DataCard SP55 Plus User manual

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.
Printer Guide The Printer Guide (this document) contains
operating information for the printer and driver.
SPInfoCentral
and e-Guide For in-depth information about using the printer or driver, click the SP Info Central icon on the desktop.
(Insert the CD-ROM and choose User Information
to install SP Series Info Central if the icon is not on
the desktop.)
FAQs
Service and Support FAQs at www.datacard.com provide answers to questions about the SP55 printer.
Dealer For help with questions not addressed by other SP55 information, contact your dealer.
Customer Care Contact the Datacard Customer Care Center at 1.800.328.3996 (U.S. & Canada) or 1.952.988.2316
(worldwide).

539335-001 Rev. C Page iii
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 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Getting the most out of your printer . . . . . . . 21
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Site requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Legal Notices (FCC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

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.

Page 2
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).
Optional Smart Card USB Port: See “Features and
options” on page 4.
Optional Smart Card Serial Port: See “Features and
options” on page 4.
Tip: Lift the latch to open the printer and see inside.

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.

Page 4
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.
•Amagnetic 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. The Input Hopper can have a lock (K1).
• An optional smart card module can have:
• Contact coupler (SC1x0 on the label): Visible inside the
printer. Includes a USB port on the printer.
• Contactless (RF) coupler (SC20x): Includes a serial or
USB port.
• Combination smart card coupler (SC3xx): Contact and
contactless couplers. Visible inside the printer, includes
USB or serial port. See SP Series Info Central for codes.
• Contact station (SC400): Visible inside the printer.
Includes a serial port.

Page 5
Loading cards
1Open the input hopper cover.
2Remove 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.
•Orient all cards the same way.
•Cards can stick
together: Slide or
fan cards to
separate the edges.

Page 6
3Place the cards in the input hopper.
The diagram shows the typical locations for the
magnetic stripe and smart card chip.
4Push the input hopper cover closed until it
latches.
See SP Series Info Central for current information
about cards to use in the printer.
Magnetic stripe
Smart card chip

Page 7
Loading print ribbon
1Open the printer.
2Remove the ribbon cartridge.
3Remove 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.
4Run 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.

Page 8
5Load 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.
6Replace the loaded ribbon cartridge in the printer.
— Make sure both spindles rest in the black supports on
the left side of the printer.
— Make sure the ribbon cartridge handle rests in the
supports on the right side of the printer.
— Make sure to install the full, new spool toward the input
hopper of the printer.
7Close the printer cover. Press down firmly to latch it.

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.
As a shared printer, where the printer is connected
to another PC on the network and the user’s PC is
connected to the network.
See SP Info Central for more information about
connecting the printer.
PC

Page 10
Power on the printer
Plug in the printer to power it on.
The printer does not have a power switch.
1Make sure the power supply cord connects to
the printer power receptacle (1).
2Connect the power cord to the power supply (2).
3Connect the power cord to the power outlet (3).
4The printer powers on and initializes.
Tips for printer power
Wait while the printer initializes.
The printer Status Light displays steady green
when the printer is ready to print cards. See
“Status light” on page 11 for details.
Follow the guidelines for your organization about
when to power the printer on and off.
2
3
1

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.
Steady Green The printer is ready and waiting to print cards.
Blinking Green The printer is busy, such as when printing cards or
initializing.
Steady Amber The printer is paused (without an error) or is initializing.

Page 12
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.
Off The printer power is off.
Status Light Description Meaning

Page 13
Opening Properties or Printing Preferences
Begin with the printer connected to the PC and
powered on so values are saved correctly.
1Choose Start from the Windows task bar.
2Choose Settings and then Printers (and Faxes).
The Printers (and Faxes) window opens.
3Click 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.
4From the menu bar, choose File and then one of
the following:
• For Windows Me or 98, choose Properties.
• For Windows 2000 or XP, choose Printing
Preferences, and then click the Advanced
button. Properties dialog box for Windows 98 SE and
Windows Me

Page 14
5The dialog box opens.
6View 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.”
7Choose OK to save and close or choose
Cancel to close without saving changes.
See SP Series Info Central for detailed setup
information, including information about settings for
card features. Printing Preferences dialog box for Windows
2000 and Windows XP

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.
Use the Printer Toolbox to:
• Run a cleaning card.
• Change color settings.
• Print a sample card or magnetic stripe card.
• View the status of communication between the printer
and PC.
• Suspend communication when not printing a card.
• Change edge to edge settings.
• Use Advanced Setup to change printing intensity.

Page 16
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.
Buttons on the Printer Toolbox are grayed out when a
card is ready to print or is printing, when there is a
message, or when the printer is powered off. Wait until
printing is done before printing a sample card, running a
cleaning card, or using advanced setup. Some buttons
do not apply to this printer and are always gray.
See SP Series Info Central for more information about
the Printer Toolbox.

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.
1Open the printer cover and remove the ribbon cartridge.
2Remove the replaceable cleaning roller.
3Open the input hopper cover (1).
4Remove unprinted cards from the input hopper (2).
5Open the Printer Toolbox (if needed, see page 15).
6Click the Clean Printer button. A prompt to insert the
cleaning card appears.
7Open the cleaning card package and remove the
cleaning card.
8Insert the cleaning card into the input hopper (3), just past
the roller.
9Click OK on the message box. The printer moves the card
through the printer several times and ejects the card. Wait
a few minutes to allow the rollers to dry.
Clean Printer
button
2
3
1