Introduction
0705
TTPM3 Printer/Encoder–Technical Manual
5
1 INTRODUCTION
This document describes installation and operation of TTPM3 Ticket Printer/Encoder,
which creates credit-card-wide tickets with magnetic encoding and thermal printing.
1.1 Document
printing
TTPM3
uses the direct thermal printing technique and can print the entire surface of the
ticket with text, bar codes, or graphics, or any combination hereof. Text block position and
orientation is software programmable as is the character size.
The data sent to the printer is converted to a ticket image which is stored in the unit until
an ”All Clear” software command is sent, or the power is turned off/on.
1.2 Magnetic
encoding
Three magnetic tracks can be encoded: Either with standard low coercivity recording, or
optional “household-magnet proof” high coercivity recording.
ISO track version
1
:
ISO track 1 at 210 BPI
ISO track 2 at 75 BPI (Bits-Per-Inch)
ISO track 3 at 210 BPI
Center track version:
7 mm wide center track at 75 or 210 BPI
The TTPM3 can be used for encoding on one, two, or three tracks simultaneously.
Read-after-write is automatically performed.
You can also enter an already encoded ticket into the TTPM3 and read the magnetic
stripe and output the data to the host computer.
See also “Magnetic encoding- and decoding-related commands” on page 42.
1.3 Document
handling
TTPM3 printer has two rear inputs for ticket stock. Both can take continuous ticket stock
like fanfold or roll ticket material. You can configure the printer so that one is used for
continuous stock and the other is used for handfed tickets.
There is an optional front load mechanism that makes it possible to load single tickets
through the ticket exit. This replaces the upper ticket entry at the rear of the printer. In
addition to this, the front load has a wastebasket function for redirecting used or invalid
tickets to a wastebasket, thus preventing useless tickets being presented to the customer.
You can select to partially eject the ticket so that the customer takes it from the frontload
mechanism, or fully eject the ticket so that it falls into a tray. You can also select that a
ticket should be redirected to a wastebasket as described above.
1
Encoding in ISO standard format, or in hexadecimal format (bit-by-bit), is software selectable.