Why doesn’t my marking head work?
If you get no marks at all, or there is no indication that the marking head, laser, or software are alive and kicking, check the following:
Do you have a green Status light on the marking head or Fenix? If not, check the power:
- 1. For Fenix markers, you need to provide 85 – 240VAC to the marker (no switches need to be set to configure the power range).
- 2. For FH heads, you need to provide 30 +/- 2VDC to the head.
If the Status light is OK, do you have the proper status indication on the laser? If not, check the power to the laser:
- 1. For the Evo, 48 series, v series t60 and t100 lasers, you need to provide 30 +/- 2VDC to the laser.
- 2. For the f series lasers, you need to provide 96 +/- 2VDC to the laser.
- 3. For the t80 laser, you need to provide 36 +/- 2VDC to the laser.
If the marking head and laser Status lights are OK, do you get a mark using the Test Mark button on the head? If not, check the following:
- 1. Is the focusing lens attached, uncovered and clean? (No offense intended, but some customers have called in for help when they didn’t have the lens cover pulled off.)
- 2. Is the part at the correct focal length for the lens being used? Depending on the lens, the Depth of Focus can be as little as ½ a millimeter. You can check the marking head’s Final Test report for the actual measured focal length of the lens. If you can’t find the FT report, write down the serial number of the lens and give us a call at 425-349-3500, and we’ll look up the measured focal length from our database.
- 3. Are you trying to fire the Test Mark on a difficult material? If so, try using paper or cardboard. It could be that the Test Mark’s 50% PWM is too low, or the 15ips mark velocity is too high, for your material. (Keep in mind that marking paper or cardboard with a laser WILL generate smoke and can cause the material to ignite.)
- 4. Is the laser’s Lase LED flashing during the test mark? If not:
- a. Double check the FLCC card to verify that the FASI function is turned off:
- i. For an ISA card, switch #6 should be off.
- ii. For a PCI card, switch #5 should be off.
- iii. If the FASI switch was turned on, turn if off, check the Head Info from
- WinMark, and try the test mark again.
- b. For FH heads - is the laser control cable properly attached? The attachment will vary by laser type:
- i. 48 Series, v series, f series – the cable should be connected from the
- marking head to the rear of the laser.
- ii. 57, 60, and t Series – the cable should be connected from the marking
- head to the RF supply.
- c. For Fenix and DGM markers – check to make sure the RMT INT and RMT KEY circuits are closed. This may mean that you must jumper your external RMT circuits closed.
If the Test Mark seems to work OK, open WinMark, select Help/About WinMark and click on the Head Info button. Does the software correctly report the Fiber Link Card? If not:
- 1. Are you using the correct WinMark version and FLCC card type for the operating system on your PC?
- a. For Windows XP or 2000, you must use WinMark version 4 with a PCI card.
- b. For Windows NT, you must use WinMark versions 3 or 4 with a PCI card.
- c. For Windows 98, you must use WinMark versions 1, 2, or 4. To use v4, you must have a PCI card. To use version 1, you must have an ISA card. To use version 2, you can use either an ISA or a PCI card.
- d. For Windows 95, you must use WinMark versions 1 or 2. To use version 1, you must have an ISA card. To use version 2, you can use either an ISA or a PCI card.
(You can download WinMark versions 2 or 4 from our website. For other versions, please contact us at flyersupport@synrad.com.)
- 2. Is the FLCC type listed correctly? If not:
- a. For a PCI card – double check the card selection found in the WinMark Tools/General Settings/D/A Card (or I/O Card Selection) property. If this does not match the card you are using, or if it says ‘No PCI Card Installed’, turn off the computer, physically move the card to a different slot, and reboot the PC.
- b. For an ISA card – double check that the dip switch positions 1 – 4 on the card match the center digit of the Hexadecimal address of the card shown in WinMark’s Tools/General Settings/D/A Card Address property. Note that this property lists the Decimal value of the card address – look here for a lookup table of Decimal vs. Hex address values.
- c. If the card still doesn’t show up correctly, call us at 425 349 3500 and ask for Tech Support.
Does WinMark, in the Head Info window, correctly report the marking head type?
- 1. For an FH head, WinMark should report “FH Index” or “FH Tracker”.
- 2. For a Fenix or DGM, WinMark should report “Fenix”, “Fenix Index”, or “Fenix Tracker”.
- 3. For a DH head, WinMark should report “DH”.
- 4. For an SH head, WinMark should report “SH or Unknown”. If the marking head type is not listed correctly:
- 5. Double check the fiber optic
- 6. Try moving the FLCC to a different slot in the PC.
Try firing the Test Mark again, then marking from WinMark. If you find that marking from WinMark suddenly works, AND you have an ISA FLCC, follow the steps listed here.
Try uninstalling and reinstalling WinMark:
- 1. Save all of your mark files (*.MKH) to disk or a network drive.
- 2. Uninstall WinMark:
- a. Go to the Synrad WinMark program group and select “Uninstall Synrad
- WinMark” OR
- b. Go to the WinMark folder and run the “UNWISE.EXE” application OR
- c. Go to the Windows Control Panel and use the Add/Remove Programs tool.
- 3. Reinstall WinMark, verifying that your marking head, FLCC, Operating System,
- and selected WinMark version match the requirements listed above.
If you get to this point and still haven’t found the problem, give us a call at 425 349 3500. We’ll figure it out.
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