Computerworld 1996 March

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ Computerworld 1996 March / Computerworld_1996-03_cd.bin / hp / drivers / plotter / dj750755 / acad / hpfiles / hpdrv11.exe / PLPHPGL2.DOC next >

Wrap

Text File | 1995-05-11 | 61KB | 1,405 lines

************** PLPHPGL2.DOC ************** Protected mode ADI LongPlot driver for Hewlett-Packard HP-GL/2 Devices PLPHPGL2.EXP for AutoCAD 386 (R) Copyright 1990-91, Autodesk, Inc. Document Revision 1.5 (September 1995) Supported plotters include: Hewlett-Packard DraftPro Plus Hewlett-Packard DesignJet Series Hewlett-Packard 7600 Series Electrostatic Models Hewlett-Packard DraftMaster SX/RX/MX Series Hewlett-Packard PaintJet XL with HP-GL/2 Language Cartridge Hewlett-Packard LaserJet III (Other Hewlett-Packard HP-GL/2 devices should plot using this driver) PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ******************* TABLE OF CONTENTS ******************* I. INTRODUCTION Page 1 II. DRIVER SOFTWARE INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION Page 2 (A) Copying The Driver Software (B) Making the Driver Known to AutoCAD 386 (C) Configuring AutoCAD 386 For the Plotter Driver III. PLOTTING ON STANDARD SIZE PAPER (Sizes A-E/A4-A0) Page 13 IV. PLOTTING A LONG AXIS PLOT Page 14 V. LINE WEIGHTS Page 16 VI. STOPPING THE PLOT Page 17 VII. PLOTTING TO FILE Page 18 VIII. PLOTTING ON NOVELL NETWORK Page 19 IX. PEN OPTIMIZATION FOR RASTER PLOTTERS Page 19 X. COLOR PALETTE AND MERGE MODE Page 20 XI. PLOTTER SPECIFIC INFORMATION Page 21 Hardware Requirements Hardware Installation Serial Mode HP DraftPro Plus HP DesignJet Plotters HP 7600 Electrostatic Plotters HP DraftMaster Plotters HP PaintJet XL In HP-GL/2 Mode HP LaserJet III In HP-GL/2 Mode Page Protection Fills Legal Paper Size Serial Configuration PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 1 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ***************** I. INTRODUCTION ***************** This document explains the installation and use of PLPHPGL2.EXP, a protected mode Autodesk Device Interface (ADI) driver designed to run HP-GL/2 language devices (listed as supported devices above) with AutoCAD. +==============================================================+ | N O T E | +==============================================================+ | You may want to print this document for future reference. If | | you are unsure how to do this, the following procedure | | describes how. It assumes that you used the sample file | | and directory names suggested during the "install" procedure.| | | | At the MS-DOS prompt type the following command which will | | put you in the same directory as this file: | | | | CD\ACAD\DRIVERS <Enter> | | | | Now type the following command: | | | | PRINT PLPHPGL2.DOC <Enter> | | | | If you see the message "Name of list device [PRN]:", type | | the name of your printer port - usually LPT1 - and press | | <Enter>. | +==============================================================+ Please read the AutoCAD 386 Installation and Performance Guide concerning plotting and printer plotting with Hewlett-Packard plotters and printers, the AutoCAD Reference Manual section on plotting, and your plotter manual. This driver is a protected mode ADI (P386 ADI) plotter driver. ADI is an acronym for the Autodesk Device Interface specification that was used to create this driver. This driver was tested using AutoCAD 386 Release 11 and AutoCAD 386 Release 10. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 2 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ **************************************************** II. DRIVER SOFTWARE INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION **************************************************** Your HP-GL/2 Driver Software Disk is shipped with several protected mode drivers. The two files that are important to you are: PLPHPGL2.EXP The protected-mode driver routine to be used with AutoCAD 386 (P386 ADI). PLPHPGL2.DOC This installation and usage document. The following steps should be taken to enable plot output of AutoCAD drawings to your HP-GL/2 plotter: (A) Copy the HP-GL/2 driver software files from the diskette to the AutoCAD directory on your hard disk. (B) Setting the environment variable PLPADI to the pathname of your driver; either in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file or a custom start-up batch file you may already be using to start up AutoCAD. (C) Configure AutoCAD to use the P386 ADI driver. Each of these steps are discussed in detail below: (A) COPYING THE DRIVER SOFTWARE =============================== Here's how to copy the driver software onto your hard disk. The flexible disc drive is assumed to be A:. 1. Insert the HP-GL/2 driver disc into your flexible disc drive. 2. Type A: to make your flexible disk drive become your active drive. 3. If you received your HP-GL/2 Driver Disc with your HP Plotter, Type INSTALL at the A:> prompt. Now refer to step 4. If you received your driver disc when you bought AutoCAD 386, you should use the DOS Copy command to copy the two files: PLPHPGL2.EXP, and PLPHPGL2.DOC from your driver disc into your directory on the hard disk. Then refer to the next section "(B) MAKING THE DRIVER KNOWN TO AUTOCAD 386". 4. At the ...? prompt enter the target disc drive and directory to store your driver files. Example: D:\ACAD386\DRIVERS You will see a list of files as they are transferred from the diskette to your hard disk. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 3 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (B) MAKING THE DRIVER KNOWN TO AUTOCAD 386 ========================================== The preferred means for AutoCAD to use this ADI driver are: 1) Use the SET command with the environment variable PLPADI and a complete path name, for example if plphpgl2.exp is in the C:\acad\device directory you would type: SET PLPADI=C:\ACAD\DEVICE\PLPHPGL2.EXP You may want to add a similar line to your autoexec.bat file. ** OR ** 2) Copy plphpgl2.exp to the file name adiplot.exp. This file name is unique and will be used when AutoCAD is loaded if you have selected a P386 ADI driver during configuration. COPY PLPHPGL2.EXP ADIPLOT.EXP Both of these methods require the .exp file to be located in a directory accessible to AutoCAD. In AutoCAD 386 Release 10 and Release 11, only a single ADI driver will be recognized at configuration time. The configuration menu for the plotter devices will always display a P386 ADI driver as a choice. The driver that is selected is determined through the use of the PLPADI environment variable and/or the ADIPLOT.EXP magic file name. If the user picks the P386 ADI driver choice, AutoCAD will search, first for the PLPADI environment variable which names the driver (with either a fully qualified path name or just a file name). Should this method fail, AutoCAD will then attempt to access the ADIPLOT.EXP magic file name. Both searches start in the current default directory. If the driver is not found, AutoCAD then searches the following directories for the filename in the order given: - ACADCFG configuration environment variable, - ACAD execution environment variable, - AUTOCAD.BAT file execution prefix. If the driver is still not found, AutoCAD will ask you which disk drive and directory it should search to find the driver. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 4 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (C) CONFIGURING AUTOCAD 386 FOR THE PLOTTER DRIVER ================================================== It is necessary to configure AutoCAD for a P386 ADI driver (protected mode) before you use the PLPHPGL2.EXE ADI driver for the first time. AutoCAD will save these settings until you change them. Refer to your "AutoCAD Installation and Performance Guide" for a more in-depth explanation of the steps below. --------------------------- 1) Load AutoCAD and select option 5 from the AutoCAD Main Menu: "Option 5 - Configure AutoCAD" Your current display, plotter and digitizer configurations will be displayed. Press <ENTER>. The Configuration Menu will be displayed. ---------------------------- 2) Select option 5 from the Configuration Menu: "Option 5 - Configure plotter" You will see the following prompt: "Your current plotter is: ..... Do you want to select a different one? <N>" If "....." is already the 'ADI P386 plotter', press <ENTER>. Otherwise, type Y <ENTER>. Select option 2 'ADI P386 plotter' from the list of displayed plotters. ---------------------------- 3) You will be asked to select the type of Hewlett-Packard plotter you have. 1. DesignJet Color 2. DesignJet Monochrome 3. LaserJet III 4. PaintJet XL w/ HPGL2 Cartridge 5. DraftPro Plus 6. DraftMaster SX/RX/MX Series 7. DraftMaster Series Roll Feed 8. 7600 Monochrome 9. 7600 Color Type the number corresponding to the your plotter and <ENTER>. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 5 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Here is a table of the various capabilities of the Hewlett-Packard HP-GL/2 devices when using this driver: | | LINE | | LONG- | | COLOR | WIDTHS | COPIES | PLOTS | ----------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ DesignJet Color | Y | Y | Y | Y | DesignJet | Grey(a) | Y | Y | Y(e) | LaserJet | N | Y | Y | N | PaintJet XL | Y | Y | Y | N | DraftPro Plus | (b) | N | Y | N | DraftMaster | (b) | N | Y | Y | 7600 Mono | Grey(c) | Y | Y | Y | 7600 Color | Y | Y | Y | Y | 7550 Plus(d) | Y | Y | Y | N | Notes: (a) Monochrome DesignJet plotters such as, DesignJet, DesignJet 230, and DesignJet 600 will plot the AutoCAD drawing in greyscale if you select "1. DesignJet Color" as the plotter. If you select "2. DesignJet Mono", the DesignJet 250C, 650C, 750C and DesignJet 755CM will plot it using only solid black. (b) The DraftMaster and the DraftPro Plus pen carousel can be loaded with colored pens. (c) The HP7600 Model 350 can plot in greyscale if you select "9. 7600 Color." (d) The 7550 Plus can be configured as "9. 7600 Color." Make sure you do not select plot sizes greater than size B or size A3. Doing so will cause severe hardware plot clipping. (e) Cut sheet plotters do not support "LongPlots." ---------------------------- 4) When you see the message: " After the first plot, this device can print up to 99 additional copies. Select the number of copies of each plot. <1>" (You should enter the TOTAL number of copies you want) We recommend that you type 1 <Enter>. If you require multiple copies of a particular plot you can choose to specify the number at plot time - see the next step. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 6 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------- 5) When asked the following question: "If you like, you can override the number you entered before each plot. Would you like to do this? <N>" if you answer Y(es), you will be able to control the number of plots to be made at each plot time. The number you enter at plot time will be the number of ADDITIONAL plots you require. For roll feed plotters, ensure that you have sufficient paper to produce the plots requested! Check the roll if you choose this option. For sheet feed plotters, you will be prompted at the plotter front panel to load a new sheet before each additional plot. ---------------------------- 6) Next a series of questions are asked about media sizes. You must specify the physical plotting area for AutoCAD. If you are doing a LongPlot, see the section of this document entitled "IV. PLOTTING A LONG AXIS PLOT" for more information. For the HP DraftPro Plus, the table in the Quick Reference card, which is part of the HP DraftPro Plus User's Guide (p/n C3170-90011), details the actual physical plotting areas for all the media sizes supported by the HP DraftPro Plus Plotter. Maximum Plot Sizes --------------------------------------------------------------------- paper sizes: A legal B roll MODEL X Y X Y X Y X Y --------------------------------------------------------------------- HP DraftPro Plus 9.6" 8.1" 15.6" 10.6" HP DraftPro Plus 243mm 206mm 396mm 269mm HP DesignJets, roll feed 42.66" 33.60" HP DesignJets, roll feed 1083mm 853mm HP DesignJets, sheet feed 9.65" 8.1" 15.66" 10.6" HP DesignJets, sheet feed 245mm 206mm 398mm 269mm HP7600 240D and 250 64" 23.10" HP7600 240D and 250 1626 587mm HP7600 240E, 255 and 355(*) 64" 35.10" HP7600 240E, 255 and 355 1626 892mm HP Draftmaster SX,RX,MX 64" 33.60" HP Draftmaster SX,RX,MX 1626 853mm HP 7550 Plus 16.12" 9.97" HP 7550 Plus 409mm 253mm HP PaintJet XL w/ HPGL2 10.72 8.17" 16.60" 10.60" HP PaintJet XL w/ HPGL2 272mm 207mm 421mm 269mm HP LaserJet III 10.5" 8.00" 13.5" 8.00" HP LaserJet III 266mm 203mm 343mm 203mm (*) The HP7600/355 max Y is 34" (864mm) when plotting with color. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 7 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------- 7) If you have specified a device that has a roll feed capability, the driver can do long axis plotting (plots greater than 65", 1651 mm). You will see one of the following messages: (For HP DraftMaster RX/MX series:) "This device can do long axis plots from 65" to 1800" long." (For other roll fed series:) "This device can do long axis plots from 65" to 600" long." If you wish to produce 64" or longer plots, an additional question will be asked at run time configuration: "Do you wish to do long axis plotting? <N>." Answer Y or N. If you answer Y(es), you can do plots of up to 50' (150' on the HP DraftMaster series). Otherwise you will only be able to do plots up to 64" long. You may reconfigure at any time and select long axis plotting. When you are ready to make a long axis plot, please refer to the section "PLOTTING A LONG AXIS PLOT" later on in this document. ---------------------------- 8) For all the devices except the DraftPro Plus and the DraftMaster series, the following question will appear: "Would you like to re-set line weight #20 to your own line weight? <N>" Here you will be given the chance to change line weight no. 20 to any value, but first you need to answer yes to the above question. Hit the Y key. AutoCAD will then show the message below. "Enter the line weight at the end of this configuration." You will now go through the standard plotter configuration dialog. ---------------------------- 9) If you answered Yes to the above question, "Would you like to reset line weight #20 to your own line weight.", AutoCAD prompts: "What thickness should line weight #20 be? <4.00>" PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 8 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The following table shows the default line weights. Line Weight Line Weight Line Weight Line Weight Index Widths(mm.) Index Widths(mm.) ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- 1 .350 (default) 11 .700 2 .075 12 .800 3 .100 13 1.00 4 .120 14 1.25 5 .187 15 1.50 6 .250 16 1.75 7 .300 17 2.00 8 .400 18 2.50 9 .500 19 3.00 10 .600 20 4.00 Enter a line weight less than 25.0 mm. The weight will be the thickness of the line assigned to pen speed 20. Don't forget the decimal point! The default thickness for line weight #20 is 4.0mm. When you do plot time configuration, any AutoCAD color/layer that is given a pen speed of 20 will produce lines the thickness you entered for that color/layer. See the "LINE WEIGHT" section (section V) for a complete discussion of how to produce different line widths on your raster device. ---------------------------- 10) Next you will see the question: "Is your plotter connected to a <S>erial, or <P>arallel port?<P>" Type in S or P depending on the type of port you have used to connect your HP-GL/2 device to your computer. A list of standard port names will be displayed. If you haven't yet connected your plotter to your computer, refer to the plotter handbook for instructions and information on how to make the connection. Hewlett-Packard strongly recommends that you use the plotter's parallel port. If you are using a plotter on a Novell network, type P. Please refer to the section "PLOTTING ON NOVELL NETWORK" for more details. ---------------------------- 11) When prompted, type the name of the port on your computer to which the plotter is connected, and then press <Enter>. If you don't know which port name to enter refer to your computer documentation to identify its ports. Serial ports are referred to as COM1, COM2, etc.; parallel ports as LPT1, LPT2 etc. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 9 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------- 12) The next message will be: "If you have previously measured the lengths of a horizontal and a vertical line that were plotted to a specific scale, you may use these measurements to calibrate your plotter. Would you like to calibrate your plotter?" Hewlett-Packard plotting devices (except the HP Draftpro Plus) are designed to perform self calibration. You should not have to perform the software-only calibration that is offered here by AutoCAD. Answer N (except for the HP Draftpro Plus). ---------------------------- 13) Next, you will be asked the question: "Write the plot to a file? <N>" If you enter N, AutoCAD will send all plots to the port you identified earlier. If you enter Y, each time you send a plot from AutoCAD you will get a prompt for a plotfile name. See "PLOTTING TO FILE" for more details. ---------------------------- 14) When you see the message: "Size Units (Inches or Millimeters) <I>:" Respond with your desired size unit, either I for inches or M for milli- meters. All plot specifications will subsequently be in the size units you have selected. However, plot lengths for long axis plots must be entered in inches. ---------------------------- 15) Depending on which plotter you selected in step "3" you may be prompted to enter the plot origin. Type your choice in the displayed units, then press <Enter>. ---------------------------- 16) Depending on which plotter you selected in step "3" you may be prompted to enter the width and height of your plotting area, choose values which are recommeded in your plotter documentation according to media size and the size unit you selected in step "14" above. DO NOT use the values in the table displayed by AutoCAD; they could cause your plot to be clipped. Type the width, type a comma, type the height, then press <Enter>. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 10 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------- 17) When you see the prompt: "Rotate plot 0/90/180/270 <0>:" Always respond with 0. The three other choices will cause AutoCAD to rotate the (x,y) coordinates by the angle you specify. However, the final plot will appear clipped since AutoCAD does not inform the driver of the picture rotation. ---------------------------- 18) When you see the prompt: "Pen width in inches <0.010>:" The "Pen Width" referred to here is the distance detween parallel lines that form area fills (hatch marks) in your plots. Do not confuse this question with the line weights previously discussed. Type your choice, and press <Enter>. ---------------------------- 19) When you are asked: "Adjust area fill boundaries for pen width? <N>" Responding Y will enable AutoCAD to take into account the pen width you provided in the previous step when AutoCAD does polygon fills. ---------------------------- 20) When you are asked: "Remove hidden lines? <N>" Respond with your choice, Y or N and then <Enter>. This is strictly an AutoCAD capability not affected by the driver. ---------------------------- 21) AutoCAD then prompts: "Specify scale by entering: Plotted (Inches/Millimeters)=Drawing Units or Fit or ? <F>:" Respond with your choice. This is an AutoCAD option not affected by the driver. Please refer to your "AutoCAD 386 Reference Manual" (Plotting chapter) for more information. Press <Enter> to exit configuration and return to the Main Menu. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 11 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------- 22) If you selected a raster device, such as DesignJet, LaserJet or HP 7600, in step "3" you will see the following prompt: "This device can support the following line ends: 0. Butt 1. Square 2. Triangular 3. Round Which line end do you want to use? 0 to 3 <3>:" Type your choice, then press <Enter>. Round ends provide the best results for most AutoCAD plots. ---------------------------- 23) Also for raster devices, you will see the following prompt: "This device can support the following line joins: 0. Mitred 1. Triangular 2. Round 3. Beveled 4. None Which line join do you want to use? 0 to 4 <2>:" Type your choice, then press <Enter>. Round JOINS provide the best results for most AutoCAD plots. ---------------------------- 24) Finally for raster devices, you will see the following prompt: "This device can provide two types of merge control: 0. Lines overwrite 1. Lines merge Which type of merge control do you want to use? 0 or 1 <0>:" Type your choice, then press <Enter>. ---------------------------- You have completed the AutoCAD plotter configuration dialog for your HP-GL/2 ADI P386 plotter driver. If you have any configuration questions see the configuration section of the "Installation & Performance Guide" in your AutoCAD 386 package. Also see the "AutoCAD 386 Reference Manual" for AutoCAD usage details, and your plotter's "User Guide" for plotter details. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 12 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** IMPORTANT NOTES *** 1) Hewlett-Packard recommends that while using AutoCAD's PLOT command you enter some user plot dimensions in the "USER SIZE" configuration menu AND have them selected at plot time. The recommended plot dimensions when using standard media are detailed in your plotter documentation, alternatively they can be calculated as: media size - plotter margins = maximum plot dimensions 2) If cut sheet media is used with plotters such as the HP DesignJet series or HP DraftMaster series with the rollfeed option, always load media in portrait orientation. For HP DraftPro Plus and HP DraftMaster SX/RX/MX without rollfeed, you can load media in either portrait or in landscape orientation (where physically possible.) However the dimensions used for the "USER" sizes specification must be consistent with a landscape perspective e.g. the "width" dimension must be greater than the "height" dimension. 3) If you want the pen settings you select in AutoCAD to be used at plot time, ensure that the plotter is set up to accept settings from software. Refer to your plotter documentation for information on how to do this. The remaining sections of this file discuss various plotting issues when you are using this driver with AutoCAD. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 13 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ********************************************************* III. PLOTTING ON A STANDARD SIZE PAPER (Sizes A-E/A4-A0) ********************************************************* To plot on standard paper, either issue the Plot command from the drawing editor or select the "Plot file" option, item 3 from AutoCAD's main menu. Before you press <ENTER> to AutoCAD's prompt, "Do hardware setup now." "Press RETURN to continue:" Make sure: Your plotter: is cabled correctly, is turned on, is On-Line, and AutoCAD is configured to do standard size plotting. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 14 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ******************************* IV. PLOTTING A LONG AXIS PLOT ******************************* To make a long axis plot, you must have answered yes to the long-axis plotting question asked during the plotter configuration dialogue. AutoCAD does not directly support LongPlots. AutoCAD can plot only 65,535 plotter steps in each direction, which is about 64" for Hewlett Packard plotters which use 1016 steps per inch. LongPlots are done by rescaling the plot data sent to the driver, magnifying the data sent to the plotter at a small cost in plot resolution. If you are using the HP Draftmaster for a LongPlot. Please refer to the Plotter Specific Information - HP Draftmaster section for specific media information for LongPlots. From AutoCAD's drawing editor, issue the plot command or select the plot option (#3) from the AutoCAD main menu. Specify the part of the drawing you wish to plot by answering the prompt: "What to plot -- Display, Extents, limits, View, or Window <D>:" AutoCAD displays the basic plot specifications and asks if you want to change any of them: "Do you want to change anything? <N>" -- Answer <Y>es The following prompt will appear with the currently selected X-axis length. "X-axis paper length for this LongPlot? (Inches only) <XX> " If you want a different value than XX", enter it at this time. Only integer inches can be used here. You must enter a legal value here, otherwise the prompt will be repeated. A legal value is numeric, greater than 0 and less than 600" (1800" on the HP DraftMaster series). Do this here because it would be too late if you waited for the run time configuration to be completed. When you come to the question below you MUST enter the x-axis paper length for long plotting you entered earlier as the first value. "Enter the Size or Width, Height (in Inches) <default>:" You must change the width here to what you entered above, because the width displayed is used for calculation by AutoCAD. The Height you enter here should match the size of the paper roll mounted in your plotter. It will be 35" or less. For example, you have a 500' roll of 35" wide paper in your plotter. You want a LongPlot 300 inches long. You will enter the plot length of 300" twice: once at the question of x-axis Page length and secondly at the size question -- Enter the Size or Width, Height (in Inches) < >. Here 300",35" would be correct. Then, when you come to this question: "Specify scale by entering: Plotted units=Drawing units or Fit or ? <default>:" PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 15 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ IMPORTANT!! - SPECIAL PLOT SCALING REQUIREMENTS FOR LONGPLOTS In order to create LongPlots, the driver has to magnify the plot sent from AutoCAD. This question (asked by AutoCAD) must be answered with a scale factor to get accurate LongPlots, otherwise the resulting plot may be incorrect. Consider a relatively simple situation where you want the plotted size to be the same as the AutoCAD drawing editor size you selected. Assume you would want to plot a scale of 1:1 if AutoCAD were able to create LongPlots directly. You have a drawing that is 100" long and you want a 100" plot. Your scale factor would be 1"=1". What if the drawing is 300 yards long and you want the plot to be 300". Your scale would be 1"=3'. For every inch of Plotted units you need 3' of Drawing units. The ADI driver will automatically scale your drawing to fit within the desired length. This length will also control how far the plotter advances the paper at the end of the plot. The driver will send all the vectors to the plotter's buffer or hard disk. The pen plotters will automatically advance the page to plot each frame. Raster devices will wait until the entire drawing is received before plotting. For those who are curious, the driver actually will figure the magnification factor, M, by which to scale plot data by (assuming inches) using the equation: M = (X-Axis length * plotter steps / AutoCAD's plot-space) + 1. The AutoCAD plot-space is 65,535 steps and the plotter steps is 1016 steps/inch for all HP-GL/2 devices. If you want a 300 inch long plot the factor M would be: M = (300 * 1016 / 65,535) + 1 M = 5.65 or M = 5 after truncation. The driver modifies the plotter units (in steps/inch) by dividing the default units (1016) by M (5) in this case. Then the plotter scales up all plot data by multiplying by 5. The plot is magnified by this factor of 5 in both X and Y directions. Make sure: Your plotter is cabled correctly, is turned on, and is On-Line before you press ENTER to plot. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 16 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ***************** V. LINE WEIGHTS ***************** IMPORTANT: If you want the pen settings you choose here to be used at plot time, ensure that the plotter is set up to accept settings from AutoCAD. Refer to your plotter documentation for information on how to do this. Line Weights are not presently supported by AutoCAD. By using AutoCAD's Pen Speed parameter however, the driver allows the user to select various line widths, sometimes called line weights, when using a raster device. This driver defaults to mapping the value in the pen speed field to line weights. The HP 7600 series of plotters will not produce a line of dots if the line weight is greater than 0.8 mm. This will happen on the AutoCAD linetypes of dot2 and dotx2. If you assign a line weight 13 or greater to either of those AutoCAD linetypes, the line will not be plotted. This is built in by the HP 7600's firmware. The HP LaserJet and HP PaintJet will take a dot and produce a dash the length of the line weight thickness. This dash will always be along or in the y-axis direction, regardless of the orientation of the line. After you have selected what you are going to plot, you will be asked: "Do you want to change any of the above parameters? <N>" -- Answer Yes You will be shown a table of Entity Colors from 1 to 15 and the associated Pen Numbers, Line Types and Pen Speeds. Substitute for the Pen Speed value, the line weight numbers from the following table: Line Weight Line Weight Line Weight Line Weight Index Widths(mm.) Index Widths(mm.) ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- 1 .350 (default) 11 .700 2 .075 12 .800 3 .100 13 1.00 4 .120 14 1.25 5 .187 15 1.50 6 .250 16 1.75 7 .300 17 2.00 8 .400 18 2.50 9 .500 19 3.00 10 .600 20 4.00 For example if you assign to Entity Color #4 (cyan) Pen Speed 9 from the above table, all the color 4 entities drawn in AutoCAD will be plotted with lines .5 millimeters wide. For faster throughput on pen plotters, use different width pens in the carousel to get pen widths, and then set the appropriate pen thicknesses on the front panel. Otherwise, the plotter will multi-stroke each vector. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 17 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ *********************** VI. STOPPING THE PLOT *********************** If you want to stop the plot while AutoCAD is still sending vectors to the plotter, abort it in the normal manner (Control C). To cancel a plot at the plotter, follow the instructions pertaining to your printer or plotter in the table below. PRINTER or PLOTTER INSTRUCTIONS ------------------------------------------------------------------- HP DraftPro Plus a. Press the Cancel button on the plotter's front panel. b. Select "Yes" to confirm. HP DesignJet Plotters Press the Cancel key on the plotter's front panel. HP 7600 240D/E Press the RESET button on the plotter's front panel. HP 7600 (All other models) a. Take plotter off line. b. Press the RESET button. HP Draftmaster SX,RX,MX a. Press the Cancel button on the plotter's front panel. b. Select "Yes" to confirm. HP 7550 Plus plotter a. Press the Cancel button on the plotter's front panel. b. Select "Yes" to confirm. HP PaintJet XL printer Hold down the On Line button until all lights stop flashing. HP LaserJet III printer Press and hold the Reset button until the Form Feed light goes out. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Do not turn the plotter on and off in the middle of a plotting session. An error message will be displayed if you try to use the HP-GL/2 P386 ADI driver while the plotter is turned off. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 18 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ************************ VII. PLOTTING TO FILE ************************ Plotting directly in AutoCAD to devices is often a time consuming task. Plotting to file allows you to minimize the lockout time associated with converting an AutoCAD drawing (DWG) file to a plot. Once the plot files are generated, they can be copied to the plotter from your PC, or even to another computer that does not have AutoCAD running, for eventual output to a remote plotter. Because this driver, PLPHPGL2.EXP, is a P386 ADI driver, it can be used with AutoCAD in an AUTOSPOOL mode. Please refer to the "AutoCAD 386 Installation and Performance Guide", Chapter 5, for more details of Plot Spooling. If you wish to plot to file, ensure that you have sufficient disk space to store the HP-GL/2 plot commands. File sizes do not necessarily depend on the size of AutoCAD's DWG file. For example, CHROMA.DWG contains 12,359 bytes as distributed with AutoCAD, expands to almost 240k bytes when plotted to file. This is due to the amount of fill lines AutoCAD requests the driver to emit in order to fill the polygons in the drawing. Although all the supported HP-GL/2 devices support polygon fills, the current ADI 4.1 specification does not provide a polygon fill command such that the driver could take advantage of this HP-GL/2 capability. Simple line drawings will require much less disk space. Once you have plotted a drawing to a file, you can send a plot file to the plotter by typing the following command at the DOS command line: C> COPY 'filename' LPT(n): OR copy 'filename' com(n): where filename is the name of the file you wish to plot and lpt(n) or com(n) represents the port you have connected to your plotter. If using the serial (com) port, you will first have to issue a DOS MODE command to match the serial configuration of your plotter. For PaintJet XL and LaserJet III, type: C> MODE COM1:9600,N,8,1,P For HP DraftPro Plus, HP DesignJet series, HP7600, and HP DraftMaster, type: C> MODE COM1:9600,E,7,1,P PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 19 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ********************************** VIII. PLOTTING ON NOVELL NETWORK ********************************** AutoCAD users on a Novell network benefit in sharing a common set of AutoCAD drawing files and other related utilities. In addition, AutoCAD users gain improved plotting throughput by sharing the plotting devices. Novell Netware provides queueing capability of multiple plots from multiple users destined to the same device for orderly plotting. To take advantage of sharing a plotter on a Novell network, you should take the following steps: 1. Configure AutoCAD 386 to Plot to File. 2. Specify the file name to be AUTOSPOOL. 3. Create a \spfiles\ directory on your hard disc. 4. Create a SPOOL.BAT file that contains the following command: NPRINT %1 J=DESIGNJET (where DESIGNJET is the print job name your network administrator may have set up on the Novell server for the plotter) 5. Set AutoCAD's ACADPLCMD environment variable to invoke SPOOL.BAT C:> SET ACADPLCMD=spool %s This would allow AutoCAD 386 to create a temporary plot file in the \spfiles\ directory. Upon plot termination, AutoCAD 386 will execute the command specified in the environment variable ACADPLCMD. Because the command is the Novell nprint command, the file contents are queued into Novell Netware's print server queue DESIGNJET. AutoCAD 386 then automatically deletes the temporary file. Make sure the SPOOL.BAT file is in a directory accessible in your %PATH% variable. !IMPORTANT! DO NOT USE THE NOVELL CAPTURE COMMAND TO MAP AN LPT TO A PRINT SERVER. AUTOCAD 386 DOES NOT USE THE BIOS FOR PLOT OUTPUT. Please refer to the "AutoCAD 386 Release 11 Installation and Performance Guide" page 51 and page 80. ****************************************** IX. PEN OPTIMIZATION FOR RASTER PLOTTERS ****************************************** There is no need to do any Pen Motion Optimization for the raster plotting devices. This includes the HP DesignJet series, HP 7600 series, HP PaintJet XL, and the HP LaserJet III. The driver sets the pen optimization to level 1, End Point Swap, to produce the quickest output with no loss in quality at plot time. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 20 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ********************************* X. COLOR PALETTE AND MERGE MODE ********************************* IMPORTANT: If you want the pen settings you choose here to be used at plot time, ensure that the plotter is set up to accept settings from AutoCAD. Refer to your plotter documentation for information on how to do this. The raster plotters such as the HP DesignJet series, HP 7600 Electrostatic, and PaintJet XL, are used with a color palette that approximates the AutoCAD colors. When you select one of these devices, your pen tables are filled with pen numbers that match the AutoCAD color/layer tables. At run-time configuration, your pen table will already be filled out with pen number's 1 to 15 assigned to AutoCAD color/layer's 1 to 15. When you draw any objects in red (AutoCAD color 1), your object will be plotted in red. Any objects created in blue (AutoCAD color 5) will plot in blue. You may change this, but each time you reconfigure the driver from the reconfiguration menu the pen table will be set to these defaults. The HP-GL/2 language provides MERGE CONTROL. MERGE CONTROL determines whether vectors and polygons are to be plotted either in MERGE MODE or in OVERWRITE MODE. MERGE MODE tells the plotter to merge vectors and polygons with previously plotted elements. The pen plotters, such as the HP DraftMaster, can only plot in MERGE MODE due to its inherent pen plotting technology. OVERWRITE MODE tells the plotter to plot vectors and polygons to overlap previously plotted elements where they intersect. This is the typical mode used with raster display devices such as VGA. All the HP raster plotters support OVERWRITE MODE since it provides the closest match to the drawing as displayed on the screen. Some of the HP raster plotters, such as the HP 7600 series, allow the user to select either mode via the front panel. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 21 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ********************************** XI. PLOTTER SPECIFIC INFORMATION ********************************** HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS ===================== These hardware requirements are specific to using the PLPHPGL2 plotter P386 ADI driver with AutoCAD. o HP JetDirect, for connections to network plotters with a built-in MIO port, such as certain HP DesignJets. This choice offers the fastest plotting throughput. o HP JetDirect EX, for external modular I/O connections to network plotters with a parallel (centronics) port, such as the HP DesignJet 250C and the HP DraftPro Plus. o A parallel card and cable, as described in the "AutoCAD Installation & Performance Guide", is your best choice for non-networked performance with raster devices such as the HP DesignJet series, HP 7600 series of electrostatic plotters, the HP DraftPro Plus, the HP LaserJet III, the HP PaintJet XL printer, and the HP 7550 Plus. o A serial card and cable is required for plotting to the HP DraftMaster series plotters and can be used with plotters such as the HP DraftPro Plus, HP DesignJet series and HP 7600 series electrostatic plotters. Plots will take significantly longer to send to the plotter. We do not recommend serial communications for raster devices, nor if a parallel connection is possible. HARDWARE INSTALLATION ===================== Please refer to the HP "User's Guide" or "Computer Information Manual" for your HP plotter for the best connection to your PC. Additionally, the "AutoCAD Installation & Performance Guide" (AutoCAD IG) section for Hewlett-Packard Plotters contains information regarding pin connections, switch settings and serial and parallel cable information for plotters such as the HP 7600 series and HP Draftmaster. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 22 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ SERIAL MODE =========== It is VERY IMPORTANT to use the correct RS-232 cabling for connecting your PC to the plotter. Contrary to the well-defined cabling for the Centronics parallel connection, the RS-232 specification is often times very loosely followed. This HP-GL/2 driver MUST see RS-232 pins 2,3,7 4,5,6,20 active in order for serial communication to successfully occur. Hewlett-Packard recommends the following RS-232 plotter cables for easy connection of your HP plotter to your PC: (part number 17255D) (part number 24542G) 25-pin to 25-pin 25-pin to 9-pin PLOTTER COMPUTER PLOTTER COMPUTER 1------------1 4--------------1 2------------3 2--------------2 3------------2 3--------------3 7------------7 5--+-----------4 20---------+--5 | 5--+ | 6--+ | +--6 7--------------5 6--+---------20 20-----------+--6 | +--8 8--------------7 If you plan on making a minimum RS-232 cable, the AutoCAD Installation and Performance Guide suggests a possible wiring diagram that can be used to minimize the number of conductors necessary in your cable. The diagram is displayed here for your reference. Be aware this wiring configuration will not provide true status information to the driver as to whether the plotter is off-line, disconnected, or even powered off! Printer end Computer end 2 ----------------------------- 3 3 ----------------------------- 2 4 --+ +-- 4 | | 5 --+ +-- 5 7 ----------------------------- 7 6 --+ +-- 6 | | 20 --+ +-- 20 The driver will configure the COM port to the following settings: For HP DraftPro Plus, HP DesignJet series, HP 7600 Electrostatics, HP Draftmaster: 9600 baud, even parity (*), 7 data bits, and 1 stop bit. (*) IMPORTANT: For the HP DraftPro Plus, you must change the parity setting to EVEN on the plotter's front panel. For HP PaintJet XL and HP LaserJet III: 9600 baud, no parity, 8 data bits, and 1 stop bit. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 23 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ HP DRAFTPRO PLUS ================ PARITY: If you use the serial interface, change the parity setting to EVEN on the plotter's front panel. The table on the Quick Reference card which is part of the HP DraftPro Plus User's Guide (p/n C3170-90011) details the actual physical plotting areas for the (cutsheet) media sizes supported by the HP DraftPro Plus plotters. Drawings created to plot on an HP DraftPro Plus should keep these physical limits in mind when they are initially created. If plotting in expanded mode, lines drawn at the edge of the plot will be under the pinch wheels and could be subject to smearing. HP DESIGNJET PLOTTERS ===================== As a general rule, when you're looking at the paper in the plotter, the side margins (Y axis) are .2 inches each (5mm). The top and bottom margins are .67 inches each (17mm). The following table shows the imageable area for standard paper sizes. Size Inches Millimeters --------------------------------------- A 9.66 X 8.1 245 X 205 B 15.66 X 10.6 397 X 269 C 20.66 X 16.6 524 X 421 D 32.66 X 21.6 829 X 548 E 42.66 X 33.6 1083 X 853 If you selected "2. DesignJet Monochrome" from the plotter models menu, HP DesignJet series plotters will print all colors in solid black. If you selected "1. DesignJet Color" from the plotter models menu, the driver will send the AutoCAD color palette to your plotter. The HP DesignJet series will print levels of grey scale to match the relative intensities of the AutoCAD colors. The driver defaults the MERGE CONTROL to OVERWRITE MODE. Similar to the AutoCAD drawing that is displayed on your screen, the plotted result may show lighter intensity lines to overlap darker lines. HP DesignJet Memory Requirements: --------------------------------- When plotting large and detailed drawings, your plotter may run out of memory. A guide to the required size of memory expansion module is the size of your largest plot (.PLT) file when you plot to file. Always choose a module size such that the total memory available in the plotter is larger than the largest plot you may want to output. The one exception is smooth-rendered plots, which may be output with less memory than the size of the file. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 24 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ HP 7600 ELECTROSTATIC PLOTTERS ============================== A plot on a smaller sheet than the default size for the 7600 will be centered in the middle of the page. For example, an A size plot on a 240E will be centered about 17 inches from the edge of the paper. If you need to force a A, B, 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 you want an A-size plot along the X-axis, "Enter the Size or Width,Height (in Inches) :" enter the paper size as 10.5,35.18 for an E size plotter. Not the 10.5,8.0 as given for the A size sheet. The HP7600 series Models 250,255,355 provide a front panel control to nest smaller size plots to save paper. Please refer to the HP 7600 series "User Guide" documentation for details on this paper saving and time saving feature. HP DRAFTMASTER PLOTTERS ======================= The following table details the actual physical plotting areas for each page size supported by the Hewlett-Packard DraftMaster plotters: Media Plotting Width Plotting Height Media Orientation Size Normal Expanded Normal Expanded (as loaded into plotter) A 8.83" 9.66" 7.3" 8.1" Portrait B 14.83" 15.66" 9.8" 10.6" Portrait C 20.83" 21.66" 14.8" 15.6" Portrait D 31.83" 32.66" 20.8" 21.6" Portrait E 41.83" 42.66" 32.8" 33.6" Portrait Drawings created to plot on a Hewlett-Packard DraftMaster should keep these physical limits in mind when they are initially created. If plotting in expanded mode, lines drawn at the edge of the plot will be under the pinch rollers and could be subject to smearing. If you are using the HP Draftmaster for a LongPlot, you must follow the instructions in the Hewlett-Packard User's Guide. You must have a black 0.3mm fiber-tip pen (for plotter paper) or a 0.35mm drafting pen (for vellum or polyester film) in pen stall #8. Only these pens enable the plotter to detect the registration marks used for frame-to-frame alignment. Because HP Draftmaster uses multiple frames for LongPlots, the double- matte polyester film is the only media type that will guarantee precise registration between the multiple frames used to produce long axis plots. Non-polyester media expands and contracts with changes in temperature and humidity, causing portions of the media exposed to the air to roll up. As a result, slight gaps may appear between frames if you use paper, vellum or other non-polyester films. Hewlett-Packard recommends polyester media to be used when plots are to be made for archival purposes. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 25 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ HP PAINTJET XL IN HP-GL/2 MODE ============================== The HP PaintJet XL must be allowed to finish a plot before starting another plot with a parallel cable. If you try to plot a second drawing before the plotter finishes a plot, the HP PaintJet XL will reset itself, clear its memory and terminate the original plot. To configure the HP PaintJet XL as a serial device, the switches should all be set to the down position as follows: SWITCH ON/UP OFF/DOWN Baud0 X Baud1 X Par0 X Par1 X DTR/XON-XOFF X MET/ENG X ROM 8/PC 8 X HP LASERJET III IN HP-GL/2 MODE =============================== Page Protection: ---------------- If you have a HP LaserJet III, the factory default setting for Page Protection is OFF. This sets aside only 191 Kbytes for Image Memory which will cause the HP LaserJet III to display the error message: "Printer Overrun". Only a portion of your drawing will be plotted. Setting Page Protection to "LTR/A4" should eliminate this problem. See page 4-25 of the "HP LaserJet III User's Guide" for an explanation of Page Protection. Chapter 4 of the user's guide also provides instructions on how to reconfigure your HP LaserJet III. To get full-size plots on legal size paper will also need more memory. Hewlett Packard LaserJet III's must have two megabyte memory total to work with the HP-GL/2 driver. Fills: ------ Due to the finer resolution of the HP LaserJet III, you must reconfigure the pen width settings or you will end up with "streaks" in filled areas and/or broken lines. Any large filled area should show some streaking at the default pen width of .010 (Inches). There is a workaround by varying the Pen Width selected at plot time configuration and opting for the adjusted filled boundaries. When the plot time configuration asks: "Pen width in Inches <0.010>" start with a pen width of .009 and do a test plot. Be sure to answer yes to the following question: "Adjust area fill boundaries for pen width? <N> " If there still are streaks, reduce the pen width by .001 until the plot output is acceptable. Reducing the pen width will lengthen the plotting time. Please don't confuse this use of pen width with the use of line weights referred to in other parts of this document. PLPHPGL2.DOC HP-GL/2 ADI 4.1 Driver Page 26 of 26 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Legal Paper Size: ----------------- If you wish to plot a drawing longer than the 10.5" of letter size paper, you will have to install your legal size paper tray. If you don't have a legal size tray, you can manually feed the legal size sheets to the printer. You must set your printer for manual feed before you send the plot. A good time to do this is when AutoCAD tells you to "Position paper in plotter." "Press RETURN to continue....". If you do use manual feed, the HP LaserJet will display what size paper to feed it. Please see your Hewlett-Packard "LaserJet III User's Guide" for details of how to set it up for manual feed. Serial Configuration: --------------------- To configure the HP LaserJet III as a serial device, follow these steps: 1) Take the printer off line. 2) Hold the MENU button down for 5 seconds until the READY message changes to AUTO CONT.... 3) Press the MENU button once more. It will display I/O=PARALLEL * If it shows I/O=SERIAL *, put the printer back on line. 4) Press the '+' button once. It should display I/O=SERIAL. 5) Press ENTER to save the setting. A * should appear in the display. 6) Put the HP LaserJet back on line by pressing the ONLINE button. AutoCAD, AutoSketch and ADI are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. IBM, PC, XT, AT are trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation. HP is a trademark of Hewlett-Packard Corporation. Novell, Netware are registered trademarks of Novell, Inc. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! ! ! Copyright 1991,92,93 Hewlett-Packard Co. ! ! Copyright 1986,87,88,89,90, Autodesk, Inc. ! ! ! ! License is granted for the use of this software and documentation on ! ! a no-cost, sharing basis. You may distribute and copy this software ! ! freely as long as it remains a completely unaltered package and is ! ! not sold for profit. ! ! ! ! These materials are provided with no warranty, either expressed or ! ! implied, including but not limited to any implied warranties of ! ! merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, regarding these ! ! materials and are made available on an "as-is" basis. ! ! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!