Alpha-3R Series Direct Thermal Portable Printer USER’S MANUAL i
Copyright Information ©2012 TSC Auto ID Technology Co., Ltd, The copyright in this manual, the software and firmware in the printer described therein are owned by TSC Auto ID Technology Co., Ltd, All rights reserved. CG Triumvirate is a trademark of Agfa Corporation. CG Triumvirate Bold Condensed font is under license from the Monotype Corporation. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Agency Compliance and Approvals CE CLASS B EN 55022:2006 +A1:2007 EN 55024:1998+A1:2001+A2:2003 EN 61000-4 SERIES REQULATIONS FCC CFR Title 47 Part 15 Subpart B:2011 Class B ICES-003 Issue 4:2004 Class B Wichtige Sicherheits-Hinweise 1. Bitte lesen Sie diese Hinweis sorgfältig durch. 2. Heben Sie diese Anleitung fűr den späteren Gebrauch auf. 3. Vor jedem Reinigen ist das Gerät vom Stromentz zu trennen. Verwenden Sie keine Flüssig-oder Aerosolreiniger.
Class B: FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION INTERFERENCE STATEMENT 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. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation.
Radio Frequency (RF) Exposure Information The radiated output power of the Wireless Device is below the Industry Canada (IC) radio frequency exposure limits. The Wireless Device should be used in such a manner such that the potential for human contact during normal operation is minimized. This device has been evaluated for and shown compliant with the IC Specific Absorption Rate (“SAR”) limits when installed in specific host products operated in portable exposure conditions.
Contents 1. Introduction ................................................. 1 1.1 Product Introduction ......................................................................................... 1 1.2 Product Features ............................................................................................... 2 1.2.1 Printer Standard Features ...................................................................... 2 1.2.2 Printer Optional Features ..............................................................
6.2 Printer Function .............................................................................................. 27 6.3 Calibrating Media Sensor by Diagnostic Tool .............................................. 28 6.3.1 Auto Calibration .................................................................................... 28 6.4 Setting by Diagnostic Tool ............................................................................. 29 6.5 Setting by Diagnostic Tool .........................................
1. Introduction 1.1 Product Introduction Thank you very much for purchasing TSC bar code printer. Enjoy TSC’s reputation for cost-efficient, high durability printers with the Alpha-3R economical receipt printer. The Alpha-3R is a comfortable, light-weight printer capable of working with any mobile receipt printing application where you need quick, simple receipts on demand.
1.2 Product Features 1.2.1 Printer Standard Features The printer offers the following standard features. Product standard feature Direct thermal printing Reflective sensor Head open sensor 3 operation buttons (On/off, feed, and cover-open) 2 color LED for printer status, 3 LEDs for battery status USB 2.
1.2.2 Printer Optional Features The printer offers the following optional features. User Factory options options Product option feature 802.11 b/g/n wireless ○ CPCL emulation ○ Black mark sensor position (left / right / center) ○ Charge station 1 cell ○ (with changeable power connector) Vehicle power adapter ○ IP54-rated environmental case with shoulder strap ○ USB to RS-232 cable ○ USB cable ○ Li-ion battery ○ 1.
1.4 Print Specifications Print Specifications Alpha-3R Print head resolution 203 dots/inch (8 dots/mm) Printing method Direct thermal Dot size (width x length) 0.125 x 0.125 mm (1 mm = 8 dots) Print speed (inches per second) 2, 3, 4 ips selectable Up to 4 ips Max. print width 72 mm (2.83”) Max. print length 2286 mm (90”) Vertical: 1 mm max. Printout bias Horizontal: 1 mm max. 1.5 Media Specifications Media Specifications Alpha-3R Media roll capacity 57 mm (2.
2. Operations Overview 2.1 Unpacking and Inspection This printer has been specially packaged to withstand damage during shipping. Please carefully inspect the packaging and printer upon receiving the bar code printer. Please retain the packaging materials in case you need to reship the printer. Unpacking the printer, the following items are included in the carton.
2.2 Printer Overview 2.2.1 Front View 1 2 3 4 5 6 1. LED indicator 2. Feed button 3. Power on/off button 4. Media cover release button 5. Media holder adjustment knob 6.
2.2.2 Interior View 1 2 3 5 4 1. Tear edge 2. Print head 3. Media holder 4. Platen 5.
2.2.3 Rear View 1 2 3 4 5 1. Li-ion battery 2. Battery open clasp 3. USB interface 4. Power jack 5.
2.3 Operator control 2.3.1 LED Indication and Keys 4 3 5 2 6 1 1. Power on/off button 2. Printer status LED indicator 3. Battery charge level LED indicator 4. Battery status LED indicator 5. Wireless status LED indicator 6.
Keys Function 1. Press and hold for 2-3 seconds to turn on the printer. 2. Press and hold for 2-3 seconds to turn off the printer. 1. Feed one label when printer is ready. 2. Pause the print gob while printing.
3. Setup 3.1 Install the Battery 1. Insert the left side to install the battery at the rear of the printer. 2. Push the right side of the battery. PUSH 3. Pull the battery clasp to lock the battery. Battery safety warning: DO NOT throw the battery in fire. DO NOT short circuit the contacts. DO NOT disassemble the battery. DO NOT throw the battery in municipal waste. The symbol of the crossed out wheeled bin indicates that the battery should not be placed in municipal waste.
3.2 Charge the Battery It takes 2 to 3 hours to fully charge the battery before the first time usage. The lifetime of the battery is 300 times for charge/discharge cycles. 3.2.1 Charge the Battery 1. Open the interface cover and plug the power cord to the power jack. 2. Plug the power cord into a properly power outlet. Note: Please switch OFF printer power prior to plug in the power cord to printer power jack.
3.2.2 Charge by Charger Station (Optional) 1. Plug the power cord to the power jack on the charger station. 2. Install the battery in the charger station. (Refer to steps on section 3.1) 3. Plug the power cord into a properly power outlet. LED Color Green / Solid Red / Solid Red / Blinking Off Description Battery is completely charged Battery is charging Battery charging error No battery Battery is completely charged over 4 ~ 8 hrs.
3.2.3 Charge by Vehicle Power Adaptor (Optional) 14 1. Open the interface cover and plug the power cord to the power jack. 2. Plug the vehicle power adaptor into the car cigarette lighter socket.
3.3 Communicate 3.3.2 Connecting with the Communication Cable * USB to USB Cable (Optional) Open the interface cover and connect the printer to the computer with USB cable. USB interface USB connector (Printer) USB connector (PC) * USB to RS-232 Cable (Optional) Open the interface cover and connect the printer to the computer with RS-232 cable.
3.3.
3.4 Loading the Media 1. Open the printer media cover by pressing the media cover release button. 2. Use a coin to rotate the media holder adjustment knob, and the media holder should be placed at the correct place to fit the media roll. Media holder Note: The media holder should be positioned overlap the bold line and remain the media holder alignment indicator visible. 3. 17 Place the media roll at the correct side, and pull out enough paper over the tear edge.
4. Press each side of media cover to close the media cover and make sure the media cover closed correctly.
4. Accessories 4.1 Install the Belt Clip 19 1. Refer to figure beside. Loop the belt clip through the slot below the battery. 2. Fasten the belt clip with 2 buttons. 3. The printer can be hung on the belt.
4.2 Install the IP54-rated environmental case with shoulder strap (Optional) 1. Open the case top cover. Top cover 2. Put the printer into the case. 3. Close the case top cover. And the outside cover should be opened while printing.
5. Power-on Utilities There are three power-on utilities to set up and test printer hardware. These utilities are activated by pressing FEED button then turning on the printer power simultaneously and release the button at different positions of LED indicator. Please follow the steps below for different power-on utilities. 1. Turn off the printer power switch. 2. Hold on the button then turn on the power switch. 3. Release the button when LED indicates with different positions for different functions.
It will calibrate the black mark sensor sensitivity. The LEDs will be changed as following order: (amber) (5 blinks) (5 blinks) (solid green) (5 blinks) 5.2 Self-test and Dump Mode While calibrate the black mark sensor, printer will measure the media length, print the internal configuration (self-test) on media and then enter the dump mode. To calibrate black mark sensor, depends on the sensor setting in the last print job. Please follow the steps below to calibrate the sensor. 1.
Self-test Printer will print the printer configuration after black mark sensor calibration. Self-test printout can be used to check if there is any dot damage on the heater element, printer configurations and available memory space.
Dump mode Printer will enter dump mode after printing printer configuration. In the dump mode, all characters will be printed in 2 columns as following. The left side characters are received from your system and right side data are the corresponding hexadecimal value of the characters. It allows users or engineers to verify and debug the program. Hex decimal data related to left ASCII Data column of ASCII data Note: 1. Dump mode requires 3” wide paper width. 2.
Printer configuration will be restored to defaults as below after initialization. Parameter Default setting Speed 50.8 mm/sec (2 ips) Density 8 Media Width 2.83” (72 mm) Media Height 4” (101.
6. Diagnostic Tool TSC’s Diagnostic Utility is an integrated tool incorporating features that enable you to explore a printer’s settings/status; change a printer’s settings; download graphics, fonts and firmware; create a printer bitmap font; and send additional commands to a printer. With the aid of this powerful tool, you can review printer status and settings in an instant, which makes it much easier to troubleshoot problems and other issues. 6.1 Start the Diagnostic Tool 1.
6.2 Printer Function 1. Select the PC interface connected with bar code printer. 2 1 The default interface setting is USB interface. If USB interface is connected with printer, no other settings need to be changed in the interface field. 2. Click the “Printer Function” button to setup. 3. The detail functions in the Printer Function Group are listed as below.
6.3 Calibrating Media Sensor by Diagnostic Tool 6.3.1 Auto Calibration 1. Make sure the media is installed ready and media cover is closed. (Please refer to section 3.4) 2. Turn on the printer power switch. 3. Open Diagnostic tool and set interface. (The default setting is USB) 2 1 The default interface setting is USB interface. If USB interface is connected with printer, no other settings need to be changed in the interface field. 4. Click the “Calibrate Sensor” button. 5.
6.4 Setting by Diagnostic Tool 1. Make sure the media is installed ready and media cover is closed. (Please refer to section 3.4) 2. Turn on the printer power switch. 3. Open Diagnostic tool and set interface. (The default setting is USB) 2 1 The default interface setting is USB interface. If USB interface is connected with printer, no other settings need to be changed in the interface field. 4. Select “Wireless” tab and “Built-in wireless module” item. 5.
6.5 Setting by Diagnostic Tool Open the command tool ,use instruction check connect state.
7. Troubleshooting 7.1 Common Problems The following guide lists the most common problems that may be encountered when operating this bar code printer. If the printer still does not function after all suggested solutions have been invoked, please contact the Customer Service Department of your purchased reseller or distributor for assistance. Problem Power indicator does not illuminate Possible Cause Recovery Procedure * The battery is not properly installed. * The battery is dead.
* Re-connect cable to interface. * If using serial cable, - Please replace the cable with pin to pin connected. - Check the baud rate setting. The default baud rate setting of printer is 9600,n,8,1. * If using the Ethernet cable, - Check if the Ethernet RJ-45 connector green LED is lit on. - Check if the Ethernet RJ-45 connector amber LED is blinking. * Cable is not well connected to - Check if the printer gets the IP address when using DHCP mode. USB interface.
8. Maintenance This session presents the clean tools and methods to maintain your printer. 1. Please use one of following material to clean the printer. Cotton swab Lint-free cloth Vacuum / Blower brush 100% Ethanol or Isopropyl Alcohol 2. The cleaning process is described as following, Printer Part Method 1. Always turn off the printer before cleaning the print head. 2. Allow the print head to cool for a minimum of one minute. 3.
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TSC Auto ID Technology Co., Ltd. Corporate Headquarters 9F., No.95, Minquan Rd., Xindian Dist., New Taipei City 23141, Taiwan (R.O.C.) TEL: +886-2-2218-6789 FAX: +886-2-2218-5678 Web site: www.tscprinters.com E-mail: printer_sales@tscprinters.com tech_support@tscprinters.com 35 Li Ze Plant No.35, Sec. 2, Ligong 1st Rd., Wujie Township, Yilan County 26841, Taiwan (R.O.C.
