We don’t get a lot of complaints about our product quality, so when we do, it gets our interest. After recently receiving a field complaint that a user’s OTDR launch packs were degrading rapidly, specifically the reflectance on the LC/APC connectors, our team devised a simple test to assess the problem. Two 160 meter launch packs were randomly selected from production stock. An actuator was setup that would allow automated mating and un-mating of the SC/APC connector pair. Connector attenuation and reflectance using an OTDR were measured at the beginning of the test and after every 25 mates. Any “outlier” measured after a 25 mate cycle warranted cleaning of the connector endface.
Cleaning was not done after every mating because the actuator mechanics prevents easy access, so the test was considered less than ideal (i.e., what Fluke would recommend for cleaning and inspecting). However, measurements were done in a clean environment. Any measurement change observed after a 25 mating cyc