Canon iP5000 -Head won't come to center

[Trigger 37]

Hello, I fix a lot of printers from time to time and now I have a Canon iP5000 that works about 98%. The main problem right now is that the printhead won't come to the center of the carriage when I open both the top cover and the front cover. It should do this to allow the change of ink cartridges. To change the ink I have to fool the printer by opening both covers in the power off state,.. then turn the power on. As the printer cycles through the normal power up, and moves the carriage to check the ink levels on the left side of the printer, I pull the power plug and stop the head where I can get access to the ink tanks. Once I have the ink taken care of, I close the top cover and the front door and power up the printer. It puts everything back to where it should be and comes ready. It prints everything perfect. What a wonderful printer. It is even faster than my old i560.

I figure there is a loose wire or the front door switch is broken, the PC card doesn't know the door is open and won't move the head to the center. I have the Service Manual for the iP5000, but of course they stopped putting in the block diagrams and wiring information for this manual. It may be in the Parts manual but I don't have that. It also seems that the iP3000, IP6000, and iP4000 are very similar physically so the switches would be in the same place.

If anyone has any information on the location of that switch or sensor, or the block diagram, I would really appreciate the information. I have learned from experience not to tear into a printer unless I have the Parts manual that shows the entire process. It is too easy to break a cover or something else.

In all of the i Series (450,550,560,etc.) when the top door is open it activates a push button switch on main PC board and this moves the printhead to the center. The big difference in these printers is the new ones have gone to more of a retangular box shape, which has moved a lot of things into different places inside. The main PC logic board used to be directly behind the carriage and now it is on the end in the back.

Hope some knows how this is wired.

 

[Trigger 37]

Well this is really fantastic,..30 people have looked at this post and not a person has made a comment or suggestion???? Well anyway,.. we can all laugh out loud. I used the iP5200 Service manual I had, which is similar but not the same as the iP5000, to take the covers off. As soon as I got the cover off I found the main cover switch. Guess what,... it was covered by another internal cable containing 6+ small wires, but the result was that it would not let the cover lever actually get at the switch. Raising the cover would only actuate the lever mechanism and push the cable rather meeting with the switch. The switch is mounted on the top of the main PC board which is on the top right end of the printer. I moved the cable and for insurance, I added a small piece of tape to keep the cable from getting back in the way again. It was just a bad assembly job.

This printer has never been serviced or taken apart by anyone, so it came this way from the factory. I guess that gradually the cable worked around so it blocked the switch. The person that gave it to me did not used it much in the office since they got a new all-in-one and that became the primary working printer. I guess I really lucked out on this one. It is all back together and prints great. The only issue is that I think the high quality photos print too dark, or should I say to "Rich". The colors are very vivid, which is a Canon term for,... "lets really put the ink down heavy". I guess their print drivers are set to do this becuase it, " USES MORE INK",... DAHHHH! I wonder why they would want to use more ink than the picture needs.

Hope this helps someone else

 

[jackson]

If anyone has any information on the location of that switch or sensor, or the block diagram, I would really appreciate the information.

Guess none of the gang of thirty had the information.
I looked at it long and weary assuming that the head was moving but didn't stop in the centre.
I still don't know how the damn thing knows when it gets to the centre, but happy to know it's resolved.