Intermec PM4I User manual

EasyCoder® Printer RFID
PM4i, PX4i, PX6i
User’s
Guide

ii EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide
Intermec Technologies Corporation
Worldwide Headquarters
6001 36th Ave.W.
Everett, WA 98203
U.S.A.
www.intermec.com
The information contained herein is provided solely for the purpose of allowing
customers to operate and service Intermec-manufactured equipment and is not to be
released, reproduced, or used for any other purpose without written permission of
Intermec Technologies Corporation.
Information and specifications contained in this document are subject to change
without prior notice and do not represent a commitment on the part of Intermec
Technologies Corporation.
© 2005-2009 by Intermec Technologies Corporation. All rights reserved.
The word Intermec, the Intermec logo, Norand, ArciTech, Beverage Routebook,
CrossBar, dcBrowser, Duratherm, EasyADC, EasyCoder, EasySet, Fingerprint, INCA
(under license), i-gistics, Intellitag, Intellitag Gen2, JANUS, LabelShop, MobileLAN,
Picolink, Ready-to-Work, RoutePower, Sabre, ScanPlus, ShopScan, Smart Mobile
Computing, SmartSystems, TE 2000, Trakker Antares, and Vista Powered are either
trademarks or registered trademarks of Intermec Technologies Corporation.
There are U.S. and foreign patents as well as U.S. and foreign patents pending.

Contents
EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide iii
Contents
What Is the RFID Kit? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Firmware Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Media Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Sending RFID Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Using RFID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Printing on RFID Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Printing a Test Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Configuring RFID Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Using the Printer’s Console. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Using the Printer’s Home Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Using Fingerprint Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Using IPL Commands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
RFID Parameters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Contents
iv EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide

EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide 5
What Is the RFID Kit?
The RFID kit is an option for the EasyCoder® PM4i, PX4i, or
PX6i printer. With this option, your printer can read and write to
RFID tags.
The internal RFID radio module operates on the UHF band at
869 MHz or 915 MHz depending on your region.
The RFID interface board occupies one of the slots for optional
interfaces in the back of the printer and features an extra RS-232
serial interface:
•For printers running Fingerprint, the RS-232 connector is
referred to as “uart2:”, “uart3:” or “uart4:” depending on
which slot is used and what other optional devices are
installed.
•For printers running IPL, the RS-232 connector is not
functional.
Note: The RFID kit is available as a factory- or field-installed
option. The field-installed kit must be installed by an Intermec
authorized service technician. For help, contact your local
Intermec representative.
If you open the electronics cover, you will void the warranty
and may cause damage to the internal components. Opening
the electronics cover exposes the user to shock hazards,
which may result in injury or death.
The RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869 MHz) uses an
EPCglobal Gen 2-certified IM4 Module (86X
MHz RFID frequency band).
The RFID Kit (Gen 2, 915 MHz) uses an
EPCglobal Gen 2-certified IM4 Module (915
MHz RFID frequency band).

6 EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide
RFID Interface Board Installed in a PM4i
RFID Interface Board Installed in a PX4i or PX6i
RFID interface board
RFID interface board

EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide 7
Firmware Requirements
Your printer must be running one of these firmware options:
•For IM4 v7.16, you need Fingerprint or IPL version x.72.0 or
later.
•For IM4 v8.11, you need Fingerprint or IPL version x.76.0 or
later.
The ISO15961/15962 standard (used in airline bagtag
applications) is only supported by Fingerprint. The ability to
read the TAGID string from the display is only supported by IPL.
You can download the latest version of firmware from the
Intermec web site at www.intermec.com.
Media Requirements
Intermec strongly recommends using Intermec RFID media
only. For help, contact your Intermec representative.
Sending RFID Commands
Use one of these methods to send RFID commands
•Write a Fingerprint or IPL application to send RFID
commands.
•Send single Fingerprint or IPL commands remotely from
your PC.
•Use a third-party label design tool and connectivity software,
such as LabelShop or XMLLabel.
Using RFID
This section describes how to use RFID on PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i
printers. Unless otherwise noted, all information applies to each
printer running Fingerprint or IPL.
Printing on RFID Media
Media containing RFID tags is slightly thicker where the RFID
tag is located. The slight thickness of this part of the label may
affect print quality. For thermal transfer labels, Intermec
recommends using a high-quality ink ribbon, such as TMX 2304
or TMX 1500.

8 EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide
To achieve the best possible print quality, follow these guidelines:
•After you load RFID media, restart the printer or run a
TESTFEED to let the printer identify the RFID media type.
•If necessary, modify the TAGADJUST variable to make sure
that the RFID labels are properly aligned with the antenna.
For help, see “RFID,TAGADJUST” on page 12.
•If necessary, avoid printing on the thickest part of the label.
•For printers running Fingerprint:
•If you are using thermal transfer labels, start with the
ribbon constant set to 80 and the ribbon factor set to 25.
You may need to adjust these values depending on the
type of media you choose.
•To write to Gen 2 RFID tags using the TAGFIELD
command, set the start and length parameters to even
numbers.
•For printers running IPL:
•Start with the sensitivity set to 565. You may need to
adjust this value depending on the type of media you
choose.
•To write to Gen 2 RFID tags, set the start and length
parameters of the RFID tag field setup command (a) to
even numbers.
Printing a Test Label
When you print a test label, the printer prints the tag type name
on the next available label on the media roll. You can print a test
label from:
•the printer’s console.
•the printer’s home page.
To print a test label from the printer’s console
1On your printer console, press Setup.
2For Fingerprint printers, navigate to Print Defs > Testprint
> RFID Test Label, and press Enter.
For IPL printers, navigate to Test/Service > Testprint >
Config > RFIDlabel.

EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide 9
To print a test label from the printer’s home page
1Make sure you have an EasyLAN Ethernet card installed in
your printer.
2Find your printer’s IP address:
aOn your printer console, press Setup.
bNavigate to Network > IP Address.
3On your PC, run your web browser application.
4In the address field, enter your printer’s IP address. The
printer’s home page appears.
5From the main menu, select Configuration.
6Select Printer > Web shell.
7From the drop-down menu, select RFID Test label. Your
printer prints a test label.
Configuring RFID Parameters
Configure the RFID parameters to meet your needs. You can
configure the RFID parameters:
•from the printer’s console.
•from the printer’s home page.
•using Fingerprint or IPL commands.
•using SmartSystems Foundation. For more information, go
to www.intermec.com/SmartSystems.
•using Wavelink Avalanche. For more information, go to
www.intermec.com/products/avalanche/index.aspx.
Using the Printer’s Console
1On your printer console, select Setup > RFID.
2Use the setup tree to navigate to the parameter you want to
configure.
Fingerprint RFID Setup Tree
SETUP:
RFID
RFID:
MODE
RFID:
VOIDTEXT
RFID:
RETRIES
VOIDTEXT:
[VOID]:
RETRIES:
[1]:
TAGADJUST:
[0]:
Read-Only
MODE:
DISABLE
RFID:
FIELDSTRENGTH
These menus are only displayed when an RFID module is installed.
MODE:
ENABLE
RFID:
TAGADJUST
FIELDSTRENGTH:
[72]:

10 EasyCoder Printer (PM4i, PX4i, and PX6i ) RFID User’s Guide
IPL RFID Setup Tree
3Configure the RFID parameters. For more information, see
“RFID Parameters” on page 11.
Using the Printer’s Home Page
1Make sure you have an EasyLAN Ethernet card installed in
your printer.
2Find your printer’s IP address:
aOn your printer console, press Setup.
bNavigate to Network > IP Address.
Or,
•On your printer console, press the or button.
3On your PC, run your web browser application.
4In the address field, enter your printer’s IP address. The
printer’s home page appears.
5From the main menu, select Configuration.
6Select Printer > RFID.
7Configure the RFID parameters. For more information, see
“RFID Parameters” on page 11.
Using Fingerprint Commands
You can use Fingerprint commands to configure the RFID
parameters. For example, the following code sets TAGADJUST to
50 dots, RETRIES to 3 labels. and VOIDTEXT to “Bad label”.
SETUP “RFID,TAGADJUST,50”
SETUP “RFID,RETRIES,3”
SETUP “RFID,VOIDTEXT,Bad label”
For more details about RFID parameters, see “RFID
Parameters” on page 11.
SETUP:
RFID
RFID:
MODE
RFID:
RETRIES
RFID:
TAGADJUST
RETRIES:
[1]:
TAGADJUST:
[0]:
TAG:
Read-Only
MODE:
DISABLE
These menus are only displayed when an RFID module is installed.
MODE:
ENABLE
RFID:
TAGREAD
RFID:
VOIDTEXT
VOIDTEXT:
[VOID]:
Read-Only
RFID:
FIELDSTRENGTH
FIELDSTRENGTH:
[72]: