Printing to the HP DesignJet 1055cm
Based on an original document by Brooke Bassage-Glock
Using the HP DesignJet 1055cm Plus
The HP DesignJet large format printers (AKA plotters) are excellent for printing posters that include text, charts and graphs, and even some images. But getting to do as you desire can be a little tricky! So we will be looking at how the plotter is set up, how to print from some common applications, and some basic usage issues.
But first, an introduction to your plotter. This is the best of
the 1000 series plotters, it has 32 MB of RAM. It saves all incoming
jobs onto an internal 2GB hard-drive, so you shouldn't have to worry
about running out of RAM! There is also a built in network card,
allowing it to be accessed from any computer that is using TCP/IP, and
is on our side of the firewall. On the network, it is known as
scraps.math.hmc.edu. Its IP address is 134.173.34.45.
Set Up
Both the plotter and the client computer need to be configured correctly for a successful print job.
Plotter
First things first–turn it on! If it is plugged in, there is a power switch in the back, and a power button on the front. The front button can be used to wake it up from or put it into sleep mode. You will also need to ensure the network cable is plugged in. You can confirm the network setting by finding “I/O Setup” in the front panel, and selecting “Card ID.”
Loading paper is pretty straight forward, and step-by-step directions are given in pictures on the front of the plotter. Simply lift the handles and the window, push the paper through, and make sure it is straight. Close the handles and the window to continue.
To unload a roll (if you want to replace it with a different type of paper), simply lift the handles, and roll the paper back onto the roll.
Client (Your Machine)
To set up your printer, you first need to be able to see the
printer on the network. To test this, you can use the Ping command
from a command prompt (i.e., C:\> ping
scraps.math.hmc.edu).
You also need the driver installed. The driver is a program that translates your applications output to a language this specific printer can understand. The driver can be downloaded from the HP website, or copied off the CD I have provided. A local TCP/IP connection to printer then needs to be established. You can do this through the “Add New Printer” wizard in Windows, or with Desktop Printer Utility with a Macintosh (pre-Mac OS X), or with the Print Center under Mac OS X.
Printing
Since posters are the most common type of thing printed, instructions are given below for printing from PowerPoint and Photoshop. It is easier to create your poster in PowerPoint, but Photoshop give you more flexibility in printing sizes and options.
PowerPoint
Set the page size to Width: 56, Height: 36 (this is the largest page size that PowerPoint will accept). After you have created your poster and are ready to go, select File | Print. Select the plotter from the dropdown menu, and click the Properties button. Be sure it is set to Landscape, and click the Advanced button. Change the paper size to ANSI E, and click OK, then OK again. Make sure the “Scale to fit paper” box is checked, and click OK to send the job to the printer.
It will take about 5 minutes to transfer, and 5-10 minutes to print.
Illustrator
Ideally, you'll use the template PDF provided on the templates page. If not, you should set the size of your document to be 36" high, with a reasonable width.
You'll need to print in landscape mode. See the PhotoShop instructions for the rest of the details.
PhotoShop
When you create a new image in Photoshop, specify the size you want, keeping in mind that the roll is 36 inches wide. When you are ready to print, select “Print with Preview...” from the File menu. Confirm your page size, and make sure the encoding is set to ASCII. Click “Page Setup” to set the page size. If your page size isn't listed, select “PostScript Custom Page Size.” Click the Printer button get to the printer configuration screen. Again, select the printer from the dropdown menu, and click the Properties button. Make sure it is in Landscape, and click the Advanced button. Set the paper size (to 36”x60” for example), and click OK until you are back at the preview screen. If everything looks right, click Print!
It will take up to 30 minutes to transfer to the printer, and 10 minutes to print.
Have fun!
Those are the basics, so the rest is up to you. Have fun with it!
