RFID Labeling Reference Manual SL5000e and T5000e SR Smart Label RFID Thermal Printers ™ ™
This Quick Setup Guide contains a CD-ROM with the following materials: • • • The User’s Manual Programmer’s Reference Manuals Useful utility programs The CD-ROM is located in a plastic pocket in the back cover. Do not discard this guide. If you move or pack the printer in the future, you will need to follow the instructions in this guide. For technical assistance, contact your Distributor/VAR/Reseller for service. For further assistance, contact the Printronix Customer Support Center.
SL5000 e and T5000 e SR Smart Label RFID Thermal Printers RFID Labeling Reference Manual
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Table of Contents 1 RFID Smart Label Application And Reference Notes7 Overview............................................................................... 7 What To Expect When Running Your RFID Application....... 9 Factors Affecting Smart Label Performance .................. 9 Overstruck Smart Labels................................................ 9 Smart Label Characteristics .........................................
Table of Contents RFID PPI1 Commands ........................................................39 Get Tag Unique ID ........................................................39 Set Tag Type ................................................................39 Read Tag ......................................................................40 Write Tag ......................................................................41 Host Verification ............................................................
1 RFID Smart Label Application And Reference Notes Overview NOTE: For the latest version of this reference manual, visit the the Services & Support page at www.printronix.com.
Chapter 1 Overview The Printronix SL5000e DK Smart Label Developer’s Kit contains: • SL5000e MP multiprotocol RFID printer • Integrated RFID UHF encoder supporting Class 0/0+, Class 1, and Class 1.
Factors Affecting Smart Label Performance What To Expect When Running Your RFID Application Factors Affecting Smart Label Performance Smart labels are based on an EEPROM technology that requires some time to be programmed. You may notice this minor pause between labels. This time is necessary to better ensure consistent quality and improved reliability.
Chapter 1 What To Expect When Running Your RFID Application Smart Label Characteristics IMPORTANT Purchase additional smart labels directly from Printronix to assure the highest level of performance and reliability. See “How To Order More Smart Labels” on page 12. For a list of currently supported tag types, download the certified smart labels brochure available at www.printronix.com.
How Printronix Makes It Easy Transitioning From UCC/GTIN Applications Using Printronix Software Migration Tools (SMT) It is likely that your software is already set up to create bar codes. You may have also spent a lot of time creating compliance label templates & integrating them into your system. The Smart Label Developer’s Kit Software Migration Tools will allow you to effortlessly transition from printing compliance labels to smart labels.
Chapter 1 How To Order More Smart Labels • EPC: This tool allows EPC data to be directly encoded into the smart label’s RFID tag. Simply have your existing software application write the desired EPC number to a Code 3 of 9 barcode. The printer will then write the EPC data to the RFID tag without printing the bar code. The existing toolset will meet the needs of many RFID early adopters. If you have a requirement for a Software Migration Tool not included in this kit, feel free to contact Printronix.
Contact Information Hardware/Infrastructure Considerations Once your smart labels have been applied to their target container or pallet you will need external readers to track them through your supply chain. Such readers are typically networked devices that are deployed at key points in the warehouse or distribution center to track incoming and outgoing packages. The readers are managed through a server for gathering and filtering all the RFID information.
Chapter 1 Useful Industry Web Links Useful Industry Web Links Reference Material Printronix, Inc. www.printronix.com Alien Technology Corporation www.alientechnology.com Applied Wireless Identifications Group, Inc. www.awid.com Auto-ID Labs www.autoidlabs.org EPC Tag Data Translation www.autoidlabs.org/cambridge/TDS EPCglobal, Inc. www.epcglobalinc.org RFID Journal www.rfidjournal.com Uniform Code Council, Inc.® www.uc-council.
2 Smart Label Development Overview This chapter describes how to use the RFID encoder. The RFID encoder is designed to be transparent to the printer operation. It provides the capability of programming smart labels (with embedded RFID tags) while printing the label format. The smart labels are provided with the printer or purchased separately from Printronix.
Chapter 2 RFID CONTROL Menu RFID CONTROL Menu RFID CONTROL RFID Reader Tag Type Enable* Disable Alien Squig 64* Alien Squig 96 Alien M-TAG 64 Alien M-TAG 96 RAF Omni 313 64 RAF Omni 342 96 Matrics1020 64 Matrics1020 96 Matrics2020 64 Matrics2020 96 RAFUCode 450 96 Error Handling Overstrike* None Label Retry 10* 1 to 10 Max Retry Error Enable* Disable Tag Write Cnt 1 Stop Notes: * = Default.
RFID CONTROL (cont. from previous page) Overstrike Style Grid* Custom Tag Disable* Enable Custom Pwr Set 5* 1 to 20 Custom Tag Len 8* 8 to 32 Custom Tag Class Class 1* Class 0 Print And Apply Disable* Enable EPC Mgr Report Disable* Enable Error Type Msg Duplicate Class 0+ Class 1.19 Notes: * = Default. Italicized items appear only when Admin User is set to Enable (in the PRINTER CONTROL menu).
Chapter 2 RFID CONTROL Menu RFID CONTROL Menu Items RFID Reader This menu item enables or disables the RFID encoder. The default is Enable. Error Handling This menu item selects the error handling mode for RFID failures. The default is Overstrike. In Overstrike mode, each failed label prints with the Overstrike pattern and the form retries on a new label until the Label Retry count is exhausted.
RFID CONTROL Menu Items Tag Write Cnt This menu item displays on the control panel’s LCD the number of tags written since the last Clear Tag Stat operation has been initiated. (See “Clear Tag Stat” below.) Failed Tag Cnt This menu item displays on the control panel’s LCD the number of failed tag write attempts since the last Clear Tag Stat operation has been initiated. (See “Clear Tag Stat” below.) Clear Tag Stat This menu item clears the Tag Write Cnt and Failed Tag Cnt menu items.
Chapter 2 RFID CONTROL Menu Table 1. Printed Overstrike Error Messages Error Message Explanation Tag R/W Err x Check media The printer software attempted to write to or read from the RFID tag, but the RFID encoder indicated that the tag could not be written to or read from. Tag Comm Err x Check cable The printer software temporarily lost communication with the RFID encoder, or communication between the printer software and the RFID encoder was not synchronized and had to be forced.
Admin User Menu Items Admin User Menu Items To see these menu items, set Admin User to Enable in the PRINTER CONTROL menu. (Refer to the User’s Manual.) IMPORTANT Admin User menu items should only be used by authorized personnel. Tag Type This menu item selects the tag type in use. The following is a list of tag types available. Other types may be added in the future.
Chapter 2 RFID CONTROL Menu RFID Test (This Test Reads A Tag) This menu item reads the tag in range of the internal RFID antenna and reports the tag data to the debug port and momentarily displays it on the control panel’s LCD. It is primarily intended for development verification by checking that the system is working. PreErase Class 0+ Normally, virgin Class 0+ tags are delivered pre-erased, allowing the printer to encode them directly.
Admin User Menu Items When it is set to Enable, the RFID encoder uses the settings in the custom tag menus, which must be set to match the characteristics of the custom tag. When it is set to Duplicate, the settings of the selected Tag Type menu item are copied into the custom tag menus. Custom Pwr Set NOTE: To enable this menu item, set Custom Tag to Enable. This menu item selects the power level to be used in the RFID encoder. 1 is the lowest power level setting, and 20 is the highest. The default is 5.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands RFID PGL Commands IMPORTANT For all examples make sure Label Length in the QUICK SETUP menu matches the physical length of the installed media. RFWTAG Purpose The RFWTAG command is used to program an RFID tag (embedded in a smart label) using structured data format. The data structure of an RFID tag can consist of one or more bit fields.
RFWTAG 3. For dynamic incremental data length;IDFn;format; length A decimal number specifying the bit length of a field within a tag. The maximum length for each DFn field is 64 bits. DFn Optional parameter to indicate this field has dynamic data. Replace n with a number ranging from 1 to 512 to identify the field number of this particular field. If this option is used, datafield is ignored, and dynamic data must be entered via the DF command in the EXECUTE mode.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands 26 datafield The static data of this static field. It is a mandatory parameter of bit field with static data. I Identifies this field is an incremental bit field. STEP Specifies that the incremental data field will use the step method. Enter STEP;. The STEP option replaces the STEPMASK option that is used in Alpha and Barcode. idir Enter a plus sign (+) or leave the field blank to increment (default). Enter a minus sign (–) to decrement.
RFWTAG NOTE: 1. There should be no more than one RFWTAG command per form. 2. The RFWTAG command cannot be mixed with RFWRITE in the same form. 3. Each field structure must be specified in a single line and in the order it appears in the RFID tag from MSB bits to LSB bits (left to right). The sum of all the field lengths must match the size of the tag. 4. The host data are read in as ASCII characters. They would be converted to binary representation for the base field on the field format.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands Example 2 Same as Example 1, except the EPC number is broken into its component parts. Assume that the SGTIN–64 value has the Header = 2d, Filter Value = 5d, EPC Manager Index = 15383d, Object Class = 703710d or 0xABCDE, and the Serial Number = 0123456d.
RFWTAG ~AF1; /Print serial number on label ~NORMAL ~EXECUTE;SGTIN–64 ~DF1;*10* ~DF2;*5* ~DF3;*15383* ~DF4;*ABCDE* ~DF5;*0000123456* ~AF1; /Header /Filter Value /EPC Manager Index /Object Class /Serial Number /Print serial number on label ~NORMAL Example 4 This example shows how to program a roll of 1500 smart labels with SGTIN–64 values, where the Header = 2d, Filter Value = 5d, EPC Manager Index = 15383d, Object Class = 703710d or 0xABCDE, and the Serial Number starting from 0000000 to 00014
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands ~CREATE;SGTIN–96;432 RFWTAG;96 8;B;*00110000* 3;D;*5* 3;D;*6* 20;D;*123456* 24;D;*7777777* 38;D;*123456* STOP END ~EXECUTE;SGTIN–96;1 ~NORMAL /Header /Filter Value /Partition /Company Prefix /Item Reference /Serial Number RFRTAG 30 Purpose To read the content of an RFID tag (embedded in a smart label) into a dynamic field. This command cannot be mixed with the RFREAD command.
RFRTAG 512 to identify the field number of this particular field. format A letter specifying the representation format of the field data. B – binary, D – decimal, H – hexadecimal NOTE: 1. Multiple RFRTAG commands are allowed in the same form but the same DFn field cannot be defined multiple times. 2. The DF field length is restricted to 64 bits and must be a multiple of 8 bits. The sum of all field lengths must be equal to the tag size. 3. The first field always start at the MSB bit.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands END ~EXECUTE;SGTIN–64;ICNT1500 ~IDF1;STEP+1;*0* ~IAF1; ~NORMAL NOTE: 1. The usage does not increment the DF1 field. It merges the DF1 content into the AF1 field, keeping the same representation previously defined for IDF1. 2. The use of IAF1 is to print alpha on every label. If AF1 is used instead, only the first label is printed. The AF1 field is not incremented either since it is using the result from the DF1 merge.
VERIFY The maximum length for the outgoing data is 512 bytes. If the format request will result in a data stream exceeding the maximum length, an error would be reported. ASCIIheader A mandatory parameter to specify an ASCII string of characters, which is followed by the RFID data, to be sent by the printer to the host. (D) Delimiter designating the start and end of a character string. Replace (D) with any printable character, except the SFCC and the slash character (/). The string could be empty, i.e.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands Example 1 This example requests the printer to send to the host the content of the RFID tag, in hexadecimal format, both before and after the RFWTAG command writes data to the tag. Also, the label is not moved.
VERIFY ~EXECUTE;READONLY;1500 ~NORMAL A5A500005D055E04 A5A50000000550D4 <== Whatever data.... another 1498 lines of RFID data................. <== Whatever data Example 3 This example requests the printer to program a roll of 2000 smart labels using the RFWTAG command with incremental field. Then, it sends the actual data from each of the 2000 tags to the host.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands Write Tag IMPORTANT This command is still supported but no longer in development. We recommend you develop your application using the RFWTAG command as defined on page 24. Purpose To program non-incremental data into an RFID tag (embedded in a smart label). Mode CREATE Format RFWRITE;[HEX;][EPCm;][RFn;L;][LOCK;]ATp;[(D)datafield(D)] RFWRITE; The RFID Write Tag command.
Write Tag data string. If this option is used, the datafield is ignored, and dynamic data must be entered via the RF command in the EXECUTE mode. The length of the dynamic data must be equal to L. LOCK; Optional parameter to write-protect the data. Currently not supported. ATp; p specifies the decimal start position where data will be written to the tag. Subsequent bits will be shifted and previous bits are nulled. (D) Delimiter designating the start and end of static data for the RFWRITE field.
Chapter 2 RFID PGL Commands Read Tag IMPORTANT This command is still supported but no longer in development. We recommend you develop your application using the RFRTAG command as defined on page 30. Read Tag is not a command, but an element of the ALPHA and BARCODE commands. See “Alphanumerics” and “Bar Codes” in the IGP/PGL Programmer’s Reference Manual for more information. 38 Purpose Embed RFID data into an ALPHA or BARCODE data field.
Get Tag Unique ID RFID PPI1 Commands IMPORTANT For all examples make sure Label Length in the QUICK SETUP menu matches the physical length of the installed media. Get Tag Unique ID Purpose Read the unique identification number of the RFID tag (embedded in the smart label). Format ^RI x ^RI Get Tag Unique ID command. x The field number to which the data will be assigned. The default is 0, and other acceptable values range from 1 to 9999.
Chapter 2 RFID PPI1 Commands Read Tag 40 Purpose This command allows data from the RFID tag (embedded in the smart label) to merge into any previously defined dynamic data field. It is equivalent to the Field Number command (^FN) except that the data come from the RFID tag. Format ^RT x, start, length, hex, retries, motion, reserved ^RT Read Tag command. x Specified Field Number (value assigned to the field). The default is 0. The acceptable value range is 0 to 9999.
Write Tag motion Set this flag to 1 to read data from the tag without moving the label. The printer may adjust the label position while it reads data from the tag, but this adjustment will reverse before any subsequent normal label movement. Even if this flag is set to 1, other commands (i.e., alpha or barcode) may move the label. The default is 0. reserved This is a reserved flag. The PPI1 absorbs this number. Comments This command is only executed by the demand for data from any dynamic field.
Chapter 2 RFID PPI1 Commands subsequent normal label movement. Even if this flag is set to 1, other commands (i.e., alpha or barcode) may move the label. protect This flag indicates whether the data should be protected from being overwritten later. The default is 0, meaning the data are not protected. Other acceptable values are 1 to 255, meaning the data are protected using this number as the LOCK password. data format 0 (ASCII) or 1 (hex). The default is 0. reserved This is a reserved flag.
PPI1 EPC Programming Examples PPI1 EPC Programming Examples IMPORTANT For all examples make sure Label Length in the QUICK SETUP menu matches the physical length of the installed media. Example 1 This programming example programs data into an RFID tag and prints the encodation onto a smart label. ^XA //Begin ZPL form. ^WT0^FH^FD_87_D0_03_45_67_AB_CD_EF^FS //Write Tag with data = “87D0034567ABCDEF” //(hex format). ^RT1,0,1,1^FS //Read Tag into data element 1, 8–byte (16 characters) //long (hex format).
Chapter 2 Software Migration Tools (SMT) Software Migration Tools (SMT) There are SMTs for six separate end-use applications supporting both PGL and PPI1 datastreams for a total of 12 tools. Each tool intercepts bar code data in a host datastream and copies the data to an RFID tag (embedded in a smart label) according to a set of rules as defined below. SMTs assume that only one bar code of the type being processed is present.
Tools List • EAN8: Copies data from an EAN8 bar code to an RFID tag. EAN 8+2 and EAN 8+5 variants are both supported. Data written to the RFID tag is right justified and zero padded. Checksum data calculated by the printer is not encoded onto the RFID tag. • EAN13: Copies data from an EAN13 bar code to an RFID tag. EAN 13+2 is also supported but EAN 13+5 variant is not supported. Data written to the RFID tag is right justified and zero padded.
Chapter 2 Software Migration Tools (SMT) Selecting The Tools 1. Press .. . until QUICK SETUP displays. 2. If necessary, press ↓ and ↵ at the same time to unlock the ↵ key. 3. Press ↓ until SMT: Sel Toolset displays. 4. Press ↓ until Toolset [1] (PGL emulation) or Toolset [2] (PPI1 emulation) displays. 5. Press ↵ to select it. 6. Press ↓ until SMT: Select Tool displays. 7. Press ↓ until the desired tool displays. 8. Press ↵ to select it. 9.
Selecting The Tools Error Messages The RFID encoder can detect a number of errors. When one of these errors occurs, the RFID encoder alerts the printer to perform the currently selected error action (see “Error Handling” on page 18) and display the appropriate error message on the control panel’s LCD (see Table 2). Table 2.
Chapter 2 Troubleshooting Troubleshooting If you are having trouble with the RFID encoder, consult Table 3 for a list of symptoms and possible solutions. Table 3. Troubleshooting the RFID Encoder Symptom No communication between the printer and the reader Solution 1. Make sure Reader = Enable in the RFID CONTROL menu. 2. Use the RFID Test option in the RFID CONTROL menu (Admin User enabled) to read and display the current RFID tag content.
Troubleshooting Selecting The Tools 49
Chapter 2 Troubleshooting 50
For technical assistance, contact your Distributor/VAR/Reseller for service. For further assistance, contact the Printronix Customer Support Center. Printronix Customer Support Center Americas (714) 368-2686 Europe, Middle East, and Africa (31) 24 6489 410 Asia Pacific (65) 6548 4114 Web site: http://www.printronix.com/public/servicessupport/default.
