Adding Printers and Cutters

A note on the term "Driver": When referring to Drivers in this article and elsewhere in Flexi, we are referring to Flexi's ability to generate code that the device can understand. This is completely different from the connection driver if the device uses USB, for example. A printer driver installed on Windows may be necessary for some devices. Check with your dealer or manufacturer.

Upon first launch of the software, a dialog will be displayed to add a device. You can add additional devices in two ways:

• Click the Add a device button, located here:
  
• Go to Setup > Add Setup...
  

You will then get a dialog box where you can add your device.

• Choose the type, brand, and model name of your device and click Next.

Note: As of Flexi 22, device drivers are no longer installed with Flexi to reduce the size of the software; however, Flexi will still automatically pull the drivers you require, but it will now require an internet connection. This is only only ever done once per computer, even if you add and remove the device in Production Manager. It shouldn't need to be done again. A short progress bar will show indicating the download and installation of the device driver. This process is done entirely automatically, you shouldn't need to do anything here.

• If the device is generally connected over the network (such as through an ethernet cable), the communication dialog will appear automatically. If you still wish to connect via USB or another connection, click Cancel.

• Type in the IP address of your device. Click Test to check the connection. If you get a message asking you to contact a system administrator, it means Flexi cannot reach the device, usually due to a wrong IP Address setup.
  
• If you're not sure what the IP address of your device is, click Find Device. This will display a list of all devices in the network. Note that not all devices support this search protocol.
  • If you don't find your device in the resulting list from Find Device, you may need to update the IP Address on the printer or cutter itself to match the IP Address of your network (excepting the last number. Generally. There's a lot more to IP Addressing and networking than that, but we find that's all many users need to do.)
• If your device is connected through any other port (USB, File,..) the Add Setup wizard will continue directly to the following dialog.

• Select the connection to your device. See below for a list of common connections.

• Review the settings for your device. Click Finish when you are satisfied. It is recommended you run  test print or cut to ensure the connection.
• Optional: Type in a different name for your printer. This name also acts as the default hot folder name.
• Optional: Install a desktop driver. Check this box to make the device available as a standard printer to other programs on your computer. Not all devices work with this function.

Common Connections for Common Devices

The easiest way to check which port your device is to plug it in, take a note or a screenshot of the devices in the list, unplug it, and then note which device is missing. That is very likely the correct device. This list is for connecting without networking.

• General
  • USB_Printer_0 or _1, etc.
    • If you see this in your list, this generally the right device. It does not matter if the device is a printer or a cutter.
    • Note that USB001, USB002, etc. are almost never used.
      
      
• Mimaki
  
  • Mimaki connected via USB usually have a name such as MimakiUSB, the device model, and a long string of letters and numbers.
    • If you don't see it and the USB_Printer_0 option doesn't work or is missing, you may need to install the Mimaki USB drivers, contact Mimaki for the driver.
      
      
• Graphtec
  • Use Graphtec USB
    • If you have multiple Graphtec devices, they can all use this same port, and the USB driver can sort out which device is supposed to get the job.
      
      
• Summa
  • Use Summa USB 1-4
    • Choose the one with the asterisk at the end of the name (Summa USB 1*)
      
      
• HP Latex Cutters
  • Use HP USB 1-4
    • Choose the one with the asterisk at the end of the name (HP USB 1*)