Newsroom
NEMI Launches Project to Improve Fiber Optic Splicing
Meeting Scheduled for September 18
at NFOEC in Dallas
Press Contacts at bottom of page
HERNDON, Va. - August 19, 2002 - The National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (NEMI), an industry-led consortium focused on strengthening the North American supply chain, is launching a new project to improve optical fiber splicing. An informational meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 18, at the National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (NFOEC) in Dallas.
The goal of the new NEMI Fiber Optic Splice Improvement Project is to develop industry-wide splice quality criteria and test methods that will allow for systematic investigation of variability, comparison of equipment and procedures, improved yield and lower costs.
"There are no widely agreed-upon acceptance criteria for fiber splices, and specifications often differ significantly between OEM, EMS, supplier and customer," said Peter Arrowsmith, advisory scientist for Celestica Inc. and chair of the NEMI Fiber Optic Splice Improvement Project. "One critical area is the splicer insertion loss estimate. Different splicer vendors use different techniques for estimating insertion loss, and the accuracy of these estimates is often insufficient to know whether the splice is acceptable, particularly when really low losses - less than 0.05 dB - are required. Industry would benefit from standardized criteria for estimating insertion loss, and this is one of the areas the project will address. We will also develop standardized procedures and requirements for strength criteria and test methods; splice protection, such as coating and sleeve; strip, clean and cleave effectiveness; fiber handling for prep and splicing; and fiber reliability assessment methods."
Specific project activities will include
- Develop and validate test methods for insertion loss, strength and extinction ratio.
- Test splices made using different equipment.
- Based on actual data, define the splice acceptance criteria more precisely (statistical metrics, e.g. Cp, Cpk, parameters to quantify the high IL tail).
- Identify major cause(s) of splice variability.
- Develop fiber handling requirements for preparation, splicing and assembly.
- Develop methods for testing and comparing protection methods in order to predict splice reliability.
- Rank the performance of different splicing techniques and insertion loss estimators.
- Develop a cost model for splicing and cost-of-ownership estimations in order to compare manual and automated splicing, and different equipment (capital cost, throughput, yield, operating cost, etc.).
Arrowsmith says he expects the project to use and validate existing methods of fiber splicing and, as appropriate, develop and submit to the appropriate standards-making bodies draft standards for splice acceptance and performance, as well as for fiber handling and reliability.
The initial informational meeting will be held Wednesday, September 18, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. in Room C150 of the Dallas Convention Center. Presentations will also be made on other NEMI optoelectronics projects and will include information about the recently developed draft standard for fiber carriers for automated component assembly, and an update from the Fiber Optic Signal Performance Project. Anyone interested in participating in the project should contact David Godlewski at dgodlewski@nemi.org.
About NEMI
The National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative's mission is to facilitate leadership of the North American electronics manufacturing supply chain. Based in Herndon, Va., the industry-led consortium is made up of approximately 60 electronics manufacturers, suppliers, industry associations and consortia, government agencies and universities. NEMI roadmaps the needs of the North American electronics industry, identifies gaps in the technology infrastructure, establishes implementation projects to eliminate these gaps (both business and technical), and stimulates standards activities to speed the introduction of new technologies. The consortium also works with government, universities and other funding agencies to set priorities for future industry needs and R&D initiatives. For additional information about NEMI, visit www.nemi.org.
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For further information:
Cynthia Williams
cwilliams@nemi.org
phone: 207-871-1260