Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1367446
72 SMT007 MAGAZINE I MAY 2021 tions, reflow ovens are very similar—it doesn't matter about the make or model, you have very similar attributes as far as the physical oven and the mechanics. ere is a lot of variety in the way the wave machine operates, so that made it a little more challenging. Our initial release is focused on certain configurations, so we have had that conversation with our early custom- ers who have already implemented this. Our process looks like this: "Okay, what's the setup of your machine? How is it config- ured? What type of heat source are you using? How is your wave configured?" en, we see if we have a match for the WPI. As the product and our solutions mature, we'll make it more adaptable to all the configurations out there. Johnson: ere are multiple protocols out there—CFX is a leading one, of course—yet there are protocols now being used in PCB with roots in semiconductor. How multilingual do you have to be? Moreau: It's funny, because at a certain point in the maturity of our solutions, we were adding more features to be able to track barcode or display certain things on the screen, how you alarm, or talk to the in-feeder to stop the board. en it reached a level where we asked, "Now what do we do with that data and who do we need to connect it to?" It has become more interesting in this last decade, especially with the reflow and wave processes. We had progressed to having data as a simple format of text, CSV, or XML files that we could pass to any factory system; then it went to this factory level soware that wanted it to—kind of like the semi- conductor side—interact with the machines almost in real time, or at least during changeovers. We started to integrate our KIC solutions with customers who had those requirements. But that became very customized when every customer had something a little different. Now with the IPC-CFX 2591 for PCB assembly and SECS/GEM on the semiconductor side, it pro- vides some consistency. We've partnered with some of the major third-party MES soware as well, such as Aegis, Mentor, Cogiscan, and iTAC. But that still leaves a large part of the market who have their own MES system that they've built. So, how do you do all these fla- vors, all these formats? ose can be accomplished with industry standards because you aren't continually doing customized work. For example, with CFX, KIC has been involved with the CFX commit- tee from the beginning and we were one of the first to get the IPC certification for CFX. ey have a test bed that tests your system against Wave process deviation tracking.