Digi-Trax Specialized Blood Bank Printers

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What is a blood bank printer?

Digi-Trax has invested the time and financial resources to have our printer manufacturers incorporate additional features in our printers to support blood bank labeling applications. These Digi-Trax Enhanced Printers , the SATO BB-412e and the Zebra Technologies Z4M Plus BB printers have the biohazard symbol integrated permanently in their internal graphic libraries. Each printer supports a serial transmission error detection protocol that can be used by the application program and the printer to determine if a transmission error has occurred and inhibits an erroneous label from being printed. All of our printers support smoothly scalable outline fonts specifically needed to image the ABO-Rh Negative blood groups. All of our printers are inhibited from printing a duplicate label when the ribbon or label supply has been replenished and the printer is readied after an out of media supply event has occurred on the printer.

Digi-Trax Corporation has been directly involved in the development of the ISBT 128 blood bank industry standards since 1990. We have participated in virtually every ICCBBA Working Party on Automation and Data Processing meeting over the last ten years and has participated as a member of the AABB ISBT-128 Implementation Task Force. Our involvement has been primarily as a consultant with specific knowledge about thermal label imaging and bar code scanning technology. We have also been students learning from our many experiences in developing blood bank applications. We have applied this knowledge by extending the capabilities of several printer models manufactured by two of our printer suppliers (SATO America and Zebra Technologies). Many of these extensions are exclusively available only in printers manufactured for us by our suppliers.

Sato America & Zebra Technologies have manufactured two exclusive blood bank printer models with custom firmware for Digi-Trax. This specialized engineering was designed to operate seamlessly with our Hema Trax.LPS™ software. These Digi-Trax enhanced models come with 300 dot per inch (dpi) resolution, transmission error detection capabilities, ABO outline fonts and other important features that are required for on-demand blood bank printing with Hema Trax.LPS™.

Printer Enhancements Table

Printer Enhancement	Sato BB412e	Zebra Z4M PLUS-BB	NA indicates that the enhancement is Not Available. Present indicates that the enhancement is normally present on a standard "off the shelf" printer. Yes indicates that the enhancement has been added exclusively for Digi-Trax Corporation. Printers that support the enhancements listed above are better suited to address the reliability and quality issues often faced by the blood bank. These enhancements become requirements when using Digi-Trax's HemaTrax.LPS™ software products. The inclusion of resident fonts and graphics greatly reduces the complexity, time overhead and operational problems that are often caused when software must download the printer with these graphics. Digi-Trax strongly recommends that all blood bank customers buy label printers that are capable of 300 dot per inch print resolution. The printer industry now supports this standard dot resolution at very affordable prices. The extra resolution produces labels with crisper images and that are more legible than the old 200 dpi technology. For those customers who want to save up to 50% on pre-printed unit number labels, 300 dpi print resolution is required in order to print the ISBT-128 tube bar code labels in the unit identification number sets. All Digi-Trax software is written to drive only 300 dpi printers with the Digi-Trax Enhancements manufactured by either SATO America or Zebra Technologies. To contact a salesperson for your territory for more information about our products click here.
Disable label repeat	Yes	Present
Head check before print	Yes	NA
Resident scaleable outline fonts (ISBT-128)	Yes	Yes
Resident biohazard symbol (ISBT-128)	Yes	Yes
Resident Codabar ABO-Rh Graphics	Yes	Yes
CRC transmission error detection	Yes	Present

Sato BB-412e

This Sato printer ships with all the resident graphics needed to support the ISBT 128 standards, including ABO-RH fonts. This model also has CODABAR ABO graphics to facilitate an easy transition to on-demand printing. The printer includes the standard 300 dpi print head that provides better than two times the resolution of a 200 dpi printer. The BB-412e supports a serial transmission error protocol and upon a request from the host computer the BB-412e sends out-of-label and out-of-ribbon status, head open or closed and print head condition (whether any print element has failed). The BB-412e now has internal Ethernet communications available, thus operating in conjunction with the latest version of Hema Trax.LPS™

View the Sato 412E series product brochure.

Zebra Z4M

This Zebra can be configured with a choice of serial, parallel or new internal Ethernet communication. You may also add the new Value-Peel option designed to present the label dispensed from its protective liner. The special enhanced Digi-Trax model includes 300 dpi print head, ISBT 128 fonts, CODBAR graphics and last number repeat disabled. The Zebra Z4M Plus-BB also has standard serial transmission error detection protocol.

With its high speed 32 bit processor, all your blood bank label images will print quickly and quietly. This printer is built rugged to give you years of dependable service with its die cast alloy frame and all metal cabinet. Your Zebra printers with the Ethernet option can be centrally managed with ZebraLink™ and WebView software. Digi-Trax's Zebra printer will make blood bank labeling compliance quick, simple and uncomplicated.

View the Z series product brochure.

Digi-Trax is an ICCBBA registered manufacturer (see: www.iccbba.com)
If you are registered, you can utilize the Digi-Trax provided valid & invalid ISBT 128 bar codes to help with your validation process.

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