• ZT510 Industrial Printer User Guide
FEED Self Test
FEED Self Test

FEED Self Test

Different types of media may require different darkness settings. This section contains a simple but effective method for determining the ideal darkness for printing bar codes that are within specifications.
During the FEED self test, labels are printed at different darkness settings at two different print speeds. The relative darkness and the print speed are printed on each label. The bar codes on these labels may be ANSI-graded to check print quality. During this test, one set of labels is printed at 2 ips, and another set is printed at 6 ips.
The darkness value starts at three settings lower than the printer’s current darkness value (relative darkness of –3) and increase until the darkness is three settings higher than the current darkness value (relative darkness of +3).
  1. Print a configuration label to show the printer’s current settings.
  2. Turn off (O) the printer.
  3. Press and hold
    FEED
     while turning on (I) the printer. Hold
    FEED
     until the first control panel light turns off.
    The printer prints a series of labels at various speeds and at darkness settings higher and lower than the darkness value shown on the configuration label.
    Sample Darkness and Speed Test Label
  4. See Evaluating Barcode Quality. Inspect the test labels and determine which one has the best print quality for your application. If you have a barcode verifier, use it to measure bars/spaces and calculate the print contrast. If you do not have a barcode verifier, use your eyes or the system scanner to choose the optimal darkness setting based on the labels printed in this self test.
  5. Note the relative darkness value and the print speed printed on the best test label.
  6. Add or subtract the relative darkness value from the darkness value specified on the configuration label. The resulting numeric value is the best darkness value for that specific label/ribbon combination and print speed.
  7. If necessary, change the darkness value to the darkness value on the best test label.
  8. If necessary, change the print speed to the same speed as on the best test label.