VehiclePro 420 Operator’s Manual Printek LLC 3515 Lakeshore Dr. St. Joseph, MI 49085 269-925-3200 www.printek.com Printek, LLC. A Company.
FCC Part 15 Class B This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation. This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC rules.
Zebra, CPCL and ZPL are registered trademarks of Zebra Technologies Wi-Fi is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Read all set up and operating instructions before proceeding with operation. Do not operate in an enclosure unless properly ventilated. Do not operate near a heat source.
TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Printer Features ............................................................................................................................................................. 3 Quick Start Instructions ................................................................................................................
Introduction Thank you for purchasing a Printek VehiclePro 420 Model Series mobile thermal printer. Each printer is shipped with a Quick Start Guide, and one roll of receipt paper. The VehiclePro series offers a variety of configurations to suit any printing environment. The 420 Model prints on receipt paper supplied in roll form up to 4.125 inches wide and includes “black mark” sensing capabilities on the printed side of the media. Standard interface is USB.
Printer Features Power Button Status Indicators Paper Feed Button Paper Door Release Tear Bars Your VehiclePro 420 features: • Easy-to-read control face and simple drop-in paper loading • Quickly prints a wide variety of tickets, and receipts • IP54 rated for water and dust resistance • Extensive fonts, character sets, barcodes, and graphic capabilities • Compatible with Windows, WindowsMobile, Android • Emulations that allow the printer to be a drop-in replacement for nearly any mobile pri
Quick Start Instructions A. Paper Load Push paper door release, pull out drawer, drop in paper roll and route through door as shown. Printouts can be torn off in either direction. 4 www.printek.com | P: 800.368.4636 | F: 269.925.8539 | E: info@printek.
B. Cable Installation Printek provides a single 9-pin D-connector that plugs into the back of the VP420 printer. This connection provides for both data communication and power to the printer. The cable has a USB-A connection to plug into the host. The cable has two unterminated power wires coming out of the connector. The positive cable is marked with red. The Red labeled wire in the power cable may be connected to a 9-32 VDC source and the Black wire is to be connected to vehicle ground.
C. Printer Installation To complete the installation, secure the data/power cable connector to the back of the printer, insert the printer into the dash/console. 6 www.printek.com | P: 800.368.4636 | F: 269.925.8539 | E: info@printek.
D. Status Indications – Patterns & Meanings E. Performing a Printer Self-Test To print configuration page and conduct printer self-test, with power on, double click the paper feed button. 7 www.printek.com | P: 800.368.4636 | F: 269.925.8539 | E: info@printek.
Integrating the Printer into your Business Applications Step by Step – Creating a Link from Host to Printer Print Drivers Printer drivers can be downloaded from our web site; https://www.printek.com/windows-desktop/ Select theVP420 / DPV541 driver. This driver will work for both 32 and 64 bit operating systems. The drivers are downloaded as .zip files. Unzip the file into a folder. For best results do not unzip the files to your desktop. Run the DriverSetup.exe program to install the Windows driver. A.
Configuration Configuration of the VP420 printer is done through a built-in web page. This allows you to configure the printer from any device that has a browser and is compatible with your VP420 communication capabilities. 1. Turn the printer ON. 2. Connect a USB cable between the printer and a PC. 3. To access the VP420 web page, push the Power button twice rapidly. This will put the printer into Configuration mode. 4. When the printer is in Configuration mode the POWER and FAULT LEDs will flash together.
5. The main configuration screen of the VP420: This is an overview of the printer configuration. To return the printer to normal operating mode, double-click the Power button. The POWER LED will be returned to a solid light. At the top of the Main Page are selections to access the sub-menus. A. Connectivity Parameters This page allows you to setup the connection to your printer. Depending on the optional interface installed, you will see WI-FI Config.
WI-FI Config: Wireless Configuration This will display the current Wi-Fi configuration: IP Address – user defined. If Static Address Method is selected, type in the address the printer will use on the network. SubNetMask – user defined. If Static Address Method is selected, type in the subnet mark of the network. Gateway – user defined. If Static Address Method is selected, type in the gateway address of the network. SSID – user defined. Network name broadcasted by printer when set to Access Point mode.
Area Network mode. To exit Personal Area Network mode, press and hold the Power and Paper Feed buttons until the Power and Alert LEDs light. Release both buttons, and the printer will restart in normal Wi-Fi mode. Current Connection – access points added through Add/Edit. Previously Connected Networks – access points detected by the printer or added through Add/Edit Network will be displayed. Select Connect to use one of these access points, or Remove to delete it from printer.
Add Personal Network and Add Enterprise Network Enter the SSID of a network connection. If authentication is used select the authentication type. Click Next. The following form will change depending on the authentication type: WPA-PSK Enter the password for the network connection. WPA-EAP or IEEE8021X These are Enterprise network settings. Consult your server manual for recommended settings.
B. Image Config This page allows you to make selections about the image to be printed. Current Emulation: Possible Values: ESCPOS*, PRINTEK, ZPL, CPCL, AUTOIMAGE, PDF, POSTSCRIPT, IMAGE The VP420 printer is capable of using several different emulation modes. This feature sets the family of printer commands that may be used by a host application program to control the various capabilities of the printer. The printer will only respond to commands valid for the currently selected emulation.
Chars Per Inch and Default Text Line Spacing: NOTE: These settings only function in Printek Emulation This determines how large the characters are and how many characters will print in a one inch space. The higher the number, the greater the number of lines per vertical inch of print. C. Device Config This page allows you to set certain hardware parameters on the printer. Units Select between inches or millimeters. If you change units, do so before entering other settings. 15 www.printek.com | P: 800.
Max Paper Speed Possible values: 1.0 to 5.0 ips, Default = 5.0 When using labels or heavy paper stock, you may need to decrease the paper speed to prevent paper jams. Mark Seeking Possible values: Off*, Front. Set the value when using regular or label media with black alignment. Depending on the value selected here you may or may not see some of the sensor threshold settings listed below.
D. Fonts Upload Font File Truetype Fonts (.ttf, .otf, .ttc and .bdf) can be uploaded here. Languages like ZPL and CPCL can use the fonts by referring to them by their Font Family Name. Printek emulation uses the Index value when selecting a font. Font Aliases Languages like ZPL and CPCL can use an uploaded Font Alias Table so legacy jobs can have their font names mapped to other uploaded fonts. Contact Printek Technical Support at (800) 368-4636 for more information. E.
Upload File Select the graphics file to load into printer memory. Acceptable graphics formats are .jpeg, .pbm, .pcx, .bmp, .png and .svg. Set Width Select the width you want to use to display your logo: full width, half width, or small width. Set index Depending on the Index value used, you can automatically print the graphics file as a header (prints at the beginning of the print job), footer (prints at the end of a print job) or use the graphics print command to print anywhere on your receipt or label.
G. Reset Printer Configuration to Factory Defaults (Safe Mode) Printer settings can be restored to factory configurations. Note that WIFI network configurations will be lost when Network Config to Factory Defaults is checked. Media A. Standard Media Printek offers a variety of media types. See Appendix D for detailed descriptions and ordering information.
Maintenance and Troubleshooting A. Cleaning In normal environments, the printer should be cleaned after printing a few rolls of paper or if there are voids in the printout. For optimum performance and life, you should clean the Print Head and Platen Roller whenever you load new paper. To clean the printer areas as described below, use a Thermal Head Cleaning Pen available from Printek, or you may use cotton swabs moistened with isopropyl alcohol. • • • • Turn the printer off.
Flashes Red Paper Out Flashes Green/Amber, Without Alarm Paper door not fully closed. Flashes Green, Without Alarm, No Printout Communications error. II. Other Problems Problem Poor print quality. Possible Cause Print head dirty. Poor quality or “old” paper. Paper not feeding. Paper not feeding reliably or print is compressed vertically Print Garbled. Printer will not print. Obstruction in paper path or paper improperly installed. Poor quality paper. Paper Door not fully closed.
C. Obtaining Service If service is required for your printer, please contact the company where you purchased your printer. If they are unable to assist you, contact Printek Customer Service at (800) 368-4636. If you wish to return your printer to Printek for service, please contact Printek Customer Service at (800) 368-4636 to obtain a Return Authorization Number. Units returned without a Return Authorization will not be accepted. 22 www.printek.com | P: 800.368.4636 | F: 269.925.8539 | E: info@printek.
APPENDIX A. Appendix A – VehiclePro 420 Printer Specifications Printer Setup Program provides convenient configuration via a Windows Interface from any computer, tablet PC, or smartphone. Emulations: Emulates many popular printer brands and languages including: CPCL, ZPL and ESCPOS Operator Controls and Indicators Print Media Memory Capacity Fonts: A wide range of font types and sizes, from ~6 cpi to 34 cpi depending on emulation chosen, plus scaling.
Glossary of Terms 802.11 Wireless networking communication standards created by IEEE. Ad-Hoc A Wi-Fi network consisting of only stations (no access point). Same as Peer-toPeer. authentication The process a Wi-Fi station uses to identify itself to another station. baud rate The rate at which characters are transmitted over a serial interface. This is also often referred to as bits per second. client Any node on a network that requests services from another node (server).
server Any node on a network that provides services to another node (client). SSID Service Set Identifier. An identifier attached to packets on a Wi-Fi network that identify the particular network the packets are intended for. TCP Transmission Control Protocol. A specification that controls the connection between systems on a network. top of form The vertical position where the first line is printed on the paper.
Index 802.
