A software driver or "driver" for short, is a software module that will allow your software application to speak the language the cutter will understand and follow. The Graphtec cutters and plotters speak two languages: HPGL (Hewlett Packard Graphics Language) and GPGL (Graphtec Plotter Graphics Language). HPGL is a generic language that is commonly used. Since most sign software packages have a Graphtec driver built in, there is no need to use a Windows driver to output a design to the Graphtec cutter.

A Windows driver is a driver that will allow programs to use the cutter as if it were a printer device. Graphic packages such as CorelDraw, Adobe Illustrator, and the like, depend on Windows drivers to output a design to the cutter. Since Graphtec cutters have a Windows driver, there are many graphic software applications that can drive our cutters. A note of caution though: if you are designing and using a sign graphics software (Gerber Graphix Advantage, Amiable Flexisign) it is better to drive our devices from their built-in drivers.

Where do I get a Graphtec Windows driver?

There are four methods to obtain a copy of the Graphtec Windows driver. These are listed below:

If you are connected to the Internet, go to our website www.signmaster.co.uk and click on DOWNLOAD (Located at the top of the page, the instructions are fairly self-explanatory.).

With the newer products (CE3000-60 and the FC7000 series) there is a Windows driver included on the CDROM that is shipped with every cutter.

You call us and have us email them to you.

For just the price of shipping, we can send a disk with the drivers.

Tip: We found it best to keep the driver on a floppy drive and load it from there.

Installing the Graphtec Windows Driver

Before you install the Graphtec Windows driver, write the following information on a piece of paper:

The model of the plotter you own (FC7000-75, FC7000-130, etc.)

The port (COM1:, COM2:, ... LPT1:, LPT2:) to which you will be connecting your cutter

If you cannot obtain this information (some ports are hard to decipher), contact the dealer from whom you purchased your computer.

Tip: Once you have deciphered which port is which, it is a good practice to label them accordingly.

Installing a Graphtec Windows driver is the same as installing any other printer driver. The instruction below will only deal with Windows 95/98. If you need further information consult your Windows manual.

Click Start.
Select Settings and then Printers.
Double-click on Add Printer.
Follow the instructions until the list of manufacturers appear
Click on Have Disk.
Select the directory where the driver is located.
CAUTION: When using the Graphtec Windows driver the plotter has to be set to GPGL. Check your manual for instructions. Sign software packages typically will use HPGL to drive the Graphtec cutters. This will require a switch between HPGL and GPGL, If this bothers you, see the section "Using a Hewlett Packard Driver."

Preparing the Graphtec Plotter

In order to run the Graphtec plotter from the Windows driver, two settings must be changed on the plotter:

The plotter must be set to accept GPGL .
The resolution of the plotter must be set. In this case it will probably be best to set the resolution (also called Step Size) to .025mm or 1016 points per inch.
If you are unfamiliar with these settings, refer to your manual.

Preparing the Graphtec Windows Driver

Once the driver is installed, it has to be modified to run properly with your cutter. To do this, highlight the Graphtec driver that has just been installed in the Printers dialog box. Click on the right mouse button and select Properties. When the Properties dialog box displays, there are four items that have to be adjusted.

Notice at the top of the Properties dialog box the are several tabs.
Click on the Details tab.Looking towards the center of the dialog box, select the Port your plotter is connected to (COM1:, COM2:, LPT1:)
Click on the Paper and select the Paper Size you will be using. In most cases it is best to choose Free Size. Set the size to the length needed.
Note: Free size will only allow a certain distance, which could limit the size of the job you are trying to plot.

4. Set the Rotation and Orientation. Make sure both of these settings are set correctly, otherwise, you may get erroneous results. Perform some experimentation to get familiar with these settings. For instance, if you have Coreldraw you may consider typing "TEST," plot it on paper, and adjust the rotation to suit your needs.

5. The last thing to be set is the Programmable Resolution. This should be set as mentioned above, to .025. This will match the setting on the cutter.

Preparing the graphic for cutting

It is important to keep in mind that the driver will plot exactly what is in your drawing.

For instance, when there is a fill, even white, it will plot the fill. It will start plotting what is called a crosshatch pattern. This is acceptable if you have a pen installed in your plotter. But what if you have a blade. As you can imagine this can cause some undesirable results. The same holds true with thick lines. These are lines with a line thickness value. Unfortunately the driver will not read these as two lines. It will therefore fill in the line thickness.

In order to avoid this follow the tips below when creating you graphics:

Keep the line at the thinnest. If you need a thick line, create an inline or outline on the graphic using the graphics software.

Remove all fills.

Page size and orientation can be confusing. The output maybe completely rotated from the graphic on the screen, causing clipping of the graphic.

What I have found to work best for me is to set the page the same size as the driver page size. This way you generate a WYSIWYGE (What You See Is What You Get) scenario.

Note: Since the drivers page size in millimeters, you will have to convert it to inches if you so desire. The conversion is simple. Take the millimeter value and divide it by .04 and this will give you the value in inches.

Using a Hewlett Packard Driver

All Graphtec plotters are made to be HPGL compatible. This means that Hewlett-Packard drivers can be used. However, there are differences between each HPGL driver. Some are lower-left origin (where the origin being in the lower-left corner will require positive coordinates from the software) and others are center origin (where the origin being in the center can have both positive and negative coordinates from the software.).

The drivers that we have had success with are as follows:

Lower left origin: HP7475 or HP7550
Center origin: HP7585

You will notice that there are two catagories: Lower left origin and Center origin. The lower left origin, HP7475/7550 requires nothing to be changed on the cutter. Just keep in mind that these drivers are meant to drive small page-size plotters that may limit the size you can use for cutting. If you use the center origin driver (HP7585) you will have to set the cutter to CENTER ORIGIN.

CAUTION: When using center origin, it is advisable to set your page length on your plotter to a smaller size. When in center origin, the plotter will tend to go to that origin at initialization. For example, if your page length is set to 20 feet, this will result in the plotter moving the media ten feet to the center.

Setting the Communications

When communicating from the computer to the plotter, there are two methods in which this can be accomplished: Parallel (LPT1, LPT2) or Serial (COM1:, COM2: ). For more information about the difference see TECH-NEAL-CALITIES FAQ's.

Note: If your cutter is connected through the parallel port (LPT1, LPT2) you may skip this section.

Setting the Communications for the Plotter

If your plotter is connected to one of the COM ports, the communication protocol has to be set correctly. Protocol refers to the speed setting and how the data is sent. Both the computer and the plotter setting have to be in sync. Otherwise, error messages will appear on the control panel of you plotter. Start by setting your plotter to the following settings:

Baud rate: 9600
Parity: NONE or N
Data bits: 8
Stop Bits: 1
Data Flow Control: Hardware

If you are unfamiliar with setting the communication on your plotter, refer to your manual. If you are still in need of help call us at 888-318-3247.

Setting the Communications for Windows 95/98

The instructions below are for setting the communications for Windows 95/98. If you work on any other operating system, refer to your operating systems manual.

Click on Start.
Select Settings and then Control Panel.
Double click on the System icon.
When the System dialog box appears, click on the Device Manager tab.
Double click on Ports (COM,LPT).
Double click on the port your plotter is connected to (COM1 or COM2).
In the Communications Properties dialog box click on the Port Setting tab.
Set the port setting as follows:
Baud rate:9600
Parity: NONE or N
Data bits: 8
Stop Bits: usually 1
Data Flow Control:Hardware