ABLE Ap1400 Manual

The Experts in Small Printer Solutions
Programmer Guide
Ap1400
Thermal Printer
Able Systems Limited Denton Drive, Northwich, Cheshire CW9 7TU England
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] Web: www.able-systems.com

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Document Revision: “1.2”
Document Date: “9 Apr. 2013”
1. Table of Contents
1. Table of Contents.........................................................................................................................2
2. Introduction...................................................................................................................................3
Notes on Printer Firmware Revisions (Including Flash).......................................................................3
Copyright Notice and Disclaimer..........................................................................................................3
3. Modes of Operation......................................................................................................................4
Paper Feed Button...............................................................................................................................4
Printing Method....................................................................................................................................4
Built-In Fonts........................................................................................................................................5
User Font..............................................................................................................................................5
Multiple Code Page Fonts....................................................................................................................5
Dot Addressable Graphics...................................................................................................................5
Serial Interface.....................................................................................................................................6
Data Buffer and Flow Control...............................................................................................................6
USB Interface.......................................................................................................................................7
Paper Out, Paper Low and Head Up Sensors.....................................................................................7
4. Control Code Tables ....................................................................................................................8
Command Description Format.............................................................................................................8
Command Codes Received.................................................................................................................9
Graphics Commands .........................................................................................................................10
Formatting Commands.......................................................................................................................11
Formatting Commands (Continued)...................................................................................................12
Initialise and Request Status Commands..........................................................................................13
Initialise and Request Status Commands (Continued)......................................................................14
Barcode Commands ..........................................................................................................................15
Mark Sense Operation .......................................................................................................................15
Reserved Commands ........................................................................................................................15
Codes Transmitted.............................................................................................................................16
5. Settings and Configuration .......................................................................................................17
Setting Configuration Information.......................................................................................................17
Saving Configuration Information.......................................................................................................19
Querying Configuration Information...................................................................................................20
6. Command Summaries ...............................................................................................................21
Summary of Print Format Commands and Volatile Settings .............................................................21
Summary of Real Time Status Information........................................................................................21
Summary Of Non-Volatile Settings ....................................................................................................22
7. Setting up USB functionality.....................................................................................................23
Installing LIBUSB. ..............................................................................................................................23
Installing USBPrintDll.........................................................................................................................24
Manual install of the USBPrintDll.......................................................................................................24
Testing the LIBUSB install. ................................................................................................................25
8. The USBPrintDLL interface. ......................................................................................................26

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2. Introduction
This Programmers Guide provides a description of the software commands supported by the Ap1400
series panel mounting printers. This includes the:
•Ap1400 : Panel Mounting Printer (4.5V to 8.5V DC input)
•Ap1400V : Panel Mounting Printer (9V to 36V DC input)
An Installers’ Guide, which contains connection data and details of operation, is available from Able
Systems and should be read in conjunction with this document.
Throughout this Programmers Guide the term "Printer" should be taken to refer to any of the
printers in the Ap1400 range.
If individual products differ in some important aspect, then this is noted.
A wide range of software commands are supported, allowing control of printing format (e.g. width,
height and spacing of text, underlining, text orientation etc.), as well as selection of modes of
operation (e.g. Serial Comms settings, Paper Out, Paper Low and Head Up indications and actions
etc).
Many of the software commands are emulations of the EPSON TM-Series ESCPOS codes. Since
the implementation of ESCPOS varies from one EPSON printer to another, there is no universal
standard. The command set for these products has primarily been based on that of the EPSON TM-T
Series of thermal printers. Please refer to the acknowledgement and disclaimer.
Notes on Printer Firmware Revisions (Including Flash)
Able Systems reserves the right to modify and improve the firmware in its products at any time.
Whilst every effort is made to ensure backward compatibility, no guarantee in this respect is given or
implied.
These products include a flash re-programmable microcontroller. This allows firmware upgrades
under customer control. A Flash Programming Utility is available to aid the user in re-flashing
printers.
Also available is a Font Editor Utility, which allows the user to design and use bespoke fonts as
required. User created or modified fonts may be flashed into the printer using the same Flash
Programming Utility.
Refer to the factory for more information on these features.
Some host-selectable features may be retained during power loss by saving them to non-volatile
memory (FLASH). The user must ensure that any changes to the printer's internal parameters are
saved to flash memory, either manually or by timed auto-save. Refer to section 5.3 SAVING
CONFIGURATION INFORMATION for more details.
Copyright Notice and Disclaimer
Copyright subsists in all Able Systems intellectual property, including controller firmware (embedded
software) and circuit diagrams, pin connection lists and application data. No warranty in respect of
patent rights of Able Systems Limited or of third parties is given. Unauthorised reproduction or
amendment of controller firmware may result in prosecution.
Able Systems does not assume responsibility for interchangeable functionality of other parties'
command sets.

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3. Modes of Operation
Please refer to the Installers’ Guide for an overview of the modes of operation, including idle mode
and spool mode (where applicable).
Some of the host-selectable features may be retained during power off by storage in non-volatile
memory (FLASH), but the others are lost. This is clearly shown in the individual command
descriptions below. The user must ensure that any changes to the printer’s internal parameters are
saved to non-volatile memory (FLASH), either manually or by timed auto-save.
Operational status is indicated by factory-programmable colour combinations on the front-panel LED.
These can indicate input voltage, buffer mode, paper status and so on. Refer to the User Guide for
details.
Paper Feed Button
No external power switch is fitted, so additional functions have been assigned to the paper feed
button.
A single press and release of the button:
- in idle or spooling mode, advances paper, also prints any partial line data from the buffer;
"Double-clicking" the button:
- in idle mode, prints a demo/test message including the firmware version, encoded calibration
data, and optionally the full character set and sample bar codes;
- in spooling mode, prints any stored data and enters idle mode.
Double-clicking means pressing and releasing twice in quick succession, in a similar manner to a PC
mouse.
Some functions of the paper feed button can be invoked or disabled by the host. The button is also
disabled for 0.25 seconds after each data byte is received, to prevent the user from prematurely
printing partial lines (Data from the host will generally be continuous).
Printing Method
Each printer mechanism has 384 horizontally-arranged elements, printing a single dot line across the
full width of the paper at once. The paper is advanced past the print head by a rubber platen driven
by a stepper motor. Typical print speed is 60 mm/s at an input voltage of 7 Volts, the maximum is
80mm/s at an input voltage of 8.5 Volts. Each printed dot is nominally 0.125 mm square. The paper
may only be fed through the printer in the forward direction.
It is not possible to print partial lines in isolation: if such a line remains in the buffer, it will not be
printed until flushed out by: a line terminator; some following data; a programmable timeout; or by the
user pressing the paper feed button, if enabled. Once a partial line has been flushed out, it may not
be extended. Any following data will be printed on the next line.
Character lines may be printed in single or double width, single or double height, and underlined.
These three text mode attributes may be combined at will. If single and double height characters are
mixed in a line, the bottom of the characters will be aligned.

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Built-In Fonts
The built-in font characters are formed according to the Font Mode:
Font
Mode
Chars/Line
Character Height
Row Height
0 32 24 dots (3.00 mm) 30 dots (3.75 mm)
1 42 24 dots (3.00 mm) 30 dots (3.75 mm)
2 24 24 dots (3.00 mm) 30 dots (3.75 mm)
3 32 24 dots (3.00 mm) 24 dots (3.00 mm)
4 48 16 dots (2.00 mm) 19 dots (2.38 mm)
Font Mode 0 is the default factory setting. Character heights refer to the maximum spans of capital
letters and descenders. Row heights refer to the interval from the top of one character row to the top
of the next, including inter-row spacing. The row height may be adjusted if required.
In all of the built-in Font Modes, the character set is the standard IBM ® character set (also known as
Code Page 437) which includes graphics box-drawing characters. These box-drawing characters are
extended to link up in both axes where appropriate. This character set has been modified to include
the Euro symbol (‘€’) at position 80H (128 Decimal), in place of the usual capital C with cedilla (‘Ç’).
Also, certain special character substitutions are possible for particular applications (e.g.:- switching
the ‘£’ and ‘#’ characters, or including the Nordic 'ø' & 'Ø' characters in place of the ‘¢' & '¥'
characters). See the section on SETTING INTERNAL CONFIGURATION INFORMATION for details.
The Font Mode is normally stored in non-volatile memory (FLASH). This means that the printer can be
pre-configured to operate in 32, 48, 42 or 24 Char/Line modes as applicable.
If required, Font Mode changes may be disabled. See the section on SETTING INTERNAL
CONFIGURATION INFORMATION for details.
User Font
This mode gives access to a single User Font programmed into the printer’s non-volatile memory
using the Flash Programming Utility. The format of the characters in the User Font is defined within
the font itself.
When a User Font is present, the Built-In Fonts, and any character substitutions, are disabled. If the
User Font is subsequently removed, then the Built-In Fonts are re-enabled automatically.
Multiple Code Page Fonts
This kind of User Font consists of multiple code pages resident at ASCII 0x80 to 0xFF. A simple
command can be issued to switch between these pages, providing access to multilingual character
sets.
Dot Addressable Graphics
Several protocols for dot-addressable graphics data are supported:
•Eight (8) dot high graphics are aligned with the top of text characters. In these modes the dot
patterns sent by the host may be doubled-up, tripled-up or quadrupled-up, both horizontally
and vertically before printing. The dot size is nominally 0.25, 0.375 or 0.5 mm square.
•Twenty-four (24) dot high graphics are also aligned with the top of text characters, and are
printed dot-for-bit as sent by the host. The nominal dot size is 0.125 mm square. Successive
blocks can be vertically contiguous only if Font Mode 3 is selected.
•Single dot high graphics are also aligned with the top of text characters. Successive
horizontal dot lines can be vertically contiguous if no other printing is performed between
them.

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Graphics may be combined with text printing as required. Large areas of solid dots are not
recommended, as they may cause overheating and shorten the head life: try shading.
Serial Interface
The default serial interface format for the Ap1400 series printers is 9600 baud, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit
and no parity. Other formats can be programmed into the printer at the factory or in the field, from the
host. A setup program, suitable for use with a PC, is available from Able Systems to simplify this
process.
Serial data is expected on Rx in RS-232C format with -12V meaning 'mark' or logical '1', and +12V
meaning ‘space’ or logical '0', with reference to the common ground. The serial data output line, Tx,
transmits XON/XOFF and status information to the host at the same baud rate and format as the
serial data input. The hardware busy line, Busy, is true (nominally -12V) when busy.
Some host equipment use a constant space condition (+12V) to indicate a reset condition or wait
state. Some battery powered host equipment present the same output signal when they go to sleep.
By default the printer will interpret this condition as a repetitive receive error, and will print multiple ‘?’
characters to indicate the fault. If required, the printer may be set to ignore this condition.
Data Buffer and Flow Control
The printer has a nominal 10k byte buffer which enables data to be received while previous lines are
being printed. The state of the data buffer is transmitted to the host as follows:
XOFF (13HEX) sent when buffer fills to 3/4 full;
XON (11HEX) sent when buffer empties to 1/4 full; and also after a controller reset.
The hardware busy line is set when 256 bytes of space remains; and incoming data are no longer
passed to the buffer (but may be processed) when 128 bytes remain. The hardware busy line goes
ready again when 384 bytes become free. Note that the buffer can become filled with non-printable
codes, in which case the controller will go busy.
The printer always transmits an XON character when it is powered on and is ready to receive data. It
is not necessary to select hardware or software handshaking. Both are active at all times.

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USB Interface
The Ap1400 printer has a full speed USB client interface allowing the unit to be connected to a
Windows based host via USB allowing simple configuration and access. There are two ways of
printing from the Ap1400;
1) Spool printing. This is the way a ‘standard’ desktop printer works and will enable you to print
in the normal way from applications such as Word, Excel or any other application that
supports spool printing. Spool printing requires the installation of windows drivers and allows
all applications access to the printer. To use the Ap1400 as a spool printer you will need to
install the following:
- Ap1400 USB driver
2) API interface. The API interface, takes exclusive control of the printer and allows either text or
graphical printing. In addition, the full printer command set is available to the user allowing
much tighter tailoring of the printed output to suit this form of printer & application
combination. To use the API Interface you will need to install the following:
- LIBUSB
- USBPrintDLL
Please refer to section 7 for details on how to install the correct driver for your application.
Paper Out, Paper Low and Head Up Sensors
The Ap1400 series printers typically use an FTP-628MCL103 print head which has a paper out
sensor and optionally a head up sensor. The reflective optical Paper Out sensor within the
mechanism detects an out-of-paper condition, and/or senses black marks to register with pre-printed
forms. The optional head up sensor is a mechanical switch that detects when the lid is opened.
The printer is set as standard to enter Spool mode when the sensors become active. Spool mode can
be automatically exited, when the sensors become inactive again. This behaviour may be modified.
See the section on SETTING INTERNAL CONFIGURATION INFORMATION for details.
The state of the sensors is reported in the STATUS BYTE.

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4. Control Code Tables
General Notes: All codes from 00 to 1F which are not listed below are ignored.
An ESC, GS etc code followed by an unrecognised command is ignored, but any following
parameters are interpreted as normal characters. Any ESC, GS etc sequence which is described
below but which has an illegal parameter is abandoned at that point. The controller will attempt to
interpret subsequent characters as normal characters.
There is no need to follow ESC or GS control code strings with a line terminator. If one is added it will
be interpreted as such.
Most control codes are executed when they fall through the data buffer at printing time. Some ("real
time") codes are interpreted immediately on receipt, so that the printer can respond even if the buffer
is full.
The settings defined in some commands, identified by N, may be stored in non-volatile memory
[FLASH]. All settings are implemented as soon as they are interpreted, except for communication
settings. Newly set values for the Baud rate, parity, data and stop bit parameters are not
implemented until the printer has been cycled.
Command Description Format
In the explanations that follow, commonly recognised labels have been used (e.g. LF, CR, FF, ESC);
command parameters are given as equivalent ASCII characters (e.g. "J"); or as hexadecimal [hex]
values (e.g. 4AH); or decimal numbers (e.g. 74 or n) which are single byte values. Dots (...) mean
more parameters follow.
The command string descriptions are punctuated by commas [,] for clarity, though most versions of
BASIC will use semi-colons [;]. However, these separators will not be transmitted by the host.
As an example, the command to select the underlined printing mode can be expressed in a number of
ways, all of which are equivalent:
ESC, "!" ,n (as in the command description)
27 , 33 ,128 (expressed as decimal character values)
1BH,21H,80H (expressed as hex values)
n is a number, such that if expressed in binary, setting its most significant bit (bit 7) will select the
underline mode.
This expression could be written into a BASIC program as:
10 PRINT#1,CHR$(27);”!Ç”; ...using ASCII characters, or as:
10 PRINT#1,CHR$(27);CHR$(33);CHR$(128); ...using decimal values, or as:
10 PRINT#1,CHR$(&H1B);CHR$(&H21);CHR$(&H80); ...which is equivalent, but using hex.

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Command Codes Received
The commands detailed below are listed in ascending ASCII code order.
To assist programmers in converting existing host software, the following codes are used:
Fully supported as in EPSON ESCPOS
+ Altered functionality compared with ESCPOS
@ Able special code, no ESCPOS equivalent exists
N Setting may be retained in non-volatile [FLASH] memory
ESC,"L"
1BH,4CH
Enter spooling mode

+
Data and control codes received after this command will be stored in the buffer until either a
command (FF) or GS,L command to exit spooling mode is received, or the paper feed button is
double-clicked by the operator (double-click operation can be disabled by the ESC,c,5.. command).
ESC,"c","5",..
1BH,63H,35H,n
Enable/Disable button functions

+N
n is encoded so:
bit 0 clear (0) Disable paper feed button
bit 0 set (1) Enable paper feed button (default condition)
bit 1 clear (0) Disable double-click demo mode
bit 1 set (1) Enable double-click demo mode (default condition)
Other bits are ignored; the double-click demo mode only functions if the paper feed button is
enabled.
ESC,"X",..
1BH,58H,m..
eX
tended Commands (special to Able
)
@ N
See the section SETTING INTERNAL CONFIGURATION INFORMATION below for format.
ESC,"!",..
1BH,
21H,n
Select printing mode

+N
The third byte n is interpreted as follows:
bit 0 } Select Font Mode 0 to 4
bit 1 } (Mode 0 is factory setting)
bit 2 } (Invalid Font Mode Values are Ignored)
bit 4 Select(1)/Cancel(0) Double height mode
bit 5 Select(1)/Cancel(0) Double width mode
bit 7 Select(1)/Cancel(0) Underlined mode
Bits 3 and 6 are ignored.
Each of these attributes remains in force until actively cancelled. The Font Mode may be stored in
non-volatile memory (FLASH) and retained when the power is cycled. Some older host equipment
may require the Font Mode Select bits to be disabled; See the ESC,"X",09H,n command for details
of how to do this.
Font Modes (0 to 4) cannot be mixed within a single print line: a new line results when the Font
Mode is changed.
ESC,"R
"
, …
1BH,52
H
,n
Select Extended Page
@
N
Font Format 2 and 3 are user font images containing multiple code pages. This command is used to
select one of the code pages in the image.

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Graphics Commands
ESC,"*",..
1BH,2AH,m,n1,n2,d1...dk
Dot
-
Addressable (Bit) Graphics

+
Several modes of Dot Addressable Graphics are possible:
In all modes dot patterns are coded as 1= dot, 0= space, patterns are arranged in dot-columns, and
the MSBit of each byte is printed at the top. The number of dot columns is given by (n1+ 256*n2).
When the third byte, m=0 or 2 (00H or 02H): Doubled-up 8 dot graphics [ k = n1+ 256*n2 ]
Each 8-dot vertical column is encoded as a single byte. Each dot is doubled in both axes to
0.25 mm square. Successive rows of 8-dot graphics cannot be printed contiguously in the
vertical direction unless using a 16 dot high User Font.
When the third byte, m=3 (03H): Tripled-up 8 dot graphics [ k = n1+ 256*n2 ]
Each 8-dot vertical column is encoded as a single byte. Each dot is tripled in both axes to
0.375 mm square. Successive rows of 8-dot graphics can be printed contiguously in the vertical
direction only in Font Mode 3 or a User Font which is 24 dots high.
When the third byte, m=4 (04H): Quadrupled-up 8 dot graphics [ k = n1+ 256*n2 ]
Each 8-dot vertical column is encoded as a single byte. Each dot is quadrupled in both axes to
0.5 mm square. Successive rows of 8-dot graphics can be printed contiguously in the vertical
direction only in Font Modes 0, 1 or 2 or a User Font which is 32 dots high.
When the third byte, m=32 (20H): Plain 24 dot graphics [ k = 3 x (n1+ 256*n2)]
Each 24-dot vertical column is encoded as three successive bytes. Bytes d1, d4, d7 etc are at
the top of the 24-dot vertical columns. The printed graphic pattern is therefore represented by
the byte numbers as follows: d1 d4 d7 ... d(k-2)
d2 d5 d8 ... d(k-1)
d3 d6 d9 ... dk
Each dot is the mechanism dot size of 0.125 mm square. Significant features should be coded
using at least 2 dots together. Successive rows of 24-dot graphics can be printed contiguously
in the vertical direction only in Font Mode 3 or a User Font which is 24 dots high.
When the third byte, m=8 (08H): Single Dot Line graphics [ k = n1+ 256*n2 ]
Data bytes are printed horizontally in order from left to right across the page, with the Most
Significant Bit to the left. Each byte encodes 8 horizontal dots. Each dot is the mechanism dot
size of 0.125 mm square. Successive horizontal dot rows can be printed contiguously in any
Font Mode only if no other printing occurs between them.
If the print mechanism is allowed to stop between successive contiguous graphics patterns, slight
discontinuities may occur due to mechanical hysteresis. Consider using spool mode to prevent this.