Printers
      Back to home
      1. Idealpos Help Guides
      2. Peripheral Setup
      3. Printers

      POS Printers

      POS Printers

      POS PRINTERS

      3 main types used on our POS systems: LABEL, THERMAL, IMPACT

      THERMAL: S80/TP100: also called receipt printers, uses special paper.

      IMPACT: M300: also called Kitchen or Dot Matrix printers, use normal paper rolls but uses an ink ribbon.

      LABEL: Zebra: Direct thermal (prints direct on label) and Thermal Transfer (resin/wax ribbon to print on waterproof labels / card shelf tags)

      BASIC TROUBLESHOOTING / TESTING

      1.           Power on self-test:   Hold the feed button and turn printer on, self-test should print.

      Check for missing section of print / poor quality etc.  Possible hardware / physical issue if self-test fails / poor quality.

      2.           Communication issues: Confirm connection method (serial, ethernet / USB / virtual COM via USB on TP100) confirm printer settings from self-test to POS settings and correct any differences.

      network printers: ping IP address from command prompt.  If responding, turn off and ping again, if still getting response possible IP address duplication.                

      serial / shared printers: printtest bat file.

      serial port conflicts: multiple devices on same COM port (Linkly)

      correct serial cable? TP100 and S80 use different cables.

      3.           Incorrect format / output: Check printer config on POS (baud rate, printer type etc.)

      4.           Print quality issues / jibberish output               

      Correct paper / tried a different roll?               

      thermal 80mm wide roll, can only print on one side, drag a fingernail across the paper and it should leave a black line, this side needs to face the printhead.               

      impact 76mm wide roll, can be 1 ,2, or 3 ply plain / bond paper.

      Impact printers:  ribbon not jammed (remove and turn dial to check), worn out (no ink left of fabric), correctly seated?

      Correct printer type / comms settings configured in POS?  Impact printers cannot print logos like the thermal printers so will get a large amount of jibberish print then the receipt.

      5.  Paper feed issues: 

      IMPACT:  correct size roll, 76 mm

                        correct paper type (bond)

                        paper thickness (some printers don't support 3 ply, M300 does)

                        paper jam / jammed cutter (see model specific procedure)

                    angle of printer (mounting position can put extra pressure on a new roll which stops feeding)

      THERMAL:  correct size roll, 80 mm

                            correct paper type, thermal (fingernail test)

                            paper jam / jammed cutter (see model specific procedure)

      Documents

      Search Idealpos Help Guides using the model id (S80, TP100, M300)