HP Printers (HP-GL/2) - AutoCAD 12 Installation and Configuration in DOS and Windows

• HPCONFIG
• HPRENDER
• HPMPLOT

1. Start AutoCAD.
2. At the command line, enter: HPCONFIG
3. In the HP Printer Configuration dialog box which appears, scroll through the list of configuration files until finding the one for the printer model in use.
   For example, for the HP DraftPro Plus printer, select DPROPLUS.CFG.
   When selecting a .CFG file, that printer's full name appears in the Printer field at the top of the dialog box.
4. At this stage, do not customize anything else in HPCONFIG (its features are explained in "HPCONFIG field-by-field" in section 5). Just select: OK
5. In the "Save Attributes File Name" dialog box, select: OK

1. At the command line, enter: CONFIG
2. From the Configuration Menu, select: 5. Configure printer
3. From the Printer Configuration Menu, select: 1. Add a printer
4. From the list of available "printers" (they are actually drivers), select : !! HP-GL/2 ADI 4.2 v2.3 by Hewlett-Packard
5. At the question Is the printer connected to a serial or parallel port?, enter:
   S (for serial)
   Or
   P (for parallel)
   If in doubt, refer to the setup instructions in the printer documentation and to the PC manual.
   (For HP Designjet 200 and 220 printers only)
   At the prompt, Please specify if the Designjet200 is connected directly to the PC or to a network, or a similar message, enter:
   1 (for a direct connection)
   Or
   2 (for a network connection)
   If the HP Designjet 200 or 220 printer is connected directly, seeing the printer status information in HPCONFIG at plot time is possible. See under "HPCONFIG field-by-field" in section 5.

   note:

   Later on, if physically changing the connection type, run CONFIG again to update it.

6. At the prompt, Enter the port name, enter:
   for example, COM1 for a serial port
   for example, LPT1 for a parallel port
   If in doubt, refer to the PC manual.
7. AutoCAD then displays the default configuration for the driver. Customize this later, and so at the question, Do you want to change anything?, enter: N
8. At the prompt, Enter a description for this printer, whatever entered will become available as a printer when subsequently using PLOT or CONFIG. So enter, for example:
   HP Designjet 220 on LPT2, or
   HP Designjet 650C on LPT1, or
   HP DraftPro Plus for mechanical drawing, or
   Printer in the drawing office
   Do not leave the description blank.
9. To exit CONFIG, saving the changes:
   At the Printer Configuration Menu, press ENTER At the Configuration Menu, press ENTER
   At the prompt, Keep configuration changes?, press ENTER

1. Make sure that media is loaded in the printer.
2. Open a simple drawing in AutoCAD. There are many .DWG files to choose from in /SAMPLE.
3. At the command line, enter: PLOT
4. In the Plot Configuration dialog box, select Device and Default Selection.
5. In the dialog box which appears, select the printer just added in CONFIG.
6. Select: OK
7. In the Plot Configuration dialog box, check that:
   • the "Paper Size" matches the loaded media, and
   • the scale (under "Rotation and Origin") is what is wanted.
8. Select: OK
   Plot the drawing on the printer using the default .CFG file selected in HPCONFIG.
   If no Plot Appears at all, then there is a problem with the interface between printer and PC -- either the cable connection itself or the interface settings. To check either, refer to the setup instructions in the printer's documentation. Was the correct interface port selected in CONFIG (in Step 2 above)?
   If the content, scale, or position of the plot is not as expected, then customize the configuration -- see Step 4 next.

• CFG for an HP DraftPro Plus printer
• CFG for an HP Designjet600 printer

1. At the command line, enter: HPCONFIG
2. In the HP Printer Configuration dialog box, the name of current default configuration is displayed at the top. To base a customized configuration on a different one, scroll through the list of configuration files, select the appropriate one.
3. Access to all the configuration features of HPCONFIG are made from this same dialog box. They are all explained in detail in "HPCONFIG field-by-field" in section 5. Change whatever is appropriate.
   For example, to change the pen settings and fill attributes so that they are suitable for plans of building exteriors, select PENS and make the necessary changes. Notice that a Help button is available in each dialog box.
4. When finished the changes, select: OK
5. The next dialog box asks to name the .CFG file for the new configuration: for example, EXTERIOR (maximum eight characters)(don't include the .CFG extension)
6. Now add this printer configuration in CONFIG, as explained in Step 2 above. Notice that the default .CFG file is the one just created. At the prompt Enter a description for this printer, enter something suitable for the customized configuration (e.g., Configuration for exteriors).
7. To exit CONFIG, saving the changes:
   • At the Printer Configuration Menu, press ENTER
   • At the Configuration Menu, press ENTER
   • At the prompt Keep configuration changes?, press ENTER
8. Test the new configuration by plotting a drawing, as explained in Step 3 above. In the Device and Default Selection dialog box, select the configuration just added in CONFIG.

• Always save the configuration with a unique .CFG filename when exiting HPCONFIG.
• Always add the new configuration in CONFIG, as though it were a different printer.
• Always choose a suitable description in CONFIG so to enable the selection of a configuration at plot time:

• DJET220.CFG for an HP Designjet 220 printer
• DNJ650C.CFG for an HP Designjet 650C printer
• DPROPLUS.CFG for an HP DraftPro Plus printer

1. Exit from AutoCAD to DOS.
2. Enter: CD\ACADR12\DRV\HPGL2
   REN TEST.BAK TEST1.CFG
3. Restart AutoCAD.
4. Enter HPCONFIG.
5. Among the configuration files would be:
   • CFG (the changed configuration)
   • CFG (the original configuration)

• As a general rule, any feature switched ON the printer overrides any equivalent setting in AutoCAD. For example, in Inkjet printers, if Merge (or Merge Control) is set to ON, then this overrides whatever is set in AutoCAD via HPCONFIG's Pens dialog box.
• The plotting area available (media size minus margins) varies with the printer because the margins vary. For a specification of margins and plotting areas, see each printer's User's Guide, or the notes below.
• The information given here is a reminder of some important items specific to some printer models and relevant to users of AutoCAD Release 12.

• For best performance, choose a parallel interface. Serial is also available.
• To check or reconfigure any of the following, use the Pen Settings menu on the printer's front panel:
  [Rotate & Mirror is located under the Page Format menu. Find Merge & Pen settings under Pen Settings... cr]
  • Rotate
  • Mirror
  • Merge
  • Pen settings: width, density (shade)

  note:

  To use AutoCAD's pen settings, make certain the printer’s Pen Settings / Palette menu are on "software;" otherwise, the settings on the printer's front panel will be used.

• With the Model B of the HP Designjet 650C (product numbers C2858B or C2859B), experiment with the appearance of color vector plots by switching between the two "halftoning" options. For details, see under "HPCONFIG Field-by-Field" in Section 5.
• Produce long-axis plots with an HP Designjet, Designjet 600 or 650C printer.
• The HP Designjet, Designjet 600 and 650C printers have an optional expanded mode (Expanded in Page Format / Margins). Use this only for roll media.
• Recommended plotting areas. The table below lists the correct plotting areas you should set in AutoCAD Release 12 for standard media sizes. Set these as USER sizes in the "Size..." dialog box, accessible from the "Plot Configuration" dialog box. Using these sizes ensures optimal media savings when using the printer's nesting feature. If standard sizes are not required, set Page Format / Size to Inked Area for best results.
• The printer's front panel menu tells the maximum x and y values for the sheet that is currently loaded in the printer. This information is recorded in the Utilities / Statistics menu of the printer's front panel.

• For best performance, choose a parallel interface. Serial is also available.
• To check or reconfigure any of the following, use the printer's setup sheet:
  • Serial interface settings: baud rate, parity
  • Graphics language (default "HP-GL (7586B), HP-GL/2" is OK)
  • Rotate
  • Mirror
  • Merge
  • Pen settings: width, density

  note:

  If wanting to use AutoCAD's pen settings, make certain the setting on the printer's setup sheet is on "from software;" otherwise, the settings on the setup sheet will be used.

• Recommended plotting areas. The table below lists the correct plotting areas that should set in AutoCAD Release 12 for standard media sizes. Set these as USER sizes in the Size... dialog box, accessible from the Plot Configuration dialog box.

• For best performance, choose a parallel interface. Serial is also available.
• The HP DraftPro Plus printer has an optional expanded mode (Page Format / Expand) which allows plotting in the pinch wheel area, and therefore increases the plotting area. Lines drawn in this area are subject to smearing when the wheels pass over wet ink.
• Rendering drawings on the HP DraftPro Plus printer is not possible.

• For interface options (serial and HP-IB parallel are both available), see the printer's Setup Guide.
• The HP DraftMaster printers have an optional expanded mode (Page Format / Expand). This mode allows plotting in the pinch wheel area, and therefore increases the plotting area. Lines drawn in this area are subject to smearing when the wheels pass over wet ink.
• Producing long-axis plots with an HP DraftMaster printer is possible. The printer's User's Guide explains how to ensure that the registration marks for frame-to-frame alignment are detected.
• Rendering drawings is not possible on the HP DraftMaster series printers.

• A plot on a smaller sheet than the default size for the HP 7600 Electrostatic printer will be centered in the middle of the page. For example, an A-size plot on an HP 7600 240E will be centered about 17 inches from the edge of the paper. If you need to force an A-, B- or C-size drawing to the edge of the page, simply make use of a user page size that is set to the full height of the paper. For example, if wanting an A-size plot along the X-axis, at the prompt "Enter the Size or Width, Height (in Inches):", enter the paper size as 10.5,35.18 for an E-size printer, not the 10.5,8.0 as given for the A-size sheet.
• The HP 7600 Series Models 250, 255, and 355 provide a front-panel control to nest smaller-size plots to save paper. Refer to the HP 7600 Series User's Guide for details on this paper-saving and time-saving feature.

note:

Line weight will not be affected by the assignment of a different pen number. Line weight and other attributes of color are independent of the pen number.