Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1035071
56 SMT007 MAGAZINE I OCTOBER 2018 Chen: Actually, we believe that the CFX is a powerful standard. For example, our SPI machine is connected to a printer, but different customers have different brands of printers, the same with an AOI equipment connected at the end of a reflow oven. Different brands of machines may have different issues. So, if we have to feedback the results with other brands of inspection machines, this is the kind of chal- lenge that a customer is facing, apart from the different interfaces of the machines. Having more machines with different brands will be a big challenge, but based on TRI's experience, we have a real application and we are working with our customers on improving their overall interface. That's our role. Las Marias: From your perspective, what is the level of interest from the industry when it comes to CFX? Chen: Based on the feedback we received during the recent shows such as productron- ica, IPC APEX EXPO, and SMT Hybrid Pack- aging, there is a certain hype; we got many inquiries from customers targeting these kinds of applications. We believe CFX has provided a standardized method for vendors to work Challenges and Opportunities with CFX By Stephen Las Marias I-CONNECT007 Test Research (TRI) is a Taiwan-based manu- facturer of PCB assembly inspection and test equipment such as AOI, SPI, AXI, and in-circuit testers. Larry Chen, global marketing supervi- sor, speaks with SMT007 Magazine about how the company is supporting IPC's Connected Factory Exchange (CFX) initiative, the user interest on the standard, the challenges, and his outlook for CFX. Stephen Las Marias: How is the company supporting CFX? Larry Chen: We are seeing the strength of the Industry 4.0 trend, so we have developed a real-time inspection management system for managing production activities such as in-test results. We also have hardware systems that support closed-loop connections. TRI has also contributed with research on some actual proj- ects on CFX through integration of software and hardware. Las Marias: What do you think is the challenge that CFX is trying to address?