SP55 Printer Guide 554733-001 August 2004
Information resources for the SP55 Printer Installation To install the printer: To install one printer on a PC using a USB cable, see the Installation Map, packed at the top of the printer carton. For detailed installation information or for special situations (such as network installation), see e-Guide/SP Series/SP_Info_Central.chm on the driver CD-ROM. Message Help If you see a message, click Help on the message box. Really! Help topics are short and to the point.
Contents About the printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Loading cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Loading print ribbon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Check the PC connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Status light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Opening Properties or Printing Preferences . . 13 Open the Printer Toolbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Cleaning the printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Printer supplies . . . . . . .
Page 1 About the printer The outside of the printer Duplex Module: Optional module at the back of the printer. Printer Cover. Latch: Lift the latch to open the printer cover. Input Hopper: Open the cover to load blank cards. Output Hopper: Remove completed cards. Ready button: Push to pause or resume the printer. The status light helps you understand printer operation. See “Status light” on page 11 for details.
Ports are located on the left side of the printer. USB Data Port: Connect the data cable to the printer. ALL printers have this port. Manual Advance Knob: Use to move a card in the printer or to turn rollers. Power Receptacle: Plug in the power supply to power on the printer. Cable Guides: Hold the data cable securely. Security lock receptacle: Connect the optional security lock to the opening under the ledge of the printer (not visible in this drawing).
Page 3 The inside of the printer Cover Arm: Holds the cover and printhead cartridge in place. Printhead Cartridge: Applies the image to the card. The label includes ”YMC” for color or “K” for monochrome printheads. Print Ribbon Cartridge (shown with color print ribbon). Printer Label: Includes the serial number and model information (located on the left side of the printer and not visible in this drawing). Cleaning roller (not visible in this drawing): Removes dust and debris from cards.
Features and options Features and options are identified on the printer label. • • • • • • Printers with “U” printing can print one color (monochrome) only. “C” printing is full-color or monochrome printing. All SP55 printers have a USB connection. SP55 printers can include a duplex module. A magnetic stripe module can be a three-track (IAT) or single-track (NTT) module. It is visible inside the printer. SP55 Printers can have an 100-card (H1) or 200-card (H2) Input Hopper.
Page 5 Loading cards 1 Open the input hopper cover. 2 Remove cards from the original package. Tips: Handling cards • Do not touch the surface of cards before printing them. (Oils on hands will reduce printing quality.) • Handle cards by the edges or wear gloves. • Cards can stick together: Slide or fan cards to separate the edges. • Orient all cards the same way.
3 Place the cards in the input hopper. The diagram shows the typical locations for the magnetic stripe and smart card chip. 4 Push the input hopper cover closed until it latches. Magnetic stripe Smart card chip See SP Series Info Central for current information about cards to use in the printer.
Page 7 Loading print ribbon 1 Open the printer. 2 Remove the ribbon cartridge. 3 Remove both used ribbon spools from the cartridge (if present). Tips: Handling print ribbon • Keep unused ribbon in the original package. • Don’t place ribbon on a dusty or dirty surface–dirt could damage the printhead. 4 Run a cleaning card and replace the cleaning sleeve at the same time that you load a new print ribbon. See “Cleaning the printer” on page 17 for the steps to follow.
5 Load the new roll of print ribbon on the cartridge. — Put the full spool of ribbon on the supply spindle of the ribbon cartridge. Push until the spool clicks onto the spindle. — Put the empty take-up spool on the spindle with the solid black gear. Push until the spool clicks onto the spindle. 6 Replace the loaded ribbon cartridge in the printer. — Make sure both spindles rest in the black supports on the left side of the printer.
Page 9 Check the PC connection The printer and PC are connected when the printer is set up. Before beginning card processing, make sure the connection is complete. The USB data cable should be connected to a USB port on the PC and to the USB data port on the printer. The printer can be connected in these other ways: Through a direct network connection, where the printer is connected to a network (using a print server) and the PC is connected to the same network.
Power on the printer Plug in the printer to power it on. The printer does not have a power switch. 1 Make sure the power supply cord connects to the printer power receptacle (1). 2 Connect the power cord to the power supply (2). 3 3 Connect the power cord to the power outlet (3). 4 The printer powers on and initializes. 2 Tips for printer power 1 Wait while the printer initializes. The printer Status Light displays steady green when the printer is ready to print cards.
Page 11 Status light The front of the printer has a light that provides information about the current state of the printer. At startup, the status light displays steady amber for several seconds, a red-amber-green sequence, and then blinking green for several seconds. When the printer is ready to print, the status light is steady green. Status Light Description Meaning Red-Amber-Green The printer is starting. The light displays colors while the printer initializes.
Status Light Description Meaning Blinking Amber The printer has an error. Check the following: • See the PC for a message. • If you used the Power-on/Ready sequence to print a test card, check the printer for problems. • If you changed the printer name, power the PC off and on. Steady Red The printer has a condition that requires service or the printer did not power-on correctly. To attempt to correct the condition, power the printer off and on before calling for service.
Page 13 Opening Properties or Printing Preferences Begin with the printer connected to the PC and powered on so values are saved correctly. 1 Choose Start from the Windows task bar. 2 Choose Settings and then Printers (and Faxes). The Printers (and Faxes) window opens. 3 Click once on the SmartDriver printer icon to select it. • The driver must be installed for the printer icon to be present. • SmartDriver is the default name of the printer. The name of your printer might be different.
5 The dialog box opens. 6 View settings or change settings. • Make sure that driver settings match printer features and supplies used. • The Print Ribbon Type setting is read from the printer and cannot be changed (for most connection types). • If you change the card design, review and update all settings for the new card design. • Use the default settings of “Spool printing so program finishes printing faster.” and “Enable bi-directional support.
Page 15 Open the Printer Toolbox The Printer Toolbox icon is located in the lower right corner of the Windows desktop. The icon shows the status of communication between the printer and driver. See SP Series Info Central for details about the icon. By default, the Printer Toolbox dialog box is displayed. If it is not, do one of the following to display it: • Open the Properties or Printing Preferences dialog, and click Printer Toolbox. • Double-click the icon.
The Printer Toolbox displays: • The current state of communication between the driver and printer. • Message text, if there are any messages. • The current port mode, which can be USB, Shared Mode, or Directly Networked. • The printer type. • The driver and printer firmware version numbers. Communication automatically resumes when you print a card, or when you open the Properties or Printing Preferences dialog box.
Page 17 Cleaning the printer Run a cleaning card and change the cleaning sleeve when changing the print ribbon. Make sure that all cards sent to the printer have completed printing before cleaning. Clean Printer button 1 Open the printer cover and remove the ribbon cartridge. 2 Remove the replaceable cleaning roller. 3 Open the input hopper cover (1). 4 Remove unprinted cards from the input hopper (2). 5 Open the Printer Toolbox (if needed, see page 15). 6 Click the Clean Printer button.
10 Slide the used cleaning sleeve off the spindle. 11 Discard the used cleaning card and used sleeve. 12 Place a new cleaning sleeve on the spindle (1). 13 Remove the protective cover from the sleeve (2). 1 14 Insert the replaceable cleaning roller (with a new cleaning sleeve) into the printer (3). 15 Replace the ribbon cartridge, close the printer cover, load cards, and resume printing. 2 Cleaning tips Use the cleaning card as soon as you open the package.
Page 19 Printer supplies Datacard-certified ribbon kits and cleaning supplies are available for the printer. Ribbon kits contain a roll of print ribbon, a cleaning card, and a replaceable cleaning sleeve. Datacard recommends that you run a cleaning card and replace the cleaning sleeve each time you change the print ribbon.
Ribbon Saver increases the number of cards printed with each roll of ribbon. Available monochrome colors include: Color Black Color Part Number 552954-501 Silver 552954-507 HQ* 552954-601 Gold 552954-508 Dark Blue 552954-502 Metallic Silver 552954-607 White 552954-503 Metallic Gold 552954-608 Red 552954-504 Scratch-off 552954-513 Green 552954-506 Metallic Holo Fleck 552954-609 Black *.
Page 21 Getting the most out of your printer To get the best quality cards and to maintain printer performance, follow these tips for success: • Use the best quality cards available with a smooth, glossy PVC surface and print them only once. Make sure options, such as a Mylar® signature panel or a magnetic stripe, are high quality. • Match the card design and the supplies you use to obtain the results you want.
• Use cables that meet specifications and connect them correctly. • Keep cards and Datacard-certified supplies on hand and store them safely. • Keep the printer clean and keep the area around the printer clean.
Page 23 Troubleshooting What is the problem? 1 A message appeared on the PC or Try this: • Click the Help button on the message box to see possible causes and the solution for each cause. See the “Related Topics” to fix the problem. • If you moved the ribbon while the printer was powered off, print another card. If the problem persists, see the SP Series Info Central for detailed information about solving card appearance problems.
What is the problem? 5 The printer does not respond when I print a card or when I click “Resume” on the Printer Toolbox. Try this: • • • • • 6 The printer cover will not close. • • • • Make sure the printer is plugged in. See “Power on the printer” on page 10. Make sure the printer is connected to the computer. “Check the PC connection” on page 9. If the Status Light on the printer is blinking amber (yellow), press the Ready button. Power off the printer and power it on to see if communication resumes.
Page 25 Site requirements Operating environment • Relative humidity: 20% to 80% non-condensing • Temperature: 60° F to 95° F (15° C to 35° C) Electrical requirements • The external power supply is rated at 100-240 VAC, 50-60 Hz, 1.8 amp. (It adjusts to any power within this range.) • Single phase, 3-wire, grounded receptacle only. Physical requirements • The printer weighs less than 11.5 pounds (5.3 kg). The weight depends on the supplies and options installed. • Printer dimensions are 21.
Legal Notices (FCC) Please note and heed the WARNING and CAUTION labels that have been placed on the equipment for your safety. Please do not attempt to operate or repair this equipment without adequate training. Liability statement This Datacard® product has been built to the high standards of DataCard® Corporation. See SP Series Info Central for the statement of liability.
11111 Bren Road West Minnetonka, MN 55343-9015 952.933.1223 952.933.7971 FAX www.datacard.com Dealer information: Datacard is a registered trademark of DataCard Corporation. August 2004 554773-001 Rev.
