For PDA Software Developers

Adding Wireless Printer Support To Your Application
Without Using 3rd Party Licensed Printing Software

IrDA™ Gateway
Virtually every late-model PDA contains a wireless, optical communication port called IrDA™. This is also generally termed IR port, or Infra Red (Infrared) port.

If you design applications for Palm or Pocket PC handheld devices then you will want to consider this port as a gateway for wireless printing functions. As a developer you can appreciate the extra value of being able to offer a printout feature.

You may want to print a sales order, quote, or stylized report, a ticket, label, or barcode. You will be happy to know that it is not too difficult to support printing from your application without using 3rd party software packages.

 

  

Your goal is to:
• Eliminate 3rd Party License Fees
• Eliminate Separate Printing Software Package
• Obtain Total Control Of Your Print Formating
• Access Specialized Formatting Functions
• Be Free To Choose From Different Technology Printers

 
These three criterea below will qualify you to implement printing support without using any 3rd party software package.

   
1.
Choose Developer Software That Supports IrCOMM
 IrCOMM is an IrDA protocol that is commonly supported
in IrDA communication. Some developer software suites to consider are Code Warrior™, AppForge Mobile™,
MicroSoft eMbedded Visual C++, eMbedded Visual Basic, or even HotPaw™ for Palm.
• More software suites for PDAs are becoming available, and IrCOMM is being increasingly supported. Example CASL™ may support IrCOMM in their next release.		  
2.
Choose A Printer
 You may choose from thousands of printers.
• The printer must have a Parallel Port, (also called Centronics,or IEEE1284).
• The printer must have a programmers manual or a list of software commands that you can use to format your printing. The commands are generally simple to use, and comprise of just a few characters. Consider:
• Laser Printers with PCL emulation.
• InkJet Printers with PCL emulation.
• Barcode Printers with ZPL, or DPL emulation.
• Dot Matrix Impact Printers with Epson or Generic
• Line Printers with Generic, Printronix, or Epson
• POS Receipt Printers with ESC/POS emulation		  
3.
Add Photologic Ltd Adapter To Printer

 • Connect Model IR-P to the printer Parallel Port. Just plug it in, with power supply, and it's ready to work. Point your Palm or Pocket PC at it to print your data.
• The adapter is compatible to the majority of late model PDA's , and may also include laptops, and smartphones such as Treo600.
• As there is a proliferation of handhelds with IrDA features, it is likely that there is adequate choice of compatible hardware.

 

  

 

Example Printer Commands:
The commands to send are usually simple. For example if you use a common HP Deskjet
printer you can change the color of the text just by sending a hex string:
Change print text to red: 1B 2A 72 2D 34 55 1B 2A 76 31 32 53
Change print text to grn: 1B 2A 72 2D 34 55 1B 2A 76 31 30 53
Other example commands:
Print Portrait Orientation: 1B 26 6C 30 4F
Print Landscape Orientation: 1B 26 6C 31 4F
Enable Helvetica Font: 1B 28 74 34 54
Set 10/72 inch point size: 1B 28 73 31 30 56
Set Italic Style: 1B 28 73 31 53
Eject Form: 0C


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PHOTOLOGIC LTD. Tel: (905) 377-8915