INTERMEC PM43c

Buyers Guide

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The PM43c is the latest in a long line of compact Intermec mid-range industrial printers and is the successor to the Intermec PF4i printer which is being discontinued.

Other members of the family include the larger PM43 and the compact two inch PM23c.

Although the PM43c is classed as a "4 inch" label printer it can handle label media from 19.05mm (0.75") to 114.3mm (4.5") wide.

It comes in thermal transfer (TT) and direct thermal (DT) models.

The thermal transfer models are in fact (DT/TT) as they print on both direct thermal and thermal transfer labels.

The direct thermal models only print on direct thermal media.

Printer models are available in three print resolutions:

- 203dpi. This resolution is used for general purpose applications.

- 300dpi. This resolution produces fine print and is typically used for images and standard size EAN13 retail barcodes.

- 406dpi. This resolution gives even finer print and is used for tiny text and high density barcodes.

The 203dpi and 300dpi models have a maximum print speed of 12 inches per second. The 406dpi models are slower at a maximum print speed of 10 inches per second.

The maximum printable width is less than the maximum media width which depends on the printhead. In the case of PM43c the maximum printable width is 108mm (4.25") for 203dpi, 106mm (4.17") for 300dpi and 104mm (4.09") for 406dpi.

The PM43c comes in three forms:

- Long door. This door fully encloses the label media but only works with reduced size rolls.

- Short door. This door is cut away and works with full size rolls but the media is exposed.

- Dome door. This door works with full size rolls and the media is fully enclosed.

The long and short door versions measure 181 x 252.5 x 431.94mm (7.13 x 9.94 x 17.04") HxWxD and weighs 12.5kg (27.65lbs).

The clear plastic dome door extends both the height and depth of the printer. The dome version measures 244.89 x 252.5 x 500.22mm (9.64 x 9.94 x 19.04") HxWxD and weighs 12.71kg (28.02lbs).

CONNECTING TO THE PM43C

All PM43c printers can be connected using USB, Serial and Ethernet cables.

Some factory built models also offer connection via a Parallel cable.

If required a Parallel card can be added as an accessory.

Some factory built models offer wireless connection via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

If required the user can add a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth card as an accessory.

There are many other connectivity options which are shown later in Advanced Features.

WHAT LABEL STATIONERY CAN BE USED?

The label stationery used by the PM43c is usually housed internally in roll form. Alternatively it can be fed in through a slot in the rear of the printer from external sources.

The printer works with rolls of label stationery wound on 38 to 76mm (1.5 to 3") cores.

The width of the cores can be from 19.05 to 114.3mm (0.75 to 4.5").

The maximum outside diameter of the rolls depends on the type of media door.

The largest outside diameter for models with the Dome door and the Short door is 203mm (8.3"). For the Long door models this reduces to 152mm (6").

The current printer configurations come with a Media Hanger. This is a horizontal bar which supports the roll of media.

A useful accessory is the Media Arm Guide. This fits on the hanger and prevents the label stationery from "telescoping". It is particularly helpful when using full size rolls of narrow width label media.

Future configurations may offer a Rotating Unwinder in place of the hanger. This provides a means of detecting how much label stationery remains but more importantly aids accuracy when printing very tiny labels.

All printer configurations work with heat sensitive Direct Thermal (DT) label stationery.

The thermal transfer configurations work with non-heat sensitive label media but require a ribbon to print the label image.

The PM43c has adjustable label sensors which means that the label media can be:

- Self-adhesive die-cut labels with gaps.

- Self-adhesive butt-cut labels without gaps and with under-printed black marks.

- Non-adhesive tags punched with holes or slots.

- Non-adhesive tags under-printed with black marks.

- Continuous Stationery, for example receipt paper.

PRINTING ON THE LABEL STATIONERY

Most label printers tend to be used in conjunction with Label Printing Software packages.

An example of labelling software is Bartender Ultra Lite which is supplied free of charge with the printer.

Labelling software applications send commands in languages which are known to the printer.

If you wish you can use these printer languages directly.

The available languages for this printer are:

- Intermec Direct Protocol/Fingerprint.

- Intermec IPL.

- Zebra ZPL.

- Datamax DPL.

The ability to understand ZPL and DPL means the PM43c can be used to replace 4 inch printers from Zebra and Datamax-O'Neil.

Other specialist printer languages are available and these are described in Advanced Features.

WHAT CAN BE PRINTED ON THE LABELS?

The PM43c prints monochrome text, barcodes and graphics.

No Asian fonts are included but most other languages are available. In addition there is a wide range of typefaces included in the printer and others can be loaded into the printer using Truetype or OpenType.

The legibility of small print depends on the printhead resolution, 406dpi being the best.

There is a wide range of available 1D and 2D barcodes.

The PM43c uses the patented Intermec PrecisionPrint technology which ensures pin-point accuracy and allows the printing of very small barcodes and text heights down to as little as 4pt (1.4mm / 0.06").

Lastly the popular PCX, PNG, GIF and BMP graphics files can be used to load images into the label.

WHAT MEDIA HANDLING IS AVAILABLE?

The PM43c printers offer the following choice of media handling methods:

- Tear-off. The printed label media emerges from the printer and is simply torn off.

- Dispense. Each printed self-adhesive label is dispensed and in some cases is partly peeled from the liner.

- Cut. The printed label media is cut into separate pieces.

TEAR-OFF

Some current PM43c printer configurations come with no special media handling and the printed label media is torn off by pulling against the tear bar.

LABEL DISPENSING

Some current PM43c printer configurations come with Label Peel and Liner Rewind facilities.

In this case the self-adhesive label stationery is threaded through the printer and the loose end is wound around a core on the rewinder spindle. When the label is printed the label partly peels on the tear bar and waits to be removed by the user. The process is monitored by a Label Taken Sensor. After removal the next printed label is partly peeled and the spent liner is taken up on the Rewinder spindle.

A useful accessory for this liner rewinding application is the Collapsible Core. This fits over the rewind spindle and offers easy removal of the spent liner.

An easily installed but less satisfactory alternative is to use the Label Dispenser accessory with a Tear-off printer.

This works in a similar way to the Label Peel and Liner Rewinder configurations but the spent liner hangs from the front of the printer.

The Label Dispenser accessory can also be used with Label Peel and Liner Rewind configurations. It assists the peeling process and is helpful where aggressive adhesives are involved.

CUTTING

Future printer configurations may have a Cutter.

At this time a Cutter accessory can be added.

LABEL MEDIA

The PM43c direct thermal (DT) printer models can only print on DT label media.

The thermal transfer (TT) printer models can print on TT label media with the aid of a ribbon or on DT label media without a ribbon.

The label media can be outside wound on 38 to 76mm (1.5 to 3.0") cores, or fan-folded.

The printer internally houses rolls of labels the maximum outside diameter of which depends on the type of media door.

The roll size is up to 203mm (8") for the Dome door and Short door, and 152mm (6") for the Long door.

Fan-folded stationery is held outside the printer and is fed through a slot in the rear of the printer.

The label media width can be from 19.05 to 114.3mm (0.75 to 4.5") wide.

THERMAL TRANSFER RIBBONS

The thermal transfer models can print on Thermal Transfer media with the aid of a ribbon.

The ribbons can be from 21.59 to 110mm (0.85 to 4.33") wide. The ribbons are inside or outside wound on 25.4mm (1") cores.

Because of the compact nature of the PM43c the maximum ribbon roll diameter is 62mm (2.44") which corresponds to a ribbon length of 220M (722').

ADVANCED FEATURES

The following advanced features are available.

FINGERPRINT AND C#

Intermec Fingerprint and C# can be used with the PM43c printer.

These Smart Printer languages allow the printer to run applications and do not depend on the connection to a host.

USB HOST PORTS

All PM43c printers come with two USB Host ports. These can be used to connect USB keyboards, USB barcode scanners and USB storage.

ADDITIONAL CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS

Some additional connectivity options are available as accessories. These are the:

- Dual USB Host card. This adds two further USB Host Ports.

- Industrial Interface and UART card. This adds eight digital I/O ports, four analog relays and a programmable UART.

- Dual UART card. This adds two UARTS.

RFID

Some PM43c models are factory fitted with an UHF RFID encoder and can write information to labels with UHF tags.

REAL TIME CLOCK

Some PM43c models are factory fitted with a Real Time Clock.

TOUCHLESS CONFIGURATION

Some future models may offer Touchless Configuration.

This provides the means of configuring the printer by writing to an embedded RFID chip.

This configuration method does not require the printer to be unpacked from the shipping carton and is very quick.

Touchless Configuration is particularly helpful for large scale rollouts.