Zebra EPL2 Programmer's Manual

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EPL2

Programmer’s

Manual

Programming for Page Mode

Printing

Manual No. 980352-001 Rev. A

FOREWORD

This manual provides programming information for printers featuring Zebra’s EPL2 Pro gramming and command language, which are manufactured by Zebra Technologies Corpora tion, Camarillo, California.

This documentcontains information proprietary to Zebra Technologies Corporation. This docu ment and the information contained within is copyrighted by Zebra Technologies Corporation and may not be duplicated in full or in part by any person without written approval from Zebra. While every effort has been made to keep the information contained within current and accurate as of the date of publication, no guarantee is given or implied that the document is error-free or thatitisaccuratewith regardtoany specification.Zebrareserves therightto makechanges,for the purpose of product improvement, at any time.

TRADEMARKS

Zebra and EPL2 are trademarks of Zebra Technologies Corporation. All other marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

REVISION HISTORY

Rev.A - Thismanual version coincides with Zebraprinters with EPL2 firmware version4.04and is available from Zebra in electronic form.

See the Zebra web site for information on Zebra Technologies printers at: www.zebra.com

980352-001 Rev.A

Table of Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

Command Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2

Basic Command Syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3

Command Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3

Placing Elements in the Print Image . . . . . . . . . . 1-4

Text (Fonts) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5

Bar Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7

Programming Sequences Affect Graphic Results . . . . 1-8

Printer Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1

Printer AutoSense Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1

Determining Printer Firmware Version . . . . . . . . . 2-2

Programming Mode Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Media Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4

Command Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1

Command - ASCII Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4

Asian Character Font Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8

AUTOFR

B Command - Bar Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11

b Command - 2D Bar Code - MaxiCode Specific Options . . 3-16 b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options . . . 3-20

C Command - Counter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27

C Command - Cut Immediate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-29

D Command - Density . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-30

dump Command - Enable Dump Mode . . . . . . . . . . . 3-31

eR Command - User Defined Error/Status Character . . . . 3-32

EI Command - Print Soft Font Information . . . . . . . . . . 3-33

EK Command - Delete Soft Font . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-34

ES Command - Store Soft Font . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-35

f Command - Cut Position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-40

FE Command - End Form Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-41

FI Command - Print Form Information . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-42

FK Command - Delete Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-43

FR Command - Retrieve Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-44

FS Command - Store Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-45

GG Command - Print Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-47

GI Command - Print Graphics Information . . . . . . . . . . 3-48

GK Command - Delete Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-49

GM Command - Store Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-50

GW Command - Direct Graphic Write . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-52

Command - Automatic Form Printing . . . . . . . 3-9

980352-001 Rev.A

iii

I Command - Character Set Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-53

JB Command - Disable Top Of Form Backup . . . . . . . . . . 3-55

JF Command - Enable Top Of Form Backup . . . . . . . . . . 3-56

LE Command - Line Draw Exclusive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-57

LO Command - Line Draw Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-58

LS Command - Line Draw Diagonal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-59

LW Command - Line Draw White . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-60

M Command - Memory Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-61

N Command - Clear Image Buffer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-62

o Command - Cancel Software Options . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-63

oB Command - Cancel Auto Bar Code Optimization . . . . . . 3-64

oE Command - Line Mode Font Substitution . . . . . . . . . . 3-65

oH Command - Macro PDF Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-66

oM Command - Disable Initial Esc Sequence Feed . . . . . . . 3-68

oR Command - Character Substitution (Euro) . . . . . . . . . . 3-69

oW Command - Customize Bar Code Parameters . . . . . . . 3-71

O Command - Hardware Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-73

OEPL1 Command - Set Line Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-75

P Command - Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-76

PA Command - Print Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-77

q Command - Set Label Width . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-78

Q Command - Set Form Length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-80

r Command - Set Double Buffer Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-84

R Command - Set Reference Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-85

S Command - Speed Select . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-86

TD Command - Define Date Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-87

TS Command - Set Real Time Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-88

TT Command - Define Time Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-89

U Command - Print Configuration (General) . . . . . . . . . . 3-90

UA Command - Enable Clear Label Counter Mode . . . . . . . 3-91

UB Command - Reset Label Counter Mode . . . . . . . . . . . 3-92

UE Command - External Font Information Inquiry . . . . . . . 3-93

UF Command - Form Information Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-94

UG Command - Graphics Information Inquiry . . . . . . . . . 3-95

UI Command - Host Prompts/Codepage Inquiry . . . . . . . . 3-96

UM Command - Codepage & Memory Inquiry . . . . . . . . . 3-97

UN Command - Disable Error Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-98

UP Command - Codepage & Memory Inquiry/Print . . . . . . . 3-99

UQ Command - Configuration Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-100

US Command - Enable Error Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-101

V Command - Define Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-103

W Command - Windows Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-105

980352-001 Rev.A

xa Command - AutoSense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-106

X Command - Box Draw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-107

Y Command - Serial Port Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-108

Z Command - Print Direction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-109

? Command - Download Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-110

^@ Command - Reset Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-111

^ee Command - Error Report - Immediate . . . . . . . . 3-112

Appendix A - Character References . . . . . . . . . . A-1

Resident Fonts 1-5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1

Default Character Map Code Page - 437. . . . . . . . A-2

Dump Mode Character Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3

Appendix B - Cash Drawer Kicker Option . . . . . . . B-1

Cash Drawer Cable Wiring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2

<Esc>p

Command - Generate Pulse CDK . . . . . . . . . . B-3

<Esc>u Command - CDK Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-4

980352-001 Rev.A

Introduction

This section contains information about the ba sic features, command syntax and terminology oftheEPL2ProgrammingLanguageforZebra's desktop printers with flash memory architecture. These printers incorporate common programmingcodesetsandarchitecturalfeatures.

The primary operating mode for the printer is EPL2, a page description language. It is designed to assemble all the elements of the label prior to printing to speed the printing process. EPL2 is an ideal language foryourlabeling and bar code requirements. The EPL2 is versatile and is capable of printing a wide range media and bar codes.

Some printer models also include a legacy printer compatibility mode, Line Mode. Line Mode supports our early model EPL program ming language - ELP1. A separate manual is provided for Line Mode printing (p/n 980326-001). See the printer's Software and Documentation CD with the specific model'sProgrammer' Manualbuttonselector or visit our web site at: www.zebra.com

980352-001 Rev.A

1-1

Command

Conventions

The manual uses the following typographic conventions to describe commands.

Example Description

A Commands (Case Sensitive)

1,p2,p3

, p2, p3]

{Choice 1|Choice 2}

This text should be→ on one line

↵ Line feed character.

“NAME”

“DATA”

Required parameters Optional parameters Indicates a mandatory choice be

tween two or more items. You must include one of the items un less all of the items are also en closed in square brackets.

The line-continuation character (→) indicates that code is contin ued from one line to the next and should be typed all on one line.

The name of a form or graphic in double quote marks.

The text or bar code data in double quote marks. The (\) character designates that the character following is a literal and will encode into the data field. Refer to the following examples:

“PROMPT”

To Print ”\" “Company” \"Company\" \\\ \code\ \\code\\

An ASCII text field that will be transmitted to the host (via the se rial interface) each time this com mand is executed.

Enter into Data Field

Attention!!

All commands and alpha character command parameters are case sensitive!

1-2

980352-001 Rev.A

Basic Command

Syntax

Each command consists of one or two ASCII (case sensitive) alpha characters to identify the specific command desired. Some commands require one or more additional parameters to supply the printer with sufficient information to complete the command. Refer to Figure 1- for the basic command syntax.

Figure 1-1

Command Name

Basic Command Syntax

Command Parameters Command

WRITE TEXT

Ap,p,p,p,p,p,p,"DATA "

1234567

Specific

Data

↵

Each command line must be terminated with a Line Feed (LF) character (Dec. 10). Most PC based systems send CR/LF when the Enter key is pressed. The Carriage Return (CR) character is ignored by the printer and cannot be used in place of LF.

Command Editor One method to createcommandfilesis through

anASCIIbased text editor.IntheDOSenvironment, MS-DOS EDIT or BRIEF are good choices. To execute the file, use the editor’s print command or from the DOS prompt, use the COPY command to send the file directly to theprinter. Anexampleof the use of the COPY command is:

980352-001 Rev.A

COPY “FILENAME.EXT” LPT1↵

COPY “FILENAME.EXT” COM1↵

For more information on the use of the COPY command, refer to your DOS software manual. Configure the COM port to match the printer’s serial port setting (typically set to defaults). See the Y command in section 2 for details.

1-3

Placing Elements in

the Print Image

Sample Format

Image elements are located in the image print buffer on a X-Y grid expressed in dots. The X value represents thewidth and the Y value rep resents the height of the grid.

The point of origin (the starting point) for a non-rotated object is the upper left corner. As anobjectrotates, the point oforiginrotateswith the object.

These image buffer properties are depicted graphically in the following illustration.

Point of

Origin for

Text Object

Point of

Origin for

BarCode Object

"q" dots

Te x t

"Q"

dots

y axis

x axis

(0,0)

Te x t

Direction Of Feed

The minimum non printingmargin on all edges ofthelabel is 1mm.Printingcloserthan 1mm to the top or bottom edge of the label may cause theprinter toadvanceunwantedlabelsor cause the printer to go into error condition.

Point of Origin for Text Object Rotated 90°

Point of Origin for Text Object Rotated 270

1-4

980352-001 Rev.A

Text (Fonts) The standard EPL2 printer has five (1-5) resi

(

)

dent mono-spaced dot fonts. Fonts A-Z and a-z (upper and lower case alpha characters) are re served for downloading soft fonts.

First Character of Text String Reference Point

8 Dots

Character Width

Total Character Width

Inter-character Space

actuallywhite dots

Control text height (in horizontal dots) and width (in vertical dots) with the horizontal and vertical multipliers. The textis oriented first and then the A command’s font multipliers are ap plied.

980352-001 Rev.A

1-5

Thetext is placedintothe image buffer.Seethe following example.

Point of

Origin for

Text Object

Point of

Origin for

Text Object

Point of

Origin for

Text Object

y axis

x axis

(0,0)

Horizontal Dots

Text

2x Horizontal Multiplier

Text - No Size Multipliers

Text

2x Vertical Multiplier

Text

Direction Of Feed

Text

Point of Origin for Text Object

Rotated 270°

Point of Origin for Text Object

V e

Rotated 90°

r t i c

D o

t s

The reference point of the first character in a text stringisnotaffectedbythefont sizemultipliervalues.

First Character of Text String Reference Point

2times 2times

1-6

980352-001 Rev.A

Bar Codes All bar codes supported by the EPL2 language

have associated industry specifications that the programmershouldbe aware of and adhere to. The programmer needs to consider bar code features and requirements when choosing and using a bar code for different applications. Some of the features and requirements that need consideration are listed below:

Data used by the application are per the bar

❏

code specification (numbers only, alphanu meric, alphanumeric and special characters, etc.).

Minimum and maximum number of charac

❏

ters allowed or required per bar code.

❏Density or magnification of a given bar code

type.

❏White area required around bar codes (the

“Quiet Zone”).

❏The bar code must print within the image

buffer (printable area of the label).

Bar Code Orientation Tip

To help ensure that generated bar codes are readable by the widest variety of bar code readers, print bar codes in the “Picket Fence” orientation versus the “Ladder” orientation.

Horizontal Dots

Ladder

Orientation

Height of Bar Code

V e

r t

i c a

l D

Height of Bar Code

y axis

x axis

(0,0)

Picket Fence

Orientation

Direction Of Feed

980352-001 Rev.A

1-7

Programming

Sequences Affect

Graphic Results

Graphic elements can interact andthe resultant image can be affected by other commands. Structure command sequences to reduce the chancesofunexpectedprintresults.Theprinter will process lines, text, boxes and most bar codes in command sequence. The printer then processes the printer control processes, coun ters, variable data, Postnet, and then graphics last.

1-8

980352-001 Rev.A

Printer Configuration

This section covers the interpret your printer's configuration setup and setting basic modes.

Printer AutoSense

Feature

Use the printer's AutoSense feature to determineyourprinter'sconfigurationandoperating mode. The primary functions that AutoSense provides are:

❏AdjustmentoftheMediaSensorintheprinter

to the media in use.

❏

Programming Mode - Page (EPL2) or Line (EPL1emulation) Mode.Note- LineModeis not available for all printer models.

❏

The printer' serial interface settings.

❏

Reports the printer's configuration status in cluding printer options.

980352-001 Rev.A

2-1

Explanation of the Status Printout

4M03351F 16 V3.18 Serial por t:96,N,8,1 Page Mode 200dpi

Image buffer size:0507K Fmem:000.0K,061.4K avl Gmem:000K,045K avl Emem:024K,045K avl I8,0,001 rY S4 D00 R128,000 ZT UN q832 Q1022,029 Option:D,P,C,S oEw,x,y,z 16 23 31

Date: 10-05-94 Time:01:00:00

Dump Mode Print Sample

. Printer I.D.code number and firmware

version number.

. Serial port configuration.

Programming Mode Print head resolution USB is printed here ifinstalled

Print head test pattern.

. A mountof memory availablefor the

Image buffer.

Amount of memory used and memory available for

Amount of memory used and memory available for Soft fonts.

. Currently selected CharacterSet ( )

and Image Buffer mode setting ( ).

= Double Buffering Enabled

= Double Buffering Disabled

. Curr entlyselectedPrint Speed ( ),

Heat Density ( ), Reference Point( ), Print Orientation ( ) and Error Status ().

. Currently selected Form Width ( ) and

Length( ).

. Current Hardware and Software

Option status .

. Curr entAutoSense Through (Gap)

Sensor values. The three numbers represent;

1. Backing Transparent point

2. Set point

3. Label Transpar entpoint.

. Current time set in Real Time Clock.

This value will only be displayed if your printer is equippedwith the Real Time Clock feature.

. Current date set in Real Time Clock.

This value will only be displayed if your printer is equippedwith the Real Time Clock feature.

Formstorage. Graphics storage.

Determining Printer

Firmware Version

2-2

The printer version numbers are a code used to document product function and the feature support level of the printer. The latest firmware version and updates can be obtained from our web site.

980352-001 Rev.A

Programming Mode

Configuration

Flash based printers are, by default, configured for Page (EPL2) mode operations. The opera tor must convert the printer to Line Mode prior tothe initialuseof LineMode.Thisis doneviaa hardwareselectprocedurewiththeFeedbutton during printer power-up. See the OEPL1 com mand (page 3-75) for details on switching be tween line and page modes via programming.

Manually Setting

Line Mode

As of January 2001, the following printers sup port Line Mode (EPL1 emulation):

2443

2722

2824

2844

The Line Mode (and Page Mode) configuration setting is retained after reset has been issued or power has been cycled.

TheLineModecapableprinterutilizes the Feed button during printer power-up to toggle between the printer personality modes, Line and Page (EPL2).

1. With printer power off, press and hold the Feed button while turning the printer on, then release the button when the LED starts blinking red.

980352-001 Rev.A

2.When theindicatorLED startsflashinggreen, immediately press and hold Feed button.

3. Release the Feed buttonwhen the LED turns a steady Amber (orange).

4. Verify printer personality with Dump Mode printout:. Line Mode or Page Mode (EPL2).

5. Press the Feed button to exit the Dump Mode.

2-3

Media Detection Media detection in EPL2 printers is a combina

tionofprogrammingandprintermediasensing. TheQ (SetForm Length) and O (Option) com mands program the media detection method. The user must configure the printer for the me dia type and the (programmed)form or label in use.

Theprintercandetectthebeginningandendof the printable areaon the media by one of three methods: Gap, Notch (hole), or Black line. The Gap method detects the difference in optical density of a label on a liner from the liner only with the Transmissive (Gap) sensor. The Notch methodusestheTransmissivesensortodetecta hole in the media (gap-less labels or tag stock). The Black line method uses the Reflective sen sor to detect a preprinted black line on the media back (for gap-less labels or tag stock).

Printing on continuous media requires programming to control media positioning.

EPL2 printers also support a “Label Dispense” modeasaprinterconfigurationoption(formost models). The printers use a “Label Taken”sensor to detect the removal of a label.

One or more of these sensors may require user adjustment or configuration for proper operation. All EPL2 printers have an AutoSense fea ture to optimize label and label gap detection by the transmissive (gap) sensor. See the printer’s user’s manual for printer specific sensor adjust ment control.

2-4

980352-001 Rev.A

Command Reference

This section contains a complete listing of all commands in alphabetical order.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-1

Command Description Page

A ASCII Text 3-4

AUTOFR Automatic Form Printing 3-9

B Bar Code 3-11

MaxiCode 3-16 PDF417 3-20

C Counter 3-27 C Cut Immediate 3-29

D Density 3-30

EI Print Soft Font Info. 3-33 EK Delete Soft Font 3-34 eR User Definable Error Response 3-32

ES Store Soft Font 3-35

f Cut/Peel Position 3-40

FE End Form Store 3-41

FI Print Form Info. 3-42 FK Delete Form 3-43 FR Retrieve Form 3-44

FS Store Form 3-45

GG Retrieve Graphics 3-47

GI Print Graphics Info. 3-48

GK Delete Graphic 3-49 GM Store Graphic 3-50 GW Direct Graphic Write 3-52

I Character Set Selection 3-53

JB Disable Top Of Form Backup 3-55

JF Enable Top Of Form Backup 3-56

LE Line Draw Exclusive 3-57

LO Line Draw Black 3-58

LS Line Draw Diagonal 3-59

LW Line Draw White 3-60

M Memory Allocation 3-61

N Clear Image Buffer 3-62

o Cancel Customized Settings 3-63 oB Cancel Customize Bar Code 3-64 oE Line Mode Font Substitution 3-65

oH Macro PDF Offset 3-66 oM Disable Initial Esc Sequence Feed 3-68

oR Character Substitution (Euro) 3-69

oW Customize Bar Code Parameters 3-71

O Options Select 3-73

OEPL1 Set Line Mode 3-75

P Print 3-76 PA Print Automatic 3-77

3-2

980352-001 Rev.A

Command Description Page

Set Form Length

Transmissive (Gap) Sensor

Black Line Sensor

3-80

Continuous Stock

q Set Form Width 3-78

r Set Double Buffer Mode 3-84 R Set Reference Point 3-85 S Speed Select 3-86

TD Define Date Layout (& Print Date) 3-87

TS Set Real Time Clock 3-88 TT Define Time Layout (& Print Time) 3-89

U Print Configuration 3-90 UA Enable Clear Label Counter Mode 3-91 UB Reset Label Counter Mode 3-92

UE External Font Information Inquiry 3-93 UF Form Information Inquiry 3-94

UG Graphic Information Inquiry 3-95

UI Host Prompts/Codepage Inquiry 3-96 UM Codepage & Memory Inquiry 3-97 UN Disable Error Reporting 3-98

UP Codepage & Memory Inquiry/Print 3-99

UQ Configuration Inquiry 3-100

US Enable Error Reporting 3-101

V Define Variable 3-103

W Windows Mode 3-105

xa Sense Media 3-106

X Box Draw 3-107

Y Serial Port Setup 3-108

Z Print Direction 3-109

? Download Variables 3-110

^@ Reset Printer 3-111

^ee Status Report - Immediate 3-112

980352-001 Rev.A

3-3

A Command - ASCII Text

Description Prints an ASCII text string.

Syntax Ap

Parameters p

p p

p4= Font selection

1,p2,p3,p4,p5,p6,p7

= Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

= Rotation

Value Description

0 1 2 3

Value

No rotation 90 degrees 180 degrees 270 degrees

203 dpi 300 dpi

20.3 cpi, 6 pts, (8 x 12 dots)

16.9 cpi, 7 pts, (10 x 16 dots)

,"DATA"

Description

25 cpi, 4 pts, (12 x 20 dots)

18.75 cpi, 6 pts, (16 x 28 dots)

14.5 cpi, 10 pts,

(12 x 20 dots)

12.7 cpi, 12 pts,

(14 x 24 dots)

5.6 cpi, 24 pts,

(32 x 48 dots)

A - Z

Fonts 1 - 5 are fixed pitch.

Reserved for Soft Fonts

15 cpi, 8 pts, (20 x 36 dots)

12.5 cpi, 10 pts, (24 x 44 dots)

6.25 cpi, 21 pts, (48 x 80 dots)

Reserved for Soft Fonts

p5= Horizontal multiplier, expands the text

horizontally. Values: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 8.

= Vertical multiplier, expands the text ver

tically. Values: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, & 9.

=N for normal or R for reverse image

“DATA” = Represents a fixed data field.

3-4

980352-001 Rev.A

A Command - ASCII Text

Examples:

Will Produce:

The backslash (\) character designates the fol lowing character is aliteral and will encodeinto thedatafield.Refertothefollowingexamples:

To Print

Enter into data field “ \” “Company” \”Company\” \ \\ \code\ \\code\\

N¿ A50,0,0,1,1,1,N,"Example 1"¿ A50,50,0,2,1,1,N,"Example 2"¿ A50,100,0,3,1,1,N,"Example 3"¿ A50,150,0,4,1,1,N,"Example 4"¿ A50,200,0,5,1,1,N,"EXAMPLE 5"¿ A50,300,0,3,2,2,R,"Example 6"¿ P1¿

HINT

980352-001 Rev.A

As shown in example 5 above, font 5 only supports upper case characters. Refer to Appendix A for a complete listing of available fonts and character sets supported.

Use the LE command to create reverse print text in stead of the “R”intheA command parameter p This is the recommend method because it provides the best size, position and centering of the black line (rectangle) bordering the reversed text.

3-5

A Command - ASCII Text

Variable Data and

Counter Functions

Example:

Data with the RTC

Time & Date

Functions

The “Data” field can be replaced by or com bined with the following commands:

Vnn= Prints the contents of variable “nn” at

this position where nn is a 2 digit num

ber from 00 to 99. See the V command, page

Cn= Prints the contents of counter “n” at this

position where n is a one digit number from 0 to 9. See the C command, page .

A50,0,0,1,1,1,N,"DATA"¿ : Writes Text A50,50,0,2,1,1,N,V01¿: Writes contents of variable 01 A50,100,0,3,1,1,N,C1¿: Writes contents of counter 1 A50,100,0,3,1,1,N,C1+2¿ : Writes contents of counter 1 plus 2

The “Data” field can be replaced by or combined with the following variables:

TT = Prints the current time at this position in

the predefined format. See the TT command for format selection. This variable is available only if the printer Time & Date option is installed.

Examples:

TD=Prints the current date at this position in

the predefined format. See the TD command for format selection. This variable is available only if the printer Time & Date option is installed.

A50,150,0,4,1,1,N,TT↵ : Writes current time A50,200,0,5,1,1,N,TD↵ : Writes current date

or a combination of several options: A50,300,0,3,2,2,R,"Deluxe"V01C2"Combo"TDV01TT↵ :Writes the text “Deluxe” followed by the contents of variable 01 fol

lowed by the contents of counter 2 followed by the text “Combo” fol lowed by the current date followed by the contents of variable 01 followed by the current time.

3-6

980352-001 Rev.A

A Command - ASCII TEXT

Simple Expressions

in Data Fields

Syntax Ap

Parameters For the p

Anadvancedfunctionof the A command allows addition and subtraction to be performed on constant and variable values in flash printers.

1,p2,p3,p4,p5,p6,p7

- p7and “DATA” parameters -

,"DATA"[p8p9p10…]

See first page of A command, page 3-4.

= Required. Must be a variable data field

number, e.g. V00, V01 etc.

= Required. Operator, + or –

= Required. Variable data field number

or constant value.

Valid Number Ranges:

Constant = 0 to 2147483647 Variable = 0 to 2147483647 Result = -2147483648 to 2147483647

❏The Expression must start with a variable

field.

❏Thecharacter field length defined for the first

variable in the expression will be used to for mat the result. If the result is of a greater length than the defined character length, then the result field will contain ‘X’s.

❏

A syntax error will be generated during form store if the constant value is too large.

❏

Ifanerror occurs during theevaluationofthe expression, the resultant field will be filled with ‘X’s.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-7

A Command - Simple Expressions in Data Fields

Example:

FK"1"¿ FK"1"¿ FS"1"¿ V00,10,N,"Enter current mileage"¿ A100,100,0,4,1,1,N,"Current mileage is “V00" miles.”¿ A100,200,0,4,1,1,N,"Change oil at “V00+3000" miles.”¿ FE¿

FK"2"¿ FK"2"¿ FS"2"¿ V00,10,N,"Enter current mileage."¿ V01,10,N,"Enter interval mileage."¿ A100,100,0,4,1,1,N,"Current mileage is “V00" miles.”¿ A100,200,0,4,1,1,N,"Mileage interval is “V01" miles.”¿ A100,200,0,4,1,1,N,"Change oil at “V00+V01" miles.”¿ FE¿

FK"3"¿ FK"3"¿ FS"3"¿ V00,10,N,"Enter value 1."¿ V01,10,N,"Enter value 2."¿ V02,10,N,"Enter value 3."¿ A100,200,0,4,1,1,N,"Answer: “V01+123+V00-10-V02¿ FE¿

Asian Character Font

Sets

3-8

The flash based printers support three Asian languagesets. Asian language support is an op tional feature and requires a special version of the printer (PCBA) to support the large Asian character sets.

The Asian character maps and special features of the A command that support the character sets can be found on our Internet site or from CD ROM. Click on the code page reference (in the electronic manual version) to display the Addendum and its code pages.

Chinese Addendum - P/N 980095-061 Japanese Addendum - P/N 980095-071 Korean Addendum - P/N 980095-081

980352-001 Rev.A

AUTOFR Command - Automatic Form Printing

Description This special form process allows you to detach

the printer from the computer and print in a standalone mode. The EPL2 printer reserves the form name AUTOFR to allow the printer to automaticallystarta form whentheprinteris in itialized power-up. This feature can be used in many ways:.

Feed a single label in peel mode and print

multiple labels set to the number of labels on the roll.

Have a form with a variable and enter the

variable with a scanner, terminal, weight scale, circuit analyzer or any other device ca pable of sending ASCII character data.

Using AUTOFR Download a form to the printer with the name

AUTOFR.

Example:

¿ :Line Feed to initialize the printer

FK"AUTOFR"¿ :Form Kill (delete any existingAUTOFR) FS"AUTOFR"¿ :Form Save (save file from here to FE at

: the bottom) V00,8,L,""¿ :Variable field definition Q254,20¿ :Label height followed by gap width S2¿ :Speed (2ips) D7¿ :Density setting ZB¿ :Print direction (ZTflips it 180 degrees) A340,20,0,4,1,2,N,"QUANTITY"¿

:Fixed text line B265,75,0,3,2,4,101,B,V00¿ :Bar code definition PA1¿ :Print1 labelAutomatically * FE¿ :FormEnd (Line Feed)

* - If using the CAL TOOLS, CAL WIN, etc. programs to gener ate label files (files with .ejf extensions), then the PA command must be added manually by editing the .ejf file.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-9

AUTOFR - Automatic Form Printing Feature

AUTOFR treats any incoming data as a variable in

tended for printing. This means if you send the printer a memory partition command, the label will print, if you send a delete command - the label will print! So, while you are testing AUTOFR it isbest to use another name for the form. Once you are satis fied with the form, rename it AUTOFR before you download it.Thereis no need to specify a file exten sion.

Isolating Data From

the Input Device

Place the printer in the diagnostic dump mode andsendfromyourdatainput device. All charac tersthedevicesendswillbeprintedonthelabel.

If nothing prints, nothing is arriving - check

pin-outs and serial settings.

Disabling AUTOFR Senda XOFF data character (13 hex. or ASCII

19) oraNUL(00hex.orASCII0)totheprinter. Theformmaynowbedeletedfromtheprinter.

Removing AUTOFR The programmer must send a Delete Form - FK

command to the printer after disabling

AUTOFR.

Example:

FK"AUTOFR"¿ FK"AUTOFR"¿

3-10

980352-001 Rev.A

B Command - Bar Code

Description Usethiscommandtoprintstandardbarcodes.

Syntax Bp

Parameters p

p p

p4= Bar Code selection (see Table 2-1 on

1,p2,p3,p4,p5,p6,p7,p8

=Horizontal start position (X) in dots

= Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

= Rotation

Value Description

0 1 2 3

No rotation 90 degrees 180 degrees 270 degrees

,"DATA"

next page).

=Narrow bar width in dots. (see Table

2-1 on next page).

=Wide bar width in dots.

Acceptable values are 2-30.

=Bar code height in dots.

=Print human readable code.

Values: B=yes or N=no. “DATA” = Represents a fixed data field. The data in this field must comply with the selected bar code’s specified format.

The backslash (\) character designates the fol lowing character is aliteral and will encodeinto thedatafield.Refertothefollowingexamples:

To Print

Enter into data field “ \” “Company” \”Company\” \ \\ \code\ \\code\\

980352-001 Rev.A

3-11

B Command - Bar Code

Bar Codes

Description

Code 39 std. or extended Code 39 with check digit Code 93 Code 128 UCC

Serial Shipping Container Code Code 128 auto A, B, C modes Code 128 mode A Code 128 mode B Code 128 mode C Codabar EAN8 EAN8 2 digit add-on EAN8 5 digit add-on EAN13 EAN13 2 digit add-on

Value

E80 2-4 E82 2-4 E85 2-4 E30 2-4 E32 2-4

Value

3 1-10

3C 1-10

9 1-10 0 1-10

1 1-10 1A 1-10 1B 1-10 1C 1-10

K 1-10

EAN13 5 digit add-on German Post Code Interleaved 2 of 5 Interleaved 2 of 5 with mod 10 check digit Interleaved 2 of 5 with human readable

check digit Postnet 5, 9, 11 & 13 digit Japanese Postnet UCC/EAN 128* UPC A UPC A 2 digit add-on UPC A 5 digit add-on UPC E UPC E 2 digit add-on UPC E 5 digit add-on UPC Interleaved 2 of 5 Plessey (MSI-1) with mod. 10 check digit

E35 2-4

2G 3-4

2 1-10 2C 1-10

2D 1-10

P—

J— 1E 1-10

UA0 2-4 UA2 2-4 UA5 2-4 UE0 2-4 UE2 2-4 UE5 2-4

2U 1-10

L—

MSI-3 with mod. 10 check digit

* - Use ASCII 06 to delimit variable length fields.

3-12

M—

980352-001 Rev.A

B Command - Bar Code

Example:

Will Produce:

N¿ B10,10,0,3,3,7,200,B,"998152-001"¿ P1¿

Bar Codes with

Variables & Counters

Examples:

The data field can be replaced by or combined with the following commands:

Vnn =Prints the contents of variable “nn” at

this position. Range of nn = 00 to 99.

Cn =Prints the contents of counter “n” at this

position. Range of n = 0 to 9 See Appendix C for additional Data parame ters for printers with the RTC (real time clock) option installed.

B50,0,0,3,1,2,50,B,"DATA"¿ : Writes bar code B50,50,0,3,1,2,50,N,V01¿ : Writes contents of variable 01 as bar

: code

B50,50,0,3,1,2,50,N,C1¿ : Writes contents of counter 1 asbar

:code

B50,50,0,3,1,2,50,N,C1+2¿ : Writes contents of counter 1 plus2 as

:barcode

or a combination of several options:

B50,300,0,3,1,2,50,B,"Deluxe"V01C2"Combo"V01¿ :Writes the text “Deluxe” followed by the contents of variable 01 fol lowed by the contents of counter 2 followed by the text “Combo” fol lowed by the contents of variable 01 all as a code 39 bar code.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-13

B Command - Bar Code

Data with the RTC

Time & Date

Functions

Code 128 Bar Code

Function Characters

The “Data” field can be replaced by or com bined with the following variables:

TT = Prints the current time at this position in

the predefined format. See the TT com

mand for format selection. This variable is available only if the printer Time & Date option is installed.

TD =Prints the current date at this position in

the predefined format. See the TD command for format selection. This variable is available only if the printer Time & Date option is in stalled.

Some bar code formats will not support date names or the date or time delimiters used by the printer to separate

The printer supports code 128 function control characters (FCN#). Multiple FCN#s, TTs, TDs and “DATA” strings can be concatenated, allowing themtobe insertedanywherewithin the symbol.

FCN2, FCN3 and FCN4 are illegal in code

128 mode C (p

= 1C) and will result in a syn-

tax error. Please refer to the Code 128 standard for a de

scription of function characters FNC1 through

FNC3.

“Standard” Code 128 can encode all 128 stan dard ASCII characters (0-127). Function char acter FCN4 provides a means of also encoding extended ASCII characters (128-255). It directs the reader to add 128 to the value of each af fected character before transmitting it.

Two consecutive FCN4s toggle between stan dardandextendedASCIImodeforall succeed ingdatacharacters(until the end of the symbol, oruntilanotherpairofsisencountered).This is referred to as latching into extended ASCII mode or latching into standard ASCII mode.

3-14

980352-001 Rev.A

B Command - Bar Code

Code 128 Bar Code

Function Characters

(continued)

A single FCN4 toggles between standard and extended ASCII mode for only a single follow ing data character. This is referred to as shifting into extended ASCII mode or shiftinginto stan dard ASCII mode.

BothcodesetsA and B are needed to represent the entire extended ASCII character set, just as both sets are needed to represent the standard ASCII character set.

FCN4s can be inserted manually, if necessary

or desired, by following the syntax described above. The printer will, however, insert them automatically if extended ASCII characters are encountered in the DATA. It will do so in the most efficient manner possible:

If up to 4 contiguous extended ASCII charactersareencountered,it willshiftintoextended ASCII mode by inserting a single FCN4 before each one;

· If5or more contiguousextended ASCII char-

acters are encountered, it will latch into extended ASCII mode by inserting two FCN4s before them.

While latched into extended ASCII mode, it will apply the same rules if standard ASCII characters are encountered.

Thus, the preferred way to encode extended ASCIIcharacters is tosimplyembed them inthe DATA and let the printer manage the encoding task. For best results, the code set should also not be specified (i.e., p4 = 1). FCN4 s should be manually insertedonly in systems where ex tended ASCII characters cannot be transmitted to the printer.

it is illegal to mix automatic and manual modes within thedata for a single symbol; i.e.,anextended ASCIIcharacterencounteredinthedataafter an will beconsidered asyntaxerror. Likewise,an FCN4 af ter an extended ASCII character will also be consid ered a syntax error.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-15

b Command - 2D Bar Code - MaxiCode Specific Options

Description Use this command to generate MaxiCode bar

code symbols with a single command. The printer will automatically interpret and encode data into MaxiCode symbols for data modes 2, 3,4,and6.Uptoeightsymbolscanbelinked.

Syntax bp

Parameters p

p p p

1. If p4(Mx) is not used, the printer willusethe following rules to automatically format the “DATA” parameter. If the postal code (third parameter, PC) in the “DATA” is:

1,p2,p3

=Horizontal start position (X) in dots

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots

=M - Must be "M" for MaxiCode

=Mode Selection

All numeric characters, the printer will auto matically select Mode 2.

,[p4,][p5,]“DATA”

Value Description

Not Used Automatic Selection Mode 2 or 3

M2 Mode 2 M3 Mode 3 m4 Mode 4 m6 Mode 6

3-16

Alpha only or alpha-numeric character com binations will set the printer to Mode 3.

Not used, the printer automatically selects Mode 3.

2.Ifp4valueis“M2or M3”,the printerwilluse the following rules toformat the “Data” param eter:

In Mode 2 - If a non-numeric character is en tered in the Postal Code “Data” parameter field,thentheMaxiCodebarcodewill notprint.

In Mode 3 – If the Postal Code “Data” field exceed 6 characters, then the additional char acterswillbetruncatedfromthebar codefield.

980352-001 Rev.A

b Command - 2D Bar Code - MaxiCode Specific Options

p5= x,y

Associated MaxiCode symbol numbering where:

x = Symbol Number of y = Total Number of Associated Sym

bols

Default: Not used Range: 1-8 for both x or y

”DATA”=

Mode dependent data is bounded by quotation marks. Maximum of 2 KBytes of data.

cl = Class Code (3 digits required) co = Country Code (3 digits required)

pc = Postal Code

lpm = Low priority message (data)

Mode Dependent Data Format

Mode Data Format 2 & 3 “cl,co,pc,lpm” 4 & 6 “lpm”

Mode 2 = Numeric Characters Mode 3 = International Characters

(up to 6 characters)

Mode 2 = 5 or 9 characters (All Numeric, including USA Postal ZIP 5 or 9 char.) For less than 9 characters, the printer will pad the field with 0’s. Mode 3 (International)= Any alphanumeric character (up to 6 characters)

ASCII printable characters (up to 84 characters per symbol), any

256 character map.

980352-001 Rev.A

Theprogrammershould rely onthesymbology's specification to insure format compliance and proper implementation. See the AIM web site for specifications at:

http://www.aimi.org/

3-17

b Command - 2D Bar Code - MaxiCode Specific Options

Example:

Will Produce:

N¿ b20,20,M,"300,840,93065,1692,This isMaxiCode, but not MaxiCode formatted data"¿ P1¿

3-18

980352-001 Rev.A

Using AIM Specified

MaxiCode Data

Formatting

The EPL printer can use and automatically de codetheAIMITS(InternationalTechnical Stan dards) MaxiCode data format. The printer detects the message/start header ([)>R separator (G (R

SEOT

) data control strings.

), and the end of messagemarker

), field

The hexadecimal (ASCII) data control strings are in the following table. See the EPL2 dump mode character map in Appendix A.

Control String Hexadecimal Code Message/Start Header

[ ) > R

Field Separator

S 1D

End Of Message Marker

RSE

S 5B 29 3E 1E

OT 1E 04

Syntax bp1,p2,M,p4“[AIM MaxiCode Data]”

Example

b20,400,M,m2”001,840,93065,1692,[)>R

01GS98XXXZZFDAAFGSSHIPGS309GSGS1/1GS10G NGSGSCAMARILLOGSCAGSRSEOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Notes:

1) This programming example represents actual data used to format a single AIM compliant MaxiCode symbol as pro grammed by a major international and domestic shipping com pany.

2) The shipper has explicitly set the MaxiCode symbol for Mode

2. This can be omitted by the programmer and the printer will auto-select the mode per the rules on page 3-16.

3) The shipper has used the "!" character to pad the symbol's data. A scanner reads back all the "Data" within the quotation marks, including the "!" characters following the End Of Mes

sage Marker (E

980352-001 Rev.A

4) All of the data fields in the Low Priority Message are not used in the example. Some are left empty with the field delim

iting G

character used as a format field holder.

3-19

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

Description Use thiscommandto print PDF 417 and Macro

PDF bar code symbols. The printer will auto matically change from PDF417 to Macro PDF barcode mode if the data senttothe printer ex ceeds the maximum amount supported by the PDF417 symbol. The oH command is used to place the addition Macro PDF symbols needed for the continuation data.

Theprinterwillautomaticallyoptimizethesym bol for readability of data (and use the mini mum number of symbols when using Macro PDF). The symbol's geometry is adjusted (typi callyreducing thesizeofthe symbol)perthe de finedparameters.Theprinterwilluse thelargest module size (bar width and height) and minimize the number of rows and columns.

Syntax bp

1,p2,p3,p4,p5

[,p

][,p12][,p13][,p14][,p15],”DATA”

[,p6][,p7][,p8][,p9][,p10]

Parameters The printer will automatically generate the

PDF417barcodeusingthefollowingparameters.

= Horizontal start position (X) in dots

= Vertical start position (Y) in dots

3-20

= P - Must be "P" for PDF 417 bar codes

(www) =maximum print width in dots

(hhh) = maximum print height in dots

Theprogrammershould rely onthesymbology's specification to insure format compliance and proper implementation. See the AIM web site for specifications at:

http://www.aimi.org/

980352-001 Rev.A

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

The following parameters may be omitted and de fault values will automatically be inserted. Each pa rameter value (data string)mustbe proceeded by its associated command prefix character.

p6(s) = sets error correction level

Error Correction codewords per symbol Values: s1 - s8 If level is not specified, a level will automati cally be assigned as per the following table:

EC level EC Codewords Auto Select Level

02 — 1 4 0-31 2 8 32-63 3 16 64-127 4 32 128-255 5 64 256-511 6 128 512-928 7 256 — 8 512 —

p7(c) = selects data compression method

Values: 0 or 1, default is 0

c0 = Auto-encoding c1 = Binary mode

Data Type Compression (Byte by Byte)

Text 2 Characters per codeword

Numeric 2.93 Characters per codeword

Binary 1.2 Bytes per codeword

p8(pxxx,yyy,mm) = print human readable

This parameter is a non-standard implemen tor of the PDF417 and is only recommended for troubleshooting purposes.

Additional variables:

p ="p" - parameter identifier

xxx = horizontal start location yyy = vertical start location mm = maximum characters per line

980352-001 Rev.A

3-21

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

p9(f) = Bar code origin point

Values: 0 or 1, Default is 1

f1- Center of bar code as defined by the

automatically adjusted width and height. Parameters p

values are maximum values only.

f0- Upper left corner of bar code.

(x) - module width (in dots)

Values: 2 - 9 (i.e. x2-x9) Default: Auto selects 6 (dots). Tests data with maximum size limit set by p

and then the other optional parame

ters. The printer automatically reduces the module width in one dot increments until the data fits within the symbols maximum dimensions (and other applied parameters) or until 3 dots has failed, then reports an error.

symbol size, i.e.

and

(y) - set bar height (in dots)

Range: 4 - 99 (i.e. y4-y99) Default: 4 times module width (p

(r) - maximum row count

Maximum limit for the number of rows to be used for auto selecting symbol features.

(l) - maximum column count

Maximum limit for the number of col umns to be used for auto selecting sym bol features.

(t) - truncated flag - legal values are:

0 = not truncated, 1= truncated

See the PDF 417 specification for details.

(o) - rotation

Values: 0= 0º, 1= 90º, 2= 180º, 3= 270º Settings of 90° & 270° will cause the sym bols maximum height (p

) and width (p5)

values to transpose when automatically cal culating and generating the symbol, i.e. the height would affect column dimensions and width would affect row dimensions.

)

3-22

980352-001 Rev.A

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

"DATA" = ASCII data or Binary data bytes

Represents a fixed data field.

PDF417: General

Information

The backslash (\) character designates the fol lowing character is aliteral and will encodeinto thedatafield.Refertothefollowingexamples: To Print

Enter into data field “ \” “Company” \”Company\” \ \\ \code\ \\code\\

¿ \¿

A PDF417 symbol is organized into minimum of 3 to a maximum of 90 rows and a minimum of 5 to a maximum of 34 columns of codewords.

Eachcodewordis17moduleswide.Thereare4 bars and 4 spaces per codeword.

Multiply the module width (in dots, p

)by17

to get the codeword width. Multiplethemodule height (in dots, p

)bythe

number of rows to get the symbol height.

Four of the codewords in each row are start, stop and two row indicators. The remaining codewords are referred to as the data region and contain symbol overhead and compacted data.

There can be no more than 928 codewords in the data region. All combinations of rows and columns are notlegal;90rowstimes 30 columns would produce a data region of 2700 codewords which exceeds the 928 codeword maximum per symbol. See the following table (on the next page) that shows the maximum number of rows and the resulting number of codewords in the data region for each column count.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-23

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

PDF417

Symbol Geometry

Columns Maximum Rows Codewords

59090 6 90 180 7 90 270 8 90 360

9 90 450 10 90 540 11 90 630 12 90 720 13 90 810 14 90 900 15 84 924 16 77 924 17 71 923 18 66 924 19 61 915 20 58 928 21 54 918 22 51 918 23 48 912 24 46 920 25 44 924 26 42 924 27 40 920 28 38 912 29 37 925 30 35 910 31 34 918 32 33 924 33 32 928

3-24

34 30 900

980352-001 Rev.A

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

Automatic PDF 417

Bar Code Generation

The printer automaticallytests and changes the PDF 417 bar code geometry to maximize the readabilityofthebarcodeforagivenmaximum height and width, specified by p

and p5.

Theprinterteststhe PDF 417 parameters inthis order for a given data string (error correction and compression included):

1. Module width p

2. Symbol width p

3. Symbol column maximum p

4. Module height p

5. Symbol height p

6. Symbol row maximum p

(for codeword width)

13 11 5

The printer will start with the maximum value (default or explicit) for these parameters. The printer reduces these values to get the module width and height to maximize readability.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-25

b Command - 2D Bar Code - PDF417 Specific Options

Example:

Will Produce:

N¿ b80,100,P,700,600,x2,y7,l100,r100,f0,s5," \ ¿ Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this conti nent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposi tion that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure.

"¿

b80,200,P,400,300,p40,440,20,f1,x3,y10,r60,l5,"ABCDEFGHIJK12345 67890abcdefghijk"¿ P¿

3-26

Thesecond symbol hasbeenset to printhuman readable data with the p

parameter

(p40,440,20) and is not part of the PDF417 symbol.

980352-001 Rev.A

C Command - Counter

Description The counter (C) command defines one of 10

automatic counters used in consecutive num bering applications (i.e. serial numbers). Coun ters must be defined after variables.

For Numeric Serialization Only. The counter function does not support Alpha or Alpha-Numeric Serialization.

Syntax Cp1, p2, p3, p4, “[-]PROMPT”

Parameters p

KDU Prompt

Options

=Counter number. Range: 0 to 9

=Maximum number of digits for the counter.

Range: 1 to 29

=Field Justification.

L = Left R = Right C = Center N = No Justification

=Step Value. + or - sign followed by a

single digit of 1-9. Using a step value of

+0 allows the counter to be used as an

additional variable data field.

“PROMPT”= An ASCII text field that will be

transmitted to the KDU or host (via the serial interface) each time the command is executed. Typically used to request the operator to enter a starting counter value.

[-] = Having the first character of the prompt

a single minus sign will cause the prompt to display only once after form retrieval.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-27

C Command - Counter

TheCcommand isusedinformsthatrequirese quentialnumbering. Wheninitializingcounters, they must be defined in order (e.g. C0 first, C1 second...).

Field justification (p

) affects the printing of

counter data. When L, R or C are selected, the counter field is the width of p justify within the counter (p lected p

. The N parameter will print the mini

value. Data will

) field per the se

mum number of characters. See programming example 13 in Appendix H.

Toprintthe contentsofthecounter, the counter numberis referenced inthe“DATA” field ofthe

A (ASCII text) or B (Bar Code) commands.

If the starting valueofa counter is “1", then no leadingzeropaddingwillbe added.If thestartingvalue is “01”, then the counter will be padded, up to the maximum number of digits (p

), with zeros.

Example:

Saving and

Protecting

Consecutive

Numbers in

Nonvolatile Memory

Single Digit

Summation with

Counters

C0,10,L,+1,"-Enter Serial Number:"¿

Thisfeature isusefulwhenthe counterfieldrepresentsaserialnumber(orotherstypesofnumbers) that should never be repeated. This feature allows for automaticretrieval and incre menting (or decrementing) of the previous counter value used every time a form is re trieved (and printed).

By placing one minus sign as the first character ofthe prompt,theprompt willappearonlyonce after the form is retrieved, thereby protecting the integrity of the data.

Add or subtract a single digit from the recalled countervaluein a form. If formrecalledcounter

C0 had a value of 3, then processing C0+1

wouldyieldavalueof4andC0-2wouldyielda value of 1.

3-28

980352-001 Rev.A

C Command - Cut Immediate

Description: This command allows the printer to initiate an

immediatemediacut without a form printoper ation. The printer must have the cutter option installed.

The C command – Cut Immediate can not

❏

be used inside of a form. TheinitialcharacterC in a command string is

❏

used for both the Cut Immediate (C) and Counter Conmmand function (Cp can only be used within a form. The Cut Im mediate Command (C) can not be used in a form.

❏TheCcommand – CutImmediatecan not be

used with the KDU.

) which

Syntax: C

Parameters: None

Example:

C¿

Only cut label liner (backing) or tag stock. Label ad hesive willbuilt up on the cutter bladeand cause the cutter to operate poorly or jam if the labels are cut along with the label liner.

UsetheCcommand-CutImmediate 5timeswithout medialoaded, toperforma selfcleaning ofthe cutter blade.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-29

D Command - Density

Description Use this command to select the print density.

Syntax Dp

Parameters p1=Density setting. Acceptable values are:

Model Acceptable Values1Default Value

2722 0 - 15 7 2742 0 - 15 7 3742 0 - 15 7

2443 (Orion) 0 - 15 10

2824 0 - 15 7 2844 0 - 15 10

Hx-146 0 - 15 7

2746 0 - 15 7

2684 (Strata) 0 - 15 7

Note 1: 0 is the lightest print and 15 is the darkest.

The density command controls the amount of heatproducedbytheprinthead.Moreheatwill produce a darker image. Too much heat can cause the printed image to distort.

Example:

The density and speed commands can dramatically affectprintquality.Changesin thespeedsettingtypically require a change to the print density.

D5¿ : selects density 5

3-30

980352-001 Rev.A

dump Command - Enable Dump Mode

Description This command allows the advanced program

mer to force a user diagnostic “data dump” mode. Sending the dump command to the printer allows the programmer to compare ac tualdatasenttoprinterwiththehostprogram.

Send data to the printer after the dump com mandhasbeenissuedtoevaluateprogramand printer control data. The printer will process all data bytes into ASCII character data , range 0-255 decimal (00-FF hexadecimal).

Press the printer’s Feed button until “Out of Dump” is printed or power cycle the printer to terminate the dump mode.

Syntax dump

Parameters None

Usethe“DumpMode”charactermap inAppendixA of the EPL2 programmer’s manual to interpret the dump mode data (characters printed on the labels) back into ASCII data.

Example:

Graphicsdatadumpmaybe largeandrequire multiple labels to print.

Set the image buffer width with the q command to match the media width prior to issuing the dump command.

Press the Feed button to view dump data that ex ceedsasingle label’sprintarea. Repeattoviewmore dump data. Pressing the Feed button after the dump data is fin ished printing will cause the printer to exit the dump mode.

dump¿

980352-001 Rev.A

3-31

eR Command - User Defined Error/Status Character

Description: This command allows the advanced program

mer to specify the printer's error/status report character for error reporting via the RS-232 se rial interface.

Syntax: eRp

1,p2

Parameters: p1= Any single ASCII character

Range: 0-255 decimal (00-FF hexadeci mal)

= Error/Status Response Mode

Mode Descriptions

Standard (default):

XON (17 dec. / 11 hex.) on Recovery XOFF (19 dec. / 13 hex.) on Error

Character Only:

Reports the selected error/status character followed by a Carriage Return and Line Feed.

Character & Error/Status Code:

Reports the selected error/status character, er-

ror/status code (see page 3-112 for codes), and then by a Carriage Return and Line Feed.

Example: For Mode 2 Error and Status Reporting:

eR$,2¿ : Sets Error Character to "$" and

: Sets Error Mode to "2". : User operates and prints with printer.

: User opens print head.

$11¿ : Reports Print Head Open

: User closes print head

$00¿ : Reports No Error

: Printer Ready for next command. : (Status report for Print Head Closed)

3-32

980352-001 Rev.A

EI Command - Print Soft Font Information

Description This command will cause the printer to print a

list of all soft fonts that are stored in memory.

Syntax

Example:

Will Produce:

EI¿

Soft fonts can be downloaded to and deleted from the printer from the Soft Font Downloader Utility, CAL Tools or CAL3.

EI¿ :prints soft font list

980352-001 Rev.A

3-33

EK Command - Delete Soft Font

Description This command is used to delete soft fonts from

memory.

Soft fonts can be downloaded to and deleted from the printer from the Soft Font Downloader Utility, CAL Tools or CAL3.

Syntax EK {“FONTNAME”|"*"}

Parameters “FONTNAME” = By entering the name of a

font, that font will be deleted from mem ory.

“*” = By including an “*” (wild card), ALL

fonts will be deleted from memory.

Example:

EK"A"¿ :deletes font “A” EK"*"¿ :deletes all fonts

3-34

980352-001 Rev.A

ES Command - Store Soft Font

Description This command is used to download and store

soft fonts in memory.

Soft fonts can be downloaded to and deleted from the printer from the Soft Font Downloader Utility, CAL Tools or CAL3.

Syntax ES"FONTNAME"p1p2p3a1b1c1“DATA1”a

2b2c2

Parameters “FONTNAME” = One letter font name

“DATA2” ... anbncn“DATAn”

Range: a-z, Lower Case

Lower Case named fonts minimize soft font

memory usage to only store fonts down loaded and have 256 character limit.

The following use hexadecimal coding for parameter values.

: Number of characters to be downloaded

Range: 00 - FF hex. (0-255 decimal) for 1 to 256 fonts per soft font set.

: Character Rotation

00 hex. = 0 and 180 degrees

01 hex. = 90 and 270 degrees (clockwise)

02 hex. = Both 0 and 180 degree rotation pairandthe90and270degree rotationpair

p3: Font Height

Range: 00 to FF hex. Measured in dots and expressed as a hexadecimal number, i.e. 1B hex. = 27 dots Font height includes accentors and dis senters of characters and need to fit in the character cell

203 dpi printers = 256 dots = 1.26 inches = 32.03 mm

980352-001 Rev.A

300 dpi printers = 00 to FF hex. 256 dots = 0.85 inches = 21.67 mm

3-35

ES Command - Store Soft Font

a1:(1st) Download Character (map position)

Range: 00 to FF hex.

:(1st) Spacing To Next Print Character

Downloaded character’s next printed character position in dots, i.e. Character tracking - the space between characters. Must be greater than or equal to the character width, see parameter c in a decimal number converted to a hexadecimal number. Range: 00 to FF hex.

:(1st) Downloaded Character’s Width

Dots in a decimal number converted to a hexadecimal number. Range: 00 to FF hex.

. Dots

“DATA

” : (1st) Character Bitmap

× c1= bit map data (in bytes)

Data is received in bytes, on a line by line basis. The font character’s 0,0 cell map position is in the top left corner of the map as viewed in the 0 degree rotation. See the examples on the following pages.

:(2nd) Download Character (map position)

:(2nd) Spacing To Next Print Character

:(2nd) Downloaded Character’s Width

“DATA

Repeat for each character until the last char acter in the set is downloaded.

” : (2nd) Character Bitmap

× c2bytes = bit map data

an: (Last) Download Character (map position)

: (Last) Spacing To Next Print Character

3-36

: (Last) Downloaded Character’s Width

“DATA

” : Character Bitmap

× cnbytes = bit map data

980352-001 Rev.A

ES Command - Store Soft Font

For fonts with the rotation parameter set for “both” (p

Repeat the individual font character download for each 90° rotated character from the start of the character set until the last rotated character in the set is downloaded.

= 02 hex.):

Example of

Measuring Soft Font

Size

1-90°b1-90°c1-90°

2-90°b2-90°c2-90°

3-90°b3-90°c3-90°

n-90°

: (Last) Download Character : (Last) Spacing To Next Print Charac

ter

n-90°

“DATA

: (Last) Downloaded Character’s Width

n-90°

” : Character Bitmap

The number of individual character maps downloaded will be double the characters in the font set (p

Reference Point

10 Dots

“DATA “DATA “DATA

× cnbytes = bit map data

1-90° 2-90° 3-90°

” ” ”

980352-001 Rev.A

8Dots

Parameter Dots Data Entered as Hexadecimal

c 8 08 hex.

12 0C hex. 10 0A hex.

Inter-character Space (actually white dots)

3-37

ES Command - Store Soft Font

Soft Fonts

Programming Code

Example

00000000

00000010

00000020

00000030

00000040

00000050

00000060

00000070

00000080

00000090

000000A0

000000B0

0D 0A 45 4B 22 61 22 0D 0A 45 53 22 61 22 03 00

CR & LF

1A 41 17 03 00 7C 00 00 7C 00 00 7C 00 00 EE 00

p3a1b1c

00 EE 00 01 EF 00 01 C7 00 01 C7 00 03 83 80 03

83 80 07 83 C0 07 01 C0 07 01 C0 0E 00 E0 0F FF

E0 0F FF E0 1F FF F0 1C 00 70 3C 00 78 38 00 38

38 00 38 70 00 1C 70 00 1C F0 00 1E E0 00 0E 00

00 00 42 17 03 1F FF 00 1F FF C0 1F FF E0 1C 01

a2b2c

E0 1C 00 F0 1C 00 70 1C 00 70 1C 00 70 1C 00 E0

1C 01 E0 1F FF C0 1F FF C0 1F FF E0 1C 00 F0 1C

00 70 1C 00 38 1C 00 38 1C 00 38 1C 00 38 1C 00

38 1C 00 70 1C 00 F0 1F FF E0 1F FF C0 1F FF 00

00 00 00 43 19 03 00 7F 00 01 FF C0 03 FF E0 07

The typical soft font download command strings to the printer. The following example was generated with the CAL3 software.

..EK"a"..ES"a"..

CR & LF

p1p

.A...|..|..|....

................

.........p<.x8.8

8.8p..p.........

..B.............

......p..p..p...

................

.p..8..8..8..8..

8..p............

...C............

000000C0

000000D0

000000E0

000000F0

00000100

a3b3c

C1 F0 0F 00 78 1E 00 38 1C 00 3C 1C 00 18 3C 00

00 38 00 00 38 00 00 38 00 00 38 00 00 38 00 00

38 00 00 38 00 00 1C 00 0C 1C 00 0E 1C 00 1C 0E

00 3C 0F 00 7C 07 C0 F8 03 FF F0 01 FF E0 00 7F

80 00 00 00 0D 0A

CR & LF

....x..8..<...<.

.8..8..8..8..8..

8..8............

.<..|...........

......

3-38

980352-001 Rev.A

ES Command - Store Soft Font

Font Bitmap Data

Format

The black and white bitmap that represents the fontmustbeconvertedintoASCIIhexadecimal code. The 0° font format has dot converted to data bytes reading from left to right and the last byte in a line is padded with zeros to complete the line and data byte.

The 0° and 90° font data is then sent to the printer in line order.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-39

f Command - Cut Position

Description Use this command on an individual printer to

provide precision cut placement.

Compensate sensor to cutter position differ ences on a printer by printer basis.

Fine-tune cut position to compensate for dif ferences in media.

Syntax fp

Parameters p1=Cut position index measured in dots.

Acceptable values: 070 to 130. The de fault value is 100.

When using the label liner cutter option, the printer will advance each printed label to the appropriate programmed offset cut position, between

labels, before cutting. Due to media differences, the printer may not accurately position the labels before cutting, causing the cutter to cut the label instead of the liner.

The printer’s cutter is not designed to cut labels. Labels have adhesive that may interfere with the proper operation of the cutter.

Only cut label liner and tag stock anddo not exceed the specified media density and thickness of the cutter.

3-40

Ifthecut position causes the label justprintedto be cut, increase the cut position index value (>100). If the cut position causes the label fol lowing the one just printed to be cut, decrease the cut position index value (<100).

980352-001 Rev.A

FE Command - End Form Store

Description This command is used to end a form store se

quence.

Syntax FE

Example:

FS"FORMNAME"↵ ... FE↵

The form store sequence is started with the FS command.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-41

FI Command - Print Form Information

Description This command will cause the printer to print a

list of all forms stored in memory.

Syntax FI

Example:

Will Produce:

FI¿ :prints forms list

3-42

980352-001 Rev.A

FK Command - Delete Form

Description This command is used to delete forms from

memory.

Syntax FK [ "FORMNAME" | "*" ]

Parameters “FORMNAME” = By entering the name of a

form, that form will be deleted from memory.

Thenamemaybeupto8 characterslong.

Form names stored by the printer are case

sensitive and willbestoredexactly as entered on the FS command line; i.e. “FORM1”,

“form1” and “FoRm1” are three different

formswhenstored intotheprinter orwhenre trieved by the user.

Deleting a single form requires the

FK”FORMNAME” be issued twice for each

form to be deleted. Some label generation programs re-issue forms (form delete and store) every time a label is printed which reduces flash memory life.

Example:

“*” = By including an “*” (wild card), ALL

forms will be deleted from memory. The

FK”*” does not need to be issued twice

to delete all forms.

FK"AFORM"¿ :deletes form “AFORM” FK"AFORM"¿ :second delete form “AFORM” required

:for flash printers

FK"*"¿ :deletes all forms

3-43

980329-001 Rev.A

FR Command - Retrieve Form

Description Use this command to retrieve a form that was

previously stored in memory.

Syntax FR"FORMNAME"

Parameters “FORMNAME” = This is the form name

used when the form was stored.

Thenamemaybeupto8 characterslong.

Form names stored by the printer are case

sensitive and willbestoredexactly as entered on the FS command line; i.e. “FORM1”,

“form1” and “FoRm1” are three different

formswhenstored intotheprinter orwhenre trieved by the user.

Example:

FR"TEST1"¿ :retrieves the form named TEST1

To print a list of the forms currently stored in memory, use the FI command.

3-44

980352-001 Rev.A

FS Command - Store Form

Description This command begins a form store sequence.

Syntax FS"FORMNAME"

Parameters “FORMNAME” =This is the form name that

will be used when retrieving the stored form.

Thenamemaybeupto8 characterslong.

Form names stored by the printer are case

sensitive and willbestoredexactly as entered on the FS command line; i.e. “FORM1”,

“form1” and “FoRm1” are three different

formswhenstored intotheprinter orwhenre trieved by the user.

Global commands such as EI, EK, ES, FI,

FK, GI, GK, GM, I, M, N, P, TS, U, UE, UF, UG, Y, W, ?, ^@ shouldnot beusedin

a form store sequence.

Form name, AUTOFR, is reserved for automatic, single form recall, see page 3-9 for details.

❏All commands following FS will be stored in

forms memory until the FE command is received, ending the form store process.

❏

Delete a form prior to updating the form by using the FK command. If a form (with the same name) is already stored in memory, is suing the FS command will result in an error and the previously stored form is retained.

❏

To print a list of the forms currently stored in memory, use the FI command.

❏

A form will not store if sufficient memory is not allocated to form memory. See the M command for details on adjusting and con figuringmemory tostoreforms (graphicsand soft fonts).

980352-001 Rev.A

3-45

FS Command - Store Form

Example:

FK"TESTFORM"¿ :delete form “TESTFORM” FS"TESTFORM"¿ :begins the form store sequence of

:the form “TESTFORM” V00,15,N,"Enter Product Name:"¿ B10,20,0,3,2,10,100,B,"998152.001"¿ A50,200,0,3,1,1,N,"Example Form"¿ A50,400,0,3,1,1,N,"Model Name: “V00¿

FE¿ :ends form store sequence FI¿ :prints list of stored forms

3-46

980352-001 Rev.A

GG Command - Print Graphics

Description Use this command to print a PCX (format)

graphic that has been previously stored in printer memory.

Syntax GGp

Parameters p

p “NAME” or Variable Data = This is the

,{"NAME" | Variable Data}

1,p2

=Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

graphic name used when the graphic was stored. This name can be supplied via variable data (V00 - V99).

Thenamemaybeupto8 characterslong.

Graphic names stored by the printer are case

sensitive and willbestoredexactly as entered with the GM command line; i.e.

“GRAPHIC1”, “graphic1” and “graPHic1” are three different graphics

whenstoredinto theprinterorwhen retrieved by the user.

Example: GG50,50,"LOGO1"↵

FK"TESTFORM"¿ :delete form “TESTFORM” FS"TESTFORM"¿ :begins the form store sequence of

V00,8,N,"Enter Graphic Name:"¿ GG50,50,V00¿ FE¿ :ends form store sequence

FR"TESTFORM" :retrieves the form named TESTFORM ?¿ :Download variables LOGO1 :Graphic name to be recalled and

P1¿ :Print one label with graphic LOGO1

:the form “TESTFORM”

:printed

980352-001 Rev.A

3-47

GI Command - Print Graphics Information

Description This command will cause the printer to print a

list of all graphics stored in memory.

Syntax GI

Example:

Will Produce:

GI¿ :prints graphics list

3-48

980352-001 Rev.A

GK Command - Delete Graphics

Description Use this command to delete graphics from

memory.

Syntax GK {“NAME”|"*"}

Parameters “NAME” = By entering the name of a

graphic, that graphic will be deleted from memory.

Graphic names stored by the printer are case

sensitive and willbestoredexactly as entered with the GM command line; i.e. “LOGO1”,

“logo1” and “LoGo1” are three different

graphicswhen stored into theprinter or when retrieved by the user.

Deleting a single graphic requires that the

GK”FORMNAME” command string be is-

sued twice for each form deleted. Some label generation programs re-issue graphics (graphicdelete andstore) everytime alabel is printed which will reduce flash memory life.

Example:

“*” = By including an “*” (wild card), ALL

graphics will be deleted from memory. The GK”*” does not need to be issued twice to delete all graphics.

GK"LOGO"↵ :deletes graphic “LOGO” GK"LOGO"↵ :second delete graphic “LOGO” required

:for flash printers.

GK"*"↵ :deletes all graphics

980352-001 Rev.A

3-49

GM Command - Store Graphics

Description Use this command tostorePCXgraphicsfiles in

memory.

Syntax

GM"NAME"p

“DATA”

Parameters “NAME” = This is the graphic name that will

be used when retrieving the stored graphic.

Thenamemaybeupto8 characterslong.

Graphic names stored by the printer are case

sensitive and willbestoredexactly as entered with the GM command line; i.e. “LOGO1”,

“logo1” and “LoGo1” are three different

graphicswhen stored into theprinter or when retrieved by the user.

p1=This is the file size in bytes. Use the DOS

DIR command to determine the exact file size.

“DATA” = Graphic data in 1-bit (black &

white) PCX (binary data) format file.

❏Agraphic will notstoreifsufficient memory is

not allocated to graphic memory. See the M command for details on adjusting and con figuringmemory tostoregraphics (formsand soft fonts).

❏

Verify the proper storage of the graphic with the GI command.

3-50

980352-001 Rev.A

GM Command - Store Graphics

Example: GK"LOGO1"↵ :deletes graphic “LOGO1” - Required

GK"LOGO1"↵ :second delete graphic - Required GM"LOGO1"584↵ :Prepares printer to receive graphic

DATA : Data string in PCX format

:“LOGO1”

If using a DOS system, the PCX format file (bi nary data) portioncan be sent to the printer us ing the DOS COPY command. For example, if you have a PCX file named LOGO1.PCX in your current directory, the appropriate com mand would be:

COPY LOGO1.PCX PRN /b

After downloading, the GI command can be used to verify that the graphic was successfully stored.

Example: First, create a text file “STOREIT.TXT” with an

ASCII text editor, as follows:

GK“WORLD”¿ GK“WORLD”¿ GM"WORLD"2004¿

980352-001 Rev.A

Where WORLD is the name of the graphic and 2004 is the size (in bytes) of the PCX file.

Next, at the DOS prompt, type:

COPYSTOREIT.TXT+ WORLD.PCX PRN /b

3-51

GW Command - Direct Graphic Write

Description Use this command to load binary graphic data

directly into the Image Buffer memory for im mediate printing. The printer does not store graphic data sent directly to the image buffer.

Thegraphic data is lost when the image has fin ished printing, power is removed or the printer is reset. Commands that size (Q and q) or clear (N and M) the image buffer will also remove graphic image data.

Syntax

GWp

Parameters p

p p

p DATA = Raw binary data without graphic file

1,p2,p3,p4

=Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

=Width of graphic in bytes. Eight (8) dots

DATA¿

= One (1) byte of data

=Length of graphic in dots (or print lines).

formatting. Data must be in bytes. Multiply the width in bytes (p ber of print lines (p

) by the num-

) for the total amount of graphic data. The printer au tomatically calculates the exact size of the data block based upon this formula.

3-52

980352-001 Rev.A

I Command - Character Set Selection

Description Use this command to select the appropriate

character set for printing and display (KDU).

Syntax Ip

1,p2,p3

Parameters p1=Number of data bits - 8 for 8 bit data or

7 for 7 bit data.

=Printer Code page/Language Support

8 Bit Data 7 Bit Data

Code

Page

0 DOS 437 English - US 0 USA 1 DOS 850 Latin 1 1 British

2 DOS 852 3 DOS 860 Portuguese 3 French

4 DOS 863 French Canadian 4 Danish 5 DOS 865 Nordic 5 Italian 6 DOS 857 Turkish 6 Spanish

Description

Latin 2

(Cyrillic II/Slavic)

Description

2 German

7 DOS 861 Icelandic 7 Swedish 8 DOS 862 Hebrew 8 Swiss

9 DOS 855 Cyrillic 10 DOS 866 Cyrillic CIS 1 11 DOS 737 Greek 12 DOS 851 Greek 1 13 DOS 869 Greek 2

Windows

1252

Windows

1250

Windows

1251

Windows

1253

Windows

1254

Windows

1255

Latin 1

Latin 2

Cyrillic

Greek

Turkish

Hebrew

980352-001 Rev.A

3-53

I Command - Character Set Selection

p3=KDU Country Code (8 bit data only)

KDU Country Code (8 bit only) 032 002 045 358 033

Belgium Canada Denmark Finland France

049 031 039 003 047 351

Germany Netherl’ds Italy Latin Am. Norway Portugal

027 034 046 041 044 001

S. Africa Spain Sweden Swizerl’d U.K. U.S.A.

The default setting is I8,0,001. See Appendix A for EPL2 standard font character maps.

3-54

980352-001 Rev.A

JB Command - Disable Top Of Form Backup

Description This command disables the Top Of Form

Backup feature when printing multiple labels. At power up, Top Of Form Backup will be en abled.

Syntax JB

Example:

JB¿

With the JB command enabled, the first label will backuptothe TopOfFormbeforeprinting. Thispre serves the first label which has stopped approxi mately one-halfinch from the printhead. This is the label's tear away point as set by the previous print operation.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-55

JF Command - Enable Top Of Form Backup

Description This command enables the Top Of Form

Backup feature and presents the last label of a batch print operation. Upon request initiating the printing of the next form (or batch), the last label backs up the Top Of Form before printing the next label.

Syntax JF

Example:

JF¿

3-56

980352-001 Rev.A

LE Command - Line Draw Exclusive

Description Use this commandtodraw lines withan“Exclu

siveOR”function. Any area, line,imageorfield that this line intersects or overlays will be “re versedout”orinverted. Inother words,allblack willbereversedtowhiteand all white will be re versedtoblackwithintheline’sarea(widthand length).

Syntax

Parameters

Example:

LEp1,p2,p3,p

= Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

= Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

= Horizontal length in dots.

= Vertical length in dots.

N↵ :clear image buffer LE50,200,400,20↵ :draw a line LE200,50,20,400↵ :draw another line P1↵ :print one label

Will Produce:

980352-001 Rev.A

3-57

LO Command - Line Draw Black

Description Use thiscommandtodrawblacklines,overwrit

ing previous information.

Syntax LOp

1,p2,p3,p4

Parameters p1=Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

=Horizontal length in dots.

=Vertical length in dots.

Example:

N↵ :clear image buffer LO50,200,400,20↵ :draw a line LO200,50,20,400↵ :draw another line P1↵ :print one label

Will Produce:

3-58

980352-001 Rev.A

LS Command - Line Draw Diagonal

Description Use this commandtodrawdiagonal black lines,

overwriting previous information.

Syntax LSp

1,p2,p3,p4,p5

Parameters p1=Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

=Line thickness in dots.

=Horizontal end position (X) in dots.

=Vertical end position (Y) in dots.

Example:

N↵ :clear image buffer LS10,10,20,200,200↵ :draw a diagonal line P1↵ :print one label

Will Produce:

980352-001 Rev.A

3-59

LW Command - Line Draw White

Description Use this command to draw white lines, effec

tively erasing previous information.

Syntax

LWp1,p2,p3,p

Parameters p1=Horizontal start position (X) in dots.

=Vertical start position (Y) in dots.

=Horizontal length in dots.

=Vertical length in dots.

Example:

N↵ :clear image buffer LO50,100,400,20↵ :draw black line LO50,200,400,20↵ :draw another black line LO50,300,400,20↵ :draw another black line LW200,50,20,400↵ :draw a white line over all 3 black lines P1↵ :print 1 label

Will Produce:

3-60

980352-001 Rev.A

M Command - Memory Allocation

Description Thiscommandnolongerchangesmemory allo

cation. It was originally used for SRAM and early model flash printers. The command now allows the programmer to set the size of forms memory only. The reminder of the storage memory will be shared by soft fonts and graph ics data.

Syntax

Mp1,p2,p

Parameters p1=Parameter ignored, but required to pro

cess. Represents Image buffer size in whole KBytes.

=Form(s) memory size in whole KBytes.

The parameter, p

(form memory size),

inversely effects the size of the shared graphics/soft fonts memory.

=Parameter ignored, but required to pro-

cess. Graphics (and soft font) memory size in whole Kbytes.

If the M command is issued, then all three parameters must be present.

Available memory and the current allocation of memory can be displayed with the U command or anAutoSense procedure,seethe printeruser’s man ual for details.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-61

N Command - Clear Image Buffer

Description This command clears the image buffer prior to

building a new label image.

Syntax N

Do not use the N command within stored forms.

Example:

¿ :activates command processing

N¿ :clears the image buffer

Always send a Line Feed (LF) prior to the N command to ensure that the printer is initialized.

3-62

980352-001 Rev.A

o Command - Cancel Software Options

Description This command allows the user to cancel most

printercustomizationparameterssetby o series commands.

Parameters set by the following commands are canceled and returned to default operation:

Syntax o

Parameters None

The o command is a global printer command.

❏It can not be issued inside of a form. ❏It must beissued prior to issuing a text or bar

code command (and printing).

980352-001 Rev.A

3-63

oB Command - Cancel Auto Bar Code Optimization

Description: This command allows the advanced program

mertodisablebar code optimization for rotated (90° & 270°) bar codes.

Syntax: oB

Parameters: None

The oB command is a global printer com

mand.

It can not be issued inside of a form.

❏

It must be issued prior to issuing a bar code

❏

command (and printing).

To reapply bar code defaults, issue a o (small letter“o”)command.SeepageC-63 for important details on the effects of using the o command.

Reset the printer with a ^@ command with flash firmware printers orcycle printer power to cleartheoB command and return the printer to normal operation.

3-64

Zebra Technologies Corporation does not warrant, support, or endorse the use of bar codes generated bytheprinterafteraoB command hasbeenissued.

Zebra Technologies Corporation does not support this featureotherthan with the information supplied in this document.

980352-001 Rev.A

oE Command - Line Mode Font Substitution

Description: This command is a Page Mode (EPL2) com

mand that allows the printer to set alternate Line Mode font character sets. The fonts are activatedby theoEcommandand areintended for EPL1 emulation.

Syntax: oEp

1,p2,p3,p4,p5

p1= 5 x 7 bitmap font - Normal (CCSET4)

Line Mode EPL1 Compatibility Font A0 Total character area is 8 x 11 dots

= 5 x 7 bitmap font - Bold (CCSET4)

Line Mode EPL1 Compatibility Font A0 Total character area is 8 x 11 dots

= 5 x 7 bitmap font - Doubled (CCSET4)

Line Mode EPL1 Compatibility Font A0 Total character size is 8 x 11 dots

= 14 x 22 bitmap font - (CCSET1)

Line Mode EPL1 Compatability Font A Total character area is 16 x 26 dots

= 10 x 18 bitmap font - (CCSET3)

Line Mode EPL1 Compatability Font A Total character area is 12 x 22 dots

❏

Parameters p

❏

Parameters p

1-p5 1-p5

are preloaded soft fonts.

must be all belower case alpha soft fonts. See the ES command on page 3-35 for more details on soft fonts.

❏

The EPL2 font sets2&4canberestored as the default Line Mode fontsby sending the o command without a parameter.

980352-001 Rev.A

3-65

oH Command - Macro PDF Offset

Description Use this command toplaceadditionsecondary,

associatedMacro PDF symbolsforthe continu ation of data greater than a single PDF 417 bar code can store.

Thiscommand must precedeany PDF 417bar code commandsinorder toprintMacroPDF (multiplebar code)symbolsfromasingleb command's datafield.

Syntax oHp

1,p2

Parameters p1=Horizontal offset position (X) in dots of

the next Macro PDF bar code symbol.

=Vertical offset position (Y) in dots of the

next Macro PDF bar code symbol.

See the following page for an example.

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980352-001 Rev.A

oH Command - Macro PDF Offset

Example:

Will Produce:

N¿ q784¿ Q1215,24¿ R0,0¿ oH0,500¿

N¿ b80,100,P,700,600,x2,y7,l100,r100,f0,s5,"\ Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers...

<<< the rest of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address HERE >>> ... and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth. "¿ P¿

980352-001 Rev.A

3-67

oM Command - Disable Initial Esc Sequence Feed

Description This command disables the automatic label cal

ibration routine executed by the printer upon receiving the first escape command sequence from the Windows printer driver. The printer normally measures a single label and sets the topof form prior to printing thefirstlabelafter a power-up reset. The Windows™ printer driver issues escape sequences when printing.

This command’s primary use is to save preprinted forms such as serialized labels, tags or tickets.

Syntax oM

This command must be issued prior to printing with the Windows driver’s or any other Escape (esc) mode printing operation.

To reinitialize label calibration, issue a o (111 dec. or 6F hex.) command.

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980352-001 Rev.A

oR Command - Character Substitution (Euro)

Description This command allows the advanced program

mer to substitute the Euro currency character for any ASCII character in printer resident font numbers 1-4.

The original character can be restored by send ing the oR command without a parameter.

Syntax oR [p

Parameters: p

= E

]

1,p2

If the p

parameter is not provided,

then the Euro character will map to code page position 213 decimal (D5 hexadecimal) for all code pages.

= Decimal number

Range: 0 to 255 The active code page’s ASCII character map position to be replaced by the Euro character. The Euro character will be active in this map position for all code pages. See the I command for details on code page selection.

980352-001 Rev.A

None = No Parameters (p

) resets to all

1/p2

code pages to original default character mapping.

Optionally, to reapply normal character opera tions,issuea o(111 dec.or6Fhex.)command. See page 3-63 for important details on the ef fects of using the o command.

The Euro character is not supported in Font 5 char acter set.

3-69

oR Command - Character Substitution (Euro)

TheoRcommandisaglobalprintercommand.

It can not be issued inside of a form.

❏

It must be issued prior to issuing a text com

❏

mand (and printing). Effects a single character on a single code

❏

page. Changing the character position will restore the original character.

Flash memory printer parameter data is pre

❏

served until it is changed by the oR com mand or reprogramming of the printer.

Example:

oRE¿ : Places the Euro character into character

: map position 213 decimal : (D5 hexadecimal)

oRE,128¿ : Places the Euro into character map

: position 128 decimal (80 hexadecimal)

oR¿ : Clears Character Substitution,

: Restores default character maps

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980352-001 Rev.A

oW Command - Customize Bar Code Parameters

Description: This command allows the advanced program

mer to modify specific bar code parameters to exceed the specified bar code’s design toler ances, i.e. reduce the bar code size.

Usingthe oW commandmay causebar codes tobe comeunreadablebysomeorallbar codescanners.

Syntax: oWp1,p2,p3,p4,p

Parameters: p1= Initial width narrow white bar.

Default value is 2

= Initial width narrow black bar.

Default value is 2

= Initial width wide white bar.

Default value is 4

= Initial width wide black bar.

Default value is 4

= Initial bar code gap.

Default value is 3

TheoWcommandisaglobalprintercommand.

❏

They can not be issued inside of a form.

❏

They must be issued prior to issuing a bar code command (and printing).

❏

Use only one bar code format. Using more than one bar code may cause unpredictable results or operation.

❏

Issueall 5 command parameters (p1-5 ). Use thedefaultparametervaluesasplaceholders.

❏

Bar code printed with this command should be printed in the picket fence orientation (0º & 180º rotations) to maximize scanning.

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oW Command - Customize Bar Code Parameters

Reset the printer with a ^@ or o commands with flash firmware printers or cycle printer powerto cleartheoWcommand andreturnthe printer to normal operation. See page C-63 for important details on the effects of using the o command.

The B command parameters p

& p6must be

set to 0 to use bar codes customized with this command.

The oW command has been tested for parameter functionality for Bar Code 39 only. The oW com mand may also function with Codabar and Inter leaved 2 of 5 bar code, but they have not been functionally verified for this command.

Zebra Technologies Corporation does not warrant, support, or endorse the use of bar codes generated bytheprinterafteraoW command hasbeenissued.

Zebra Technologies Corporation does not support this featureotherthan with the information supplied in this document.

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980352-001 Rev.A

O Command - Hardware Options

Description Use this command to select various printer op

tions. Options available vary by printer configuration.

Syntax

Parameters

O[C[p1], D, P, L, S]

D = Enable Direct Thermal Mode, use this

option when using direct thermal media in a thermal transfer printer.

P = Enable Label Dispense Mode -

Portables

L = Enable Label Dispense Mode - Tap

to Print. The printer will present each

label and wait for a tap of the feed switch before printing the next label. Use this mode when printing multiple copies of liner-free labels.

C = Enable optional Label Liner Cutter.

The cutter will cut at the end of each form as specified by the Q command.

= Batch Print Labels and Liner Cut.

= Sets the number of labels to print

prior to cut. If a number between 1 - 255 is specified

for p

, the printer will cut after the spec

ified number of labels have been printed.

If b is specified for p

, the “batch print

& cut” feature is enabled. This feature uses the P command to control cutter operation.

S = Reverse the Transmissive (Gap) Sen

sor Operation.

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O Command - Hardware Options

Examples: O :disables all options.

OC :enables cutter only, labels are cut after each

:label is printed, disables all other options

OD :enables direct thermal mode on thermal transfer

:printers, disables all other options

Od :disables diagnostic dump mode and disables

:all other options

OCb :labels are cut after a batch of five has printed, ... :disables all other options

P5 :Sets the number of labels to print before the cut

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980352-001 Rev.A

OEPL1 Command - Set Line Mode

Description: This command is used to switch the printer op

erating mode from Page Mode (EPL2) to Line Mode (EPL1 emulation).

LineModeconfigurationsettingisretained after resethasbeenissuedorpowerhasbeencycled.

Syntax OEPL1

Example:

Returning to

Page Mode

OEPL1¿

The Line Mode command EPL2 can be sent to the printer to return the printer to Page (EPL2) Mode operation.

TheEPL2command is precededbyanESCape (27decor1Bh)characterandfollowedbyaline feed (LF - 10 dec or 0A hex), a carriage return (CR - 13 dec or 0D hex) or CR/LF.

Example:

¬EPL2¿

980352-001 Rev.A

3-75

P Command - Print

Description Use this command to print the contents of the

image buffer.

Syntax

Pp1, [p2]

Parameters p1=Number of label sets.

Range = 1 to 65535

=Number of copies of each label (used in

combination with counters to print mul tiple copies of the same label). Range = 1 to 65535

The P command cannot be used inside of a stored form sequence. For automatic printing of stored forms, use the PA command.

Examples: P1↵ :prints one label set

P2,1↵ :prints 2 label sets of one label each P5,2↵ :prints 5 label sets of 2 labels each

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980352-001 Rev.A

PA Command - Print Automatic

Description Use this command in astored form sequence to

automaticallyprint the form (as soon as all vari able data has been supplied).

Syntax PAp

Parameters p

Example:

FK"1"↵ : delete form named “1" FS"1"↵ : start form store sequence V00,10,N,"prompt:"↵ : define variable 00 V01,1,N,"prompt:"↵ : define variable 01 V02,4,N,"prompt:"↵ : define variable 02 A24,24,0,4,1,1,N,V00↵ : write a line of text including variable PAV01,V02↵ : print 1 label automatically FE↵ : end form store sequence

, [p2]

=Number of label sets. Can be variable

data. Range: 1 to 9999

=Number of copies of the same label.

Can be variable data. Range: 1 to 9999 Sets the number of copies of each label (used in combination with counters) to print multiple copies of the same label. This value is only set when using counters.

980352-001 Rev.A

FR"1"↵ : retrieve form “1" ?↵ : get variables This Is Text¿ : data for V00 3¿ : data for V01=p 2¿ : data for V02=p

- number of sets

- number of copies

3-77

q Command - Set Label Width

Description Use this command to set the width of the print

Syntax

Parameters p1=The width of the label measured in dots.

Image Buffer Positioning - Center Aligned Printers

able area of the media.

The q command will cause the image buffer to reformat and position to match the selected la bel width (p

Print Head

Max.

Image

Buffer

Printable

Area

Max. Image Buffer

Image Buffer Positioning - Left Aligned Printers

Center Alignment

Print Head

Printable

Area

Left Alignment Edge

Image

Buffer

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980352-001 Rev.A

q Command - Set Label Width

All Printers

(Exceptions - 2746 & 2348) This command will automatically set the left margin according to the following rules:

(print head width - label width) / 2

The q value affects the available print width. Mini mizingthe qvaluewill maximizethe printlength and print speed (double buffering).

Ifthe R Command(Reference Point)is sent afterthis command,the image bufferwillbe automatically reformattedto matchthe widthof theprint headand is offset by the R command specified image buffer starting point, nullifying the q command.

Example: q416↵ :sets label width to 416 dots wide

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3-79

Q Command - Set Form Length

Description Use this command to set the form and gap length

or black line thickness when using the transmissive (gap) sensor, black line sensor, or for setting the printer into the continuous media print mode.

The Q command will cause the printer to recal culate and reformat image buffer.

Syntax

Qp1,p2[±p3]

Parameters p1=Label length measured in dots

Default: Set by the AutoSense of media. Maximum Value: 65535 (dots)

Distance between edges of the label or black

line marks. For continuous mode, the p1parameter sets

the feed distance between the end of one form and beginning of the next.

p2=Gap length or thickness of black line

Range: 16-240 (dots) for 203 dpi printers

[18-240 (dots) for 300dpi printers]

Gap Mode - By default, the printer is in Gap mode and parameters are set with the media AutoSense.

3-80

±p

Black Line Mode - Set p

to B plus

black line thickness in dots. See the Gap mode range.

Continuous Media Mode

Set p

to 0 (zero)

The transmissive (gap) sensor will be used to detect the end of media.

=Offset length measured in dots

Required for black line mode operation.

Optional for Gap detect or continuous media modes. Use only positive offset values.

980352-001 Rev.A

Q Command - Set Form Length

AutoSense routine does not detect black line or continuous media.

AllEPL2printers have atransmissive(gap)sen sor designed to detect the top of each label or tag. It does this in one of two ways:

Sensing through the label liner at the gap be

tween labels. Looking through a hole (notch) in the tag.

Printers equipped with a black line sensor can determinethetopofeachlabelortagbysensing a“blackline”preprintedonthemediabacking.

Sensor location is important when selecting the proper of label or tag type for printing. See the printer user’s manual for specific information on alignment, adjustment, and position of the transmissive (gap) or reflective (black line) sensors.

If the label size is not set properly, the printer may print off the edge of the label or tag and onto the backing or platen roller. Repeated printing off the edge of the label can cause excessive print head wear.

980352-001 Rev.A

Maintain a minimum margin of 0.04 inches (1 mm) on all sides of the label.

Setting thelabel size to large can cause the printerto skip labels.

3-81

Q Command - Set Form Length

Examples:

Standard Label

Where: p = 20.0 mm (160 dots)

p = 3.0mm (24 dots)

The Q command would be: Q160,24

↵

Butterfly Label

Where: p = 12.5 mm (100 dots)

p = 3.0mm (24 dots)

The Q command would be: Q100,24+24

↵

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980352-001 Rev.A

Zebra EPL2 Programmer's Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual