Fundamentals


This document covers the steps involved in setting up a printer for Epicuri. If you are setting up printers afresh, or have changed your router, then this document outlines what you need to do to get printers up and running.


Epicuri currently uses Star Micronics TSP650 series printers (both thermal and impact) as its standard printing solution. These printers come with a network interface, meaning they can be connected to a router via a standard "Cat6" network cable.


The Basic Idea


Your router simply acts as the bridge to the internet, and it also assigns network addresses ("IP address") to all connected devices. An IP address for a printer needs to be static, otherwise Epicuri won't know where your printers are on the network.



How you will achieve it



Before attempting to set up you will need:


  1. The printers complete with power units and rolls. If you're setting up an impact printer, make sure you've also installed the ribbon.
  2. An Epicuri tablet, logged in and connected to the same router (i.e. on the same network as the printers will be)

The steps to set up a printer are pretty simple. The basic steps are as follows, details for each step in following sections of this document:

  1. If you are doing this set-up because you've changed your router, you will have to "cold reset" each printer that was previously used with the old router. (5 minutes)
  2. Connect the printer to the network, and link to your Epicuri account (5 minutes) 
  3. Log out of the Epicuri Waiter App and restart. (1 minute)

Total time required: Approx 10-20 minutes.



Detailed Steps for Setting Up a Printer


STEP 1: Printer Cold Reset (Optional)


If this is a new printer out of the box, and has not been connected to a router before, you can skip this step. 

A cold reset makes the printer forget it was ever connected to a router before. This is a mandatory step if you change your router.

  1. Plug your printer into a power socket and switch it on. 
  2. Locate the red reset button at the back of the printer (see diagram in Step 1, where it says "switch").
  3. You'll need a pen-tip or something similar to push  the switch for one to five seconds while running under normal operating mode.
  4. The green and red LEDs will flash with a regular pattern. 
  5. After that, push the switch once again in that state to turn OFF both of the red and  green LEDS. 
  6. This will return the settings of the interface board to their factory default settings. After the interface board has been initialized, the printer will automatically reboot itself.


STEP 2: Connect the Printer to Power and your LAN Network


Before performing the following steps please ensure the LAN socket you are connecting to is live on the network.

  1. Plug in printer, add a paper roll but keep printer is switched off.
  2. Plug the network cable into the wall socket.
  3. Perform a "self-test" print: This can be done by keeping the Feed button pressed and then switching the printer on. Keep the Feed button pressed until something prints out, then let go (be patient, it might take a few seconds). The printer will print a long list of settings and then think for anything up to 20 seconds. After that, it will print a second slip
  4. Keep this print-out, you may need it for the next step.

On the 2nd print, If IP address is 0.0.0.0 then the printer isnt live on the network. Correct the LAN infrastructure and try again.



STEP 3: Search and link the printer to your account


Once you have an IP address the front light on the printer should be solid green. 

1. On the Epicuri app on one of the handhelds, go to MENU > Support > Printers

2. Wait for the search at the bottom to complete, you should see your printers appear within 1-2 mins of searching

3. TSP654 are thermal printers generally used for customer bills/bar prints, SP742 is for kitchen printouts. If you have multiple printers of the same type then you can use the IP address from the previous step to identify which is which. 
Click 'link' on each printer found in the list below and select the appropriate printer name to link it to

4. On each link, the list will refresh and the printer shows ONLINE. Click test to print a test slip and ensure it is going to the correct printer.


STEP 4: Log off and log back into the waiter app on all devices. 


This step is not always necessary, but it's good practice and only takes a minute.


Simply hit the 3 dots on the top right of the app and Log Out. Log back in again with some valid credentials.



And that's it!


TIP: To ensure things are printing where they should be. Ensure you have no unnecessary redirects in the Printer Queue, and that you have actually assigned menu items to named printers.