V,150,40,1,2,80,7,L,0 p

Defines a bar code field (field #3) with 12 characters of variable length starting at row 150, column 40. A UPCA bar code with a density of 2 and a height of 80 is used. The check digit and number system are shown at the bottom. The bar code is left aligned without any field rotation.

Defining Constant Text Fields

A constant text field is a set of fixed characters that prints on all labels. Define each constant text field separately. This field is not assigned a field number, but is counted as a field (keep this in mind, as the printer allows a maximum of The characters in this field cannot be changed by batch data. Field options do not apply to constant text fields.

Determine the height and the maximum width of the characters, using the tables in Appendix B, "Fonts." If you’re using proportionally spaced fonts, use the average size of the characters. Mark the pivot point of your field. This will vary, depending on how your field is justified.

fields per format).

100

3-12

Defining Fields

Syntax

C,row,column,gap,font,hgt mag, wid mag,color,alignment,char rot, field rot,"fixed char",sym set p

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