Manufacturing automation is booming throughout most of the telecommunications industry. This is just one example of automation success: fusion stitching. The operator prepares the fiber end, places it in the fusion splicer, and pushes a button. The device measures and aligns ends, checks for cracks, and performs splice tests to check quality—all hands-free. This automated fusion process results in further cost savings and improved quality.
But let's be candid about a typical connection process. We recognize incremental improvements over the past 40 years, including increased volume (from polishing a handful of connectors at a time to 72), and automation (from hand-press technology to batch polishers). That said, except for very large-scale manufacturing, the current process looks very similar. We still manually assemble the connectors and handle them by hand. To reduce manufacturing costs, our industry has moved hand-produced fiber optic assemblies primarily to regions of the world with lower labor costs.
So what's next? How can large and medium-sized independent fiber optic assemblers continue to reduce expenses while improving connector quality? Can our industry develop "automation-ready" tools and equipment that can leverage existing common automation processes and software, but still provide the rapid change and flexibility required in the fiber optic connector assembly space?
The optical fiber connector
As an industry, we must come together to solve the problem of automating fiber optic connections. In fact, I think automation is an essential next step in the fiber optic assembly industry. However, we face multiple challenges. The following paragraphs discuss some of these challenges and then present my proposed solution as a way for our industry to overcome obstacles and take a big step forward.
Challenge: Stable Technology
One of the concerns of automation in the fiber optic industry is that you need a stable technology. Again, fusion splicing is a good example: when companies start using fusion splicing (as opposed to other permanent termination methods), the process becomes very stable. Whether factory spliced or field spliced, they all use the same equipment and stability. The point is that although a process (welding) was developed, the process equipment continued to be upgraded and more functions were added, but the core process did not change. We have a process that was initially very operator sensitive, which allowed automation due to advances in general robotics and manufacturing automation. An example from a different industry is the assembly of automobiles. Automakers have been welding robots together for decades.
We can't stop progressing, and we don't want to, which means no industry is immune to technological change. (Compare Ford's Model T to a self-driving Tesla.) When we look at the history of connectors and connectivity, "progress" means the continuous development and improvement of various styles and types of connectors to Reduce cost, improve quality and ease of assembly. Fiber optic assemblies initially used mated copper coaxial fiber optic connectors (SMA fiber optic connectors), then ceramic ferrules, non-fiber breakers, and then used in many different styles and types (LC, SC, FC, ST , MTR, MTP, etc.) multi-core fiber connectors. . We then started with the original factory-installed connectors only, and added field-installable connectors.
sma fiber optic connector
All of these variants together represent an ever-improving - and sometimes disruptive - technology. So when we talk about automating the connection process, we first have to think about the mass-produced connectors that are assembled in an automated factory. (Incidentally, I can safely say that some large manufacturers already automate specific types of bulk connectors through highly proprietary programs.)
Challenge: The flexibility of automation
Note: All specific types of connectors must conform to a pluggability standard called a focus file. This document defines mechanical standards that allow products from different manufacturers to work together. RJ 45 Ethernet copper connectors are similar. So each manufacturer can and does have different in-house designs and innovations. In addition to that, we actually have hundreds of fibers and branch ends that mate with these connectors, and you'll find that you need a very flexible manufacturing process in this case.
Also, flexibility in automation is critical because we don’t want to stifle future technological advancements. Every year, we see new innovations in connectors. For example, there are many variants of so-called ferruleless connectors. Other types of connectors have metal, ceramic or molded plastic ferrules. Additionally, some connectors actually provide a bare-fiber-to-bare-fiber interface through the gel. Many of these variants have appeared or disappeared, or specific niches have been found.
There are two main reasons why our industry has not yet automated connector production:
We have been able to reduce the cost of manufacturing basic connector bodies. Most of these are related to automated injection molding processes and standardization of ceramic ferrules.
We have been able to reduce labor costs by moving large connector operations to areas with lower labor costs. This migration has effectively hampered the mid- to large-scale, flexible automation market that can handle rapid changes in connector technology.
Interestingly, our industry has embraced and required complex testing and inspection processes and brought them to a very high level of automation. I mean, the device provides process automation testing in its own environment, but doesn't have a neutral interface with other similar devices. We haven't brought the actual connector assembly operations to that level of automation. During this testing phase, fiber optic assemblers are still grappling with bottlenecks and eagerly awaiting improvements.
Challenge: Improve cost savings and quality
In order to move automated connectivity to many manufacturers, there must be a reason. Here's why: as we move forward, every connector must provide lower loss and higher reliability. The joining process must produce fiber optic assemblies with ever-increasing levels of quality and lower costs.
As mentioned above, a major challenge is dealing with so many different connector designs and materials. More importantly, how will connectors be designed in the near future? We don't want to stifle innovation while reducing costs and creating greater reliability.
However, we need to face the fact that today's assembly process is essentially a very manual process in the vast majority of companies, and this manual process has serious limitations. A colleague likes to say, "People are two sigma. No matter what you do, your reliability and quality are usually 2 sigma performance." However, we need to step up to 3 sigma or even 6 sigma performance. Why? Because in some applications, higher performance is absolutely critical. For example, life/safety issues such as flight critical connectors on aircraft, connectors in laser surgery applications, and connectors used in 911 emergency or military communications networks.
Definition of Sigma:
Sigma is a measure of statistical significance; the standard deviation represented by the lowercase Greek letter sigma (σ). It is the amount of variability in a given dataset, independent of how close or scattered the data points are.
The normal distribution is the result of experimentation and, when plotted on a graph, will produce the tallest shape in the middle, tapering off on each side. This is often called a bell curve.
Bias is the distance of a given data point from the mean.
Standard deviation is the square root of the mean of all squared deviations.
The 68–95–99.7 rule is a shorthand for remembering the percentage of values that lie within the mean of a normal distribution that is two, four, and six standard deviations wide.
Plotting one standard deviation or one sigma above or below the mean of this normal distribution curve will define an area that includes 68% of all data points. The two sigma above or below will contain about 95% of the data, and the three sigma will contain 99.7% of the data.
The Five Sigma result is considered the gold standard and is equivalent to finding that the result is one part in a million of random variation. Six Sigma is considered a 1 in 5 chance of the outcome being random. From this term comes the famous "Six Sigma" business strategy, which is based on enforcing strict quality control procedures to reduce waste.
To enter new heights of fiber-connected factory automation, we need to consider islands of flexible automation, much like how manufacturers in the electronics industry have adopted flexible automation. Consider the growing complexity of the printed circuit board assembly business. The industry ranges from basic printed circuit boards, to multilayer boards, to surface mount technology. Now they are developing chip-to-chip technology. At each step, equipment designed for the previous generation of technology became redundant, and older processes migrated to areas with lower labor costs. Eventually, every technical process becomes obsolete - sometimes less than 5 years.
So the question here is:
How can we simultaneously embrace automation without stifling new technologies?
How do we respond to changing requirements and specifications?
How do we automate and pay for it in a short amount of time?
Some automation techniques can serve as a guide. For example, 5- and 6-axis robotic arms are designed and built to be flexible (literally), so they can be easily updated over the years. Several industries have adopted standardized software models for automation interfaces, so different manufacturer components can work together seamlessly. Arguably, this is an insurance policy, so the technology isn't going to be obsolete anytime soon.
To meet the ever-increasing cost requirements of the fiber optic assembly industry, we must work with assembly equipment manufacturers to discuss the interface of automated processes related to software and hardware.
In fact, I believe the end customer will drive the need for improved quality and assembly flexibility. The growing demand for three-sigma to six-sigma performance will force fiber optic assemblers to move away from a "quality test" way of working and toward a "quality built in" approach.
Our industry is at an inflection point when it comes to connected automation.
Our industry has successfully automated advanced testing and inspection processes during fiber optic assembly. However, even here, we do not see an easy-to-align automated protocol that allows seamless integration of different manufacturer systems. Now, we need to automate fiber connections. As a representative of the best manufacturing companies that offer fiber optic assembly equipment, I know that many suppliers are seeing this demand as well. However, no one manufacturer was able to take the lead. This makes sense because each vendor is an expert in its own technology, created specifically for a specific step in the process.
What is the solution? I believe that the premium suppliers in the fiber optic industry must come together specifically to address this pressing issue. Once we bring together an association of manufacturers – an automation working group, they will need to look at how other industries are approaching this challenge and pay attention to the available software and hardware conventions that need to be identified and adopted for assembly equipment manufacturers moving forward. These AD Hoc choices may lead to further standardization, which will only help the industry. It's a tall order, but clearly the time has come.
The question is: Can we agree on an automation standard that solves the industry's problems? Could we be interested in automation software and hardware companies to assist us with this work? Do we still have the flexibility to handle different fiber configurations, connector configurations, and ongoing technology upgrades?
Automation of fiber optic connections is a pressing topic in the fiber optic assembly industry. Let's start the conversation and move the issue forward. This topic must be addressed immediately – an essential next step for the fiber optic assembly industry.
