Monarch 9474 Operating and maintenance manual

Monarch
9474 Printer
TC9474PM 1/98 ©1998 Monarch Marking Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Each product and program carries a respective written warranty, the only
warranty on which the customer can rely. Monarch reserves the right to make
changes in the product, the programs, and their availability at any time and
without notice. Although Monarch has made every effort to provide complete
and accurate information in this manual, Monarch shall not be liable for any
omissions or inaccuracies. Any update will be incorporated in a later edition of
this manual.
©199 Monarch Marking Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this
publication may be reproduced, transmitted, stored in a retrieval system, or
translated into any language in any form by any means, without the prior
written permission of Monarch Marking Systems, Inc.
WARNING
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A digital
device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide
reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a
commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency
energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause
harmful interference to radio communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential
area is likely to cause harmful interference in which case the user will be required to correct
the interference at his own expense.
CANADIAN D.O.C. WARNING
This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise emissions from
digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department
of Communications.
Le présent appareil numérique n’émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant les limites
applicables aux appareils numériques de la classe A prescrites dans le Réglement sur le
brouillage radioélectrique édicte par le ministère des Communications du Canada.
Trademarks
MONARCH is a registered trademark of Monarch Marking Systems, Inc.
920, 924, 925 and 94 4 are trademarks of Monarch Marking Systems, Inc.
Monarch Marking Systems
P.O. Box 608
Dayton, Ohio 45401

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
COMMUNICATION REQUIREMENTS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
Input Chara teristi s. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Data Flow Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Setting Communi ation Values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Cable Interfa e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
MESSAGE STRUCTURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Creating Online Data Streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Transmitting Online Data Streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Error Notifi ation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Data Transmission Errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
In orre t Data Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Monetary Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Programming Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Standard Syntax Guidelines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Standard Syntax Guidelines for Bat hes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Format Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Format Header Re ord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Text Field Re ord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Bar Code Field Re ord. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Line Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16
Bat h Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Bat h Header Re ord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Entering Print Data for Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21
i

Using Multiple Bat hes with One Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23
Using Previously Defined Print Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23
Bat h Separators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24
USING GRAPHICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Defining Graphi Image Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5
Pla ing the Image in a Format. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6
Clear Image Buffer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
Field. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
Compressing the Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
QUICK REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1
Text Font Sizes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1
Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1
Parallel Chara ters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Rotated Chara ters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Chara ter Width (in Dots) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Parallel Chara ter Width (in Dots). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Bar Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Bar Code Densities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Bar Code Densities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Line Width . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Spe ial Chara ters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Code 128 Fun tion Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
ASCII Chara ters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Printable Chara ters by Font . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
English/Metri Conversion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
ERROR MESSAGES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Diagnosti Messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Startup Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Operation Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
ii

Printer Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
General Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
General Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Communi ation Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Offline Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Data Entry or Test Print Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Format Entry Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Online Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-13
Online Warnings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-13
Online Communi ation Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-16
SAMPLE DATA STREAMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1
Formats, Text and Bar Code Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Sample Format Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Sample Bat h Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Line Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3
Sample Format Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3
Sample Bat h Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3
Graphi Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-4
Sample Format Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5
Sample Bat h Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5
Compressed Graphi Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-6
Sample Compressed Graphi Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-6
Sample Format Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-6
Sample Bat h Data Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-6
CODE 128 INFORMATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-1
Bar Code Width . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2
Quiet Zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-4
Fun tion Codes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-5
128 Bar Code Chara ter Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-6
iii

iv

INTRODUCTION 1
This manual tells you how to enter online formats and batch data
for downloading to a Monarch® 9474 printer.
Refer to your Operator’s Handbook for general setup and
maintenance procedures, an explanation of data entry and batch
control for offline printing, and about creating and entering offline
formats.
Introduction 1-1

The 9474 printer can recei e print data online from a host.
During online communication, the host treats the printer as an
RS-232 type printer. For the printer to communicate online, you
will need an RS-232 cable. For mainframe communication, you
may need a protocol con erter.
Transmitting data from the host requires communication controls.
See Chapter 2, "Communication Requirements" for more
information.
Three types of data can be transmitted:
Format data The user-designed layout for online formats.
These formats are used by online batches for
printing.
These online formats can also be used
offline. Howe er, formats created offline
cannot be used online.
Batch data Contains the format number and actual data
to be printed on the supply. Batch data is
downloaded to the printer and combined with
a format stored in the printer.
Graphic data Contains the actual pixel data which forms a
graphic image.
Format, batch, and graphic data are stored
when you turn the power off.
Format and graphic data may be sent at any time.
Since batch data is combined with a format for printing, the format
and graphic data for a batch must reside in the printer before
sending the batch.
Each data type has its own data stream structure. See Chapter 3,
"Message Structures" for more information.
1-2 Introduction

COMMUNICATION
REQUIREMENTS
2
To enable communications between the printer and the computer,
the printer communications setup must match the setup for the
host. The options are:
NBaud rate
NParity
NData flow control
NData bits
NStop bits
All online data uses the ASCII American Standard Code for
Information Interchange) character code for interpretation of bits
as characters.
Communication Requirements 2-1

Input Characteristics
Below are the input characteristics for communications. The
defaults are shown in bold print.
NAsynchronous
NFull duplex
NSelectable options:
Baud rate 110, 300, 600, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600
Parity No parity, Odd, Even
Data flow Xon/Xoff, Data Terminal Ready DTR)
Data bits Seven 7) or eight (8)
Stop bits One (1) or two 2)
Modify these communication settings on your printer as necessary
to match the settings on your host. See "Setting Communication
Values" for more information.
There are three main buffers: batch, format, and graphic. The
printer also has a 1024 byte input buffer which holds data until it
is processed into the respective buffer s).
Data Flow Control
The printer uses Xon/Xoff or data terminal ready DTR) for data
flow control. DTR flow control is usually required if you are using
an IBM-PC, unless the PC has a special Xon-Xoff program.
In DTR mode, the printer activates DTR when the printer can
accept more data from the host and deactivates when the
printer’s receive buffer is nearly full. In Xon/Xoff Mode, the
printer sends the Xon character when the printer can accept more
data and sends Xoff when the printer buffer is nearly full.
In either mode, once the printer has indicated that its buffer is
nearly full by sending Xoff or deactivating DTR), up to 134
additional characters may be accepted without losing any data.
2-2 Communication Requirements

The printer does not require any hardware or software signals
from the host system in order to operate.
Flow control characters can be changed
offline through the Printer Configuration mode.
The total number of formats, batches, and graphics is only limited
by the amount of memory available.
Setting Communication Values
To set the communication parameters, follow the instructions
below. For more information on operating the printer, refer to the
Operator’s Handbook.
1. From the main menu, press d to display Printer
Configuration. Press e . You’ll see
Enter password: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Enter the 1-8 character password and press e .
When you first receive the printer, the
password is MANAGER or ONLINE.
2. You’ll see the Configuration Options menu.
Select Config Option:
Define Check Digit Schemes
Press d until you see Host Port Configuration. Press e
to select this option. With each parameter, you can enter a
new selection, or just press e to keep the value that is
displayed.
Communication Requirements 2-3

3. You’ll see the Host Option menu and the first online
parameter.
Select Baud Rate:
2400
Press d or u until you see the baud rate you need, then
press e . You’ll see
Enter Parity: N
N)one, O)dd or E)ven
4. Select the parity you need and press e . You’ll see
Enter Word Length [7-8]: 8
5. Select the word length you need and press e . You’ll see
Enter Stop Bits [1-2]: 1
6. Select the stop bits you need and press e . You’ll see
Enter Start XON) character:
17
7. Enter a number from 1-127 for XON flow control, or 128 for
DTR flow control. You’ll see
Enter Stop XOFF) character:
19
8. Enter a number from 1-127 for XOFF flow control, or 128 for
DTR flow control.
2-4 Communication Requirements

If you select DTR control 128) as the XON character, the
printer automatically sets 128 DTR control) for the XOFF
character.
The Start and Stop characters must be set at 128 DTR flow
control) for IBM PC equipment.
You’ll see the Configuration Options menu. Press 1 to exit
to the main menu.
Cable Interface
The printer accepts standard RS-232C electrical signal
transmissions when it is connected to a DB-25S connector
configured as Data Terminal Equipment DTE). For correct
operation, use all defined pins.
For PC null modems, plug the RS-232 cable into:
NA serial RS-232) port on the host or protocol converter
NThe 25-pin RS-232 connector on your printer. Refer to your
Operator’s Handbook for more information.
The RS-232C cable interface is set up as a terminal device DTE):
Pin Description
3 Received Data
5 Clear to Send Input
6 Data Set Ready
2 Transmitted data
4 Request to send Output
20 Data Terminal Ready
1 Protective ground Ground
7 Signal ground
All other pins are open.
Communication Requirements 2-5

The cable interface for PC null modems is shown below.
9474 PC
FG 1 1 FG
TD 2 2 TD
RD 3 3 RD
RTS 4 4 RTS
CTS 5 5 CTS
DSR 6 6 DSR
CD 8 8 CD
DTR 20 20 DTR
SG 7 7 SG
2- Communication Requirements

MESSAGE STRUCTURES 3
This chapter has information and message structures for
NFormats
NBatch Data
Graphic image data is discussed in Chapter 4, "Using Graphics."
Message Structures 3-1

Creating Online Data Streams
Create data streams for your 9474 printer using a standard te t
editor, such as EDLIN or TSO.
If you use a word processor to create data streams, make sure to
save the file in te t-only or unformatted mode.
Transmitting Online Data Streams
Your printer must be in Online Mode before it will accept data
from your computer.
NSelect Online from the Select Operating Mode menu.
NPress e . You’ll see
Online Mode Ready:
Your printer is now ready to accept data.
Send data to the printer just as you would send any print data to a
printer from your computer.
For e ample, if you have a file named FORMAT1.DAT on an
MS-DOS system, you could send the data to your printer with
these commands:
MODE COM1:2400,N,8,1,P
MODE LPT1:=COM1
PRINT FORMAT1.DAT
This set of commands would send the file FORMAT1.DAT to a
printer connected to COM1 of an MS-DOS computer.
Format and graphic structures can be sent at any time.
Formats or graphics used by batch data must be sent before the
batch data referencing them. Any batch sent without a previously
defined format is ignored, generating an error.
3-2 Message Structures

Error Notification
Data handling and error checking are resident in the printer. If an
error in transmission occurs, an error is displayed on the printer
keypad display. However, no message is sent to the host and
processing continues until the end of the transmission.
Certain errors may put the printer in offline mode. See Chapter 6,
"Error Messages," for a list of possible messages.
Data Transmission Errors
The printer displays errors that occur during data
transmission. Printer fault errors stop the machine, which will
not resume printing until the operator corrects the error
condition. All these messages take the system offline.
Incorrect Data Errors
The printer pauses when it receives incorrect data from the
host. During the pause, it displays a message and beeps.
After ten seconds, or when the operator presses e, the
printer resumes operation. Normally, the printer loses the
data that caused the error.
If the host or the communications line goes down during
transmission, the printer displays the message
Waiting for command terminator.
Press F1 to abort download.
If you press 1 , the batch or format data that was being sent will
be lost and must be retransmitted.
Message Structures 3-3

Monetary Symbols
The default monetary symbols are the U.S. dollar and cents. The
ASCII characters $ (24 he ) and ^ (5E he ) represent the dollar
and cent symbols.
If you change your printer settings to use international pricing
symbols, these characters will then represent the new symbols.
For monetary selections that don’t have a cent equivalent, the ^
character is changed to a space.
In EBCDIC-based systems a ^ is not
available. Use ~94 to print a cent sign.
Commands
The following command characters are used in 9474 online data
streams.
Command
Character Hex Value Descri tion
{ 7B Open brace. Command LEADIN character
, 2C Comma. Inter-field separator (IFS)
; 3B Semicolon. Beginning of string character
p 7C Split vertical bar. Command inter-record
separator (IRS)
} 7D Close brace. Command TERMINATOR
character
3-4 Message Structures

Programming Conventions
All online commands from the host follow these rules.
NAll data after the TERMINATOR character ( } ) and before the
ne t LEADIN character ( { ) is ignored.
NThe he values 7B, 7C and 7D are reserved as command
delimiters. All data of a value less than 20 he and greater
than 7E he is ignored.
NAll data strings (batch data, compressed bit-map images or
format data) begin with a semi-colon (3BH) and end with a
TERMINATOR or inter-record separator (IRS or p (7C he )).
NAll space characters, e cept string definitions, are ignored.
NAll strings must be less than 100 characters.
Standard Syntax Guidelines
NA format header must be the first record in your format.
NBegin the format name with the beginning of string
character (;).
NBegin a record with a LEADIN character ({).
NMake sure the length and width in these records match your
supply length and width. Remember, these numbers are in
tenths of millimeters, so 500 equals 50 millimeters or 5
centimeters.
NMake sure the row and column locations in the te t, bar code,
or line records are less than the supply length and width.
NAllow enough space to hold all the characters in the field, the
bar code height, or the line end point without running off the
supply.
NField definitions may be sent in any order, regardless of field
location. The last field carries priority over previous fields and
overwrites the previous fields if they overlap when printed.
Message Structures 3-5

NTo print human readable characters for Code 39, Interleaved 2
of 5, Codabar, Code 128 and MSI bar codes, create a
separate te t field. However, using this method with UPC or
EAN bar codes may not correctly print the bar code.
NA new format with the same ID number as a previously defined
format overwrites the old format. However, the old format is
not overwritten until all batches queued to use the old format
are completed.
NEnd records with a record separator ( p ).
NEnd the last record in your format with a terminator
character (}).
Standard Syntax Guidelines for Batches
Read the standard synta guidelines and note the additional items
for batches.
NA batch header must be the first record in your batch.
NFor a batch header record or batch data, make sure the
number in the first parameter matches the number of the
format you are using.
NIf you choose auto-naming (the printer assigns a batch name),
make sure there are no characters or spaces between the
beginning of string character (;) and the record separator ( p ).
NIf the field is an incrementing field, you can enter any type of
characters; however, only the numeric data increments.
NSend the correct format to the printer before sending the
batch. Batch data without a defined format generates an error.
3-6 Message Structures