Competitive Advantages of VeEX's Optical Connector Protector with Field Replaceable Ferrule

VeEX's innovative field-replaceable optical ferrule system (US Patent 12,481,111) adds an extra layer of protection to the internal end-face of calibrated optical test ports, preventing contamination, accidental damage, and wear-and-tear during the course of regular use and eventual accidents. This optimized and robust solution extends the instrument’s lifespan, reduces downtime (time to repair), lowers cost of ownership and improves productivity. This article compares VeEX's solution to other approaches available on the market.

FX150+ OTDR with protected optical test ports and dust cap kits

Handheld test set with protected optical ports (without dust cap kits)

VeEX's Competitive Edge

Eliminates Downtime & Empowers Your Team (easy field replacement process).
Protects Your Investment.
Protects Instruments' Accuracy & Reliability.
No Re-calibration required after ferrule replacement.
Low Maintenance Cost (very affordable spare ferrules).
Durability - The internal end-face is Not Exposed during regular connector type exchanges (e.g., from/to FC, SC or LC.) The screw-on universal connector type adapter takes care of that.
A single Optical Connector Protector system, common to all supported fiber optics related test sets. (With VeEX, there is no need for buying and stocking multiple incompatible versions for different instruments.)
Solid metal construction, attached directly to the connector panel, that lasts the lifetime of the instrument.
Its industry-standard mechanical mount allows existing test sets to be retrofitted. The upgrade could be performed during a repair or scheduled calibration, reducing the upgrade cost even further.

Compared to other optical connector protectors or port savers available in the fiber optics test and measurement market, VeEX's solution acts like a regular solid panel-mount connector with a typical universal connector type adapter that doesn't expose the internal calibrated end-face. Neither when performing regular connector type changes, nor when replacing ferrules with damaged or worn-out external end-faces.

The optimized design of VeEX's field replaceable ferrules not only reduces exposure and cost, it's also intended to eliminate the time to repair (downtime), since local garages can afford to keep a few spares at hand (only the ferrule is replaced, when/if the external end-face gets damaged).

Comparing Optical Connector Protector Solutions

From VeEX's point of view, its patented design offers the simplest, most affordable and robust field replaceable optical connector protector solution commercially available for test equipment.

Here are some of the perceived disadvantages from other vendors' approaches:

Ideally, the job of an optical 'connector protector' or 'connector saver' is to reduce the number of matings and exposure of the internal (calibrated) end-face to one or two incidents during the lifetime of the instrument. While the external sacrificial (replaceable) end-face is the only one being exposed on a regular basis. However, for modular/cassette types, the internal end-face gets exposed every time the connector type is changed (e.g., between SC, FC and LC formats), increasing the chances of contamination and/or damage. On the other hand, solutions with universal adapter heads do not expose the internal end-face during regular connector type changes.
Replaceable optical cassette/module systems use regular plastic SC connector bodies for their internal mating, which expose both of their internal end-faces to accidental contact and contamination during the regular connector type exchange process.
Modular/cassette systems' slots may also expose the instrument’s internal components and circuits to harsh (field) environments, during every connector type exchange process.
In the modular/cassette solutions, the internal end-face tend to sit far inside the test set and may not be easy to clean, inspect or maintain.
Modular plug-in connectors from one vendor come in different incompatible form factors, so they are not interchangeable among their own products. Customers would have to stock different sets of optical connector cartridges and that can be quite expensive. (Each set may need at least one of each type: FC, SC, LC, in both UPC and APC versions. That's six of them per spare set, or 12 if users need to cover the two incompatible form factors!)
Self-contained modular connector cassettes or sacrificial extenders tend to be considerably more expensive to replace (up to 16x), which may make end users less likely to have spares available, increasing repair downtime. Even if the instrument doesn't have to go back to a service center, users still need to go through their internal purchasing process, vendor fulfillment and wait for the delivery of the replacement parts.
Some replaceable cartridge modules, fitted with plastic securing/locking click-on tabs, could be accidentally unseated, causing inaccurate measurement readings.
Some of the rigid sacrificial 'port extender' types may make test ports protrude too much, cumbersome to work with, and add unnecessary mechanical stress to the optical port assembly (prone to accidental damage).
Some test and measurement vendors simply rely on the traditional short sacrificial patch cords, which is still considered a good practice. However, since these test cords often need to be removed before storing the test set in a carrying case for transportation, that defeats the main purpose of reducing the number of matings and exposure for the calibrated connectors' end-faces.

We understand that this article may be considered bias, however it is meant to encourage your own independent research and evaluation when sourcing field instruments with optical connector protector options.

To learn more about VeEX's Optical Port Connector Protector with field-replaceable ferrule solution (optical connector protector or port saver), refer to the following articles and guides:

Frequently Asked Questions

How Often Do the Replaceable Ferrules Need to be Exchanged?

Technically, they should only need to be replaced when/if there is damage to the external end-face. For example, for OTDRs used on the field (e.g., construction and maintenance), this may occur once or twice in their lifespan, with an average of once. So, the replaceable ferule solution helps in keeping the internal calibrated end-face unexposed and well protected.

Note: >98% of the traditional OTDRs (with fixed optical connectors) that are sent in for repair are due to damaged test port's end-face, followed by physical connector housing damage.

What About Changing between APC and UPC? Doesn't it Increase Exposure?

Yes, that would be true for all connector protector solutions available, if used that for that particular purpose. However, that has not been a traditional requirement, just because it was not possible before (with traditional fixed connectors).

Although the new Replaceable Ferrule certainly opens up the ability to convert the external end-face of a test set between APC and UPC, on the fly, we still recommend doing the dat-to-day conversions using a traditional patch cord or launch cable, in order to reduce unnecessary exposure of the internal end-face.