Discovering Printer

The SDK also offers API to discover Brother printers from your application.

Sample Codes

Wi-Fi Printer

You can discover Wi-Fi Printer connected to the same network with the mobile device.

iOS - Objective-C:

@interface YourClass : NSObject<BRPtouchNetworkDelegate>
@property (nonatomic, strong) BRPtouchNetworkManager *networkManager;
@end

@implementation YourClass
- (void)startSearchWiFiPrinter {
    self.networkManager = [BRPtouchNetworkManager new];
    self.networkManager.delegate = self;
    [self.networkManager startSearch:5];
}

// BRPtouchNetworkDelegate
- (void)didFinishSearch:(BRPtouchNetworkManager *)manager {
    NSArray<BRPtouchDeviceInfo *> *devices = [manager getPrinterNetInfo];
    for (BRPtouchDeviceInfo *deviceInfo in devices) {
        NSLog(@"Model: %@, IP Address: %@", deviceInfo.strModelName, deviceInfo.strIPAddress);
    }
}
@end

iOS - Swift:

class YourClass: NSObject, BRPtouchNetworkDelegate {
    private var networkManager: BRPtouchNetworkManager?

    func startSearchWiFiPrinter() {
        let manager = BRPtouchNetworkManager()
        manager.delegate = self
        manager.startSearch(5)
        self.networkManager = manager
    }

    // BRPtouchNetworkDelegate
    func didFinishSearch(_ sender: Any!) {
        guard let manager = sender as? BRPtouchNetworkManager else {
            return
        }
        guard let devices = manager.getPrinterNetInfo() else {
            return
        }
        for deviceInfo in devices {
            if let deviceInfo = deviceInfo as? BRPtouchDeviceInfo {
                print("Model: \(deviceInfo.strModelName), IP Address: \(deviceInfo.strIPAddress)")
            }
        }
    }
}

Android:

void searchWiFiPrinter() {
    new Thread(new Runnable() {
        @Override
        public void run() {
            Printer printer = new Printer();
            NetPrinter[] printerList = printer.getNetPrinters("QL-1110NWB");
            for (NetPrinter printer: printerList) {
                Log.d("TAG", String.format("Model: %s, IP Address: %s", printer.modelName, printer.ipAddress));
            }
        }
    }).start();
}

Bluetooth Printer

You can retrieve bluetooth printers which are already paired with the mobile device. The SDK offers these API only for iOS.

iOS - Objective-C:

- (NSArray<BRPtouchDeviceInfo *> *)retrieveBluetoothPrinter {
    return BRPtouchBluetoothManager.sharedManager.pairedDevices;
}

iOS - Swift:

func retrieveBluetoothPrinter() -> [BRPtouchDeviceInfo] {
    let devices = BRPtouchBluetoothManager.shared().pairedDevices()
    return devices as! [BRPtouchDeviceInfo]
}

Bluetooth Low Energy Printer

You can discover nearby Bluetooth Low Energy Printer.

iOS - Objective-C:

- (void)startSearchBLEPrinter {
    BOOL started = [BRPtouchBLEManager.sharedManager startSearchWithCompletionHandler:^(BRPtouchDeviceInfo *deviceInfo) {
        NSLog(@"Model: %@, Local Name: %@", deviceInfo.strModelName, deviceInfo.strBLEAdvertiseLocalName);
    }];
}

- (void)stopSearchBLEPrinter {
    [BRPtouchBLEManager.sharedManager stopSearch];
}

iOS - Swift:

func startSearchBLEPrinter() {
    let started = BRPtouchBLEManager.shared().startSearch { (deviceInfo: BRPtouchDeviceInfo?) in
        if let deviceInfo = deviceInfo {
            print("Model: \(deviceInfo.strModelName), Local Name: \(deviceInfo.strBLEAdvertiseLocalName)")
        }
    }
}

func stopSearchBLEPrinter() {
    BRPtouchBLEManager.shared().stopSearch()
}

Android:

void searchBLEPrinter() {
    new Thread(new Runnable() {
        @Override
        public void run() {
            Printer printer = new Printer();
            List<BLEPrinter> printerList = printer.getBLEPrinters(BluetoothAdapter.getDefaultAdapter(), 30);
            for (BLEPrinter printer: printerList) {
                Log.d("TAG", "Local Name: " + printer.localName));
            }
        }
    }).start();
}

Notes

You don't have to use these APIs if you can get the following identifier of the printer beforehand.

OS	USB	Wi-Fi	Bluetooth	Bluetooth Low Energy
iOS	N/A	IP address	Serial Number	Local Name
Android	No ID (*1)	IP address or MAC address	Bluetooth device address	Local Name

• (*1) The connected Brother printer is automatically specified