Pilot - Interface Overview (Prestige R1)

This guide provides a full walkthrough of **DTF Station Pilot settings**, explaining what each option does, recommended defaults, and how certain settings affect print quality and speed. Accessing Settings

Suction (Vacuum)

• Launch **DTF Station Pilot**
• Make sure you are on the **Settings** tab before making changes

Options: Recommendation: General Settings

• Represents the **printer bed vacuum**
• **Open**: Vacuum stays on at all times
• **Off**: Vacuum turns on only when the carriage moves onto the media
• **Off** (prevents unnecessary vacuum use)

Options: Recommendation:

• Low
• Middle (best quality)
• High (fastest speed)
• **High** for production

Options:

• **Bi-direction** (prints left & right)
• Left only
• Right only
• Single-direction printing improves accuracy
• Slows down production
• Recommendation:
• **Bi-direction** for normal production
• Pre-Flashing & Auto Clean

Recommendation:

• Spits a small amount of ink into the capping station before printing or nozzle checks
• Ensures proper firing
• **Open**

Options: Recommendation: Carriage Margin & Auto Reset

• Automatically cleans during printing after ~10,000 passes
• Close
• Clean Flush (quick pre-flash)
• Clean Weak
• Clean Normal
• Clean Strong
• **Close** (manual control preferred)

Recommendation:

• **Together**:
• Carriage only moves within print width
• Off:
• Carriage travels full media width
• **Together** (faster prints)

Example: Recommendation: Media Settings

• Resets print width after each job
• Prevents a 1-inch print from traveling across a previous 5-inch width
• **Yes**

Must be measured physically on the printer. Confidence Strip (Color Bar)

• Distance from carriage home position to start of media
• Example shown: **50 mm**
• Typical range: **50–70 mm**

• Fires CMYK ink to prevent drying
• Printed along edge of media

Options: Recommendation:

• Off
• Weeding
• Status
• **Weeding + Status**
• **Weeding** (minimum)
• **Weeding + Status** (best quality)

Recommendation:

• Closest to print head home position (right side)
• **Right side**

Options: Recommendation:

• Weak
• **Normal**
• Strong
• **Normal**

• Example: **3 mm**
• Adjustable as needed

Print Overlap Settings

• Keep at least **1 mm** away from artwork
• Too close = cutting issues
• Too far = wasted media

Options (increasing quality, decreasing speed): Recommendation:

• Light (daily production)
• Normal
• Depth
• Super Precision
• **Light** for production

Options: Recommendation: Ink Charge

• Fog (speed-focused)
• Strong (quality-focused)
• **Fog**

Not for regular printing. Print Settings

• Pumps ink to waste bucket
• Used for:
• Initial ink fill
• Severe clog recovery
• Long idle periods

Options:

• **CW (Color + White)** ← Recommended
• 4C (Color only)

Options: Recommendation:

• Normal
• Color only
• White only
• **Normal**

Modes: Use only if prints appear too light. Mirror Print

• Darkens prints without changing speed
• Off
• Mode 1–3 (darker with each mode)

Global Ink Setting

• Typically handled in DigiRIP
• Leave **Off** in Pilot

Impact: Recommendation: Spot Color

• Multiplies ink output globally
• Common use: doubling white ink
• Significantly **slows print speed**
• Example:
• Normal speed: ~0.91
• Global ink enabled: ~0.28
• ~5–6 shirts/hour
• **Disabled** for normal production
• Enable only when absolutely necessary

Recommendation: Final Notes DTF Station Pilot settings overview is complete.

• Not currently used
• Can interfere with DigiRIP
• **Unchecked**
• Click **Save** after disabling
• Most production setups should prioritize speed and stability
• Global ink and high overlap modes drastically reduce throughput
• Confidence strip and proper suction settings prevent ink issues
• Always save after changes