Basic Guidelines for Medical Printer Maintenance

Medical printers are an important device in the medical industry, especially in the medical imaging field. However, they have gained popularity among pregnant women and their families over the years thanks to the rise of businesses dedicated to making baby ultrasounds. 3D/4D ultrasound facilities offer an unforgettable experience by allowing families to see the baby's development in a wellness session with no medical purposes and provide an ultrasound print of the moment as a souvenir. 

Whether you are in a medical imaging center, a gynecology office, or a 3D/4D baby ultrasound facility, in order to make the most out of your medical images, you will need a medical black and white printer and a color printer. 

Ultrasound thermal printers don’t work like the regular printers we are used to. This type of equipment doesn’t use ink, it uses heat to reproduce images on thermal paper. But just like most devices, including color printers, they also need proper maintenance to work correctly.  

Maintenance service is something most people take for granted or just ignore because they think it’s not relevant, but the truth is maintenance can extend the lifespan of your medical printer and also keep it functioning like new.  

Thanks to our decades of experience in the medical imaging field, we have gathered the expertise to provide you with useful recommendations to optimize the products you acquire from ERI. Here are the basic guidelines to take care of your medical printer. 

Read Your Manufacturer’s Manual  

As obvious as it sounds, people tend to ignore the most basic and easy principle to manage any device: read the manual. Your manufacturer’s manual usually contains relevant information about the best practices you should follow to use your device and get the most ideal results, as well as recommendations to extend its lifespan.  

Most manuals also include information about cleaning, maintaining, and doing the proper service according to the equipment. Basic recommendations that work for almost all devices are:  

  • Make sure to clean the printhead and inside the printer every time you install a new roll of ultrasound paper to minimize dust and other particles building up.  
  • Calibrate the device according to the recommendations from the manual.   
  • Follow the suggestions from the manufacturer regarding which ultrasound paper you should use and ink for color printers. 
  • Most printers include a cleaning sheet that you can use from time to time to maintain the head of your device. Cleaning sheets can also be ordered at ERI through customer service. 

These simple but significant actions will be key to taking care of your medical printer. 

Invest in a Service/Maintenance Plan Provided by Professionals   

Even though there are things you can do on your own, the best choice for more complicated things like repairing or doing service is to always go to a professional in the area that can help you.  

By being a division of EDM Medical Solutions, ERI holds more than 30 years of experience in the medical imaging field. This trajectory has given us the opportunity of developing a support team with experts qualified to meet the manufacturer's specifications and our clients' expectations.  

ERI offers repair and maintenance services to make things easier for you. Our team members can quickly diagnose and repair your equipment at a flat rate for your convenience, and it includes a 90-day repair warranty.   

For better equipment longevity, we recommend you perform professional servicing and maintenance to your printers once a year. Over time, some gear or smaller components can wear out and need to be cleaned or replaced, ERI can do that to ensure the functioning of your printers. 

Additionally, ERI offers you a great advantage. Every time you acquire a product from us, you are able to obtain an extended warranty for 1 year or 2 years, depending on the plan you choose.  

Protect Your Printer from Voltage Damage

Using a voltage regulator is a great tool to prevent damages to your equipment in case of changes in the voltage or a power outage, especially if your practice is in areas affected by hurricane season, tornados, and other natural phenomena that can affect power.   

These changes in voltage could affect vital parts of your printer, such as sensors and screens. 

Cover Your Printer When not in Use 

This simple recommendation can be applied to printers and any other medical device. By using a cover on your equipment, you will prevent dust and debris from accumulating on and inside of it, which can cause further damage to small parts.  

Printers are extremely sensitive to shocks, so make sure to place them on a secured and flat surface. When not in use, always cover the printer and move it away from high-traffic areas to reduce the risk of accidental damage.  

As you can see, the lifespan of a device does not depend only on the quality of the manufacturer. It relies on the care and maintenance you give to it through time. If you want more information about this topic, we invite you to check out Mitsubishi Electric’s professional printer maintenance videos, where you will find tips, tricks, and recommendations to optimize your printer to the maximum.