ITW FOXJET Solo 45 Series User manual

1 Missouri Research Park Drive • St. Charles, MO 63304 • 1-800-369-5384
Illinois Tool Works Inc © 2013
Thermal Jet
Ink Jet System
5780-329
Revision M
Operations
Manual

Thermal Jet
Ink Jet System
Operations Manual
5780-329
Revision M
The information contained in this manual
is correct and accurate at the time of its
publication. Foxjet reserves the right to
change or alter any information or
technical specifications at any time and
without notice.
©2013 Illinois Tool Works Inc.
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
Ink Cartridge: The SoloSeries has been engineered
and designed to work with Foxjet ink cartridges. The
SoloSeries’ Smart Level Ink Detection System,
which provides ink level monitoring to ensure com-
plete ink usage and product safety, will not be func-
tional if used with non-Foxjet ink cartridges.

The SoloSeries Thermal Jet system, including all components unless otherwise
specified, carries a limited warranty.
The inks and conditioners used with the SoloSeries Thermal Jet system carry a limited
warranty.
For all warranty terms and conditions, contact Foxjet an ITW Company for a complete
copy of the Limited Warranty Statement.
Warranty:
Thermal Jet

Thermal Jet
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M
Section 1: Safety and Ink Cartridge Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Section 2: Quick Start .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Step 1: Assemble Bracketry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Step 2: Assemble Bracketry to Conveyor .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Step 3: Assemble Print Head and Power Supply to Bracketry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Step 4: Adjust Print Head to Substrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Step 5: Insert Cartridge Pen into Print Head .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Step 6: Cabling, Power, and Serial Port Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Step 7: Configure the Print Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Step 8: Create a Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Step 9: Print a Message .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Section 3: Hand Held Controller or GUI Functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Home Screen .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Message Editor continued: User Defined Time Codes .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Status Screen .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Section 4: Maintenance & Shutdowns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Daily Maintenance, Ink Cartridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Weekly to Monthly Maintenance, Print Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Shutdowns Less Than 3 Days .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Shutdowns More Than 3 Days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Section 5: Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Appendix A: Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Appendix B: Theory of Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Thermal Jet Print Heads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Handheld Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Interconnect Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Appendix C: File Backup and Restore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
File Backup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Restoring Backed-Up Files .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Appendix D: Configuring a PC to Communicate with the Handheld . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Windows XP® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Windows 2000® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Appendix E: Font Samples .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Appendix F: Creating Logo Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Thermal Jet
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M
Appendix G: Uploading Files to the Print Head and File Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Appendix H: Communicating Directly to the Print Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Appendix I: Aligning the 1" (25.4 mm) Print Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Appendix J: Bulk Ink Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Appendix K: Part Numbers - Consumables and Service Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Consumables .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Service Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Optional Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Thermal Jet Section 1: Safety and Ink Cartridge Usage
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M Page 1
Section 1: Safety and Ink Cartridge Usage
Following is a list of safety symbols and their meanings, which are found throughout this
manual. Pay attention to these symbols where they appear in the manual.
Wear safety goggles when performing the procedure described!
Caution or Warning! Denotes possible personal injury and/or damage to the equipment.
Caution or Warning! Denotes possible personal injury and/or equipment damage due to
electrical hazard.
NOTE: (Will be followed by a brief comment or explanation.)
ESD protection should be worn when servicing internal printed circuit boards.
After service to the equipment is completed, replace all protective devices such as ground-
ing cables and covers before operating the equipment.
It is extremely important to:
• Clean up all spills with the appropriate solvents immediately and dispose of all waste according
to local and state regulations.
• Wear safety glasses and protective clothing, including gloves, when handling all inks and condi-
tioners.
• Store inks and solvents under the recommended conditions found on the MSDS (Material
Safety Data Sheet).
!
!

Thermal Jet Section 2: Quick Start
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M Page 2
Section 2: Quick Start
Contents:
•PrintHead
• Bracketry Kit
• Power Supply, 15 V
• Power Supply Bracket
•PowerCord
• Software
TYPICAL INSTALLATION
CONTROLLER
OPTIONAL HAND HELD
TYPICAL INSTALLATION

Thermal Jet Section 2: Quick Start
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M Page 3
Step 1: Assemble Bracketry
Step 2: Assemble Bracketry to Conveyor

Thermal Jet Section 2: Quick Start
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M Page 4
Step 3: Assemble Print Head and Power Supply to Bracketry
Ensure bar is
behind front
face of print head

Thermal Jet Section 2: Quick Start
Thermal Jet Operations Manual Rev M Page 5
Step 4: Adjust Print Head to Substrate
ADJUST THE PRINT
HEAD TO THE
SUBSTRATE WITH
THIS BRACKET
.1" (2.5mm) GAP
RECOMMENDED
Adjust print head vertically to meet requirement.
Adjust print head horizontally to set print gap.