Summa DC4 User manual

User’s Manual
Rev 003

FCC Notice
The DC4 has been tested and found to comply with the limits for Class A digital
devices, 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. The cutters generate, use and can emit
radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the
instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
Operation of the cutters 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.
Caution!
Changes or modifications not expressly approved by Summa, which is responsible
for FCC compliance, could void the user’s authority to operate this equipment.
DOC Notice
The DC4 does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise for digital apparatus set
out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department of
Communications.
Notice
Summa reserves the right to modify the information contained in this User Manual
at any time without prior notice. Unauthorized copying, modification, distribution or
display is prohibited. All rights reserved.
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive
Directive 2002/96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
The symbol (right) is shown on this product. It indicates that the
product should not be disposed of with regular household waste,
but should be disposed of separately.
Electrical and electronic equipment can contain materials that are
hazardous to the environment and human health and therefore
should be disposed of at a designated waste facility or returned
to your retailer for the appropriate recycling to take place.
If you wish to dispose of this product and the product still functions, please consider
recycling/reusing it by donating it to a charity shop, selling it or part-exchanging it
with your retailer.
Copyright © 2007 Summa bvba

Registering Your Printer
Please register your printer on the following link:
http://www.summa.be/registration.html
Failure to register may result in delayed responses to your warranty and service
inquiries.
Contact Information
All inquiries, comments or suggestions concerning this and other Summa manuals
should be directed to:
North America and Asia
Pacific Eastern United States and Latin America Europe, Africa and Middle East
Summa, Inc
10001 Lake City Way NE
Seattle, WA 98125
USA
Main Office
[phone]
[phone]
Fax
[phone]
Support
[email protected]
Sales
[email protected]
Web Site
www.summausa.com
Summa East, Inc
222 Jubilee Drive
Peabody, MA 01960
USA
Main Office
[phone]
[phone]
Fax
[phone]
Support
[email protected]
Sales
[email protected]
Web Site
www.summausa.com
Summa, bvba
Rochesterlaan 6
B-8470 GISTEL
Belgium
Main Office
[phone]
Fax
[phone]
Support
[email protected]
Sales
[email protected]
Web Site
www.summa.be

Welcome
Congratulations on your purchase of the new DC4!
The DC4 is the ultimate label and decal production unit, combining high image
durability and precision contour cutting into one device.
The DC4 uses thermal transfer technology. This is a dry transfer printing process that
uses heat and pressure to create a durable bond with the resin-based inks and the
media. The resin inks are supplied on ribbons containing densely packed pigments
suspended in a solid plastic carrier. This high pigment density results in images that
are highly abrasion resistant, and it provides a long term UV and water resistance with
a long outdoor durability without laminations.
Thermal transfer printing produces no fumes at all, creates no mess and does not
require maintenance nor the use of cleaning chemicals.
Every aspect of the DC4 has been designed for simplified operation. Media loading is
child’s play, thanks to auto media alignment. Ribbons are a snap to refill, and can’t be
loaded improperly.
This manual is a reference guide for installing and operating the DC4.

Table of contents I
Table of Contents
1Setup ......................................................................................................1-1
1.1 Unpacking the DC4...................................................................................... 1-1
1.2 DC4 printer components............................................................................. 1-4
1.2.1 The DC4 as viewed from the front.......................................................... 1-4
1.2.2 The printer as viewed from the back ...................................................... 1-6
1.3 Ideal Operating Environment ..................................................................... 1-7
1.4 Connecting the Printer to the Mains.......................................................... 1-8
1.4.1 Grounding (“Earthing”)............................................................................ 1-8
1.4.2 Operating voltage................................................................................... 1-8
1.4.3 Powering-on the printer.......................................................................... 1-9
1.5 Connecting the DC4 to a Computer......................................................... 1-10
1.5.1 Connecting the printer to a PC using a USB cable:
.............................. 1-10
1.5.2 Parallel connection............................................................................... 1-10
1.5.3 Connecting the printer to a Mac using a USB cable............................. 1-11
1.6 Media Handling.......................................................................................... 1-12
1.6.1 Loading media...................................................................................... 1-12
1.6.2 Using media take-up rollers.................................................................. 1-14
1.6.3 Unloading the media............................................................................. 1-15
1.6.4 Using the media basket........................................................................ 1-15
1.7 Loading ribbon cassettes......................................................................... 1-16
1.7.1 Loading and removing the cassettes.................................................... 1-16
1.7.2 Refilling ribbon cassettes
...................................................................... 1-17
1.8 Knife Installation........................................................................................ 1-19
1.8.1 Removing the drag knife
....................................................................... 1-19
1.8.2 Installing the drag knife......................................................................... 1-20

DC4 User’s Manual
Table of contents II
2Basic Operation.....................................................................................2-1
2.1 The control Panel ........................................................................................ 2-1
2.1.1 The liquid crystal display ........................................................................ 2-1
2.1.2 The and key................................................................... 2-2
2.1.3 The key ...................................................................................... 2-2
2.1.4 The key ....................................................................................... 2-2
2.1.5 The arrow Keys........................................................................... 2-2
2.2 How to Set printing Density........................................................................ 2-3
2.3 How to Set Media Tracking Parameters .................................................... 2-4
2.4 How to set the main knife parameters:...................................................... 2-7
2.5 How to calibrate print and Cut ................................................................... 2-9
2.6 How to Change the User (Quick Parameter Change)............................. 2-10
2.7 How to Change media width..................................................................... 2-11
2.7.1 Pinch roller positioning. ........................................................................ 2-11
2.7.2 Using oversized media widths.............................................................. 2-11
2.8 Preparing the DC4 for long print-outs..................................................... 2-12
3Print & Cut..............................................................................................3-1
3.1 Contour cutting............................................................................................ 3-1
3.1.1 Making the design .................................................................................. 3-1
3.1.1.1 Contour cutting ................................................................................ 3-2
3.1.1.2 OPOS cutting
................................................................................... 3-2
3.1.1.3 Making cutting data ready ............................................................... 3-5
3.2 Cutting trough.............................................................................................. 3-6

DC4 User’s Manual
Table of contents III
4Detailed Operation ................................................................................4-1
4.1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 4-1
4.2 Main menu.................................................................................................... 4-2
4.2.1 Printer menu........................................................................................... 4-2
4.2.2 Reprint job .............................................................................................. 4-2
4.2.3 Cutter menu............................................................................................ 4-2
4.2.4 System setup.......................................................................................... 4-2
4.2.5 Select User Configuration....................................................................... 4-2
4.2.6 Shut down…........................................................................................... 4-2
4.2.7 Reset ...................................................................................................... 4-2
4.3 Printer menu ................................................................................................ 4-3
4.3.1 Ribbon status..........................................................................................4-3
4.3.2 Density.................................................................................................... 4-3
4.3.3 Print Speed............................................................................................. 4-3
4.3.4 Double Density....................................................................................... 4-3
4.3.5 Dot overlap ............................................................................................. 4-3
4.3.6 Color Offset ............................................................................................ 4-4
4.3.7 ScratchGuard ......................................................................................... 4-4
4.3.8 OptiTrac™ Color..................................................................................... 4-4
4.3.9 OptiTrac™ .............................................................................................. 4-4
4.3.10 Calibrate linefeed.................................................................................... 4-5
4.3.11 Calibrate Print&Cut................................................................................. 4-5
4.3.12 Head alignment test
................................................................................ 4-5
4.3.13 Clean printhead...................................................................................... 4-5
4.4 Cutter menu ................................................................................................. 4-6
4.4.1 Knife pressure ........................................................................................ 4-6
4.4.2 Knife offset.............................................................................................. 4-6
4.4.3 Velocity................................................................................................... 4-6
4.4.4 Overcut................................................................................................... 4-6
4.4.5 DIN test
...................................................................................................4-7
4.4.6 Load OPOS Markers.............................................................................. 4-7
4.4.7 Flex mode............................................................................................... 4-7
4.5 Setup menu.................................................................................................. 4-8
4.5.1 Take-up roll............................................................................................. 4-8
4.5.2 Ribbon Save........................................................................................... 4-8
4.5.3 calibrate media ....................................................................................... 4-8
4.5.4 Calibrate Print&Cut................................................................................. 4-8
4.5.5 Calibrate OPOS...................................................................................... 4-9
4.5.6 Cal. Temp. Sensors................................................................................ 4-9
4.5.7 Firmware revision ................................................................................... 4-9
4.5.8 Room temperature
.................................................................................. 4-9
4.5.9 coil setup ................................................................................................4-9
4.5.10 Show printer usage................................................................................. 4-9
4.5.11 Show job stats......................................................................................4-10
4.5.12 Copy User Config. ................................................................................ 4-10
4.5.13 Print Demo File..................................................................................... 4-10

DC4 User’s Manual
Table of contents IV
5Maintenance and Cleaning...................................................................5-1
5.1 GENERAL INFORMATION........................................................................... 5-1
5.1.1 Cleaning the drive system...................................................................... 5-1
5.1.2 Cleaning the media sensors................................................................... 5-2
5.1.3 Changing he cleaning pad...................................................................... 5-3
5.1.4 Cleaning the printhead ........................................................................... 5-4
5.1.5 OptiPrint™ cleaning system................................................................... 5-4
5.1.6 Cleaning the printing surface.................................................................. 5-5
5.1.7 Cleaning the OptiTrack™ sensor ...........................................................5-5
5.2 OPERATING VOLTAGE............................................................................... 5-6
6Software for the PC...............................................................................6-1
6.1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 6-1
6.1.1 Installing Summa Color Control.............................................................. 6-2
6.1.2 Installing WinPlot.................................................................................... 6-3
6.1.3 Installing printer tools.............................................................................. 6-3
6.2 Summa Printer Control Menus................................................................... 6-5
6.2.1 File menu................................................................................................ 6-5
6.2.2 View menu.............................................................................................. 6-5
6.2.3 Configuration menu ................................................................................ 6-6
6.2.4 Settings menu
......................................................................................... 6-6
6.2.5 Tests menu............................................................................................. 6-6
6.2.6 Action list................................................................................................6-7
6.2.7 Tool bars................................................................................................. 6-9
6.3 Summa Color Control (SCC) configuration ............................................ 6-10
6.3.1 ColorControl Preferences..................................................................... 6-10
6.3.2 Process preferences............................................................................. 6-11
6.3.3 RIP preferences.................................................................................... 6-12
6.3.4 DC4 preferences .................................................................................. 6-13
6.3.5 Reprint preferences.............................................................................. 6-14
6.3.6 How to rip and print ..............................................................................6-15
General tab .................................................................................................. 6-15
6.3.7 Color Tab.............................................................................................. 6-16
6.3.8 Screening tab ....................................................................................... 6-17
6.3.9 Layout tab............................................................................................. 6-20
6.3.10 Advanced tab........................................................................................ 6-21
6.3.11 How to rip,View and print...................................................................... 6-23
7Specifications........................................................................................7-1
7.1 Features List................................................................................................ 7-1
7.1.1 Hardware................................................................................................ 7-1
7.1.2 Interface.................................................................................................. 7-1
7.1.3 Functionality ........................................................................................... 7-1
7.1.4 Software .................................................................................................7-2