Colorspan 72UVX Carriage Encoder Error

[Lindquist]

We have been having problems with our Colorspan 72UVX for over a week now. The problem began with the lower trolley plate bearing going out. We have since replaced the bearing, and the carriage can be moved much more smoothly than before with the new bearing in place. However, I still cannot print because of a different problem that we have never encountered before.

When restarted, the printer reaches 74% and then gives me an error code:

Code: 0220E002
Carriage Encoder Error

It will then give me the option to restart the machine again.

The error makes it clear that the carriage is not reading the encoder strip correctly, but I do not know what is causing the problem.

If I move the carriage to a different position before restarting, it will sometimes give me a Carriage Motion Failure instead of the error code. The machine then recommends that I purge the print heads (but it will not actually do it), and if I continue I will receive another Carriage Motion Failure. From there, I am asked to load material or cancel loading material - if I cancel I can reach the control panel if I'm quick.

Waiting on the "Ready" screen for more than a couple seconds will result in the same Carriage Encoder Error I would have otherwise received during startup.

I spoke with HP tech support this morning, and the tech reinforced the idea that the printer is not reading the encoder strip correctly. He gave me three specific possibilities:

1. The encoder strip is not correctly positioned inside the encoder reader. This was suggested because we had recently had the belt loosened to replace the bearing (and therefore had to take the encoder reader off of the strip).
   
   I have checked this multiple times, and the encoder strip appears to be installed correctly.
2. The encoder reader's connection to the circuit board is loose.
   
   I have since unplugged the connector on the back of the circuit board and plugged in back in to make sure the connector wasn't loose. I do not believe it was loose before, and the error has not gone away after I double checked.
3. The tech's last idea was that the encoder reader needs to be replaced. However, he also warned that the encoder reader is not a high-failure part.
   
   Has anyone else had to replace the encoder reader on a Colorspan flatbed printer?

We have also tried other ideas both before and after calling HP:

• We have cleaned the encoder strip and the encoder reader thoroughly. I am certain than there is nothing wrong with the strip itself - it was just replaced a few months ago.
• We have run the Carriage Motion User Diagnostics multiple times. Almost everything passes, but the user diagnostics end with a carriage motion failure. The electrical tests all pass and moving the carriage along the encoder strip changes the carriage's position on-screen.
• We have restarted the machine countless times at this point, and we have moved the carriage into different positions before restarting. Sometimes we get a better result than other times, but not usually.
• We have moved the encoder strip (to the left/right) thinking that perhaps we installed it incorrectly before.

One last note, the carriage does not often move by itself. The machine will not load material and will not perform a purge (it says it cannot access the heads). However, when it does move by itself it moves with an irregular motion. The carriage pauses for a split second after moving a few inches.


Any ideas or help would be greatly appreciated. We can replace the encoder readier if that is the problem, but I really want to be certain it is the problem before we spend the money to replace the part.

 

[Mspec]

more likely that your blue belt has slipped out of the carriage since the service was done on the trolley. If the belt slips out, and becomes loose, when the motor tries to move the carriage, the pulley slips under the belt. It will usually make a screech or a "doink"-ish sound if the belt is loose. the slippage causes the encoder reader to not read as many pulses on the strip as it expects for the amount of movement sent to the motor, and you get the error.

Call the help desk, and tell them you want to retension your blue belt, and they will walk you through the steps ( too much to type, but easy enough over the phone. )

You will need a long phillips screwdriver, and a 10 mm socket wrench handy when you do this.

 

[yorly]

carriage encoder error

hello would like to know if I run, I have the same problem on my machine, I want you to help me, thanks