4 ZXP Series 7 Card Printer Service Manual P1036102-007
Theory of Operation
Card Movement During Printing
Card Movement During Printing
Step 1. The card is fed from the Feeder Cartridge into the Printer.
Step 2. As the card is moved into the Printer, it is cleaned via the Cleaning Cartridge;
this cleans dust and dirt particles from both sides of the card.
Step 3. If the Printer includes an optional Smart Card Encoder (either contact-style
or contactless), the card is moved to the Encoder; and the smart card is
encoded. As the card is encoded, it is checked to verify that it was encoded
properly. If encoding fails, the card is moved to the Reject Bin. This is done
to avoid wasting time and ribbon panels on a defective card. If the encoding
is successful, the card is moved into the pre-print position, just before the
Printhead.
Step 4. If the Printer includes an optional Magnetic Stripe Encoder, the card is
moved to the Encoder; and the magnetic stripe is encoded. The card is then
backed up and run through the Magnetic Stripe Encoder again; on this pass
the card is read to verify that the magnetic stripe was properly encoded.
If encoding fails, the card is moved to the Reject Bin. As with failed smart
card encoding, this is done to avoid wasting time and ribbon panels on a
defective card. If the encoding is successful, the card is moved into the pre-
print position, just before the Printhead.
Step 5. The card is printed.
Dye-Sublimation Printing
When the Print Cover is opened and closed, the ribbon is synchronized,
thereby bringing the leading edge of the Yellow ribbon panel (e.g., a YMCKO
ribbon) under the Printhead.
The leading edge of the card is moved under the Printhead (over the Platen
Roller), and the Printhead is lowered. Lowering the Printhead reduces the
space between the Printhead, the ribbon, and the card, which produces
sharper images.
As the card and ribbon move along, each element of the Printhead receives
a pulse of variable width; a wider pulse results in a hotter element which
melts a larger amount of yellow dye onto that particular spot on the card.
After this Yellow (Y) pass is completed, the Printhead is raised, the card is
moved back, and printing continues with the Magenta (M) ribbon panel,
then the Cyan (C) panel, then the Black (K) panel, and finally the Overlay (O)
panel.
Thermal-Transfer Printing
If using a monochrome ribbon, the card makes a single pass under the
Printhead. The Printhead elements are energized to either on or o. The
on level actually transfers the spot of resin under the Printhead element to
the card. This results in the sharpest possible images; for bar codes you
want the sharpest edges and highest contrast between dark and un-printed
areas.
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