Ricoma RCP-3301 User manual

RCP-3301
MINI CUTTING PLOTTER
QUICK START GUIDE
RICOMA INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION
11555 NW 124th St, Miami, FL 33178
Telephone: [phone] | Toll Free: 1-888-292-6282
Fax: [phone] | Email: [email protected]
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All rights reserved

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DEFINITION OF SYMBOLS
Warning. Any improper operation may result in a hazard of life or damage to
equipment.
A warning symbol for the possibility of electrical shock.
The symbol in the circle represents actions that are not allowed.
Do not use the power source that does not meet the voltage rating; otherwise,
re or electric shock may occur.
If smoke or a strange odor is coming out of the machine, or it makes a loud
sound, this means the machine is not functioning properly and you should
discontinue use. If you continue using it, it may result in re or an electric
shock.
Do not take out the plug when the power is on to avoid damage to the
machine.
Make sure your machine is grounded, otherwise you may experience an
electric shock or a mechanical failure.
Do not detach, repair or reconstruct the machine; otherwise, re, electric shock,
or other life hazards may result.
Do not leak any liquid or drop metal into the machine, such things may result
in re.
Do not touch the top of the knife with your nger to prevent injury or dulling of
knife head.
Do not damage or replace the supplied power cable on your own. Do not
excessively bend, pull, bundle or place weight on the power cable. Otherwise,
the power source may be damaged and electrical shock or re may occur.
If you are not going to use the machine for a long time, please unplug the
power cable from the receptacle to avoid res or electrical shortages from
occurring.

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When operating the machine, do not place either of your hands on capstan to
avoid injury.
Place the machine on a stable surface; otherwise, the machine may fall and get
damaged.
To unplug the power cable from the outlet, please grab the plug instead of the
cable. Pulling the cable with too much force may result in an electrical shock
or re.
Any operation is forbidden in case of storms or lightning to prevent damage of
the machine.
Do not pull the cartridge by hand to avoid damage to the mainboard when the
plotter is powered on.

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STANDARD ACCESSORIES
Item Part Quantity
1 Power cord 1
2 USB Cable 1
3 Blade holder
* In machine
1
4 Blade
* 1pc in machine
3
5 Pen and pen holder 1
6Dongle/or Signmaster
*Optional
1
7 Manual 1

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QUICK START
1
2
3
Step 1
Install Signmaster (in the kit-box). Refer to Video software to install and connect.
Step 2
Connect the cutter and computer with the Original Black Cable (Option 1) Recommended
2. Use Your U-Disc (USB Flash disk) and insert it into the cutter port (Option 2)
Recommended
Step 3
Basic cut: Design your work and send it to cut in Signmaster (Refer to basic cut video).
Contour cut: Design your work and send it to contour cut in Signmaster (Refer to contour
cut video).
Note:
1.Signmaster online download address:
http://fcws6.com/downloads/signmaster/craft/SignMaster_UniverCraft.exe
2. Please DO NOT lose the Signmaster PSN code. If you need to change computers to install Signmaster,
please deactivate it before installing it in another computer.
3. Signmaster is supported by all windows systems.
4. If you encounter any problems, please refer to the troubleshooting section (refer to le 1.5).

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To connect the cutter to the computer by USB cable, turn on the cutting plotter. Go to CD-ROM drive on
your computer, locate the folder drive, open the folder and double-click “USB Driver Setup.” After that, your
computer should display the following window:
After driver installation, windows will close
automatically and the computer will display the
following window. Click “Next”. Click “Finish”.
USB DRIVER INSTALLATION

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Set up steps:
Click “My Computer” in the pop-up shortcut
menu, then click “Properties”. The dialog box
pop-up should be as follows:
Click the “Device Manager” pop-up dialog box as
follows:
Select COM:3, then click “Advanced”. To log USB “serial port (COM3)”, click the right
mouse button.
To change the port number, click on the “COM Port Number” drop down box to select the correct port number.

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INSTALLATION
WARNING
Make sure the machine is grounded, otherwise, electric shock or mechanical
failure may occur.
Do not use a power source that does not meet the recommended voltage
requirement. Using the wrong power source may result in re or electrocution.
Don’t pull out the plug when the power is on to avoid damage to the machine.
Place the machine on a stable surface, otherwise the machine may fall and get
damaged.
CAUTION
Don’t touch the blade top with your nger to prevent injury.
3.1 Machine Installation and connections
3.2 Installing cutting tool
3.1.1 Place the cutter on a at and spacious area.
3.1.2 Connect the cutting plotter to the computer by USB cable, or put a U-Disc directly into the cutter.
3.1.3 DO NOT connect to power until you ensure the connection is grounded and is the proper voltage.

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3.2.1 Adjust the protruding length of the blade top as required for specic cutting media.
3.2.2
3.3A Signmaster Software installation (Recommended)
1. Open the Signmaster package and put the CD into your computer. Install the software and ll in the PSN
code to activate.
2. Change language if needed and then choose the cutting plotter model that corresponds to your cutter in
the Signmaster Software.
3. Follow the Signmaster Operation manual for more details and watch the informational video to learn what
a Basic cut and Contour cut are.
Contour cut: Please refer to your Signmaster Software Manual.
(1) Loosen the screw of the blade holder.
(2) Place the blade into the blade holder attached to the carriage.
(3)When the blade is in the appropriate position, tighten the screw.
Correct
Loosen Correct position
for blade holder
Wrong: Blade out
too much
Wrong: Blade in
too much
Note: There are two options to install cutting software. One is Signmaster and the other is the CorelDRAW
plugin (or dongle).

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Basic Cut: Import your vector le, or write the letters of your choosing, then click the Blade Tool and
start cutting. You can set the offset and overcut setting under the Properties-Cut option or through your
connection. (Establishing a connection can be done through a Windows port-le/Direct COM when linked
with any computer with a Windows system.)

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More Signmaster User guide videos:
1. How to use Signmaster to design
http://iifuture.org/vmtuts/getVMTut.php?key=smc_full_ht_use&r=0
3. How to Contour Cut
http://iifuture.org/vmtuts/getVMTut.php?key=smc_full_ht_contour_cut&r=0
4. Contour Cutting with Ultra Marks
http://iifuture.org/vmtuts/getVMTut.php?key=smc_full_ultramarks&r=0
5. Working with Templates
http://iifuture.org/vmtuts/getVMTut.php?key=smc_full_templates&r=0
3.3B Computer installation ( If working with CorelDRAW):
Note: Due to customers using different Versions of CorelDRAW (some even using the Cracked version), the
dongle sometimes does not match with the plotter, so using Signmaster is preferred.
Note: If your plotter is cutting poorly, you can check the blade offset/overcut setting to solve the Knife off-
setting problem by following the graphic above. For help with the Camera Contour Cut, please check the
operation video guide.

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4.2.1 Turn on the machine.
4.2.1.1 Check whether the power is in the OFF position.
4.2.1.2 Plug the cable into the power source and press the power switch.
4.3 Cutter operation instruction and parameter setting:
When the cutter is turned on, it will be in its original setting, which you can see in the display below:
1. You can press the arrows to move the carriage head.
2. You can click the “U-Disk” button to choose your U-disk le for cutting.
3. You can recut the same project again by pressing “Recut”.
4. Use the “Force Testing” button to test the force of your cutter by cutting a small square. If you are
able to get a perfect square, it means the cutting force and blade length are correct.
4.2 Basic operation
CUTTING PLOTTER INSTRUCTIONS
CAUTION
When switching on the power, make sure your hands and other objects are not
in the way of the main shaft or slider to prevent injury.

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4.3.1 Press “Setting” and you should see the screen below:
4.3.2 Press “Speed” to set the speed of the cutter and you will see the screen below:
4.3.3 Press “Cutting Force” to set the cutting force and you will see the screen below:

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4.3.4 Press “Camera” to adjust the camera view and change the backlight. When you press “Camera”, you
will see the screen below:
If the contour line shifts, change out the blade for a pen and move the carriage head into a blank
space. Then, click “Backlight” rst, then click “Adjust” and the cutter will automatically readjust itself.
4.3.5 Please DO NOT adjust the “XY scale” ,”Language” or “Burn In Test” on your cutter.
4.3.6 Press the “Lightness” button to adjust the brightness of the touch screen and you will see the screen
below:
4.3.7 Press the “Light control” to control the LED light of the cutter. You will see the screen below when
you press it:
Notice: When doing a Contour cut, we do not recommend opening the light.

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4.3.8 Press the “Contour offset” button to adjust the contour line. You will see the screen below:
The cutter offset should be at 1 for 1mm.
4.5.1 If your knife is not close enough during cutting, you need to reset the offset in your cutting software,
which should look like the gure below (please follow the manual provided by your software).
4.5.2 During cutting, if the right angles are not at right angles, please set the Sharp-angled compensation in
the cutting software.
(ATTENTION: the offset value can be over or under, so follow the image below to properly set the
compensation in your software according to your issue.)
4.4 Knife off-setting
No offset With offset
Correct Not enough Over
When you are using cutting software, we recommend you select the high precision output. For example, to
cut vinyl, set offset to 0.25 with an overcut of 1-2. To cut 3M reective lm, set offset to 0.65 with an overcut
of 0.65 and so on. Basically, you need to adjust the data and test before cutting your main design.

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FOR BASIC CUT FROM SIGNMASTER
1. Import the designed image into Signmaster. Follow the Basic cut guide video for the mycut mini.
2. Feed the material into the plotter and make sure the material is aligned and at.
3. There are two ways to connect the plotter, either by USB or with a U-Disc. Choose the way you prefer to
connect and do the following steps:
Cutting through USB cable
1. Connect the plotter and computer with a USB cable.
2. In Signmaster, click “Vinyl Spooler”. Then, choose “Direct COM port” in connection and click “Auto
Detect” to recognize the plotter.
Cutting through U-disc:
1. In Signmaster, click “Vinyl Spooler”. Then, choose “Windows Port” in connection and click “File” in port.
2. Save the plt. le and put the plt. le into the U-Disc.
3. Insert the U-Disc into the plotter and press “U-Disc”. Then, choose the right plt. le to cut.

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CONTOUR CUT FROM SIGNMASTER
1. Import the designed image into Signmaster and follow the contour cut mini guide video.
2. When printing the TIF picture, print it out as its original size (1:1). Feed the material into the plotter
and make sure the material is aligned and at.
3. There are two ways to connect the plotter, either through USB or U-Disc. Choose the way you want to
connect and do the following steps:
Cutting through USB cable:
1. Connect the plotter and computer with a USB cable.
2. In Signmaster, click “Vinyl Spooler”. Then, choose “Direct COM port” in connection and click “Auto
Detect” to recognize the plotter.
Cutting through U-disc:
1. In Signmaster, click “Vinyl Spooler”. Then, choose “Windows Port” in connection and choose “File” in
port.
2. Save the plt. le and then put the plt. le into the U-Disc.
3. Insert the U-Disc into the plotter and press “Menu” where you will see the “U-Disc” button. Choose
the correct plt. le and set it on repeat. The camera will scan the marks and start cutting.

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TROUBLESHOOTING
1. A cutting test is needed when you start to cut your design. You can nd the instructions on how to run a
cutting test in the image below:
2. To check the position of the blade, follow the images below:
Take out the holder.
3.Loosen the screw and take out the blade
holder to check if the position of the blade
is correct before you cut!
2.Move all pinch rollers
under the blue marks.
4.Adjust force data, and click Pause to test cutting!
1.Feed the material into the cutter. Make sure the material is
aligned and at!
Take out the blade.Tighten the screw of the blade holder until the blade
is close to the surface (you will be able to feel this
with your nger).

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3. For information about the three blade types available, view the image below:
4. If the material is shifting when you contour cut (like in the picture below), please check the instructions on
the next page to recalibrate your design.
Note: To cut reective lm, you
need to use sharper blades.

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4.1 Make sure the printing size is the same as the original size of your design in the cutting software.
4.2 You can see the size of your design when you save it as an image. Printing size should be the same on all
computers.
4.3 If the printing size does not t within the second marks on the plotter, it will not always scan properly.
4.4 If the contour still shifts after you have gone through the steps above, check “How to calibrate camera
contour” in example 5 below.
5. How to calibrate camera contour if it is shifting like the example below:
5.1 Please exchange the blade for a pen. Make the cutting force about 200 and move the blade into a blank
space.
Go to settings. Click “Camera”, then “Backlight” and nally, click “adjust” last. The cutter should calibrate
itself after that.
5.2 Cut again to see if the contour line is now exactly where it needs to be. If there is still some shifting, go
to settings and select “Contour Offset”. You can adjust by 1 for every 1mm until your contour line is aligned
properly.
6. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
6.1 Question: Why did the mark scan fail?
Answer 1: Your printing le is not the same size (1:1) as your design le.
Answer 2: Your printing material was not placed into the cutter properly.
If the plotter still fails the mark scan, please click “settings”, then “camera” and then “backlight” to try again.