TransAct Ithaca 8000 Manual

Ithaca®8000
Programmer’s Guide
PN 100-06908
Rev D
November 2010

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100-06908 Rev D Page i
Change History
Revision
Description of change
Date
A
Initial Release
June 2006
B
Added periodic status back.
Sept 2007
C
Removed Paper Specifications
Nov 2008
D
Pg 27 Replaced the Cash Drawer Pin Assignment table
Nov 2010

Page ii Rev D 100-06908
Federal Communications Commission Radio
Frequency Interference Statement
The Ithaca®8000 Printer complies with the limits for a Class A computing device in
accordance with the specifications in Part 15 of FCC rules. These regulations are
designed to minimize radio frequency interference during installation; however, there is
no guarantee that radio or television interference will not occur during any particular
installation. Interference can be determined by turning the equipment off and on while
the radio or television is on. If the printer causes interference to radio or television
reception, try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
1. Reorient the radio or television receiving antenna
2. Relocate the printer with respect to the receiver
3. Plug the printer and receiver into different circuits
If necessary, the user should consult their dealer or an experienced radio/television
technician for additional suggestions. The user may find the following booklet prepared
by the Federal Communications Commission helpful: How to Identify and Resolve
Radio/TV Interference Problems. This booklet is available from the US Government
Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. Ask for stock number 004-000-00345-4.
Canadian Department of Communications Radio
Interference Statement
The Ithaca®8000 Printer does not exceed Class A limits for radio noise emissions from
digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian
Department of Communications.
Regulatory Compliance
FCC Class A
ULc
CE Mark
UL 1950
TUV

100-06908 Rev D Page iii
Disclaimer
NOTICE TO ALL PERSONS RECEIVING THIS DOCUMENT:
The information in this document is subject to change without notice. No part of this
document may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of
TransAct Technologies, Inc. ("TransAct"). This document is the property of and contains
information that is both confidential and proprietary to TransAct. Recipient shall not
disclose any portion of this document to any third party.
TRANSACT DOES NOT ASSUME ANY LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES INCURRED,
DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, FROM ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS OR
DISCREPANCIES IN THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT.
TransAct cannot guarantee that changes in software and equipment made by other
manufacturers, and referred to in this publication, do not affect the applicability of
information in this publication.
Copyright
© 2006 TransAct Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Revision D
November 2010
Printed in USA
Trademarks
Some of the product names mentioned herein are used for identification purposes only
and may be trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
BANKjet, 50Plus, Insta-Load, Ithaca, "Made to Order. Built to Last", Magnetec, PcOS,
POSjet, PowerPocket, Ithaca and TransAct are registered trademarks and Epic 950,
Flex-Zone, imPort, IthaColor, KITCHENjet, Momentum, QDT and TicketBurst are
trademarks of TransAct Technologies, Inc.

Page iv Rev D 100-06908
Table of Contents
Change History ................................................................................................................i
Federal Communications Commission Radio Frequency Interference Statement ...........ii
Canadian Department of Communications Radio Interference Statement.......................ii
Regulatory Compliance...................................................................................................ii
Disclaimer...................................................................................................................... iii
Copyright........................................................................................................................ iii
Trademarks.................................................................................................................... iii
Table of Contents...........................................................................................................iv
Figures...........................................................................................................................ix
Tables............................................................................................................................ix
Introducing your Ithaca®8000 Printer................... 1
About your Ithaca®8000 Printer......................................................................................3
Who Should Read This Guide?.......................................................................................4
What Is Included in This Guide?......................................................................................4
Warranty Options............................................................................................................4
Technical and Sales support...........................................................................................5
On-line Technical Support.......................................................................................5
Telephone Technical Support..................................................................................5
Return Materials Authorization and Return Policies.................................................6
Service Programs....................................................................................................6
Sales Support..........................................................................................................6
Contact Information.................................................................................................6
Ithaca®8000 Specifications and Requirements....... 9
Ithaca®8000 Specifications and Requirements.............................................................11
Ithaca® 8000 Thermal Printer Models...........................................................................11
Standard Features ........................................................................................................11
Optional Features..........................................................................................................13
General Specifications ..................................................................................................14
Printing Specifications ...........................................................................................14
Character Pitch......................................................................................................14
Character Generation............................................................................................15
Physical Characteristics................................................................................................18
Dimensions............................................................................................................18
Weight...................................................................................................................18
Electrical Characteristics...............................................................................................19
Internal AC Powered .............................................................................................19
External Powered DC............................................................................................19
Thermal Print Head.......................................................................................................19
Linerless Label Receipt Paper...............................................................................20
Buzzer...........................................................................................................................22
Cover Interlock..............................................................................................................22
Display Pass Through...................................................................................................22
Communications Interface.............................................................................................23
Parallel Interface....................................................................................................23
RS-232 Serial Interface .........................................................................................24

100-06908 Rev D Page v
USB Interface........................................................................................................24
Ethernet 10-Base-T adapter ..................................................................................25
802.11b Wireless Interface....................................................................................25
Cash Drawer .........................................................................................................26
Interface Description..............................................................................................26
Cash Drawer Pin Assignments..............................................................................26
Setup Procedures ..............................................28
Verifying the Configuration............................................................................................30
Verify the Communications Interface Card.............................................................30
Changing Interface Cards......................................................................................30
Removing the Old Interface Card ..........................................................................30
Cash Drawer Configuration ...................................................................................31
Configuring the Cash Drawer Interface..................................................................31
Installing Cables............................................................................................................32
Connecting power..................................................................................................32
Connecting Communications Cables.....................................................................33
Verify the Firmware Configuration .........................................................................34
Installing Paper .............................................................................................................34
Installing Windows® Printer Drivers................................................................................35
Printer Driver Installation for WIN95, 98, Me..........................................................35
Printer Driver Installation for NT4.0, 2000..............................................................35
OPOS drivers Installation Instructions ...................................................................36
To Install the USB drivers......................................................................................36
How to Operate the Ithaca®8000 Printer..............37
How to Operate the Ithaca®8000 Printer.......................................................................39
*Button.........................................................................................................................39
FEED Button.................................................................................................................39
Indicator Lights (LED)....................................................................................................40
Power Indicator (LED) ...........................................................................................40
Error Indicator (LED) .............................................................................................40
Paper Indicator (LED)............................................................................................40
Fault Indicators..............................................................................................................40
Testing the Printer Overview.........................................................................................42
Using Self-Test, Configuration, and Hex Dump Mode............................................42
Hex-dump Mode....................................................................................................44
Level 0 Diagnostics ...............................................................................................45
Boot Loader Mode.................................................................................................45
Configuring Your Ithaca®8000 Printer..................47
Configuration Mode Overview.......................................................................................49
Most Frequent Configuration Incompatibilities .......................................................49
How to Change Configuration Settings..........................................................................49
Entering into Configuration Mode ..........................................................................49
Using Configuration Mode.............................................................................................50
Remote Configuration ...................................................................................................53
Setting up for Color Paper.............................................................................................53
Custom Color ........................................................................................................53
Programming Codes...........................................55
Control Codes Overview ...............................................................................................57
Nomenclature................................................................................................................57

Page vi Rev D 100-06908
Standard Emulation...............................................................................................58
IPCL Codes...........................................................................................................58
EPOS Emulation....................................................................................................58
Axiohm ..................................................................................................................58
Ithaca®Microline Emulation...................................................................................58
Application Development...............................................................................................58
Ithaca Control Codes and Commands...........................................................................59
PcOS Printer Control Codes..................................................................................59
Quick PcOS Reference Chart................................................................................60
Quick PcOS Reference Chart (Alphabetic)............................................................67
Low Level Paper Motion Control............................................................................73
Horizontal Motion Control......................................................................................74
Vertical Motion Control ..........................................................................................76
Feed to Black Dot..................................................................................................82
Character Pitch......................................................................................................84
Character Font ......................................................................................................87
Print Rotation Commands....................................................................................104
Rotated Print Summary .......................................................................................107
Ithaca®8000 Page Mode.....................................................................................110
Graphic Mode......................................................................................................114
Graphics Compression........................................................................................120
User Store (Graphic Save) ..................................................................................120
User Macros........................................................................................................128
Bar Codes ...........................................................................................................130
Electronic Journal................................................................................................141
Unicode and Downloaded Fonts..........................................................................153
Unicode Encoding ...............................................................................................153
Miscellaneous Control .........................................................................................158
Remote Power Control ........................................................................................166
Documented Extended Control commands..........................................................167
Printer Status.......................................................................................................168
Inquire Commands..............................................................................................169
ESC/POSTM Codes......................................................................................................178
Differences between Epson TM T90 and Ithaca®8000........................................178
Supported TM-T88 Commands...................................................................................180
Undocumented TM-T88 Commands ...........................................................................183
Supported TM-T90 Commands...................................................................................184
TM-T88 / TM-T90 and ESC/POSTM Command Descriptions........................................188
Print and Feed Commands..........................................................................................188
Line Spacing Commands ............................................................................................190
Character Commands.................................................................................................190
Panel Button Commands ............................................................................................199
Paper Sensor Commands...........................................................................................200
Print Position Commands............................................................................................202
Bit-Image Commands..................................................................................................206
Status Commands.......................................................................................................207
Printing Paper Command............................................................................................213
Page Mode..................................................................................................................214
Bar Code Commands..................................................................................................217
Mechanism Control Commands ..................................................................................220
Miscellaneous Commands ..........................................................................................222

100-06908 Rev D Page vii
Macro Function Commands ........................................................................................228
User-defined Images and Graphics Commands..........................................................229
Ithaca®Specific Ithaca®8000 Commands...................................................................234
Panel Button Commands.....................................................................................234
Paper Out/Low Sensor Commands.....................................................................234
Ithaca®Citizen Emulation............................................................................................236
Ithaca®Star Emulation ................................................................................................236
Ithaca®Axiohm Emulation...........................................................................................236
Ithaca®8000 Color Graphics .............................237
Printing Graphics.........................................................................................................239
Character Graphics .............................................................................................239
APA Graphics......................................................................................................242
Ithaca®8000 Universal Color Graphics .......................................................................245
Print File Graphics...............................................................................................246
Store Graphics in the printer:...............................................................................247
How universal graphics is done...........................................................................248
How to use IPCL commands in text strings..........................................................248
Cautions..............................................................................................................249
Universal Color Command Descriptions..............................................................250
Ithaca®8000 Coupon-Cut-Logo Feature .....................................................................252
Unicode..........................................................253
Unicode –A Software Font Solution............................................................................255
About Unicode.............................................................................................................256
Memory...............................................................................................................256
TransAct‘s implementation of Unicode in the Ithaca®8000..........................................256
Ithaca®8000 Extended Printer Control ...............259
Communications..............................................267
Protocol and Print Buffers ...........................................................................................269
USB ............................................................................................................................272
USB Support .......................................................................................................272
TCP/IP ........................................................................................................................273
Print Server Features Standard Ethernet Connection..........................................273
Supported Protocols............................................................................................273
User Interface/Configuration................................................................................273
Other...................................................................................................................273
Parallel Port ................................................................................................................274
Parallel Port Protocol...........................................................................................274
Printer Buffer Size ...............................................................................................275
Parallel Port Inquire and IEEE 1284....................................................................275
Parallel Port Plug and Play..................................................................................277
Serial Port...................................................................................................................279
Serial Port Protocol..............................................................................................279
Print Buffer Flow..................................................................................................281
Printer Buffer Size ...............................................................................................283
Serial Mode Plug and Play ..................................................................................283
Using DSR...........................................................................................................283
Serial Device Identification ..................................................................................284
Serial Port Inquire................................................................................................285
Display Pass Through.................................................................................................286

Page viii Rev D 100-06908
Remote Power Control................................................................................................286
Remote Printer Reset..................................................................................................287
Reset in Serial Mode ...........................................................................................287
Reset in Parallel Mode.........................................................................................287
Miscellaneous Communication Features.....................................................................288
Power-cycle Recovery.........................................................................................288
Data Pass-through...............................................................................................288
Multi-drop Configuration ......................................................................................288
Off-line Active......................................................................................................289
Recovery from Mechanical Errors ...............................................................................290
Programmer‘s Notes ...................................................................................................291
Applications and Linerless paper.........................................................................291
Appendix A: Code Page Definition Table.....................................................................293
Appendix B - ASCII Code Table..................................................................................295
Appendix C: Ordering Supplies ...................................................................................297
Index .............................................................299

100-06908 Rev D Page ix
Figures
Figure 1 Receipt Printing, Tear off Position...................................................................21
Figure 2 Cash Drawer Pin Definitions............................................................................26
Figure 3 Cash Drawer Selection....................................................................................31
Figure 4 3-pin mini DIN plug..........................................................................................33
Figure 5 Page Mode entry Orientations.......................................................................110
Figure 6 Code 39 full 128 character encoding.............................................................132
Figure 7 Expanded Function coding............................................................................134
Figure 8 Code 128 encoding values............................................................................136
Figure 9 Example of Character Graphics.....................................................................239
Figure 10 Example Commands for a Sample Receipt.................................................240
Figure 11 Sample Receipt...........................................................................................241
Figure 12 Receipt with graphics ..................................................................................245
Figure 13 Typical POS System ...................................................................................269
Figure 14 Host to Printer Link......................................................................................270
Figure 15 Printer Communications Buffer Flow ...........................................................271
Figure 16 Parallel-port Data Timing.............................................................................274
Figure 17 Parallel Port ACK Timing Options................................................................275
Figure 18 Serial Port Flow Control Using DTR ............................................................279
Figure 19 XON/XOFF Serial Port Flow Control............................................................280
Tables
Table 1 Possible Character Pitches...............................................................................14
Table 2 Requested CPI and Resulting CPI....................................................................15
Table 3 Cell Size for Small, Medium and Large Fonts...................................................15
Table 4 Standard Power Input Requirements................................................................19
Table 5 Power Input Requirements with the 24-volt DC Power .....................................19
Table 6 Parallel Interface Pin-outs.................................................................................23
Table 7 Serial Interface Pin-outs ...................................................................................24
Table 8 Cash Drawer Pin Assignment...........................................................................27
Table 9 Serial interface pin out......................................................................................33
Table 10 Parallel interface pin out.................................................................................33
Table 11 Error Blink Codes ...........................................................................................41
Table 12 Character Pitch...............................................................................................85
Table 13 Inter-character Spacing ..................................................................................86
Table 14 Language Table ID‘s ......................................................................................90
Table 15 Code Page Definition Table............................................................................91
Table 16 Euro Character Substitution Matrix.................................................................92
Table 17 OCR MA-3......................................................................................................97
Table 18 Paper Sensor Commands ............................................................................162
Table 19 Paper Sensor Commands ............................................................................163
Table 20 Supported TM-T90 Commands ....................................................................182
Table 21 Undocumented TM-T90 Commands.............................................................183
Table 22 Supported EPOS Commands.......................................................................184
Table 23 Select Character Font Table.........................................................................191
Table 24 International Character Sets.........................................................................192

Page x Rev D 100-06908
Table 25 Character Code Pages.................................................................................194
Table 26 Character Code Table ..................................................................................195
Table 27 Print Modes..................................................................................................196
Table 28 Rotation Modes ............................................................................................197
Table 29 Paper Sensor Commands ............................................................................200
Table 30 Paper Sensor Commands ............................................................................201
Table 31 Print Density Selection..................................................................................206
Table 32 Automatic Status Back (ASB) Values for <n>...............................................207
Table 33 Automatic Status Back (ASB) First Byte (Printer Information).......................208
Table 34 Automatic Status Back (ASB) Second Byte (Error Information) ....................208
Table 35 Automatic Status Back (ASB) Third Byte (Paper Sensor Information)...........209
Table 36 Automatic Status Back (ASB) Fourth Byte (Paper Sensor Information) ........209
Table 37 Paper Sensor Status (<n> = 1, 49)...............................................................209
Table 38 Drawer Kick-out Connector Status (<n> = 2, 50) ..........................................210
Table 39 Values for the Status Function, <n>..............................................................210
Table 40 Printer Status (<n> = 1)................................................................................210
Table 41 Off line Status (<n> = 2) ...............................................................................211
Table 42 Error Status (<n> = 3)...................................................................................211
Table 43 Paper Roll Sensor Status (<n> = 4)..............................................................211
Table 44 Peripheral Status (<n> = 0, 48).....................................................................212
Table 45 Paper Status.................................................................................................212
Table 46 Bar Code System Based on <m> .................................................................218
Table 47 Printing Position of HRI Characters ..............................................................219
Table 48 Font for Human Readable Interpretation (HRI) Characters...........................219
Table 49 Horizontal size of the bar code .....................................................................219
Table 50 Printer ID......................................................................................................222
Table 51 Type ID (<n> = 2or 50) ................................................................................222
Table 52 Peripheral Device Bit Definitions...................................................................224
Table 53 Macro Control Bit Definitions ........................................................................228
Table 54 User-defined Bit-image Resolutions..............................................................233
Table 55 Parallel-port Timing ......................................................................................275

100-06908 Rev D Page xi

100-06908 Rev D Page 1
chapter 1
Introducing your Ithaca®8000 Printer

Page 2 Rev D 100-06908
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About Your Ithaca®8000 Printer Ithaca®8000 Programmer’s Guide
100-06908 Rev D Page 3
About your Ithaca®8000 Printer
The Ithaca Ithaca®8000 printer represents the very latest technology for use for thermal
receipt printing for point-of-sale and retail environments. It builds upon the architecture of
Ithaca‘s proven thermal printers, together with a host of features specifically designed to
improve the performance of your receipt-printing applications, including:
Crisp, clear receipt printing in either one or two colors
Fast 6 inches per second print speed
Compatible with linerless label Receipt paper.
Rugged spill-resistant cover
Large 4-inch paper roll capacity with drop-in loading
Protected internal power supply
Ethernet and USB interfaces
Application-controllable buzzer
Configurable cash drawer functionality
The Ithaca®8000 also offers a wide range of programmable features, including color and
font control, APA graphics support, bar codes, and support for over 60 language
character sets. These features let you quickly and easily integrate more layout and
printing options than ever –while giving you the reliability, durability and uptime you
have come to expect from Ithaca printers.

About Your Ithaca®8000 Printer Ithaca®8000 Programmer’s Guide
Page 4 Rev D 100-06908
Who Should Read This Guide?
This document provides information and programming specifications for operators who
will integrate the Ithaca®8000 printer into their kitchen operations.
What Is Included in This Guide?
This Programmer‘s Guide includes information on the features and programming
interface of the Ithaca®8000 printer. It provides the following information to support your
programming and implementation efforts:
Warranty and technical support information.
Specifications and functionality description.
Programming information, including documentation of low-level and high-level
command interfaces, as well as sample scripts to guide your own implementation
efforts.
We want you to have a trouble-free implementation with your Ithaca printer. For any
issues not covered in this guide, quality technical support is available on-line at
www.transact-tech.com, or by telephone at [phone] or (877) 7ithaca. Consult
the following pages for more details about our support services.
Warranty Options
All Ithaca®8000 printers come with a standard 24-month standard warranty covering
both parts and labor that starts upon shipment from the factory. An optional extended
warranty, covering both parts and labor for an additional 12 months, may be purchased
separately. For more information concerning the warranty options, please contact the
Sales Department at TransAct‘s Ithaca facility. You are responsible for insuring any
product returned for service, and you assume the risk of loss during shipment to Ithaca.
C.O.D. packages are not accepted and warranty repairs are subject to the terms and
conditions as stated on the Ithaca warranty policy.

About Your Ithaca®8000 Printer Ithaca®8000 Programmer’s Guide
100-06908 Rev D Page 5
Technical and Sales support
Your Ithaca printer is backed by the resources of TransAct Technologies, a global
technology firm with dedicated technical support and sales assistance. Here is how we
can help you:
On-line Technical Support
Our web site at www.transact-tech.com is your on-line portal to obtaining technical
assistance with your Ithaca printer. Click on Ithaca link and then the Technical Support
link to find documentation for your Ithaca®8000 printer, including a current copy of this
Programmer‘s Guide featuring:
oCommand codes and descriptions.
oCharacter fonts.
oPrinter features.
oCommunication specifics.
Other utilities available include a font utility, a color converter and a terminal application
for communicating with your printer, as well as the following drivers and utilities:
Windows 95/98/Me Print Driver with Documentation Part No. 100-9167
Windows NT 4.0 2K and XP Print Driver with Documentation Part No. 100-9170
OPOS Drivers with Documentation Part No. 100-9732
Master Character Set Definitions Part No. 100-9785
Our on-line support site also includes a convenient e-mail assistance request form,
where you can submit support requests 24 hours a day, and receive a return contact
from a TransAct support technician during regular business hours.
Telephone Technical Support
Live telephone support is available Monday through Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM Eastern
US time, excluding holidays. We can provide general information about programming for
your Ithaca®8000 printer, technical support, documentation, or assistance in sending a
printer for service. To obtain telephone support, call TransAct's Ithaca Facility at (607)
257-8901 and ask for Technical Support. To help us serve you faster, please have the
following information ready when you call:
The Model Number and Serial Number of the printer.
A list of any other peripheral devices attached to the same port as the printer.
What application software, operating system, and network (if any) you are using.
What happened and what you were doing when the problem occurred.
How you tried to solve the problem.

About Your Ithaca®8000 Printer Ithaca®8000 Programmer’s Guide
Page 6 Rev D 100-06908
Return Materials Authorization and Return Policies
If the technical support person determines that the printer should be serviced at our
facility, and you want to return the printer for repair, we will issue you the Returned
Materials Authorization (RMA) number that is required before returning the printer.
Repairs are warranted for 90 days from the date of repair or for the balance of the
original warranty period, whichever is greater. Please prepare the printer being returned
for repair as follows:
Pack the printer to be returned in the original packing material.
Packing material may be purchased from TransAct's Ithaca Facility.
Do not return any accessories unless asked to do so by a support technician.
Write the RMA number clearly on the outside of the box.
Service Programs
TransAct Technologies Incorporated has a full service organization to meet your printer
service and repair requirements. If your printer needs service, please contact your
service provider first. If any problems still persist, you can directly contact the Ithaca
facility‘s Technical Support Department at [phone] or (877) 7ithaca for a return
authorization. International customers should contact your distributor for services.
TransAct offers the following service programs to meet your needs.
Extended Warranty.
Depot Repair.
Maintenance Contract.
Internet Support.
Sales Support
To order supplies, receive information about other Ithaca products, or obtain information
about your warranty, contact our Sales Department at the contact telephone or fax
numbers listed below. To receive information on International distribution, visit our web
site at www.transact-tech.com.
Contact Information
TransAct Technologies Incorporated
Ithaca Facility
20 Bomax Drive
Ithaca, NY 14850 USA
Telephone (877) 7ithaca or [phone]
Main fax [phone]