Diagnosing the Problem

You can identify many common printer problems with the lights on your printer's control panel. If your printer stops working and the lights are on or flashing, use the following table of panel light patterns to diagnose the problem, then follow the recommended corrective measures.

Lights	Problem and Solution
	Paper Out
	No paper is loaded in the printer.	Load paper in the sheet feeder; then press the load/eject button to turn this light off. The printer resumes printing.
	Paper Jam
	Paper has jammed in the printer.	Press the load/eject button. The printer ejects the jammed paper and then resumes printing. If the error is not cleared, open the printer cover and remove the jammed paper. Then reload paper in the sheet feeder, and press the load/eject button. The printer resumes printing.
	Ink Low (black ink cartridge)
	The black ink cartridge is nearly empty.	Obtain a replacement black ink cartridge (S020187).
	Ink Out (black ink cartridge)
	The black ink cartridge is empty.	Replace the black ink cartridge with a new one (S020187). See Replacing an Empty Ink Cartridge for details.
	Ink Low (color ink cartridge)
	The color ink cartridge is nearly empty.	Obtain a replacement color ink cartridge (T001).
	Ink Out (color ink cartridge)
	The color ink cartridge is empty.	Replace the color ink cartridge with a new one (T001). See Replacing an Empty Ink Cartridge for details.
	Carriage Error
	The print head carriage is caught on jammed paper or other foreign material and cannot return to the home position.	If the paper is not ejected, turn off the printer. Open the printer cover and remove any paper from the paper path by hand. If the error does not clear, contact your dealer.
	Unknown Printer Error
	An unknown printer error has occurred.	Turn off the printer, and contact your dealer.

Performing a printer operation check can help you determine whether the problem comes from the printer or the computer.

To print a printer operation check page, follow these steps:

Make sure both the printer and computer are turned off.

Disconnect the cable from the printer's interface connector.

If you use the parallel interface, first, unlock the wire clips on both sides of the interface connector and remove the ground connector, if necessary. Then disconnect the cable from the printer's interface connector.

Load paper into the sheet feeder.

Caution:

Use paper at least 210 mm (8.27 inches) wide; for example, A4 size paper loaded short edge first. Otherwise, the print head will spray ink directly onto the platen during the operation and will smear any documents you print afterwards.

Hold down the load/eject button and press the power button to turn on the printer. Then release both buttons.

The printer prints an operation check page including the version of your printer's ROM, the ink counter code, and a nozzle check pattern. Here is a typical printout:

Press the power button to turn off the printer after it finishes printing the operation check page.

• Compare the quality of the printed check page with the sample shown above. If there are no print quality problems, such as gaps or missing segments in the test lines, the printer itself is all right and the problem probably lies in the printer software settings, application settings, the interface cable (be sure to use a shielded cable), or the computer itself.

• If the check page does not print satisfactorily, there is a problem with the printer. For example, if any segment of the printed lines is missing, there could be a clogged ink nozzle or a misaligned print head.