LTP1245X-X384-E LINE THERMAL PRINTER MECHANISM TECHNICAL REFERENCE U00085320001 Seiko Instruments Inc.
LTP1245X-X384-E LINE THERMAL PRINTER MECHANISM TECHNICAL REFERENCE Document Number U00085320001 First Edition Second Edition December 2003 March 2005 Copyright © 2003, 2005 by Seiko Instruments Inc. All rights reserved. Seiko Instruments Inc. (SII) has prepared this manual for use by SII personnel, licensees, and customers. The information contained herein is the property of SII and shall not be reproduced in whole or in part without the prior written approval of SII.
PREFACE This reference manual describes the specifications and basic operating procedures for the LTP1245 (for RoHS) Line Thermal Printer Mechanism. For the LTP1245 (RoHS supporting), four models are available: • LTP1245R-C384-E • LTP1245S-C384-E • LTP1245T-S384-E • LTP1245U-S384-E In this reference manual, the information mentioned as LTP1245 is common to all models unless otherwise noted, and if the information is different depending on the model, specific model name is mentioned clearly.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page CHAPTER 1 PRECAUTIONS 1.1 1.2 SAFETY PRECAUTIONS ............................................................................................ DESIGN AND HANDLING PRECAUTIONS ................................................................ 1.2.1 Design Precautions ......................................................................................... 1.2.2 Handling Precautions ...................................................................................... 1.2.
Section Page CHAPTER 4 CONNECTING EXTERNAL CIRCUITS 4.1 4.2 THERMAL HEAD CONTROL TERMINALS................................................................. MOTOR AND DETECTOR TERMINALS..................................................................... 4-2 4-3 CHAPTER 5 DRIVE METHOD 5.1 5.2 THERMAL HEAD DRIVE TIMING................................................................................ MOTOR DRIVE TIMING ........................................................................................
FIGURES Figure Page 3-1 3-2 3-3 3-4 3-5 3-6 3-7 3-8 3-9 3-10 3-11 3-12 3-13 3-14 3-15 Heat Element Dimensions............................................................................................ Print Area...................................................................................................................... Sample Drive Circuit (Motor) ........................................................................................ Input Voltage Signals for the Sample Drive Circuit (Motor) .
TABLES Table Page 3-1 3-2 3-3 3-4 3-5 3-6 3-7 3-8 3-9 3-10 3-11 3-12 3-13 General Specifications ................................................................................................. Sample Motor Drive Frequency ................................................................................... General Motor Specifications ....................................................................................... Excitation Sequence.................................................................
CHAPTER 1 PRECAUTIONS Read through this manual to use the printer properly. Also, design the product taking the detailed precautions that are noted in each section into consideration. 1.1 This reference manual subjects to change without notice. Ask the latest information of the printer to our service. Damage due to improper handing of the printer without following the instruction described in this reference manual will not be responsible for SII.
1.2 DESIGN AND HANDLING PRECAUTIONS To maintain the initial level of performance of the LTP1245 and to prevent future problems from occurring, observe the following precautions. 1.2.1 Design Precautions If too much energy is applied to the thermal head, it may overheat and become damaged. Always use the printer with the specified amount of energy. Do not input a pulse over than 2V and 20 nsec to each signal terminal of the thermal head.
Design the outer case so that the thermal head control terminals can move after fixing to the connector because they move 2 to 3 mm due to the up/down action of the thermal head. Design the outer case so that it prevents the paper feed out from being caught in the platen. If the thermal head remains in contact directly with the platen, they may stick tight each other. When the printer is not in use, put the paper between the thermal head and platen or place the thermal head in an upward position.
1.2.3 Connect or remove the connectors after powering off the printer. When printing at a high print rate (black or zigzag pattern) in a low temperature or high humidity environment, the vapor from the paper during printing may cause condensation to form on the printer or may soil the paper itself. Keep the thermal head away from water drops. It may become the source of a corroded thermal head. If condensed, power off the Vp until dried. The LTP1245 is not a water-proof printer.
CHAPTER 2 FEATURES The LTP1245 Line Thermal Printer Mechanism is a compact, high-speed thermal line dot printing mechanism. It can be used with a measuring instrument and analyzer, a POS, a communication device, or a data terminal device. Since the LTP1245 Line Thermal Printer Mechanism can be battery driven, it can easily be mounted onto a portable device such as a hand-held terminal.
Automatic paper load The paper detector enables the LTP1245 to load paper automatically. Paper feed knob The paper feed knob for manual paper feed is optionally attached depending on the specification. It is selectable according to the applications. Thermal head cleaning Move the head up lever to open position to clean the thermal head. 2 1 2 Print speed differs depending on working and environmental conditions.
CHAPTER 3 SPECIFICATIONS 3.
Table 3-1 General Specifications (Continued) Item Operating temperature range (No codensation) Storage temperature range (No codensation) Life span (at 25°C and rated energy) Activation pulse resistance Abrasion resistance Paper width Paper feeding force Paper holding force Dimensions (width×depth×height) Weight Recommended thermal paper Specification -30°C to 70°C 4 -35°C to 75°C 100 million pulses or more (print ratio=12.
3.2 HEAT ELEMENT DIMENSIONS The LTP1245 contains a thermal head with 384 heat elements (dot-size). 48 mm (384 DOTS) 0.125 mm 0.125 mm Figure 3-1 Heat Element Dimensions 0 58 -1 mm (PAPER WIDTH) 5 mm 48 mm (PRINTING WIDTH) 5 mm 0.
3.3 PAPER FEED CHARACTERISTICS Paper is fed in a forward direction when the motor shaft is rotating in the normal direction (clockwise) when seen from the motor gear side. The motor is driven by a 2-2 phase excitation, constant current chopper method and feeds paper by 0.125 mm (equivalent to a single dot pitch) every two steps of the motor drive signal.
3.4 STEP MOTOR CHARACTERISTICS Table 3-3 General Motor Specifications Item Type Number of phases Drive method Excitation Winding resistance per phase Rated voltage Rated current Maximum current consumption Drive frequency 1 Specification PM 4-phase Bipolar chopper 2-2 phase 14 Ω ±10% 4.2 - 8.5 V 0.23 A/phase, 0.15 A/phase 1 0.46 A 50 - 1000 pps (according to drive voltage) See 3.4.3 Precautions for Driving the Motor. When at lower than - 5°C, the motor is driven at 0.23 A/phase only.
3.4.1 Motor Drive Circuit (1) Sample Drive Circuit Sample drive circuit for the motor are shown in Figure 3-3. Vp NC 9 6 1 11 20 15 13 LB1843V-E 4 5 2 14 3 18 19 17 74HC32 10µF 50V 0.51Ω 1% 1/2W 12 Vcc Vcc 10KΩ 1 15 13 2 4 PH1 PH2 PH3 PH4 0.01µF 10%,10% CTCRL 14 Vcc 1KΩ 1% 3KΩ 1% Vcc 0.01µF 10%,10% 7 16 3 6 11 74HC123A 0.1µF 0.01µF 10%,10% 10 12 8 1SS294 1.8KΩ (TE85L, F) 1% 0.01µF 10%,10% 1KΩ 1% 5 9 Vcc 10KΩ 13 14 NC Vcc µPC1060C-A 1 0.1µF 2 3 2.7KΩ 1% 0.
(2) Excitation Sequence As shown in Table 3-4, the LTP1245 feeds paper in the normal direction when the motor is excited in the order of step 1, step 2, step 3, step 4, step 1, step 2, . . . . On the other hand, to rotate the motor in a reverse direction, drive the motor in the reverse order of: step 4, step 3, step 2, step 1, step 4, step 3, . . . .
3.4.2 Motor Timing Refer to the timing chart in Figures 3-5 and 3-6 when designing the control circuit or software for starting and stopping the motor. Also take note of the following precautions: Precautions for Designing the Motor Control Circuit and Software (1) Stop step To stop the motor, excite for a single step period with a phase that is the same as the last one in the printing step. (2) Pause state In the pause state, do not excite the step motor in order to prevent the motor from heating.
(4) Others Do not print paper at the intermittent feed mode. Doing so may deteriorate the printing quality due to irregular paper feeding pitch. To print characters and bit images, always follow the start step and stop step.
3.4.3 Precautions for Driving the Motor (1) Motor Current Control Low speed motor driving while printing due to a division drive method, print data, and input data transfer speed may cause noise or print trouble to occur due to over torquing or overheating of the motor. To prevent these from occurring, be sure to set the motor current as follows and perform two-current control. Activate the motor with the 1st setting current in each motor drive step.
In use at temperature below -5°C CTCRL1 230mA PH1 PH2 PH3 PH4 Start (5.78ms) 1st step (5.78ms) 2nd step (3.57ms) 3rd step (3.33ms) 4th step 5th step 6th step (3.33ms) (3.33ms) (3.33ms) Max speed=300pps Motor speed = 300 pps CTCRL1=”High” First set current: 0.
(2) Acceleration Control When driving the motor, acceleration control is needed to start paper feeding. When the motor is to be driven at the motor drive frequency that is calculated using equation (1), the motor may come out of step under heavy load. Drive the motor to the maximum driving speed that is calculated using equation (1), according to the linear acceleration table in Table 3-5. The method for accelerating the motor is as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Output start step (5780 (µs)).
Table 3-5 Acceleration Steps Number of Steps start 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Speed (pps) 173 280 362 432 493 547 597 644 687 728 768 805 840 874 907 939 970 1000 3-13 Step Time (µs) 5780 5780 3571 2762 2314 2028 1828 1675 1553 1456 1374 1302 1242 1191 1144 1103 1065 1031 1000
3.5 3.5.1 THERMAL HEAD Structure of the Thermal Head As Figure 3-8 shows, the LTP1245 thermal head consists of 384 heat elements, and heat element drivers. Serial printing data input from the DAT terminal is transferred to the shift register synchronously with the CLK signal, then stored in the latch register with the timing of the LATCH signal. Inputting the head activation signal (DST 1 to 6) activates heat elements in accordance with the printing data stored in the latch register.
Vp Heat Element Output Driver Latch Register Shift Register DAT CLK LATCH DST6 DST5 DST2 DST1 TH Thermistor Vdd GND Figure 3-8 Thermal Head Block Diagram 3-15 DOT 1 DOT 64 Block1 DOT 65 DOT 129 DOT 128 DOT 257 Block2 DOT 256 DOT 321 Block5 DOT 320 DOT 384 Block6
Table 3-6 Blocks and Activated Heat Elements 3.5.2 Block Number Heat Element Number Dots / Block 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 - 64 65 - 128 129 - 192 193 - 256 257 - 320 321 - 384 64 64 64 64 64 64 Printed Position of the Data Data dots from 1 to 384 which are transferred through DAT are printed as shown in Figure 3-9. PAPER PAPER FEED DIRECTION PRINT SURFACE DATA PRINT SEQUENCE 1 2 3 4 5 6 ............................. 382 383 384 LTP1245 PRINTER MECHANISM DATA INPUT SEQUENCE 1 2 3 4 5 6 . . . . . .
3.5.3 Head Resistance The LTP1245 head resistance is176 Ω ± 4 %. 3.5.4 Head Voltage The LTP1245 has a built-in head driver IC and control IC. Table 3-7 shows the head voltage. Table 3-7 Head Voltage Item 3.5.5 Voltage Range Head drive voltage Vp 4.2 to 8.5 V Head logic voltage Vdd 4.5 to 5.
3.5.6 Thermal Head Electrical Characteristics Table 3-8 Thermal Head Electrical Characteristics Item Sinbol Conditions (Vdd=4.5 to 5.5V, Ta=0 to 50°C) Rated Unit MAX MIN TYP Head resistance RH 169 176 183 Ω Head drive voltage Vp 4.2 - 8.5 V Head drive current Ip 2.5 2.6 2.7 A 4.5 5.0 5.5 V Waiting for activation - - 0.5 mA fclk=4MHz,DAT=fixed - - 6 mA Vp=8.5 V, max.
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3.6 3.6.1 CONTROLLING THE HEAD ACTIVATION (DST) PULSE WIDTH Calculation of Head Activation Pulse Width Head activation pulse width is calculated using the following equation (3). To execute high quality printing using the LTP1245, the value that is calculated using the following equation (3) must be adjusted according to the printer’s installation environment. Calculate each value used according to the steps in Sections 3.6.2 to 3.6.
3.6.3 Adjustment of Head Activation Voltage Adjustment of head activation pulse width due to changing the head activation voltage is to be in accordance with equation (5). The adjustment method differs if the head drive voltage (Vp) is 5.5 V or more or under 5.5 V. If head temperature is above -5°C Equation (5): (5.5 V or more) V=Vp × 1.2 - 1.8 (under 5.5 V) V=Vp × 1.4 - 2.9 Vp: Head activation voltage (V) If head temperature is below -5°C More than 5.5V : V = Vp ×1.2 - 1.8 + T × 0.01 Less than 5.
3.6.5 Determination of Activation Pause Time and Activation Pulse Period Dot lines may be activated in succession to the same thermal dot in order to protect thermal head elements. Determine the activation period (the time from the preceding activation start to the current activation start) which conforms to equation (7) to reserve the pause time. Equation (7): W > t + 0.5(ms) W : Activation period of 1-dot line (ms) 3.6.
3.6.7 Calculation Sample for the Head Activation Pulse Width Table 3-9 displays the calculation sample of the head activation pulse width that was calculated using equation (3) and the values obtained using equations (4) to (8). Table 3-9 Activation Pulse Width Head Drive Thermistor Voltage (V) Temperature ℃ Motor Drive Frequency (PPS) 100 0 10 20 30 9.92 9.07 8.21 7.
3.6.8 Thermistor Resistance The resistance of the thermistor at the operating temperature TX (°C) is determined using the following equation (10). Equation (10): 1 1 RX =- R25 × EXPB × − 273 + TX 298 RX: R25: B: TX: EXP (A): Resistance at operating temperature Tx (°C) 15 kΩ ± 10% (25°C) 3440 K ± 3% Operating temperature (°C) The Ath power of natural logarithm e (2.
Table 3- 10 Temperature and Corresponding Thermistor Resistance Temperature (°°C) -40 -35 -30 -25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 3.6.9 Thermistor Resistance (kΩ Ω) 375.54 275.39 204.55 153.76 116.89 89.82 69.71 54.61 43.17 34.42 27.66 22.40 18.27 15.00 12.40 10.31 Temperature (°°C) 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100 Thermistor Resistance (kΩ Ω) 8.63 7.26 6.14 5.22 4.46 3.83 3.30 2.86 2.48 2.17 1.90 1.67 1.
3.6.10 Detecting Abnormal Temperatures of the Thermal Head To protect the thermal head and to ensure personal safety, abnormal thermal head temperatures must be detected by both hardware and software as follows: Detecting abnormal temperatures by software Design software that will deactivate the heat elements if the thermal head thermistor (TH) detects a temperature higher than 80 °C (thermistor resistance RTH ≤ 2.48 kΩ), and reactivate the heat elements when a temperature lower than 60 °C (RTH ≥ 4.
3.7 HEAD-UP/PAPER DETECTOR LTP1245 has a built-in head-up detector to detect whether the head is up or down and a paper detector to detect whether paper is present or exhausted. Both detectors are reflection photo interruptors which are designed to output signals as shown in Table 3-11 according to their status.
Table 3-13 Detectors Input / Output Conditions Item LED (input) Photo-transistor (output) Transfer characteristics 1 3.7.2 Forward voltage Reverse current Dark current Photo electric current Response time (at rise) Response time (at fall) Leak current Conditions Std. Max. IF=10mA VR=5V VCE=24V 1.15V - 1.3V 10µA 0.1µA IC IF=10mA, VCE=5V 450µA 1100µA tr IC=1mA, VCE=10V 10µs - tf RL=1kΩ, d=1mm 10µs - ILEAK IF=10mA, VCE=5V - 0.
3.7.3 Automatic Paper Load Paper can be automatically loaded when used in conjunction with the paper detector. To prevent paper from skewing, cut the edges at right angles in line with the paper feed direction before loading it. If skewed, feed the paper until it is straight, or place the head in the up position and adjust the paper so that it is fed straight. Figure 3-13 shows a flowchart for automatically loading paper. START Paper exists. CHECK FOR PAPER Paper is exhausted.
3.8 Mode Code Label Figure 3-14 shows that the printer is the LTP1245R-C384-E which is made in September 2004. See Figure 7-1 LTP1245R-C384-E Appearance and Dimensions for labeling position.
CHAPTER 4 CONNECTING EXTERNAL CIRCUITS The LTP1245 has two types of connectors to connect it to the external circuits: FPC (Flexible Printed Cable) type connector and FFC (Flexible Flat Cable) type connector. Table 4-1 shows the recommended connectors. Table 4-1 Recommended Connectors No. External Circuit Functions Thermal head control 1 2 Number of Pins 20 Motor control, paper detection, and head-up detection 9 4-1 Recommended Connectors (External Circuit side) Molex Co., Ltd.
4.1 THERMAL HEAD CONTROL TERMINALS Figure 4-1 shows the FFC terminals of the thermal head control.
4.2 MOTOR AND DETECTOR TERMINALS Figure 4-2 shows the FPC terminals of the motor control, paper detector and head-up detector.
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CHAPTER 5 DRIVE METHOD 5.1 THERMAL HEAD DRIVE TIMING Input of print data Input of DAT and CLK transfer the print data to the shift register in serial input. “High” means printing and “Low” means no-printing in DAT. DAT data is read in at the rising edge of the CLK inputs. The transferred line of data is stored in the latch register by turning LATCH to “Low”. Input of the head activation pulse "High" of DST drives the heat elements of the thermal head.
5.2 MOTOR DRIVE TIMING The phase of motors and the thermal head need to be synchronized to print. As example, the print method which divides one dot line to two groups; the blocks 1,3, and 5 and the blocks 2,4, and 6, and prints each group data for each step of the motor is described below. Basic pulse width of the motor drive pulse, Tm, is a value (unit: msec) of the reciprocal number of the driving frequency calculated using equation (1) of "3.3 PAPER FEED CHARACTERISTICS".
2nd line, 1st step Drive the motor by one step (3rd step). As to how much step time is output, compare Tm with the time that was taken in the previous step. (1) in case Tm < the time that was taken in the previous step, the next closest acceleration step time to the previous step time or Tm, which is longer, is output. (2) in case Tm > the time that was taken in the previous step, the closest acceleration step time to Tm and the acceleration step time that is larger than Tm, are output.
STOP START 1ST STEP OF THE 1ST DOT LINE 2ND STEP OF THE 1ST DOT LINE 1,3,5 Block 2,4,6 Block 1ST STEP OF THE 2ND DOT LINE 2ND STEP OF THE 2ND DOT LINE A B A B CLK DAT LATCH DST 1,3,5 Block Figure 5-2 Example of Motor Drive Timing Chart 5-4 2,4,6 Block
CHAPTER 6 HOUSING DESIGN GUIDE 6.1 SECURING THE PRINTER The LTP1245 can be secured to the outer casing with screws. 6.1.1 Printer Mounting Method Secure the printer with a mounting hole (φ 2.8) and 2 shaped indents. See "CHAPTER 7 APPEARANCE AND EXTERNAL DIMENSION" for locations and dimensions. Recommended Screws and Washers Recommended mounting screws and washers are as follows: ① A combination of: M2.5 or M2.6 pan head Phillips screw and 2.5 or 2.
6.2 LAYOUT OF PRINTER AND PAPER Design the paper outlet angle in 0 to 45°. (See Figure 6-1) Paper outlet angle (θ) : 0°≤θ≤45° HEAT ELEMENT θ THERMAL PAPER ROLL PLATEN THERMAL HEAD MOUNTING FACE PAPER DETECTOR The distance between the paper detector and the heat element is approximately 8 mm. Figure 6-1 Paper Layout 6.
6.5 OUTER CASING STRUCTURE Figure 6-2 shows a sample structure for the outer casing. * * Provide a gap of a few mm between the printer and the outer casing since the area over the thermal head becomes very hot.
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CHAPTER 7 APPEARANCE AND DIMENSIONS Figure 7-1 shows the appearance and external dimensions of the LTP1245.
Figure 7-1 LTP1245R-C384-E Appearance and Dimensions 7-2 Unit : mm Tolerance: ±0.
Unit : mm Tolerance: ±0.
Unit : mm Tolerance: ±0.
Unit : mm Tolerance: ±0.
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CHAPTER 8 LOADING/UNLOADING PAPER AND HEAD CLEANING 8.1 ① LOADING/UNLOADING PAPER PRECAUTIONS Loading paper Load paper with the thermal head in the up position. (See Figure 8-1 Head Cleaning Procedure (b) in Section 8.2 “HEAD CLEANING PROCEDURES AND PRECAUTIONS”). Cut the edge of the paper so that the center of the paper will be inserted first GOOD NO GOOD NO GOOD NO GOOD Insert the paper straight into the paper inlet.
③ Auto-loading paper Cut the edge of the paper so it is vertical to the direction of the paper feed. NO GOOD GOOD NO GOOD NO GOOD Load paper with thermal head in the down position. If the paper skews, place the thermal head in the up position and reset the paper. If the thermal head has been in the down position for a long time, it will be impossible to insert because the head is in contact with the platen. In this case, place the head in the up position once and insert the paper again.
8.2 HEAD CLEANING PROCEDURE AND PRECAUTIONS PROCEDURE : ① Lift the head up lever (a) so it stands upright (b). ② Clean the heat elements using alcohol and a cotton swab. ③ After cleaning, set the head up lever to its original position by reversing the steps. PRECAUTIONS : ① Do not clean the thermal head immediately after printing bacause thermal head will still be hot. ② Cleaning fluid: ethyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol. ③ Do not use sandpaper, cutter, etc. when cleaning.
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CHAPTER 9 PERIPHERAL EQUIPMENT 9.1 AUTOCUTTER UNIT The LTP1245 can be equipped with the ACU6205 autocutter unit. The ACU6205 autocutter unit uses the circular cut method. The circular cut method enables the ACU6205 autocutter unit to be compact and lightweight. For the specifications and the mechanism of how the ACU6205 operates, see the ACU6205 AUTOCUTTER UNIT TECHNICAL REFERENCE.
9.1.1 Installation (1) When Using a Special Mount 1) Secure the printer on the special mount (OP-L1200-E) with the special screws. 2) The recommended tightening torque is 3 kgf cm (① in Figure 9-1). 3) Use four screws to secure the mount on the cabinet. Recommended screws: M2.6 (② in Figture 9-1). 4) Connect the FPC and FFC of the printer to the main unit. 5) Install the ACU6205 autocutter unit from the grounding plate side (③,④ in Figure 9-1). 6) Connect the cutter leads.
(2) When Designing a Mount Design a mount so that the fulcrum for rotation is located as shown in Figure 9-2. Fulcrum for rotation Figure 9-2 Designing a Mount 9.1.2 Opening and Closing the Autocutter Unit Open the autocutter unit to insert sheets of paper manually or to clear paper jams. To open the autocutter unit, lift the part shown in Figure 9-3. Care should be taken to avoid causing damage to the platen. Before closing the autocutter unit, verify that the print head is down.
9.1.3 Inserting Recording Paper (1) Automatic paper insertion Paper can be inserted automatically with the autocutter unit closed. See ③ in Section 8.1, LTP1245 LINE THEMAL PRINTER MECHANISM TECHNICAL REFERENCE. (2) Manual paper insertion Open the autocutter unit and insert paper. See ① in Section 8.1, LTP1245 LINE THERMAL PRINTER MECHANISM TECHNICAL REFERENCE. After the printer setup, insert the paper into the paper feed slit in the autocutter, then close the autocutter unit.
9.1.5 Hints for Use (1) Do not back feed paper after cutting paper using the autocutter unit because it will cause a paper jam. (2) To prevent paper from jamming, feed paper or print feed more than 3 mm after cutting paper. (3) To make the most efficient use of paper, as shown in Figure 9-5, print area A for the next print portion after printing area B, and then cut the paper.
9.1.
9.2 LTP1245 MOUNT (OP-L1245A-E) The LTP1245 can be secured on the cabinet using the LTP1245 mount (OP-L1245A-E) and four screws. 9.2.1 Installation Align the two notches of the printer with the tabs on the LTP1245 mount (OP-L1245A-E) and secure the printer by installing a special screw (No.0 cross-recessed machine screw; tightening torque: 3 kgf • cm) in the printer installation hole. (2.8 mm diameter) (Figure 9-7).
9.2.
