www.agc.org Contact Us Archives/Subscribe Advertise IT Forum IT Forum Steering Committee

Printers in Vehicles

Q. New area for me so I would appreciate some feedback. I just picked up a Dell printer that we need to utilize on Bid Runs. In the office it works great connected via USB. In the vehicle however, it won't stayed powered on connected via an inverter or a UPS connected to the cigarette lighter. My mechanic says I need an inverter that needs to be installed and wired to the battery ($658 for the device). I thought this printer would not only work with Windows but also with iPads because it's wireless and then found out I need a printer that has "Air print" capabilities to print from iPads. Has anyone else accomplished what I'm trying to do and what did you find was the best solution?

Thank you for your help.
Jim Gaba
Sierra Nevada Construction, Inc.

A. HP makes the Officejet 100 Mobile Printer, and Canon makes the Pixma iP100 Mobile Printer. Both can run off of a Lithium ion battery. I think the battery is an accessory you buy separately. I do not know if either will work with an iPad/iPhone. I haven't used either of these specific printers, but a few years back I used an battery-powered HP printer. It worked ok; it was slow, but it did work.
Jeremiah Jilk
John S. Meek Company Inc.

A. I'm almost curious enough to take my small Canon out to my truck and try it on my 450 watt inverter - if it will power the transformer for my Dell laptop and a drill, it should work.
W.R. "Walt" Gamble, PE
W.R. Gamble Engineering

A. They have never been fast, but there is a range of true mobile printers out there. The HP OJ 150 rates its power draw at 65W. Looks like it scans too - not sure this fits into our safety policy of "no TXT while driving."

Over the years I have had a few people ask for this - most of the time though I've found these guys that want the printer in the truck to use it for a while and then end up with that printer on their desk somewhere - even if it's a Dravo box with 110v power.
Bruce L. Roberts
J.F. White Contracting Co.

A. Laptops draw power differently. Battery is trickle charged from car.
Jim Gaba
Sierra Nevada Construction