Information Systems:Mobile belt printers
Overview
Receiving uses mobile printers to create putaway labels. The model is Zebra QLn420 These are direct thermal printers that print to special labels i.e. so no ink or ribbon is required.
In June of 2017, six new Zebra QLn420 mobile printers were purchased and configured for use. Each device has a hostname of MBPTR07 - MBPTR12 with a suffix of unipharm.local. The static range of IP addresses used by these printers is 172.30.17.50-55. The printers use 802.11n and are currently set to use the "uwddc1" SSID. Each printer has its own assigned out queue on the Power8 so that staff in Receiving can use the printers to print labels. The important settings for the proper configuration of the out queues, are as follows:
- Manufacturer type or model - *WSCST
- Workstation Customization Object - Z4XIWSCST in library TLABARCODE
- The INTNETADR does need to be an IP address instead of a hostname which is sucky
- Need to use PortLF1
- Set writers to 1
- Connection Type needs to be IP and use *OTHER instead of *AS400
When configuring new printers with out queues for the Power8, be aware that the writer for the queue needs to be ended before configuration changes are made and the new printer needs to be added to the zone table (DFU from a DC menu option) so that the RF Guns can actually print to the device. Zebra also has Windows based configuration program available from the website that can be downloaded and used to configure the printer devices. There is also a mobile app that can be used from an Android phone that can connect to the assigned IP address of the printer and manage it that way. If the printer needs to be configured using the Windows program it will require an old style mini-USB cable. Device drivers for the printer are included in the Zebra program for Windows.
Troubleshooting
Belt printers stop working in Receiving
Problem: At times a single or multiple belt printers will suddenly stop working.
Solution: Reboot the ap10c541 access point. If a single printer stops working, ask Receiving to use another printer. If the situation is dire and multiple printers stop working, reboot the access point. Once rebooted, if the printers still do not print, clear their output queues as the print jobs for old labels may still be there hanging up the queue.
Explanation: Wireless communication between the belt printers is weak as the radio is only 802.11b while the security protocol used is WPA2, which is fairly taxing on devices with older radios.
Other
Device upgrade
- Original grey Zebra QL420 mobile printers replaced in June of 2017 with QLn420.