Epson E-02: scanner error on small-panel models

What causes it

• Something resting on the scanner lid or wedged under it
• The scanner carriage stalled on its belt or rail
• A power interruption during a scan leaving the carriage away from home
• The scanner unit not seated properly after being lifted to change cartridges
• Scanner motor, belt or home sensor failure

How to fix it, in order

Work down the list and stop when the printer recovers. The steps are ordered from most likely and least invasive to last resort.

1. Clear the lid and the glass, then restart

   Take anything off the top of the printer, open the document cover and remove any original from the glass. Close the cover flat. Power the printer off, wait 30 seconds and switch it back on, and listen for the quiet whirr of the scanner carriage travelling under the glass in the first few seconds.

2. Do a full power drain

   Unplug the printer at both ends, hold the power button for 30 seconds and leave it five minutes. This clears the stored scanner carriage position, which matters because a printer that lost power mid-scan believes the carriage is somewhere it is not and can fail its home check for that reason alone.

3. Check the scanner section is seated

   On these models the scanner section lifts to give access to the cartridges. Lift it fully and lower it again, making sure it drops flat and clicks rather than resting slightly open at one corner. Check nothing is trapped underneath, such as a cartridge wrapper or a sheet of paper.

4. Look for a transport lock

   Some Epson multifunction models have a scanner lock, a small slider with a padlock icon on the left side or underside of the scanner assembly. If your model has one and it is engaged, the carriage physically cannot move. Release it and restart.

5. Watch and listen during the first ten seconds

   A scanner that makes a grinding noise or a repeated clicking has a mechanical problem, most often the carriage belt slipping or the carriage catching on the frame. Complete silence means the motor is not being driven at all. Note which you hear, because it decides whether the fault is mechanical or electronic.

6. Try a scan from a computer if the printer boots

   If the machine reaches its home screen, install Epson ScanSmart and try a scan from the computer rather than from the panel. A scan that starts and then errors part way through indicates the carriage stalls at a specific point along the glass, which is a mechanical fault rather than a controller problem.

7. Decide whether printing alone is enough

   If the error only appears when scanning and the printer otherwise works, you can carry on printing. If E-02 blocks the machine at every boot, the scanner has to be repaired or the printer replaced, since you cannot use one function without the other.

Frequently asked questions