WPL305 Thermal Label Printer
User’s Guide
For Wasp Technologies
DT/TT Printer
Ó Copyright Wasp Bar Code Technologies 2004.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form or by any means without the written permission of Wasp Bar
Code Technologies. The information contained in this document is
subject to change without notice.
Wasp is a trademark of Wasp Bar Code Technologies. All other trademarks are the property of their
respective owners.
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1. Introduction
Thank you for purchasing the W305 Thermal Transfer and Direct Thermal Bar
Code Printer. Although the printer takes only a small amount of space, it
delivers reliable, superior performance.
This printer provides both thermal transfer and direct thermal printing at user
selectable speed of: 2.0, 3.0, 4.0 or 5.0ips. It accepts roll feed, die-cut, and
fan-fold labels for both thermal transfer and direct thermal printing. All
common bar codes formats are available. Fonts and bar codes can be printed
in 4 directions, 8 different alphanumeric bitmap fonts and a build-in true type
font capability. You will enjoy high throughput for printing labels with this
printer.
2. Getting Started
2.1 Unpacking and Inspection
This printer has been specially packaged to withstand damage during
shipping. Please carefully inspect the packaging and printer upon receipt.
Please retain the packaging materials in case you need to reship the printer.
2.2 Equipment Checklist
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Printer
Software CD disk
Sample ribbon roll
Sample label roll
Label spindle (1 inch diameter core)
2 Label spindle fixed tabs with 1.5” core adapters
Paper core
2 Ribbon supply/rewind spindles
Parallel / Centronics cable
Auto switching power supply
Power cord
Quick start guide
To unpack the unit, remove the packaging material and parts carefully from
the box. Remove and discard the tape holding the two halves of the printer
and the media door. Open the media door and remove the Styrofoam. Open
the printer and remove the two cushioning pads from the mouth of the printer.
Remove the protective covers over the media door and back viewing door.
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2.3 Printer Parts
Ribbon Access Window
LED Indicator
Feed Button
Printer Top Cover
Top Cover Open Lever
Figure 1: Top front view
3. Setup
3.1 Setting Up the Printer
1. Place the printer on a flat, secure surface.
2. Make sure the power switch is off.
3. Connect the printer to the computer with the Centronics or USB cable.
4. Plug the power cord into the power supply connector at the rear of the
printer, and then plug the power cord into a properly grounded
receptable.
Rear Paper Guides
Wall
Plug
Power Supply
USB Centronics
/ Parallel
Power Switch
RS-
Power
Figure 2: Back of Printer Parts
3.2 Loading the Ribbon
The printer automatically detects if a ribbon is installed after power on and will
switch to thermal transfer or direct thermal printing mode. If printer does not
detect the ribbon, the motor that drives the ribbon rewind spindle will be
turned off. In case the ribbon is installed but the printer does not detect the
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ribbon, please refer to the ribbon calibration procedure to calibrate the ribbon
sensor.
NOTE: If you are using direct thermal labels you should not load a ribbon.
1. Push down on the ribbon access window to unlock and open the cover.
2. Wasp Ribbons come with the cardboard rewind core already attached to
the ribbon for ease of accurate installation. Arrange the ribbon and core as
seen in the picture below so that the core is rolled out about 4 inches and
the dull side of the printer ribbon is facing toward you. On Wasp Ribbons
the Wasp logo should face you.
Rewind Core
Spindle
Ribbon Core
3. Put the two spindles into the two cores from the right. Make sure the right
side of the spindle is flush with the core after insertion.
4. Pull the cover access lever to open the printer
5. Hold the ribbon with the wide end of the spindle on the right and lower the
rewind core through the back of the ribbon compartment
Back Hub
Ribbon Access Window
Front Hub
Figure 3: Ribbon installation
6. Attach the ribbon spindle to the Back Hub by placing the left side of the
spindle against the knob with the spring on it and compressing with the
ribbon spindle. Slide the right side down over the other knob. The ribbon
spindle should not be able to be removed without re-compressing the
spring. You may have to turn the ribbon until the grooves on the spindle
align and it clicks into place.
7. Reach between the two halves of the printer and gently pull the rewind
spindle and core under and around the print head and mount it on the
Front Hub as above.
8. Rotate the ribbon rewind core away from you until the black ribbon is on
the rewind core.
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Make sure both the ribbon access window and the printer top cover are
closed when powering up the printer.
3.3 Loading Label Stock
1. Insert a 1” label spindle into the label roll. If your paper core is 1 inch, you
can remove the 1.5” core adapters from the centering tab. If the label width
is 4 inches wide, the two centering tabs are not required.
1.5” Core Adapter
1” Label Spindle
Printing Side
Face Up
Centering Tab
Figure 4: Label Roll Installation
2. Open the printer’s top cover by pulling the yellow top cover open levers
located on each side of the printer and lifting the top cover. A top cover
support at the rear of the printer will hold the printer top cover open.
Lower Cover
Figure 5: Pull the lever to open the cover
3. Place the roll of labels onto the center of the paper roll mount.
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Printer Top Cover
Support Bar
Paper Roll Mount
Paper Guide
Teflon Bar
Top Cover Open Lever
Figure 6: Label installation
4. Feed the paper, printing side face up, under the Teflon bar and the paper
guide and pass over the platen.
5. Adjust the yellow center-biased paper guides to slightly touch the edges of
the label backing.
6. To close the printer top cover, lift the cover to the ultimate open angle then
use both hands to close the cover gently. Close the printer top cover
slowly and make sure the cover locks latch securely.
Note:
1. Make sure hands are not placed in the printer when close the top
cover.
2. Do not allow the top cover to slam closed.
3. Failure to securely close and lock the cover will result in poor
print quality.
3.7 Top Cover Operation
To Open:
1. When facing the front of the printer pull the cover release levers on both
sides of the printer towards you.
2. Lift the top gradually.
There are two stop positions for the top cover. Position 1 and 2 are
indicated on the label below.
Note: To hold the cover open at position 1, you must lift the cover
higher than the stopping point at position 1 and gently lower the
cover to stopping point 1. Do not let the cover free fall!
3. Fully open the top cover and gently lower it to stop position 2.
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Figure 7: Top cover support is fixed at position 2
4. To close the cover, lift up the top cover to the ultimate angle then close the
top cover gently and it will be kept at a stop position between 1 and 2 for a
while. The cover will close automatically after several minutes. If you want
to speed the closing, use both hands to gently push down the top cover to
close it and make sure the cover is latched on both sides.
Note: Do not place your hands between top cover and lower cover
when closing the top cover!
Figure 8: Top cover is fully open and ready to close
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Figure 9: Use both hands to close the top cover
5. Do not force the cover! If you are not sure if top cover is locked at a stop
position, please do not push top cover to close it or the top cover will be
damaged. Instead, open the top cover as wide as it will go and close the
cover again. Use both hands to push top cover to close it.
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4. Power on Utilities
There are three power-on utilities to set up and test printer hardware.
1. Printer initialization
2. Ribbon sensor calibration
3. Gap or black mark sensor calibration
Note: You must run the #2 and #3 utilities after running the #1 to properly set
up the printer.
4.1 Initialization
Printer initialization is used to clear DRAM and restore printer settings to
factory defaults. The only one exception is ribbon sensitivity, which will not be
restored to default.
1. Turn the printer power off.
2. Press and hold the FEED button and then turn on the printer.
3. The LED will turn orange, blink red 5 times, blink orange 5 times and then
blink green 5 times. Release after the first green light blink.
4. Printer configuration will be restored to defaults as below after initialization.
WARNING: This will reset all saved settings in the printer.
Parameter
Speed
Default setting
W305, 127 mm/sec (5 ips)
Density
7
Label Width
Label Height
Sensor Type
Gap Setting
Print Direction
Reference Point
Offset
4.25” (108.0 mm)
2.5” (63.4 mm)
Gap sensor
0.12” (3.0 mm)
0
0,0 (upper left corner)
0
Tear Mode
Peel off Mode
Cutter Mode
On
Off
Off
9600 bps, none parity,
8 data bits, 1 stop bit
Serial Port Settings
Code Page
Country Code
850
001
Clear Flash Memory No
4.2 Ribbon Sensor Calibration
Note: Please make sure the ribbon is properly installed before doing this
calibration.
Please follow the steps below to calibrate the ribbon sensor.
1. Turn the printer power off.
2. Press and hold the FEED button then turn on the printer.
3. The LED will turn orange then blink red 5 times. Release after the first red
blink and before the 5rd.
4. If the ribbon is properly installed the light will turn green. If it is not it will
turn red and blink.
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4.3 Gap/Black Mark Calibration
Gap/black mark sensor sensitivity should be calibrated at the following
conditions:
1. A brand new printer
2. Change label stock
3. Printer initialization
Please follow the steps below to calibrate the sensor.
1. Turn the printer power off.
2. Press and hold the FEED button then turn on the printer.
3. The LED will turn orange, blink red 5 times and then blink orange 5 times.
Release after the first orange blink and before the 5th orange blink.
Calibrating the gap/black mark sensor will measure the label length, print the
internal configuration and then enter dump mode.
The self-test printout can be used to check for dot damage on the print head
and can be used to check printer configurations and available memory space.
Turn the printer off and back on to resume normal printing.
Print head check pattern
Firmware version
Firmware checksum
Printed mileage (meter)
Serial port configuration
Country code
Print speed (inch/sec)
Print darkness
Label size (inch)
Gap distance (inch)
Gap/black mark sensor sensitivity
Numbers of download files
Total & available memory space
Figure 10: Self-test printout
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The printer will enter dump mode after printing the printer configuration. In
dump mode, all characters will be printed in 2 columns as in the figure below.
ASCII Data
Hex decimal data
related to left
column of ASCII
data
Figure 11: Dump mode printout
The left side characters are received from your system and the right side data
are the corresponding hexadecimal values of the characters. Dump mode
allows users to verify and debug the program. Turn the printer off and back on
to resume normal printing.
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5. Maintenance
5.1 Cleaning
Use one or more of the following supplies that meets your needs:
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Cleaning pens
Cleaning swabs
Lint-free cloth
Printer Part
Method
Printer Head
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Let the print head to cool for one minute.
Use a cleaning pen to swab the print elements.
Rotate the platen roller and wipe it thoroughly
with 70% alcohol and a cleaning swab, or lint-
free cloth.
Platen Roller
Exterior
Interior
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Wipe it with water-dampened cloth.
Brush or air blow.
6. Troubleshooting
This section lists common problems and some suggested solutions. Problems
are indicated by the LED light pattern.
6.1 LED Status
LED Status / Color
Off
Printer Status
Solution Number
off
on
Pause
Stopped
1
2
3
4
Solid Green
Blinking Green
Blinking Red
1. No power.
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Turn on the power switch.
Check if the green LED is lit on the power supply. If it is not on, the
power supply may be broken.
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Check both power connection from the power cord to the power
supply and from the power supply to the printer power jack.
2. The printer is on and ready to use.
No action necessary.
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3. The printer is paused.
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Press the feed button to resume printing.
4. The printer is out of label or ribbon or the printer settings are not
correct
Out of label or ribbon
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Load a roll of labels and follow the instructions in Loading the
Labels, then press the feed button to resume printing.
Load a ribbon and follow the instructions in Loading the Ribbon
then press the feed button to resume printing.
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Printer setting is not correct
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Utilities.
6.2 Print Quality
Continuous feeding labels
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The printer settings may be wrong. Please do the Initialization and
Gap/Black Mark Calibration.
No print on the label
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Is the label or ribbon loaded correctly? Follow the instructions in
Loading the Labels or Loading the Ribbon.
Has the ribbon run out? Follow the instructions in Loading the
Ribbon.
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Poor print quality
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Top cover is not closed properly. Close the top cover completely and
make sure the right side and left side levers are latched to the top
cover properly.
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Clean the thermal print head.
Adjust the print density setting.
Ribbon and paper media are not compatible.
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7. Specifications
7.1 Printer Specifications
Item
W305
Mechanism
Resolution
203 dpi.
108 mm.
1000 mm ( 39” ).
Max. Print Width
Max. Print Length
Ribbon Capacity
Printing Speed
Peeler function
Printing Method
Enclosure
300 meter with 1” core. (Max. OD 67 mm)
2, 3, 4 and 5 ips.
2, 3 ips
Direct thermal and thermal transfer printing.
Structure
Double-walled plastic.
Dimension
Operation Panel
Standard Model: 314mm(L) x 213mm(W) x 188mm(H)
One push switch, and one indicator LED (Green,
Orange, Red).
Hardware
Sensor
Transmissive sensor (offset 6 mm from liner
edge).
Reflective sensor (position adjustable).
Head open micro switch.
Ribbon end sensor
Memory
Interface
1M byte Flash memory
2M bytes DRAM
RS-232C (max baud rate, 19,200 bps).
USB: V1.1.
Centronics.
Power
AC input: 100-240V universal auto switching power
supply.
DC output: 24V 3.75A.
Firmware
Font Type
Rotation
8 alpha-numeric bitmap fonts, and 1 true type font.
0, 90,180 and 270 degrees.
Symbology Formats
1D: Code 39, Code 93, Code 128UCC, Code128
subsets A.B.C, Codabar, Interleave 2 of 5, EAN-8,
EAN-13, EAN-128, UPC-A, UPC-E, EAN and
UPC2(5) digits add-on, MSI, PLESSEY, POSTNET,
CPOST
2D: PDF-417, Maxicode, and DataMatrix.
WPL
Command Set
Environment
Operation
Temperature: 5_ ~ 40_.
Relative Humidity: 25% ~ 85% (Non Condensing).
Storage
Temperature: -40_ ~ 60_.
Relative Humidity: 10% ~ 90% (Non Condensing).
7.2 Label Stock Specifications
Item
Specification
Type
Label (Continuous , Die-cut , Fan-fold).
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Wound Type
Width
Outside wound.
20mm ~ 112mm (0.78” ~ 4.4”).
Length
10mm ~ 1000mm (0.4” ~ 39”).
25.4mm ~ 1000mm (1” ~ 39”).(for peeler and cutter)
Thickness
0.06mm ~ 0.19mm. (2.3~7.4 mil), max. 150g/m2
Roll Diameter
5”.
Roll Core Diameter
Gap Height
25.4mm ~ 76.2mm (1” ~ 3”).
2mm min.
Black Mark Height
Black Mark Width
2mm min.
8mm min.
7.3 Ribbon Specifications
Item
Specification
Type
Wax, Wax / Resin, Resin.
Core Diameter
Width
Capacity
Wound Type
Ribbon End
1".
Max 110mm.
300m with 1" core.
Outside wound.
Clear or silver end tape.
7.4. LED and Button Operation
LEDColor
Description
Green
Orange
Red
The power is on and the device is ready to use.
The system is detecting the paper and ribbon status.
Printing error, such as paper empty, ribbon empty,
cover opened, etc.
8. Product Support
If you experience any problems with your Wasp printer that you are unable to resolve,
use our online support site to register then call for technical assistance at (214) 547-
4100, Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM Central Standard Time. You must
register to be eligible for technical support. Our web site is
You may also contact us in writing at:
Wasp Technologies
1400 10th Street
Plano, TX 75074
(214) 547-4100
(214) 547-4101 Fax
9. Warranty Information
Wasp printers are warranted against defects in workmanship and materials for a
period of one year from the date of shipment, provided that the product remains
unmodified and is operated under normal and proper conditions.
Note: Print heads are warranted for 90 days against defect in workmanship. Print
heads will be replaced during the 90 day period once it is determined that the
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This warranty is limited to repair or replacement at Wasp Technologies’ option, with
reasonable promptness after being notified. These provisions do not prolong the
original warranty term for any product which has been repaired or replaced by Wasp
Technologies.
This warranty applies to the original owner and does not extend to any product which
has been subject to misuse, neglect, accidental damage, unauthorized repair, or
tampering.
No other express warranty is given. The replacement or repair of a product is your
exclusive remedy. Any other implied warranty of merchantability or fitness is limited
to the duration of this written warranty. Some states, provinces and countries do not
allow how long an implied warranty lasts, so the above limitation may not apply to
you.
In no event shall Wasp Technologies be liable for consequential damages. Some
states, provinces, and countries do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental
or consequential damages, so the above may not apply to you.
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