NL-10 USERS MANUAL PN 80820108
Federal Communications Commission Radio Frequency Interference Statement This equipment generates and uses radio frequency energy and if not installed and used properly, that is, in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, may cause interference to radio and television reception.
A Special Message to the New Owner Congratulations! You are now the proud owner of one of the best dot-matrix printers around. With a touch of your finger, you can choose fast, quality draft printing or superb near-letter-quality printing. Despite its advanced features, your printer is amazingly easy to use. And it’s compatible with nearly every computer on the market by using a separated Interface Cartridge. We hope you’ll find this manual easy and pleasant to use.
Table of Contents Chapter 1 Setting Up Your Printer Where shall we put it? What have we here? Removing the printer cover Removing the packing tube Installing the ribbon cartridge Installing the interface cartridge 1 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Printer Controls and parts of the printer Parts of the printer Controls and indicators Extra functions Other controls Selecting and loading paper Loading single sheets Loading sprocket-feed paper Adjusting the print head 9 Chapter 3 Caring for Your Printer C
1 CHAPTER 1 SETTING UP YOUR PRINTER Subjects we’ll cover in Chapter 1 include• Choosing a suitable place for your printer; • Unpacking your new printer; • Setting it up. WHERE SHALL WE PUT IT? Before you do anything else, give some thought to where you’ll be using your printer. Obviously, it will be somewhere near your computer. And both printer andcomputer will lead longer, healthier lives if they like their surroundings. For instance, we recommend... • Using the printer on a flat surface.
2 WHAT HAVE WE HERE? Now let’s take a look at what’s in the carton. Open it up and check each item in the box against Figure 1-1. There should be four items. Figure 1-1. Check to make sure you have all four items: 1) printer, 2) paper guide, 3) ribbon cartridge, and 4) user’s manual. In addition to your printer, you also need an Interface cartridge that connects your computer to this printer. These are sold separately because each brand of computer uses a different interface cartridge.
3 operating noise. Don’t take off the cover except when you have to change the ribbon, or to make an adjustment. Removing the printer cover is easy. Lift up the back of the cover to disengage the two tabs at the front and then lift it off the rest of teh way. To replace it, just slide the tabs in at the front and lower it into place. Figure 1-2 shows the proper position and movement for both removing and replacing the cover. Figure 1-2. Remove the printer cover by lifting carefully.
4 Figure 1-3. Remove the protective tube from the carriage rail. Up to this point, we’ve been clearing the decks for action, so to speak. Only two more things left to do before we can start printing - install the ribbon cartridge, and the interface cartridge. Installing the ribbon cartridge This printer uses a neat, easy-to-change ribbon cartridge so you don’t have to spend a lot of time threading a standard ribbon through the printer and getting your hands all dirty to boot.
5 1. Turn off the power and remove the printer cover. 2. Now slide the print head gently to the center of the printer. Warning: The print head gets hot during operation, so let it cool off before you touch it. 3. Using the guide holders as a fulcrum with the ribbon facing away from you, as shown in Figure 1-4, lightly press the cartridge down until the two holder springs snap shut to hold the cartridge firmly in place. 4. Check that the cartridge fits so that the drive pins engage the cartridge teeth.
6 Figure 1-5. All you have to do is to slide the print head carriage manually to your right or left, then the ribbon slips down by itself into its proper position. 6. Put the printer cover back on and you’re finished. (A special switch on the printer prevents the printer from working when the cover is off.) Installing the interface cartridge A special interface cartridge contains all the electronics your printer needs to talk to a computer.
7 Figure 1-6. Slide the I/F cartrige into the slot. tighten the screw easily. When this is done, connect the cable from your computer and you’re ready to go.
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9 CHAPTER 2 GETTING TO KNOW YOUR PRINTER Subjects we’ll cover in Chapter 2 include • Parts of the printer - what they’re for and how to use them; • Paper selection and loading; • Adjustment. CONTROLS AND PARTS OF THE PRINTER Parts of the printer First, we’ll go over the parts of the printer. You saw most of these when you unpacked your printer. Now we’ll give you a brief explanation of what they do. (For details on the initial set-up of this printer, with all components in place, see Chapter 1.
10 Figure 2-1. Front and rear views of the printer INTERFACE COMPARTMENT - On the back of the printer, this space holds the interface cartridge for your computer.
11 Controls and indicators (More detail of panel of panel operation keys and Control codes can be found in Interface Cartridge manual.) Now let’s go over the controls and indicators of the printer, starting with the control panel on the right. There are seven indicators and five keys on the control panel. Figure 2-2. The control panel. POWER INDICATOR - Glows red when the power in on or blinks when the printer is out of paper or some other error occurs.
12 WHILE TURNING ON THE POWER Test print 1 (long form) - Holding down the Paper Feed key causes the printer to output the full test print. Test print 2 (short form) - Holding down the On Line key causes the printer to output theabridged test print. Hex dump - Holding down both the Paper Feed key and Mode key puts the printer into the hex dump mode (more on this in the programming manual).
13 PAPER BAIL - The bail is the movable bar that holds the paper against the platen. Its position depends on the setting of the release lever. DIP SWITCHES - This is a set of eight switches that are used in interfacing the printer to your computer. There are also switches to set page length, line spacing, perforation skipping, and selecting the international character sets. See the manual of your interface cartridge for a complete list and explanation.
14 The paper bail holds the paper against the platen according to the setting of the release lever. The bail is opened when the release lever is in the top position, closed when the lever is in the second or third positions, and opened by the printer when the lever is in the bottom position. Loading single sheets Now, instead of feeding the paper in manually by turning the platen knob, we’re going to use the release lever (the printer must be turned on).
15 Figure 2-4. Raise the paper guide for loading single sheets. Figure 2-5. Prop up the paper guide by inserting the guide stand in the notches provided for it.
16 Figure 2-6. You can insert a sheet of paper by using the release lever. Remember, you can also use the optional automatic cut-sheet feeder for single sheets. Loading sprocket-feed paper This is the familiar computer paper, with the holes along the sides and perforations between the sheets. It is also called sprocket, punched, fan-fold, or just plain “computer paper.” It can be as narrow as 4”, and up to 10” wide. 1. Turn on the printer and set the release lever for sprocket-feed paper. 2.
17 Figure 2-7. Open the sprocket covers to expose the sprocket teeth. 5. Flip the clamp levers backward. This allows the two sprocket units to move freely right and left so you can align them with the holes in the paper. 6. Feed the end of the paper into the slot next to the platen cover plate. 7. Fit the holes in the paper over the sproket pins so the paper is even, and clamp the sprocket units in place. 8. Check that the paper is still positioned correctly, and close the sprocket covers (Figure 2-8) 9.
18 Figure 2-8. Ready to run with sprocket-feed paper. ADJUSTING THE PRINT HEAD The distance between the print head and the platen must be adjusted to accommodate papers of different thicknesses. To make this adjustment, move the adjustment lever, which is under the printer cover and immediately in front of the release lever (Figure 2-9). Pulliing the adjustment lever towards you will widen the gap; pushing it away from you will narrow the gap.
19 Figure 2-9. The adjustment lever allows for different thicknesses of paper.
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21 CHAPTER 3 CARING FOR YOUR PRINTER As any good mechanic will tell you, dust and heat are the biggest enemies of every mechanism. And your printer is no exception. The best maintenance is preventive maintenance, so the first step in keeping your printer healthy and happy is to make sure it’s in a clean, dust-free location. The range of temperature should be comfortable for both you and your computer/printer system. (Please refer to Chapter 1 for more tips on locating your printer.
22 REPLACING THE RIBBON This printer uses an “endless” ribbon cartridge, which means that the inked ribbon inside is recycled automatically. Eventually, though, printing will become too faint to read easily and you’ll want to change the ribbon. However, it is less expensive and more economical to replace only the ribbon portion inside the cartridge. If this money saving method does interest you, read on.
23 4. Using a screwdriver with a thin blade, pry open the cartridge cover. Figure 3-1 shows the numerous slots for inserting a screwdriver. 5. Press hard against the end of the idler gear holder to make a space between the holder and the ribbon drive gear, and remove the old ribbon and holder. See Figure 3-2. Figure 3-2. Replace the ribbon sub-cassette. 6. Clean the inside of the cartridge, the area around the cartridge, and the ribbon drive gear and vicinity. 7.
24 Figure 3-3. Make sure that the ribbon is not twisted when you thread it through its path. 9. Firmly pull the idler gear towrds you and guide the ribbon between the idler gear and the ribbon drive gear. 10.Remove the top and the bottom of the ribbon holder. 11.Replace the ribbon cartridge top cover. 12.Now you’re almost finished! Remount the cartridge to the printer. Notice that five replacements is the maximum, after which you should buy a completelt new cartridge.
25 1. Remove the printer cover and the ribbon cartridge. 2. Remove the print head left along the carriage, until you can see the connector cover. Remove the cover from the printer frame; for datails, see Figure 34. Unplug the print head cable from the head cable board. Figure 3-4. Replacement of the print head is simple. 3. Hold back the tab that locks the print head into place, and remove the print head. 4.
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27 CHAPTER 4 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Type of printer Print speed Printing direction Paper feed Paper type Single sheets Continuous paper (Number of copies) Ribbon Size Weight Power Serial impact dot matrix 120 characters per second (in draft Pica) 30 characters per second (in NLQ Pica) Bi-directional, logic seeking Uni-directional in dot graphics 14 lines/second (in case of form feeding) Sprocket and Friction feed 5.5-8.
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29 INDEX adjustment, 18 alcohol, cleaning with, 21 automatic cut-sheet feeder, 16 release lever, 12 reverse micro-feed, 12 ribbon, replacing the, 22 right margin, 12 Bold key and indicator, 11 cleaning the printer, 21 control panel, 11 DIP switches, 13 Draft indicators, 11 fuse, 25 fuse, replacing a, 24 guide stand, 14 hex dump interface cartridge, 6 interface compartment, 10 left margin, 12 loading paper, 13 single sheets, 14 sprocket-feed paper, 16 micto-feed, 12 Mode key, 11 NLQ indicator, 11 On Line
