Epson DFX-8500 - Impact Printer User manual

EPSON DFX-8500
Service Manual
Epson America, Inc. TM-DFX8500
Service Manual

ii
EPSON DFX-8500 Service Manual
FCC COMPLIANCE STATEMENT
FOR AMERICAN USERS
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. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in
accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio and television reception. However, there is
no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause interference to
radio and television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to
try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
•Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
•Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
•Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.
•Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
WARNING
The connection of a non-shielded equipment interface cable to this equipment will invalidate the FCC Certification of
this device and may cause interference levels that exceed the limits established by the FCC for this equipment. It is the
responsibility of the user to obtain and use a shielded equipment interface cable with this device. If this equipment has
more than one interface connector, do not leave cables connected to unused interfaces.
Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the manufacturer could void the user's authority to operate the
printer.
FOR CANADIAN USERS
This Class B digital apparatus meets all requirements of the Canadian Interference-Causing Equipment Regulations.
Cet appareil numérique de la classe B respecte toutes les exigences du Règlement sur le materiel brouilleur du
Canada.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of
Epson America, Inc. No patent liability is assumed with respect to use of the information contained herein. Neither is
any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein. While every precaution
has been taken in the preparation of this book, Epson America, Inc., assumes no responsibility for errors and
omissions.
Neither Epson America, Inc., nor its affiliates shall be liable to the purchaser of this product or third parties for
damages, losses, costs, or expenses incurred by purchaser or third parties as a result of: accident, misuse, or abuse of
this product or unauthorized modifications, repairs, or alterations to this product.
Epson America, Inc., shall not be liable against any damages or problems arising from the use of any options or any
consumable products other than those designated as Original EPSON Products or EPSON-Approved Products by
Seiko Epson Corporation.

EPSON DFX-8500 Service Manual iii
TRADEMARKS
EPSON® and ESC/P® are registered trademarks and ESC/P 2™ and EPSON Stylus are trademarks of Seiko Epson
Corporation. MicroDot™ and Super MicroDot™ are trademarks of Epson America, Inc.
General Notice: Other product names used herein are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their
respective companies. EPSON disclaims any and all rights in those marks.
Copyright © 1998 Epson America, Inc.
20770 Madrona Avenue
Torrance, CA 90503

iv
EPSON DFX-8500 Service Manual
PRECAUTIONS
There are cautionary notes throughout the text to help you avoid personal injury or equipment damage.
WARNING
Signals a precaution which, if ignored, could result in serious or fatal personal injury. Great caution should
be exercised in performing procedures preceded by a WARNING heading.
CAUTION
Signals a precaution which, if ignored, could result in damage to equipment.
Always observe the measures listed below when performing repair or maintenance procedures.
WARNING
1. Always disconnect the product from both the power source and host computer before performing any
maintenance or repair procedure.
2. No work should be performed on the unit by persons unfamiliar with basic safety measures dictated for
all electronics technicians in their line of work.
3. In performing testing described in this manual, do not connect the unit to a power source until instructed
to do so. When the power supply cable must be connected, use extreme caution in working on the
power supply and other electronic components.
CAUTION
1. Repairs on EPSON products should be performed only by an EPSON-certified repair technician.
2. Make certain that the source voltage is the same as the rated voltage listed on the serial number/rating
plate. If the EPSON product has a primary AC rating different from the available power source, do not
connect it to the power source.
3. Always verify that the EPSON product has been disconnected from the power source before removing
or replacing printed circuit boards and/or individual chips.
4. To protect sensitive microprocessors and circuitry, use static discharge equipment, such as anti-static
wrist straps, when accessing internal components.
5. Replace malfunctioning components only with those components recommended by the manufacturer;
introduction of second-source ICs or other nonapproved components may damage the product and void
any applicable EPSON warranty.

CHAPTER 1
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1.1 FEATURES __________________________________________________________________ 1-1
1.2 SPECIFICATIONS____________________________________________________________ 1-3
Printing Specifications _____________________________________________________________________ 1-3
Paper Feeding Specifications ________________________________________________________________ 1-6
Electrical Specifications ____________________________________________________________________ 1-6
Environmental Specifications________________________________________________________________ 1-6
Reliability _______________________________________________________________________________ 1-6
Safety Approvals__________________________________________________________________________ 1-7
CE Marking _____________________________________________________________________________ 1-7
Acoustic Noise ___________________________________________________________________________ 1-7
Ribbon Cartridge__________________________________________________________________________ 1-7
Physical Specifications _____________________________________________________________________ 1-7
Printable Area____________________________________________________________________________ 1-8
Paper and Media _________________________________________________________________________ 1-12
Continuous Paper (Single-sheet and Multi-sheet Forms)________________________________________ 1-12
Labels _______________________________________________________________________________ 1-14
Continuous Forms with Labels____________________________________________________________ 1-15
Overlapping Multi-sheet Forms ___________________________________________________________ 1-16
Perforations___________________________________________________________________________ 1-16
Notes ________________________________________________________________________________ 1-16
1.3 INTERFACES_______________________________________________________________ 1-19
Parallel Interface (Forward Channel)_________________________________________________________ 1-19
Parallel Interface (Reverse Channel) _________________________________________________________ 1-21
Serial Interface __________________________________________________________________________ 1-23
Optional Interface________________________________________________________________________ 1-23
Interface Selection________________________________________________________________________ 1-24
Preventing Timeouts______________________________________________________________________ 1-24
1.4 OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS________________________________________________ 1-25
Control Panel ___________________________________________________________________________ 1-25
Buttons ______________________________________________________________________________ 1-26
Indicators_____________________________________________________________________________ 1-27
Errors and Buzzers _______________________________________________________________________ 1-28
DIP Switch Settings ______________________________________________________________________ 1-30
Control Panel Functions ___________________________________________________________________ 1-34
Normal Operation ______________________________________________________________________ 1-34
Advanced Control Panel Functions ________________________________________________________ 1-36
Automatic Detection Functions ___________________________________________________________ 1-37
Paper Memory Functions __________________________________________________________________ 1-38
Initializations ___________________________________________________________________________ 1-39
Hardware Initialization__________________________________________________________________ 1-39
Software Initialization___________________________________________________________________ 1-39
Panel Initialization _____________________________________________________________________ 1-39
1.5 MAIN COMPONENTS _______________________________________________________ 1-40
M-3I60 Printer Mechanism ________________________________________________________________ 1-41

C204 Main Board_________________________________________________________________________ 1-42
C204 DRV Board _________________________________________________________________________ 1-43
C204 DRV-B Board _______________________________________________________________________ 1-44
C204 SUB Board _________________________________________________________________________ 1-44
C204 PSB/PSE Board _____________________________________________________________________ 1-45
Control Panel ____________________________________________________________________________ 1-46
Housing ________________________________________________________________________________ 1-46

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-1
1.1 FEATURES
The EPSON DFX-8500 is an 18-pin, serial impact dot matrix printer designed for business use. This printer
provides high-speed, high-volume printing with continuous-sheet handling. Main features include:

Advanced paper handling:

Paper jam detection

Paper width detection

Front and rear two-way push tractors

Optional pull tractor

Automatic paper back-out and loading from another paper path

Automatic platen gap adjustment

Automatic tear-off positioning

Paper memory function

Automatic paper path switching

Auto-cut mode enables the optional perforation cutter to cut continuous paper at the perforation.

Bi-directional parallel interface (IEEE-1284 nibble) and RS-232C serial interface standard

EPSON ESC/P (upward-compatible with DFX-8000) and IBM/Lexmark 2381 Plus emulation

35 character tables in the NLSP (National Language Support) version

11 character tables in the standard version

One draft and two NLQ bitmap typefaces and 8 barcode fonts are supported.

Optional paper cutter and perforation cutter

Upgraded data handling

128KB input buffer

Automatic interface selection

Type-B optional interface cards
Figure 1-1. DFX-8500 (Exterior View)

DFX-8500
1-2
The following table shows options.
Table 1-1. Options
Code Name
#8766 Ribbon cartridge
#8767 Ribbon pack
#8309 Pull tractor
#8502 Printer stand
C815001 Paper cutter
C815071 Perforation cutter
C823051 Serial interface card
C823071 32KB serial I/F card
C823121 Local Talk I/F card
C823141 Coax I/F card
C823151 Twinax I/F card
C823452 Bi-directional parallel I/F card
C823572 Multi-protocol Ethernet I/F card

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-3
1.2 SPECIFICATIONS
This section contains the specifications for the DFX-8500.
PRINTING SPECIFICATIONS
 Print method: Impact dot matrix
 Number of pins: 18-pin (See Figure 1-2.)
 Pin arrangement: 9 x 2
 Pin diameter: 0.0114 inches (0.29 mm)
 Color: Black
 Print direction: Bi-directional with logic seeking
 Printable columns: See Table 1-2.
0.0138 in. (0.35 mm)
0.111 in. (2.82 mm)
0.0665 in. (1.69 mm)
Figure 1-2. Printhead Pin Configuration
Table 1-2. Printable Columns
Print Mode Character Pitch Printable Columns
High speed draft 10 cpi 136
Draft 10 cpi 136
12 cpi 163
15 cpi 204
Draft condensed 17 cpi 233
20 cpi 272
Draft 10 cpi 136
NLQ 10 cpi 136
12 cpi 163
15 cpi 204
NLQ condensed 17 cpi 233
20 cpi 272

DFX-8500
1-4

Resolution: See Table 1-3.
Table 1-3. Resolution
Print Mode Horizontal Resolution Vertical Resolution Adjacent Dot Print
High speed draft 90 dpi 72 dpi No
Draft 120 dpi 72 dpi No
Draft condensed 240 dpi 72 dpi No
Draft 120 dpi 72 dpi Yes
NLQ 240 dpi 144 dpi No
Bit image 60, 72, 80, 90, 120 or 144 dpi 72 dpi Yes
120 or 240 dpi 72 dpi No
 Control code: ESC/P and IBM 2381 Plus emulation

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-5
 Character tables and typefaces: See Table 1-4.
Table 1-4. Character tables and typefaces
Character Table Bitmap Font
Standard version Italic Table EPSON Draft
PC437 (US, Standard Europe) EPSON Roman
PC850 (Multilingual) EPSON Sans Serif
PC860 (Portuguese)
PC861 (Icelandic)
PC863 (Canadian French)
PC865 (Nordic)
Abicomp
BRASCII
Roman 8
ISO Latin 1
NLSP version Italic Table EPSON Draft
PC437 (US, Standard Europe) EPSON Roman
PC850 (Multilingual) PC437 Greek EPSON Sans Serif
PC852 (East Europe) PC853 (Turkish)
PC855 (Cyrillic) PC857 (Turkish)
PC866 (Russian) PC869 (Greek)
MAZOWIA (Poland) Code MJK (CSFR)
ISO 8859-7 (Latin/Greek) ISO Latin 1T (Turkish)
Bulgaria Estonia
PC 774 (LST 1283:1993) ISO 8859-2 (ISO Latin 2)
PC 866 LAT. ( Latvian) PC 866 UKR
PC 860 PC 861
PC 865 PC APTEC
PC 708 PC 720
PC AR864 PC 863*
Abicomp* BRASCII*
Roman 8* ISO Latin 1
Hebrew 7* Hebrew 8*
PC 862*
International USA France
Character Sets Germany U.K.
(both versions) Denmark 1 Sweden
Italy Spain 1
Japan Norway
Denmark 2 Spain 2
Latin America
Bar Codes EAN-13
(both versions) EAN-8
Interleaved 2 of 5
UPC-A
UPC-E
Code 39
Code 128
POSTNET
* These tables cannot be selected using DIP switches.
Notes: The ESC R command works on all the character tables.
The international and legal characters are: 23h, 24h, 40h, 5Bh, 5Ch, 5Dh, 5Eh, 60h, 7Bh, 7Ch, 7Dh,
and 7Eh.
 Input data buffer: 0KB or 128KB (depends on DIP switch settings)

DFX-8500
1-6
PAPER FEEDING SPECIFICATIONS
 Feeding method: Push tractor feed (front and rear)
Push and pull tractor feed (front and rear)
 Feeder: Front push tractor, rear push tractor, pull tractor (option)
 Paper insertion side alignment: Left
 Paper path: Tractors (front in, rear in, top out)
 Line spacing: 1/6-inch, or programmable in 1/216-inch increments.
ELECTRICAL SPECIFICATIONS
 120 V version:
Rated voltage: 120 VAC
Input voltage range: 99 to 132 VAC
Rated frequency range: 50 to 60 Hz
Input frequency range: 49.5 to 60.5 Hz
Rated current: 3.5 A (maximum 7.5 A)
Power consumption: Approximately 160 W (ISO/IEC 10561 Letter pattern)
ENERGY STAR compliant
Insulation resistance: 10 MΩminimum (between AC line and chassis, 500 VDC)
Dielectric strength: 1000 AC Vrms. 1 minute or
1200 AC Vrms. 1 second (between AC line and chassis)
 220 - 240 V version:
Rated voltage: 220 to 240 VAC
Input voltage range: 198 to 264 VAC
Rated frequency range: 50 to 60 Hz
Input frequency range: 49.5 to 60.5 Hz
Rated current: 1.4 A (maximum 3.5 A)
Power consumption: Approximately 160 W (ISO/IEC 10561 Letter pattern)
ENERGY STAR compliant
Insulation resistance: 10 MΩminimum (between AC line and chassis, 500 VDC)
Dielectric strength: 1500 AC Vrms. 1 minute (between AC line and chassis)
ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICATIONS

Temperature : 41 to 95 oF (5 to 35 oC) (operating)
-22 to 140 oF (-30 to 60 oC) (non-operating)

Printing stops when the printhead temperature rises above the upper limit. The printer resumes printing
when the print head temperature falls below the upper limit.

Humidity : 10 to 80 % RH (operating) *
5 to 85 % RH (non-operating) *

Resistance to shock : 1 G, within 1 ms (operating)
2 G, within 2 ms (non-operating) †

Resistance to vibration : 0.25 G, 10 to 55 Hz (operating)
0.50 G, 10 to 55 Hz (non-operating) †
* Without condensation
† With shipment container
RELIABILITY
 Total print volume: 26 million lines (excepting the printhead)
 MTBF: 9,000 Power On Hours (POH) (at 25% duty)
 Printhead life: 400 million characters at 14 dots/character
 Ribbon life: 15 million characters at 14 dots/character

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-7
SAFETY APPROVALS
 120 V version:
Safety standards : UL1950 with D3
CSA C22.2 No.950 with D3
EMI : FCC part 15 subpart B class B
CSA C108.8 class B
 230 V version:
Safety standards : EN60950 (VDE, NEMKO)
EMI: EN55022 (CISPR pub.22) class B
AS / NZS 3548 class B
CE MARKING
 230-240 V version:
Low Voltage Directive 73/23/EEC : EN60950
EMC Directive 89/336/EEC : EN55022 class B
EN61000-3-2
EN61000-3-3
EN50082-1
IEC801-2
IEC801-3
IEC801-4
ACOUSTIC NOISE
Level: 58 dB(A) (ISO 7779 pattern)
RIBBON CARTRIDGE
 Type: Fabric
 Color: Black
 Ribbon life: 15 million characters (draft 10 cpi, 14 dots/character)
 Dimensions: 19.9 (W) × 4.86 (D) × 0.91 (H) in.
[506.0 (W) × 123.5 (D) × 23.0 (H) mm]
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS
 Dimensions: 27.6 (W) × 15.0 (D) × 14.5 (H) in.
[700 (W) × 382 (D) × 369 (H) mm]
 Weight: Approximately 64 lb. (29 kg)

DFX-8500
1-8
PRINTABLE AREA
 Continuous paper: See Figure 1-3.
WXYZABCD
ABCD WXYZ
ABCD WXYZ
LM RM
BM
TM
PL
PW
Figure 1-3. Continuous Paper Printable Area
Measurement Length
Paper Width (PW) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Paper Length (PL) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Left Margin (LM) 0.51 to 1.22 inches (13 to 31 mm)
Right Margin (RM) 0.51 inch (13 mm) or more
Top Margin (TM) 0.10 inch (2.6 mm) or more
Bottom Margin (BM) 0.17 inch (4.2 mm) or more
Notes:
 Paper feeding may be irregular for the top 3 inches (75 mm) of a new stack of paper.
 If the optional pull tractor is used, the top 4.72 inches (120 mm) of a new stack should not be used.
 Paper feeding pitch is not guaranteed.
 The printable area ends 0.35 to 0.59 inch (9 to 15 mm) above the bottom edge of the paper.

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-9
 Labels: See Figure 1-4.
LM RM
BM
TM
PL
PW
Label Label
Label Label
Figure 1-4. Label Printable Area
Measurement Length
Paper Width (PW) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Paper Length (PL) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Left Margin (LM) 0.51 to 1.22 inches (13 to 31 mm)
Right Margin (RM) 0.51 inch (13 mm) or more
Top Margin (TM) 0.10 inch (2.6 mm) or more
Bottom Margin (BM) 0.17 inch (4.2 mm) or more
Notes:
 Do not feed paper backwards or change the paper path.
 Paper feeding pitch may be irregular in the top 2.95 inches (75 mm) of a new stack of paper.
 If the optional pull tractor is used, the top 4.72 inches (120 mm) of a new stack should not be used.
 Paper feeding pitch is not guaranteed.
 The printable area ends 0.35 to 0.59 inch (9 to 15 mm) above the bottom edge of the paper.

DFX-8500
1-10
 Continuous forms with labels: See Figure 1-5.
ABCD WXYZ
LM RM
BM
TM
PL
PW
Printable Area
LOL ROLLabel
BOL
TOL
LFL RFL
Label
BFL
TFL
Label
Non Printable Area
Figure 1-5. Continuous Forms with Labels Printable Area
Measurement Length
Paper Width (PW) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Paper Length (PL) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Left Margin (LM) 0.51 to 1.22 inches (13 to 31 mm)
Right Margin (RM) 0.51 inch (13 mm) or more
Top Margin (TM) 0.10 inch (2.6 mm) or more
Bottom Margin (BM) 0.17 inch (4.2 mm) or more
Left Margin from Label (LFL) 2.6 inches (65 mm) or more
Right Margin from Label (RFL) 2.6 inches (65 mm) or more
Top Margin from Label (TFL) 0.49 inch (12.5 mm) or more
Bottom Margin from Label (BFL) 0.49 inch (12.5 mm) or more
Left Margin on Label (LOL) 0.2 inch (5 mm) or more
Right Margin on Label (ROL) 0.2 inch (5 mm) or more
Top Margin on Label (TOL) 0.08 inch (2 mm) or more
Bottom Margin on Label (BOL) 0.08 inch (2 mm) or more
Notes:
 Do not feed paper backwards or change the paper path.
 Paper feeding pitch may be irregular in the top 2.95 inches (75 mm) of a new stack of paper.
 If the optional pull tractor is used, the top 4.72 inches (120 mm) of a new stack should not be used.
 Paper feeding pitch is not guaranteed.
 The printable area ends 0.35 to 0.59 inch (9 to 15 mm) above the bottom edge of the paper.

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-11

Overlapping multi-sheet forms: See Figure 1-6.
LM
Perforations
Carrier
PW
PL
NA
OL
BM
TM
RM
Figure 1-6. Overlapping Multi-sheet Form Printable Area
Measurement Length
Paper Width (PW) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Paper Length (PL) See “Paper and Media” on page 1-12.
Left Margin (LM) 0.51 to 1.22 inches (13 to 31 mm)
Right Margin (RM) 0.51 inch (13 mm) or more
Top Margin (TM) 0.30 inch (7.5 mm) or more
Bottom Margin (BM) 0.30 inch (7.5 mm) or more
Overlapping Length (OL) Less than 0.39 inch (10 mm)
Non-printable Area (NA) 1 inch (25.4 mm) or more
Notes:
 Do not feed paper backwards or change the paper path.
 Paper feeding pitch may be irregular in the top 2.95 inches (75 mm) of a new stack of paper.
 If the optional pull tractor is used, the top 4.72 inches (120 mm) of a new stack should not be used.
 Paper feeding pitch is not guaranteed.
 The printable area ends 0.35 to 0.59 inches (9 to 15 mm) above the bottom edge of the paper.

DFX-8500
1-12
PAPER AND MEDIA
Continuous Paper (Single-sheet and Multi-sheet Forms)
Table 1-5. Continuous Paper
Measurement Units Front Path Rear Path
Minimum Maximum Minimum Maximum
Width inches
mm 4.0 101 16.0 406 4.0 101 16.0 406
Length inches
mm 4.0 101 17.0 431 4.0 101 17.0 431
Copies 1 original + 6 copies 1 original + 5 copies
Total Thickness inches
mm 0.0025 0.065 0.021 0.53 0.0025 0.065 0.018 0.46
Weight
(single sheet) lbs g/m214 52.6 22 82.7 14 52.6 22 82.7
Weight
(multiple sheet) lbs g/m211 41.4 15 56.4 11 41.4 15 56.4
Quality Plain paper, recycled paper, and carbonless multi-sheet forms
Multi-sheet binding

Roughly bound multi-sheet forms can cause paper jams.

Multi-sheet forms should be held together by spot gluing, paper-stapling,
or tape stitching. Spot gluing is recommended for the best printing quality.

Spot glue must be applied on both sides of the paper. (See Figure 1-7.)

Spot glued parts must be pressed flat. There must be no creases in the
paper.

Paper staples must be applied from the front; the paper must be flat. (See
Figure 1-8.)

Paper staples must be able to feed through the printer in both directions.
(See Figure 1-9.)

Paper staples must be flat. (See Figure 1-10.)

Never use metal staples.

The bindings must be outside the printable area.

Multi-sheet forms should be bound firmly to each other; the binding must
not be too wide or thick.
Perforations See “Perforations” on page 1-16.
Notes See “Notes” on page 1-16.
Figure 1-7. Spot Glue Positioning

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
1-13
Figure 1-8. Paper Stapling Height
Figure 1-9. Paper Stapling, Method 1
Figure 1-10. Paper Stapling, Method 2

DFX-8500
1-14
Labels
Table 1-6. Labels
Measurements Units Front Path Rear Path
Minimum Maximum Minimum Maximum
Label Size See Figure 1-11. —
Backing Sheet Width inches
mm 4.0 101 16.0 406 ——
Backing Sheet Length inches
mm 3.5 89 17.0 431 ——
Label Thickness inches
mm 0.0 0.0 0.0047 0.12 ——
Total Thickness inches
mm 0.0025 0.065 0.0075 0.19 ——
Quality Avery continuous form labels, Avery
mini-line labels, or labels of equal
quality
—
Perforations See “Perforations” on page 1-16.
Notes

Easy-peel labels should not be used.

Labels must have rounded corners.

Do not use folded or creased label sheets.

The entire printable area must be covered with the label material,
including the gutters between the labels.

The backing sheet must be continuous.

Do not use labels in the rear paper path.

Also, see “Notes” on page 1-16.
W
H
Figure 1-11. Label Size
Table 1-7. Allowed Label Sizes
Width Height
inches mm inches mm
2.5 63.5 15/16 23.8
4.0 101 15/16 23.8
4.0 101 17/16 27.0