Q: How to print from an iPad Pro to a wired network printer?

The printers need to be networked printers.  iOS supports Air-Print printers natively (see About AirPrint - Apple Support) but AirPrint is specifically a wifi printing protocol.  If your printers are not AirPrint compatible, but wifi compatible, then check the app store for one of the several universal wifi print apps.

There is no way to directly connect an iPad to a hard wired printer though.  Nor is a cellular LTE connection going to help unless those printers are also LTE connected and can be seen by some App in the App store to handle printing to them.

To be more specific, AirPrint is a LAN protocol, not exclusively Wi-Fi.

What that means is that if your printer is connected to the network (e.g. via ethernet) and not directly to a host (e.g. via USB), then you can add a wireless base station to your network to act as a bridge between the wired and wireless networks. Then your iPads can print to the networked printer when they're on the WiFi network.

If your hope/intent is for remote iPads that are not on (and nowhere near) the LAN, then you have a different issue. Some printers support web-based printing where you send a document to a specific address and it's printed, but that capability depends entirely on your printer.

And an iOS App that supports internet printing.  I know Canon has their Mobile Printing App, but I don't know much about it and have never used it.  It does support secure internet printing to an IP address, at least as long as it is an IP for a Canon imageCLASS/RUNNER multifunction device.

There are also apps like Printer Pro, which allow internet printing from cloud storage (e.g. Google Drive, Dropbox) but that's a royal PITA, IMO.  You have to create the document in an App that supports the same cloud service, upload the file, open the Printer Pro app, get the file and then send it to be printed.  Would be good for people working in the field I suppose though.  It also supports some mobile BT printers I believe.

Steroxide wrote:

 

Yes, our printer supports web based printing and has its own IP address. The problem is our iPads have no App Store so we can't download any third party software.

Are you saying you have a company deployment profile that disables App Store purchases?  The App Store app is a part of iOS but purchases can be disabled. If so, you need to talk to your IT department.  iOS supports AirPrint natively, but any other form of printing will require a 3rd party app.

If you have a knowledgeable, receptive and responsive IT department then definately speak to them.   They should be able to work with you to enable and deploy a company acceptable solution to printing from within the office and/or from the field, as needed.

I know Canon has their Mobile Printing App, but I don't know much about it and have never used it

I have it and use it when needed with my iPad Pro (which is WiFi only). Works great (the app's name is Canon Print, available at the app store).