How to Repair a Large Format Printer
Printers are complex marvels of technology, consisting of many different mechanical actuators, computer circuits, LCD displays and data buses. Large format printers are even more of a marvel because their components are extra large. While this may make the repair job easier in one respect--more room to work inside the printer--it also makes the sourcing of repair parts more difficult due to their rarity.
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Instructions
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Appraise the situation. Remove by hand the piece of the paper that was being printed; pull along both sides of the paper with a gently tugging motion. Try to get the printer to print again as it may have just been a paper jam. If not, pull the paper tray out and make sure the top piece of paper in the pile is not feeding incorrectly into the printing mechanism. The tray pulls out by hand toward you. The errant piece of paper will be stuck midfeed if that is the cause of the malfunction.
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Look behind the printer and the computer to make sure that the connection is not damaged. There will be a USB cable going between the computer and the large format printer. Make sure it is firmly seated in both by first pulling the USB plug out of the USB port on the large format printer, then reinstalling the plug by hand. Then pull the USB plug out of the USB port on the computer and reinsert the plug. The USB plugs should be flush against their respective ports. Then examine the power cord going to the large format printer. Make sure that the plug is firmly in the power port and that the other end is in a surge protector. Surge protectors smooth out the power jumps in the power current, which can cause malfunctions in the large format printer.
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Press the power button for several seconds to turn the large format printer off. Then press the power button again to turn the machine back on. Look at the LCD display to check for any error codes. Write down any error codes that are displayed as they may disappear once the menu comes up on the LCD screen. Consult your manual to see what the error code is referring to. If the manual details a correction process, follow the instructions to correct that error code. Most error codes require that you call the printer manufacturer's customer service line. Tell the customer service representative what error codes you have received and what you have tried to do to correct the malfunction.
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References
- Photo Credit The printer image by vin5 from Fotolia.com
