Uploading a Template to ClinSpark

The process of getting a label template into ClinSpark must be completed with physical access to the Zebra printer. It’s recommended that the computer being used for this process be connected to the Zebra printer via direct USB. Foundry Health has not developed or tested this process to work over any ‘networked’ printer configurations, therefore it’s strongly recommended to complete these steps via direct connection.

Save Template to Printer Internal Flash Memory

After saving your template file for later editing, you’re ready to upload the new template into ClinSpark.

Within the ZebraDesigner software, click File > Store. Choose “Internal Flash” from the “Printer memory location:” dropdown menu, and make sure the other printing settings are appropriate for your printer model.

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Everywhere you plan to fill information with merge tags should be listed below the dropdown, and you should see each merge tag in the “Prompt” column. The “Value” column can remain blank, as the values will be pulled dynamically from ClinSpark.

Once you’ve confirmed everything looks right, click store. On the ZD410, a light will blink very quickly to indicate the file has been stored successfully.

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An example of how this light will look on a ZD410 when saving to internal flash.

Once the template has been stored to the printer, the rest of the workflow is completed through ClinSpark.

Upload Template in Barcode Printing > Manage

In the ClinSpark application, navigate to Barcode Printing > Manage > Actions, and select Add.

On the next screen pick the label type that corresponds with your template, select the printer where the template is stored, then choose the template from those stored on the selected printer’s internal flash. If you don’t see your templates listed, make sure you stored the template to the Internal Flash and not the DRAM or other printer memory.

Once you’ve selected the template you’d like to upload, you will be prompted to print 3 example barcodes, each containing some sample data depending on which merge tags were used.

You’ll need to ensure you’re okay with the print/design, then will need to scan all three labels successfully in order for the template to upload. This confirms the barcodes look and work as expected.

Troubleshooting unconfirmed barcodes

To confirm a design 3 example barcodes need to be scanned. For that to work it’s crucial to have the prefix set in Administration > General Settings > Barcodes to match the Example Output under Label Merge Tags in the same section.

The barcode prefix settings…

If the barcode fails to scan, a good test is to enter the expected barcode as a barcodeListenCallback() event in Google Chrome Developer Tools. This doesn’t require an actual scan, and bypasses any additional errors that can be causing the barcode not to scan (e.g., misprinted barcode, misconfigured scanner, Chrome window not having focus while scanning etc).

Clearing out the Zebra Printer Memory

Over time you may end up with designs stored on your printer’s internal flash memory that you no longer need or want. Instead of uploading these to ClinSpark to clear from the flash memory, you can use the Zebra Setup Utility to open up communication directly with the printer and issue a simple command. The command takes instantly on the Zebra printer by performing a flash memory initialization, which is explained further in the Zebra support documentation.

1. Open the Zebra Setup Utility

2. Select the printer that you want to clear internal flash memory

3. Select ‘Open Communication With Printer’

4. Enter the following command: ^XA^JBE^XZ

5. Click on ‘Send to Printer’

You will not receive any confirmation back from the printer or the communication utility that the command was received and executed successfully. To confirm that the flash memory is actually clear, use the Barcode Printing > Manage area of ClinSpark to try and upload a label template and verify that no templates exist on the local printer.