Section 1. Printer Overview; Introduction; Compatibility - SATO M-8400RV Operator And Technical Reference Manual

INTRODUCTION

The SATO M-8400RV Thermal Transfer Printer is a complete, high-performance
on-site labeling systems. All printer parameters are user programmable using the
front panel controls and the DIP switches. All popular bar codes and 12
human-readable fonts, including a vector font, are resident in memory providing
literally thousands of type styles and sizes.
The Operator's Manual will help you understand the basic operations of the printer
such as setup, installation, configuration, cleaning and maintenance.
The M-8400RV has a resolution of 203 dpi and can print labels up to four inches wide.
The M-8400RV uses the standard SATO RISC printer command codes. The only
differences between it and other RISC printers are the allowable values representing
the print positions on the label. These values are specified in "dots" and will vary
depending upon the resolution of the printer and the amount of memory available for
imaging the label. The allowable range for the M-8400RV is specified in a table for
those command codes.
This commonality makes it very easy to convert labels from one RISC printer to
another without having to create an entirely different command stream. There are
some caveats that must be observed though to compensate for the different resolution
print heads. The effect of the different printer resolutions are best illustrated by
taking a label designed for a 203 dpi printer and sending the command stream to the
its 305 dpi counterpart. The label printed will be an exact two-thirds scale, including
the fonts, bar code dimensions and line lengths/widths. The only exception is the
PostNet bar code which has only one legal size and the printer resolution is
automatically compensated for by the printer. Conversely, a label designed for a 305
dpi printer and sent to its 203 dpi cousin will be one-third larger. It probably will be
"truncated" if the label size is larger than the maximum allowable for the printer.
The following general information is presented in this section:
Compatibility Information
General Printer Specifications
Optional Accessories

COMPATIBILITY

The M-8400RV was designed to be compatible with the standard M-8400. If all of the
rules for command usage were followed when designing labels for an M-8400, then
the same command stream should create the same label on an M-8400RV. However,
the older M-8400 was more lenient in allowing the user to "bend" the rules,
especially in the area of the allowable sequence of commands. Because the thruput of
SATO M-8400RV
SECTION 1.
PRINTER OVERVIEW
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