This is gimpprint.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.0 from
gimpprint.texi.
INFO-DIR-SECTION Libraries
START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
* GIMP-Print: (gimpprint). print plugin for the GIMP, and printing library
END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
This file documents the gimpprint library and associated programs
used for high quality printing.
Copyright (C) 2001 Michael Sweet (<mike@easysw.com>) and Robert
Krawitz (<rlk@alum.mit.edu>)
Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are
preserved on all copies.
Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of
this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that
the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
permission notice identical to this one.
Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this
manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified
versions, except that this permission notice may be stated in a
translation approved by the Foundation.
File: gimpprint.info, Node: Oversampling, Prev: What is perfect weaving?, Up: Weaving algorithms
Oversampling
------------
By oversampling, we mean printing on the same row more than once.
There are two reasons for oversampling: to increase the horizontal
resolution of the printout and to reduce banding.
Oversampling to increase horizontal resolution is necessary because,
although the printer might be able to position an ink drop to, for
example, 1/1440" horizontally, it may not be able to lay down two such
drops 1/1440" apart. If it can print two drops 1/720" apart, 2x
oversampling will be necessary to get a 1/1440" horizontal resolution.
If it can only print two drops 1/360" apart, 4x oversampling will be
necessary for a 1/1440" horizontal resolution. The printer enforces
this "drop spacing" by only accepting raster passes with a horizontal
resolution matching the spacing with which it can print dots, so we
must print passes at different horizontal positions if we are to obtain
a higher horizontal resolution. (Another reason it does this may be to
reduce the amount of memory needed in the printer.)
Oversampling can also be done to decrease the banding apparent in an
image. By splitting a row into two or more sets of dots ("lines") and
printing each line on the same row, but with a different nozzle for
each line, we can get a smoother print.
To quantify these two kinds of oversampling, we'll introduce two new
constants: H shows how many different horizontal offsets we want to
print at (the "horizontal oversampling") while O shows how many times
we want to print each row, over and above the number of times necessary
for horizontal oversampling (the "extra oversampling").
It is necessary for all the lines printed by a given pass to have the
same horizontal offset, but there need not be any relation between them
in terms of extra oversampling. For the moment, however, we will treat
all oversampling as potentially requiring this alignment; all lines in
one pass must be derived from the original row data in the same way.
Thus, we'll assume O=1 for now.
So, how do we do this oversampling? In fact, it can be done easily:
advance the paper by a factor of H less between each pass. We'll
define a new variable, A, to show how much we advance the paper between
passes. Previously, we'd have defined A=J; we now let A=J/H. This
also affects our pass blocks. Printing one pass block used to involve
advancing the paper S*J rows; it now advances the paper S*J/H rows. We
therefore name a group of H pass blocks a "band". Printing one band
involves advancing the paper S*J rows, as a pass block did before.
To keep our weave pattern working correctly, so that overprinting
does not occur within a pass block, we also have to redefine G as
GCD(S,A). Here's an example of an oversampled weave pattern:
S=4, J=10, H=2, A=J/H=10/2=5, G=GCD(4,5)=1,
passesperblock=S=4,
passespersubblock=S/G=4/1=4:
0 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
1 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
2 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
3 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
4 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
5 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
6 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
7 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
8 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
9 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
10 *---*---*---*---*---*---*---
11 *---*---*---*---*---*--
12 *---*---*---*---*-
13 *---*---*---*
14 *---*---
15 *--
Now we have to determine which line is printed by each jet on each
pass. If we number each line generated as we split up a row, we can
use these numbers. We'll number the lines in our diagram by replacing
the `*'s with integers in the range [0...H-1].
Overprinting occurs once per pass block, so we can simply print pass
block 0 with line 0, pass block 1 with line 1, pass block 2 with line
2, etc, wrapping to 0 when we've run out of lines:
0 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
1 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
2 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
3 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
4 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
5 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
6 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
7 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
8 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
9 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
10 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---
11 0---0---0---0---0---0--
12 1---1---1---1---1-
13 1---1---1---1
14 1---1---
15 1--
S=4, J=12, H=2, A=J/H=12/2=6, G=GCD(4,6)=2,
passesperblock=S=4,
passespersubblock=S/G=4/2=2:
0 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
1 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
2 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
3 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
4 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
5 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
6 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
7 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1--
8 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0-
9 0---0---0---0---0---0---
10 0---0---0---0---0
11 0---0---0--
12 1---1-
But what do we do if J is not an exact multiple of H? This is a
difficult problem, which I struggled with for quite a few days before
giving in and taking the easy (but less elegant) way out. The easy
solution is to round J/H down, then add on the accumulated error at the
end of each band.
S=4, J=11, H=2 A=floor(J/H)=floor(11/2)=5, G=GCD(4,5),
passesperblock=S=4,
passespersubblock=S/G=4/1=4
Band 0:
0 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
1 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
2 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
3 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
4 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
5 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
6 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1
7 1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---1---
Band 1:
8 | 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0-
9 \-----------------------------------------/ 0---0---0---0---0---0---0---0
10 S*J rows 0---0---0---0---0---0---
11 0---0---0---0---0--
12 1---1---1---1-
13 1---1---1
14 1---
We can calculate the starting row and subpass number of a given pass
in this scheme as follows:
A = floor(J / H)
subblocksperblock = gcd(S, A)
subpassblock = floor((p % S) * subblocksperblock / S)
if subpassblock * 2 < subblocksperblock
subblockoffset = 2*subpassblock
else
subblockoffset = 2*(subblocksperblock-subpassblock)-1
band = floor(P / (S * H))
passinband = P % (S * H)
startingrow = band * S * J + passinband * A + subblockoffset
subpass = passinband / S
So the row number of jet j of pass p is
A = floor(J / H)
subblocksperblock = gcd(S, A)
subblockoffset(p)
= 2*subpassblock , if subpassblock * 2 < subblocksperblock
= 2*(subblocksperblock-subpassblock)-1 , otherwise
where
subpassblock = floor((p % S) * subblocksperblock / S)
band(p) = floor(p / (S * H))
passinband(p) = p % (S * H)
row(j, p) = band(p) * S * J + passinband(p) * A + subblockoffset(p) + j * S
row(j, p) = p * J + subblockoffset(p) + j * S
To be continued....
File: gimpprint.info, Node: ESC/P2, Next: New Printer, Prev: Weaving, Up: Appendices
ESC/P2
******
* Menu:
* ESC/P2 Introduction:: What is ESC/P2
* ESC/P2 Standard Commands:: Normal ESC/P2 commands
* ESC/P2 Remote Mode Commands:: Exotic ESC/P2 commands
* ESC/P2 Appropriate Remote Commands:: Useful remote command sequences
File: gimpprint.info, Node: ESC/P2 Introduction, Next: ESC/P2 Standard Commands, Up: ESC/P2
Introduction to ESC/P2
======================
This is a description of the ESC/P2 raster commands used by the
gimp-print plugin and Ghostscript driver, which is a subset of the
complete command set. The full documents are found on
<http://www.ercipd.com/isv/edr_docs.htm>. Note that these are *not*
always correct, and are certainly not complete.
All ESCP/2 raster commands begin with the `ESC' character (1b hex),
followed by either one or two command characters and arguments where
applicable. Older commands generally have one command character. Newer
commands usually have a `(' (left parenthesis) followed by a command
character and a byte count for the arguments that follow. The byte
count is a 16-bit (2 byte) binary integer, in little endian order.
All arguments listed here are of the form `name[bytes]' where
`[bytes]' is the number of bytes that comprise the argument. The
arguments themselves are usually one, two, or four byte integers, always
little endian (the least significant bits come first). Presumably this
is to match Intel processors.
In some cases, the same command sequence identifies different
versions of the same command, depending upon the number of bytes of
arguments.
File: gimpprint.info, Node: ESC/P2 Standard Commands, Next: ESC/P2 Remote Mode Commands, Prev: ESC/P2 Introduction, Up: ESC/P2
Standard commands
=================
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC @'
Reset the printer. Discards any output, ejects the existing page,
returns all settings to their default. Always use this before
printing a page.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (G BC=1 ON1'
Turn on graphics mode. ON should be `1' (turn on graphics mode).
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (U BC=1 UNIT1'
Set basic unit of measurement used by printer. This is expressed
in multiples of 1/3600". At 720 DPI, UNIT is `5'; at 360 DPI,
UNIT is `10'.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (U BC=5 PAGEUNITS1 VUNIT1 HUNIT1 BASEUNIT2'
Set basic units of measurement used by the printer. PAGEUNIT is
the unit of page measurement (for commands that set page
dimensions and the like). VUNIT is the unit of vertical
measurement (for vertical movement commands). HUNIT is the unit
of horizontal movement (for horizontal positioning commands). All
of these units are expressed in BASEUNIT, which is in reciprocal
inches. Typically, BASEUNIT is `1440'. In 720 DPI mode, PAGEUNIT,
VUNIT, and HUNIT are all `2'; in 1440x720 DPI mode, PAGEUNIT and
VUNIT are normally set to `2'; HUNIT is set to `1'.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (K BC=2 ZERO1 GRAYMODE1'
Set color or grayscale mode, on printers supporting an explicit
grayscale mode. These printers can be identified because they are
advertised as having more black nozzles than nozzles of individual
colors. Setting grayscale mode allows use of these extra nozzles
for faster printing. GRAYMODE should be `0' or `2' for color, `1'
for grayscale. ZERO should always be `0'.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (i BC=1 MICROWEAVE1'
If MICROWEAVE is `1', use microweave mode. On older printers,
this is used to turn on microweave; on newer printers, it prints
one row at a time. All printers support this mode. It should
only be used at 720 (or 1440x720) DPI. The Epson Stylus Pro series
indicates additional modes:
`2'
"Full-overlap"
`3'
"Four-pass"
`4'
"Full-overlap 2"
Any of these commands can be used with the high four bits set to
either `3' or `0'.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC U DIRECTION1'
If DIRECTION is `1', print unidirectionally; if `0', print
bidirectionally.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (s BC=1 SPEED1'
On some older printers, this controls the print head speed. SPEED
of `2' is 10 inches/sec; SPEED of `0' or 1 is 20.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (e BC=2 ZERO1 DOTSIZE1'
Choose print dotsize. DOTSIZE can take on various values,
depending upon the printer. Almost all printers support `0' and
`2'. Variable dot size printers allow a value of 16. Other than
the value of 16, this appears to be ignored at resolutions of 720
DPI and above.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (C BC=2 PAGELENGTH2'
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (C BC=4 PAGELENGTH4'
Set the length of the page in "pageunits" (see `ESC (U' above).
The second form of the command allows setting of longer page
lengths on new printers (these happen to be the printers that
support variable dot size).
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (c BC=4 TOP2 LENGTH2'
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (c BC=8 TOP4 LENGTH4'
Set the vertical page margins of the page in "pageunits" (see `ESC
(U' above). The margins are specified as the top of the page and
the length of the page. The second form of the command allows
setting of longer page lengths on new printers (these happen to be
the printers that support variable dot size).
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (S BC=8 WIDTH4 LENGTH4'
Set the width and length of the printed page region in "pageunits"
(see `ESC (U' above).
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (v BC=2 ADVANCE2'
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (v BC=4 ADVANCE4'
Feed vertically ADVANCE "vertical units" (see `ESC (U' above) from
the current print head position.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (V BC=2 ADVANCE2'
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (V BC=4 ADVANCE4'
Feed vertically ADVANCE "vertical units" (see `ESC (U' above) from
the top margin.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC ($ BC=4 OFFSET4'
Set horizontal position to OFFSET from the left margin. This
command operates on printers of the 740 class and newer (all
printers with variable dot size).
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC $ OFFSET2'
Set horizontal position to OFFSET from the left margin. This
command operates on printers of the 740 class and newer (all
printers with variable dot size).
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (\ BC=4 UNITS2 OFFSET2'
Set horizontal position to OFFSET from the previous print head
position, measured in UNITS. UNITS is measured in inverse inches,
and should be set to 1440 in all cases. This operates on all 1440
dpi printers that do not support variable dot size.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (/ BC=4 OFFSET4'
Set horizontal position to OFFSET from the previous print head
position, measured in "horizontal units" (see `ESC (U' above).
This operates on all variable dot size printers.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC \ OFFSET2'
Set horizontal position to OFFSET from the previous print head
position, measured in basic unit of measurement (see `ESC (U'
above). This is used on all 720 dpi printers, and can also be used
on 1440 dpi printers in lower resolutions to save a few bytes.
Note that OFFSET may be negative. The range of values for this
command is between `-16384' and `16383'.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC r COLOR1'
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (r BC=2 DENSITY1 COLOR1'
Set the ink color. The first form is used on four-color printers;
the second on six-color printers. DENSITY is `0' for dark inks,
`1' for light. COLOR is
`0'
black
`1'
magenta
`2'
cyan
`4'
yellow
This command is not used on variable dot size printers in softweave
mode.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC . COMPRESS1 VSEP1 HSEP1 LINES1 WIDTH2 DATA...'
Print data. COMPRESS signifies the compression mode:
`0'
no compression
`1'
TIFF compression (incorrectly documented as "run length
encoded")
`2'
TIFF compression with a special command set.
VSEP depends upon resolution and printer type. At 360 DPI, it is
always `10'. At 720 DPI, it is normally `5'5. On the ESC 600, it
is `40' (8 * 5). On some other printers, it varies.
HSEP1 is `10' at 360 DPI and `5' at 720 or 1440 DPI (1440 DPI
cannot be printed in one pass; it is printed in two passes, with
the dots separated in each pass by 1/720").
LINES is the number of lines to be printed. It should be `1' in
microweave and 360 DPI. At 720 DPI softweave, it should be the
number of lines to be actually printed.
WIDTH is the number of pixels to be printed in each row.
Following this command, a carriage return (`13' decimal, `0A' hex)
should be output to return the print head position to the left
margin.
The basic data format is a string of bytes, with data from left to
right on the page. Within each byte, the highest bit is first.
The TIFF compression is implemented as one count byte followed by
one or more data bytes. There are two cases:
1. If the count byte is `128' or less, it is followed by [count]
+ 1 data bytes. So if the count byte is `0', it is followed
by 1 data byte; if it is `128', it is followed by 129 data
bytes.
2. If the count byte is greater than 128, it is followed by one
byte. This byte is repeated (257 - [count]) times. So if
[count] is 129, the next byte is treated as though it were
repeated 128 times; if [count] is 255, it is treated as
though it were repeated twice.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC i COLOR1 COMPRESS1 BITS1 BYTES2 LINES2 DATA...'
Print data in the newer printers (that support variable dot size),
and Stylus Pro models.
COLOR is the color:
`0'
black
`1'
magenta
`2'
cyan
`4'
yellow
`17'
light magenta
`18'
light cyan
COMPRESS signifies the compression mode:
`0'
no compression
`1'
TIFF compression (incorrectly documented as "run length
encoded")
`2'
TIFF compression with a special command set.
BITS is the number of bits per pixel.
BYTES is the number of bytes wide for each row (ceiling(BITS *
width_of_row, 8)). Note that this is different from the `ESC .'
command above.
LINES is the number of lines to be printed. This command is the
only way to get variable dot size printing. In variable dot mode,
the size of the dots increases as the value (`1', `2', or `3')
increases.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (D BC=4 BASE2 VERTICAL1 HORIZONTAL1'
Set printer horizontal and vertical spacing. It only applies to
variable dot size printers in softweave mode (and possibly other
high end printers).
BASE is the base unit for this command; it must be `14400'.
VERTICAL is the distance in these units between printed rows; it
should be (separation_in_nozzles * BASE / 720).
HORIZONTAL is the horizontal separation between dots in a row.
Depending upon the printer, this should be either (14400 / 720) or
(14400 / 360). The Stylus Pro 9000 manual suggests that the
settings should match the chosen resolution, but that is
apparently not the case (or not always the case) on other printers.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC (R BC=8 00 R E M O T E 1'
Enters "remote mode". This is a special, undocumented command set
that is used to set up various printer options, such as paper feed
tray, and perform utility functions such as head cleaning and
alignment. It does not appear that anything here is actually
required to make the printer print. Our best understanding of
what is in a remote command sequence is described in a separate
section below.
- ESC/P2 command: `ESC 01 @EJL [sp] ID\r\n'
Return the printer ID. This is considered a remote mode command,
although the syntax is that of a conventional command. This
returns the following information:
@EJL ID\r
MFG:EPSON;
CMD:ESCPL2,BDC;
MDL:[printer model];
CLS:PRINTER;
DES:EPSON [printer model];
\f
After all data has been sent, a form feed byte should be sent.
All newer Epson printers (STC 440, STP 750) require the following
command to be sent at least once to enable printing at all. This
command specifically takes the printer out of the Epson packet mode
communication protocol (whatever that is) and enables normal data
transfer. Sending it multiple times is is not harmful, so it is
normally sent at the beginning of each job:
ESC 01@EJL[space]1284.4[newline]@EJL[space][space][space][space]
[space][newline]ESC@
The proper sequence of initialization commands is:
magic command
ESC remote mode if needed
ESC (G
ESC (U
ESC (K (if appropriate)
ESC (i
ESC U (if needed)
ESC (s (if appropriate)
ESC (e
ESC (C
ESC (c
ESC (S
ESC (D (if needed)
ESC (V (optional -- this can be accomplished with ESC (v)
For printing, the proper sequence is:
ESC (v
and repeat for each color:
ESC ($ or ESC (\ or ESC \
ESC (r or ESC r (if needed--not used with `ESC i' and not needed if the color
has not changed from the previous printed line)
ESC . or ESC i ...data... [return] (0A hex)
To terminate a page:
[formfeed] (0C hex)
ESC @
File: gimpprint.info, Node: ESC/P2 Remote Mode Commands, Next: ESC/P2 Appropriate Remote Commands, Prev: ESC/P2 Standard Commands, Up: ESC/P2
Remote Mode Commands
====================
The following description of remote commands comes out of an
examination of the sequences used by the printer utilities bundled with
the Windows drivers for the ESC740, and from other sources (some Epson
manuals, experimentation, analysis of print files). It is largely
speculative as these commands are not all documented in the Epson
documentation we have access to. Generally, newer manuals provide more
thorough documentation.
Remote command mode is entered when the printer is sent the following
sequence:
ESC (R BC=8 00 R E M O T E 1
Remote mode commands are then sent, and terminated with the following
sequence:
ESC 00 00 00
All remote mode commands must be sent before the initial `ESC (G'
command is sent.
This introductory sequence is then followed by a sequence of
commands. Each command is constructed as follows:
* Two ASCII bytes indicating the function
* A byte count (two bytes, little-endian) for the parameters
* Binary parameters, if any
This is a list of all remote commands we have seen:
- ESC/P2 remote command: `NC BC=2 00 00'
Print a nozzle check pattern
- ESC/P2 remote command: `VI BC=2 00 00'
on my 740, prints the following:
W01286 I02382\r\n
probably "version information"
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* AI BC=3 00 00 00'
Prints a "printer ID". On one 870, prints the following:
51-51-50-51-49-48\r\n
The Windows driver has a text entry field where this number can be
entered, but its purpose is unknown.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* LD BC=0'
Load printer defaults from NVRAM, DIP switches, and/or ROM. This
apparently does not load factory defaults per se, but any settings
that are saved. This is commonly used right at the end of each
print job after the `ESC @' printer reset command.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* CH BC=2 00 XX'
Perform a head cleaning cycle. The heads to clean are determined
by parameter XX:
`00'
clean all heads
`01'
clean black head
`02'
clean color heads
While XX = `00' is probably supported by all printers, XX = `01'
and `02' may well not be.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* DT BC=3 00 XX 00'
Print an alignment pattern. There are three patterns, which are
picked via the choice of XX. Pattern `0' is coarse, pattern `1'
is medium, and pattern `2' is fine.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* DU BC=6 00 XX 00 09 00 YY'
Print another alignment pattern. It isn't entirely clear what XX
and YY are, but it appears that XX takes on the values `1' and `2'
, and YY takes on the values `0' and 1. This may only work on the
580 and/or 480.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* DA BC=4 00 XX 00 YY'
Set results for the first alignment pattern. XX is the pattern
(`1'-`3'); YY is the best choice from the set (`1'-`7' or
`1'-`15'). This does not save to NVRAM, so when the printer is
powered off, the setting will be lost.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* DA BC=6 00 XX 00 YY 09 00'
Set results for alternate alignment pattern. XX appears to be the
pass, and YY appears to be the optimum pattern. This does not
save to NVRAM, so when the printer is powered off, the setting
will be lost.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* SV BC=0'
Save the current settings to NVRAM.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* RS BC=1 01'
Reset the printer.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* IQ BC=1 01'
Get ink quantity. This requires direct access to the printer
port. The return looks like
IQ:KKCCMMYY
or
IQ:KKCCMMYYccmm
(for 4-color and 6-color printers respectively), where each pair of
digits are hexadecimal representations of percent.
The following two commands have been observed on an STP 870.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* IR BC=2 00 XX'
*Function unknown*. This command has been observed on an STP 870
with XX=`03' at the start of a job and XX=`02' at the end of a job
(where it is followed by an `LD' command). When in roll mode, the
values change to XX=`01' at the start of a job and XX=`00' at the
end of a job.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* FP BC=3 00 XX YY'
XX=`00' and YY=`00' selects the printer's normal left margin
(about 3mm). XX=`0xb0' and YY=`0xff' selects zero-margin mode,
where the left-most print position is shifted to a point about
0.1" to the left of the left-hand edge of the paper, allowing
printing up to (and off) the left-hand edge of the paper.
The commands below are partially documented in the Stylus Pro 9000
manual. Much of this information is interpreted; none is tested.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* SN BC=3 00 XX YY'
Select Mechanism Sequence. XX controls which sub-operation is
performed. XX=`00' selects the "Feed paper sequence setting". YY
can take on the following values (on the STP 870, at any rate):
`0'
default
`1'
plain paper
`2'
postcards
`3'
film (photo quality glossy film, transparencies)
`4'
envelopes
`5'
plain paper (fast load)
`6'
back light film (although this has been observed with
heavyweight matte paper)
`7'
matte paper (observed with 360 dpi inkjet paper, and photo
quality inkjet paper)
`8'
photo paper
Experimentation suggests that this setting changes details of how
the printers' cut sheet feeder works, presumably to tune it for
different types of paper.
XX=`01' controls the platen gap setting; YY=`00' is the default,
YY=`1' or `2' are higher settings.
XX=`02' controls paper loading speed (YY=`0' is normal, `1' is
fast, `2' is slow). It appears that `1' is used when printing on
"plain paper", "360dpi ink jet paper" or "ink jet transparencies",
and YY=`00' for all other paper type settings.
XX=`07' controls duplex printing for printers with that capability
(YY=0 is default, for non-duplex printing; `1' is front side of
the paper, and 2 is back side).
XX=`09' controls zero margin printing on the printers with the
capability of printing zero-margin on all sides (Stylus Photo
780/790, 890, and 1280/1290). YY=`0' is the default; `1' enables
zero margin printing.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* PP BC=3 00 XX YY'
Set Paper Path. XX=`2' indicates manual feed, XX=`3' is for roll
paper. YY selects "paper path number".
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* AC BC=2 00 XX'
Set Auto Cutting State. XX=`0' selects auto cutting off, XX=`1'
selects auto cutting on, and XX=`2' indicates horizontal print
page line on. It appears that with auto cutting on, roll paper is
cut automatically at the point a formfeed character is sent. The
formfeed character is normally used to eject a page; with this
turned on, it also cuts the roll paper. Horizontal print page
line on prints a narrow line of black dots at the position the
paper should be cut manually.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* DR BC=4 00 xx DT2'
Set Drying Time. XX=`00' sets the drying time "per scan" (per
pass?); XX=`01' sets the drying time per page. DT indicates the
drying time, which is in seconds if page mode is used and in
milliseconds if scan mode is used. DT must not exceed 3600
seconds in per-page mode and 10000 milliseconds in per-scan mode.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* IK BC=2 00 XX'
Select Ink Type. XX=`00' selects dye ink. Pigment ink is
apparently selected by XX=`01'. This probably does not apply to
the consumer-grade printers.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* PZ BC=2 00 xx'
Set Pause After Printing. XX=`00' selects no pause after
printing; XX=`01' selects pause after printing. If turned on, the
printer is paused after the page is ejected (by the FF byte). If
cutting is turned on, the printer is paused *after* the cutting or
printing of the horizontal cut line.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* EX BC=6 00 00 00 00 0x14 XX'
Set Vertical Print Page Line Mode. XX=`00' is off, XX=`01' is on.
If turned on, this prints vertical trim lines at the left and
right margins.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* EX BC=6 00 00 00 00 0x05 XX'
Set Roll Paper Mode. If XX is `0', roll paper mode is off; if XX
is `1', roll paper mode is on.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* EX BC=3 00 XX YY'
Appears to be a synonym for the `SN' command described above.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* PH BC=2 00 XX'
Select Paper Thickness. Set the paper thickness XX in .1 mm
units. This must not exceed 0x10 (1.6 mm). If the thickness is
set "more than" .6 mm (which probably means "at least" .6 mm,
since the other case reads "less than 0.5 mm"), the platen gap is
set high irrespective of the `SN' command.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* PM BC=2 00 00'
*Function unknown*. Used on the STC 3000 at least when using roll
feed, and on the STP 870 in all print files analysed to date.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* ST BC=2 00 XX'
Epson's STP 750/1200 programming guide refers to the `ST' command
as "Set printer state reply". If XX is `0' or `2', the printer
will not send status replies. If XX is `1' or `3', the printer
will send status replies. The status replies consist of state,
error codes, ink leve, firmware version, and warning status.
The actual reply is documented as
@BDC ST\r
ST: xx;
[ER: yy;]
IQ: n1n2n3n4;
[WR: w1,w2...;]
RV: zz;
AI:CW:02kkccmmyy, MI:mm
[TC:tttt;]
INK:...;
\f
(`\r' is carriage return; `\n' is newline; `\f' is formfeed.)
`ST' is the printer status:
`00'
Error
`01'
Self-test
`02'
Busy
`03'
Waiting while printing
`04'
Idle
`07'
Cleaning/filling ink heads
`08'
Not yet initialized/filling heads
`ER', if provided, is the error status:
`00'
Fatal error
`01'
Interface not selected
`04'
Paper jam
`05'
Out of ink
`06'
Paper out
`IQ' is the amount of ink left, as a (decimal!) percentage
expressed in hexadecimal. The values are black, cyan, magenta, and
yellow (presumably 6-color printers supply light cyan and light
magenta inks as additional parameters).
`WR', if provided, is the warning status:
`10'
Black ink low
`11'
Cyan
`12'
Magenta
`13'
Yellow
`14'
Light cyan (presumably)
`15'
Light magenta (presumably)
`RV' is the firmware revision (one byte ASCII).
`AI' is actuator information. These are two byte ASCII codes that
indicate "ink weight rank ID" of KCMY, respectively.
`TC', if provided, is the total time of cleaning or ink filling
(?).
`INK:' and `MI' are *not documented*.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* SM BC=2 00 XX'
Set Status Reply Rate. XX is the repeat interval in seconds. If
XX is `0', the status is returned only when the printer's state
changes.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* ST BC=1 01'
Reply Printer Status. The reply is formatted as
@BDC PS\r\nST:XX;\f
(`\r' is carriage return; `\n' is newline; `\f' is formfeed). If
XX (the reply value) is `0' or `2', automatic status update is
disabled; if `1' or `3', it is enabled.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* SM BC=1 01'
Reply Printer Status Rate. The reply is formatted as
@BDC PS\r\nST:xx;\f
(`\r' is carriage return; `\n' is newline; `\f' is formfeed). See
`SM BC=2' above for the meaning of the return value.
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* ?? BC=XX Y[1] ... Y[xx]'
Echo Parameters (perhaps better described as Echo Commands). The
command string is executed (it would appear from the
documentation), and the string sent is returned using a sequence
similar to that described in the `ST BC=1' and `SM BC=1' commands.
Note that in this case the number of bytes is variable!
- ESC/P2 remote command: `* SM BC=2 00 02'
*Function unknown*. Used on the STC 3000 at least when using roll
feed.
File: gimpprint.info, Node: ESC/P2 Appropriate Remote Commands, Prev: ESC/P2 Remote Mode Commands, Up: ESC/P2
Appropriate Remote Commands
===========================
All of the remote commands described above are wrapped up with the
usual boilerplate. The files always start with `00 00 00' and the
"magic" command described above, then two `ESC @'s to reset the
printer. The remote command sequences come next; if they print anything
that is usually followed by a `FF' (0C hex) character to feed the page,
then the file ends with another two `ESC @'s to get back to the ground
state.
An alignment sequence goes like this:
1. Host uses `DT' to print an alignment sheet
2. User eyeballs the sheet to see which is the best aligned pattern.
3. Host sends a `DA' command indicating which pattern the user chose
4. If the user said "realign", meaning he isn't done yet, go to step 1
5. We are done: host sends a `SV' command and exits
The sequence used (by the STC 3000, at least) to print from the roll
feed is (with byte count omitted)
PM 00 00
SN 00 00 00
EX 00 00 00 00 05 01
ST 00 01
SM 00 02
The sequence used by the STP 870 to print on plain paper is
PM 00 00
IR 00 03
SN 00 00 01
SN 00 01 00
SN 00 02 01
EX 00 00 00 00 05 00
FP 00 00 00
and the job finishes with
IR 00 02
LD
For different paper type settings on the STP 870, the arguments to
`SN' vary. The arguments to the first and third `SN' commands are as
outlined in the description of the `SN' command above; the arguments to
the second ("platen gap") are `00 01 01' for thick papers ("matte
paper--heavyweight", "photo paper" and "premium glossy photo paper")
and `00 01 00' for all others.
For roll-mode printing, the STP 870's sequence changes as follows.
`IR''s arguments become `00 01' in the header, and `00 00' after the
job, and `EX''s last argument changes from `00' to `01'.
For zero-margin printing on the STP 870, the arguments to `FP' become
`00 0xb0 0xff'. This moves the origin about 5.5mm to the left, to a
point one tenth of an inch to the left of the left-hand edge of the
paper, allowing printing right up to (and beyond) the edge of the
paper. Some printers (at least the STP 870) include white absorbent
pads at the left margin position and other positions (89mm and 100mm on
the STP 870) to soak up ink which misses the edge of the paper.
Printing off the edge of paper of a width not aligned with a pad could
result in making a mess of the inside of the printer and ink getting on
the reverse of the paper.
File: gimpprint.info, Node: New Printer, Prev: ESC/P2, Up: Appendices
Adding a new printer
********************
This appendix covers adding a new ESCP/2, PCL, or Canon printer.
Writing a new driver module is not covered.
The three steps to adding a printer are:
1. Add an entry to `printers.xml'
2. Add the appropriate code and data to the appropriate driver module
3. Tune the printer
Printer information is stored in two places: in `printers.xml'
(which contains the list of printer models available to the the
upper-level application), and in the appropriate driver file
(`print-escp2.c', `print-pcl.c', or `print-canon.c').
* Menu:
* printers.xml:: File format description.
* Driver file:: Data structures to use.
* Epson inkjet printers:: Adding an Epson printer.
* Tuning Epson printers:: Tweaking settings.
* Canon inkjet printers:: Adding a Canon printer.
File: gimpprint.info, Node: printers.xml, Next: Driver file, Up: New Printer
`printers.xml'
==============
`printers.xml' is an XML-like file (there's no formal DTD) that
contains very simple printer definitions. A typical definition follows:
<printer name="EPSON Stylus Color 1500" driver="escp2-1500">
<color>
<model value=2>
<gamma value=0.597>
<density value=1.0>
<language value=escp2>
</printer>
There are other tags that may be present. The only ones that are
mandatory are `<printer>', `<color>', `<model>', and `<language>'. The
other optional parameters (gamma and density in this case) can be used
to adjust control settings. This is probably not the right place for
them; the printer drivers themselves should contain this information.
There's probably no good reason for anything but gamma and density to
be in here. Gamma refers to the printer's gamma factor; density is the
desired base ink density for the printer. The Epson driver contains
the density information for each printer at each resolution internally.
An even better driver would adjust density and possibly even gamma for
paper type. All the more reason not to have that information here.
If you really are curious about what tags are permitted, please see
`printdefl.l'. I deliberately want to make this obscure.
Anyway, here's the definition of the tags that do matter:
- `printers.xml' tag: `<printer name="LONGNAME" driver="DRIVERNAME">'
This starts the definition of a printer. The LONGNAME should be
something human readable; the DRIVERNAME should consist of
alphanumerics and hyphens, and be fairly short. The LONGNAME is
what will appear in the GUI listing of printers; the DRIVERNAME is
what is actually used to key into the list of printers. It is
legal to have multiple printers with the same driver name.
- `printers.xml' tag: `<color>'
- `printers.xml' tag: `<nocolor>'
Indicates that this printer is capable of color, or is not capable
of color respectively
- `printers.xml' tag: `<model value=INT>'
This defines a model number. This is passed into the driver,
which may do whatever it cares to with it--index into a table,
compute on, or whatever. This need not be unique.
- `printers.xml' tag: `<language value=TYPE>'
This defines what driver module this printer uses. TYPE should be
`escp2', `pcl', `canon', or `ps'.
- `printers.xml' tag: `</printer>'
This, of course, closes off a printer definition.
This is handled very ad-hoc. It's ugly. But it's reasonably easy to
extend, and it's buzzword-compliant.
File: gimpprint.info, Node: Driver file, Next: Epson inkjet printers, Prev: printers.xml, Up: New Printer
The driver file
===============
Adding a new printer to a driver module (`print-escp2.c',
`print-pcl.c', or `print-canon.c'--`print-ps.c' is really ad hoc)
requires a bit more planning. Each driver is somewhat different, but
they all generally have a vector of printer definitions, and the code
does some special casing based on particular printer capabilities. The
PCL and Canon drivers are quite similar; the Canon driver was actually
cribbed from the PCL driver, but it then returned the favor.
The Epson driver is a little bit different. Canon and PCL printers
have some amount of intelligence; a lot of them have specific ink
options, and know about specific paper sizes and types, and must be
told the right thing. Epson printers have somewhat less intelligence
and will more or less do exactly what the host tells it to do in a
fairly regular fashion. I actually prefer this; it isn't materially
more work for the host to compute things like exact paper sizes and
such, it allows a lot more tweaking, and it may be why Epson has been
more open with information - the communication protocol doesn't really
contain very much IP, so they have less reason to keep it secret.
Someone else will have to fill in the sections about PCL and Canon
printers.