^MA - Set Maintenance Alerts

Schedules the maintenance alert labels the printer prints itself as the printhead wears.

^MA is the one command in this category that makes a printer print of its own accord. With b set to Y it prints a maintenance alert label after the printhead travels a set distance. ^MI supplies the wording, ^MA the schedule.

Syntax

^MAa,b,c,d,e

Support

Recognised, deliberately skippedparsed: none · state: none · rendered: none

Accepted and skipped, because it configures the printer rather than the label. It cannot change the rendered output, and Labelary skips it too.

A printer does print extra labels, but accumulated print distance in its odometer triggers them, never the format. A render has no odometer, so no alert label comes due and the page count does not change. The renderer does not parse this command. It reports IGNORED_COMMAND at info severity, which does not reach X-Warnings. Labelary is also silent, so the rendered label is identical in both engines. — not pinned by a test

Labelary renders this command.

Parameters

aAlert typerequired · one of a set

Which maintenance alert this command configures. The remaining arguments depend on this type.

Invalid value: not documented, and we have not measured it. The renderer does not parse or measure this command. ^MA is absent from the 2006 guide, and Labelary's reference states no default.
Test coverage: No documented value is exercised by a test (R, C).

R: Printhead replacement alerts
C: Printhead cleaning alerts

bPrint alert labelsoptional · Y or N

Whether the printer prints an alert label at the threshold.

Default: N
Invalid value: not documented, and we have not measured it. The renderer does not parse or measure this command.
Test coverage: No documented value is exercised by a test (Y, N).

Y: Print alert labels
N: Do not print alert labels (default)

cFirst alert distanceoptional · integer

Print distance after which the first alert label is due. Kilometers for type R, meters for type C.

Default: 50 km for type R, 0 m for type C
Accepted range: 0 to 2000
Invalid value: not documented, and we have not measured it. The renderer does not parse or measure this command. The accepted range depends on the alert type: 0 to 150 for R, 0 to 2,000 for C.
Test coverage: No test at the minimum, maximum or one step outside the range.

dRepeat distanceoptional · integer

Print distance after which the printer prints the alert label again, in meters.

Default: 0
Accepted range: 0 to 2000 m
Invalid value: not documented, and we have not measured it. The renderer does not parse or measure this command.
Test coverage: No test at the minimum, maximum or one step outside the range.

eUnitsoptional · one of a set

Units used in the maintenance figures the printer reports.

Default: I
Invalid value: not documented, and we have not measured it. The renderer does not parse or measure this command.
Test coverage: No documented value is exercised by a test (C, I, M).

C: Centimeters
I: Inches (default)
M: Meters

Behavior

The printer measures the schedule against its odometer, not against the job that configures it. The two alert types use different units: kilometers for printhead replacement (R), meters for the printhead clean (C). The start argument's accepted range therefore depends on the type: 0 to 150 for R, 0 to 2,000 for C. Argument e changes only the units the printer reports, not the units of the limits.

The trigger is accumulated wear and a render has no history, so no alert comes due and the page count does not change. ^MA is absent from the 2006 edition of the ZPL II guide; the ranges follow Labelary's reference.

Example

Printhead replacement alerts, first at 100 km and then every 500 m, reported in inches:

^XA
^MAR,Y,100,500,I
^FO50,50^A0N,30,30^FDAlerts scheduled^FS
^XZ

Open in viewer

^MI Set Maintenance Information MessageSets the wording printed on the maintenance alert labels `^MA` schedules.
^JH Early Warning SettingsConfigures the consumable and maintenance warnings the printer reports as media, ribbon and printhead wear out.
^MW Modify Head Cold WarningEnables or disables the printer's warning for a printhead too cold to print reliably.