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Model 650

Central Ballot Scanner

Firmware v2.1.0.0.

 

Pre-Election Day Checklist

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Checking Supplies and the Equipment                       

1.           1 power cord for the scanner

2.           1 power strip

3.           Printer power cords

4.           1 pick belt

5.           1 retard pad

6.           1 box of 8.5” x 11,” continuous feed, carbonless, three-part paper per printer

7.           2 pressurized cans of air

8.           1 clean cotton cloth

9.           1 bottle of Isopropyl rubbing alcohol

10.       12 sheets of ˝ inch-wide, small white or black adhesive labels

11.       1 PC formatted zip disk for election results

12.       1 spare printer ribbon per printer

13.       1 Model 650 User’s Guide

 

Inspecting and Removing the Pick Belt

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


14.       Make sure the scanner is off and unplugged.

 

15.       Lift the pick belt cover and read head. It can also be helpful to lower and lock the input hopper in its down position, and adjust the Upstop Knob so that the metal strap is lowered out of the way.

 

16.       Pull the old belt off the right-side roller first and then remove it from the left-side roller.

 

17.       Check the belt’s manufacture date, which is printed on the inside of the belt itself.  If the belt is expired (six months after manufacture date) or worn, replace it.   If the belt is not expired, but it is dirty, then you can wash the belt in warm to hot water to remove any debris.

 

 

 

 

PICK BELT ROLLER

 

RETARD PAD

 

PICK BELT ROLLER

 
Inspecting and Cleaning the Retard Pad and the Pick Belt Rollers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


18.       Inspect the retard pad.  It should be light-colored and clean.  If the pad is dirty, wipe it with a dry, cotton cloth to absorb any ink.  Apply isopropyl rubbing alcohol to the cloth and clean it again if more cleaning is necessary.

 


19.       Replace the pad if the ridges on the pad itself are worn down.  Using the tuning screwdriver stored in the back of the scanner, lift the edge of the pad until it is above the metal surface.  Place the new pad into position beneath the pick belt rollers with the flat surface down, tapered edge to the right, and pop the pad into place with the screwdriver.  DO NOT REMOVE THE MASKING TAPE UNDER THE RETARD PAD UNLESS DIRECTED TO DO SO BY AN ES&S TECHNICIAN.

 

20.       Clean the pick belt rollers by applying isopropyl rubbing alcohol to a cotton cloth and wiping the visible surfaces of the rollers.

 


21.       Turn the rollers as you clean to expose the entire roller surface.

 


22.       Stretch the new pick belt as you would a balloon before inflating it. 

 

23.       Rub your finger across the surface of the pick belt.  In one direction it will feel smooth and the other rough.  You must ensure that the rough edge is positioned to make contact with the ballots.  Loop the new pick belt around the left-side roller first and then around the right-side roller until it fits into place. You may turn the Manual Advance Knob to roll the belt onto the rollers and center it.

 

 

 

 

Cleaning the Fiber Optic Sensors

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

24.       Clean the sensors with a dry, cotton cloth or by using a pressurized air can to blow any debris or paper dust collected during scanner operation.  When using a pressurized air can, hold the can upright to avoid spraying any liquid propellant onto the scanner.

 

 

Cleaning the Feed Path

 


25.       Using a cloth lightly dampened with rubbing alcohol, wipe any smudges and smears from the feed path.

 

26.       Close the read head and pick belt cover. Raise the input hopper and re-adjust the Upstop Knob to raise the strap.

 

 

Connecting the Printers and Loading the Printer Paper

 

27.       Connect the printers to the scanner using standard printer cables.  The scanner connection is located to the left of the ON/OFF switch on the lower left side of the scanner.

 

28.       Refer to your printer’s User’s Manual to properly load paper in the printer.

 


29.       Advance the paper so that the top of a new page rests at the top edge of the print carriage.

 


30.       Turn the printers on. The power switches are located on the right side at the rear of the printers.

Installing the Output Hopper

 


31.       Line up the output hopper slide with its corresponding slot located on the left side of the scanner.

 

32.       Slide the hopper down making sure that the top edge of the hopper is below the feed path.

 

33.       Adjust the length of the output hopper to match the length of the ballots being used for the election. The hopper is adjustable to accommodate all ballot lengths.

 

 

Initializing the Scanner

 


34.       Insert the female end of the scanner power cord into the male connector located on the lower left side of the scanner.

 


35.       Plug the scanner and both printers into a power strip. 

 

36.       Plug the power strip into an outlet.

 

37.       Insert the zip disk with the election definition into the zip drive.

 

38.       Turn the scanner on.  The power switch is located on the lower left side of the scanner.  This message will appear once the scanner has initialized:

“Press Stop to Keep XXXXX  (name of election currently in the machine). 

Press Start to Load XXXXX  (Zip)  (name of election on the zip disk)”

 

39.       Press START to load the new election definition from the zip disk into the scanner.

 

40.       The following message is displayed:

Confirm: Initialize Election?”

Press Stop to cancel, Start to continue.”

 

 

 

41.       Press START.  If there were election totals saved to the election definition Zip disk, the M650 will automatically load them as well. If this is the case, this message will be displayed:

        “Totals Present in Database”

       “Zero Totals or Press Start to continue”

      

       **If you did not receive this message, proceed to step #44.

 

42.       Simultaneously press the ENABLE and ZERO TOTALS buttons. The following message will appear:

“Confirm: Zero Totals?”

“Press Stop to cancel, Start to continue”

 

43.       Press Start.

 

44.       Ready for regular counting” will appear, the READY light will come on and the report format will set itself to SHORT.

 

45.       Check the scanner’s printout (the Machine Readiness Report) for the correct jurisdiction and date and type of election.  Check the accuracy of the Checking Program Configuration section, the Checking Election Options section, and the Checking Hardware Configuration section.  Contact ES&S Customer Service at 1-877-377-VOTE (8683) immediately if any of the printed information is incorrect.

 

46.       Remove the election definition zip disk and store it in accordance with the election staff’s procedures.

 

 

 

Checking the Accuracy of the Election Definition

 

**If you zeroed totals in step 42 above, skip to step #51

 

47. Simultaneously press the ENABLE and ZERO TOTALS buttons to ensure the scanner has cleared all previous election data from its memory.

 

 

48.       The following message will appear:

“Confirm: Zero Totals?”

“Press Stop to cancel, Start to continue”

 

49.       Press Start.

 

50.       Totals have been set to Zero” will appear, the READY light will come on and the report format will set itself to SHORT.

 

51.       Confirm that the ON-LINE lamp is lit.  If it is not, press SELECT until the light comes on.

 

52.       Gently, press the input hopper tray down until it locks in its DOWN position.

 

53.       Correctly orient the ballots so that they are facing up with the cut in the top right corner.

 

54.       Place the ballots on the input hopper tray so that the ballots are facing up with the cut corner sitting on top of the retard pad.

 

55.       Tap the ballots lightly until they are flush against the two metal sides of the input hopper.

 

56.       Gently press the input hopper down and release it so that it rises up even to the feed area. 

 

57.       Adjust the white finger guide so that it rests approximately one dime’s width from the edge of the stack of ballots.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


58.       Turn off any active SORT options by pressing the buttons in the SORT area of the control panel until all lights are off. Press START to scan the test deck of ballots.

 

59.       After the scanner has completed scanning the ballots, press the SAVE button to save the results to the scanner’s internal drive.  A message confirming the number of ballots scanned, saved, and sorted, will be displayed.

 

60.       **NOTE:  You will not be able to print any reports until you have saved the results to the internal drive.

 

61.       Press the FORMAT button in the REPORTS area of the control panel so that LONG lights up.

 

62.       To print both a GRAND TOTALS and a TOTALS BY PRECINCT report, simply press the button to the left of GRAND TOTALS and after the printer stops, press the button to the left of the TOTALS BY PRECINCT.  Make sure that the paper does not feed itself back into the back of the printer.

 

63.       Check that the reports reflect the appropriate test deck results.  If the results match, continue with the next step.

 

**NOTE:  If results do not match, perform the test again by completing Steps 47-63. 

 

If the results still do not match after the second test, call ES&S Customer Service at 1-877-377-VOTE  (8683) for assistance. 

 

64.       Save the results to a zip disk by inserting a disk into the disk drive, wait for the drive activity light to go out, and then simultaneously press ENABLE and SAVE.  The following message is displayed:

“Confirm: Save totals to transfer disk”

“Press Stop to cancel, Start to continue”

 

65.       Press Start. When the scanner is finished storing results to the disk, the message, “Totals copied to transfer disk” will appear. 

66.       If you will be using ERM for Election Day reporting, transfer the election results from the Zip disk into Election Reporting Manager.  Print the election reports and confirm that the results match the results from the scanner’s reports. Refer to ERM Manuals and checklists for procedures.

 

If they match, call ES&S Customer Service at 1-877-377-VOTE (8683) to report your results. 

 

If they do not, STOP.  Perform the test again by completing Steps 47-66. 

 

If the results still do not match after the second test, call ES&S Customer Service at 1-877-377-VOTE  (8683) for assistance. 

 

67.       Once the test is successful, power off the scanner and the power switch on the power strip.  Leave the printers connected to the scanner.

 

68.       Remove the output hopper.

 

69.       Remove the pick belt.

 

70.       Leave the input hopper in its unlatched, UP position.

 

71.       Cover the scanner with its dust cover.