Note that the Research Phase concluded at the end of 2002. See the IEEE 1621 FAQ on the 1621 page for current FAQs.
What problems led to this project?
What is the project's basic premise?
Just how much energy are we talking about?
What is the project's purpose?
How do you expect that to happen?
What are examples of possible outcomes?
What kinds of devices does the project cover?
Will this put any financial or other burdens on manufacturers?
What is the relationship between this project and the U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR program?
Who is involved with the project, and why?
What else is LBNL involved in regarding office equipment and consumer electronics?
What problems led to this project?
In the course of our research on office equipment electricity use, we noticed three facts that suggested the need for the project:
A disappointingly high portion of office equipment has power management disabled;
On many devices (particularly PCs), there is no indicator that it is in a low-power mode (so you can't tell if the power management is working or not); and
The controls to check or change the power management configuration are often confusing and inconsistent from device to device.
Based on this we saw the opportunity for this project.
What is the project's basic premise?
If people more readily understand the power management of electronic devices around them, they will be more likely to make use of it to save energy. This will save energy on devices that manufacturers have already created with the ability to power manage.
Just how much energy are we talking about?
For the U.S. only, power management of office equipment already saves about $2.2 billion worth of electricity each year(over 25 TWh), with an additional $1.3 billion saveable (over 15 TWh) if used on everything that can power manage. Additional savings from less cooling of office buildings magnifies these savings. Worldwide savings are several times higher than this, and we can expect more potential savings in future years with more devices ิon' more of the time.
What is the project's purpose?
To work with the office equipment industry to see if consensus can be found on some standards for terms, symbols, and indicators relevant to power management. We will also see if the same results can be extended to consumer electronics.
How do you expect that to happen?
We will conduct detailed research on existing implementations of power management controls and the factors and institutions that shaped them. We will identify interface elements that seem to be readily understandable that might be good candidates for a voluntary standard. Finally, close consultation with leading manufacturers will assure that the results can be implemented into their products, and ultimately made universal.
The California Energy Commission's Public Interest Energy
Research Program funded the Research and Implementation Phases of
this project.
The research phase of the project had a Professional Advisory Committee (PAC) which included representative of leading office equipment and consumer electronics manufacturers. The PAC provides formal guidance and feedback.
What are examples of possible outcomes?
Most computer monitors now use a green LED indicator to show that they are fully on, with it changing to amber (orange/yellow) when it is in a low-power mode (and off when off). This seems clear and could serve as a standard color-coding of power states.
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An increasing number of manufacturers are using a "moon" symbol to indicate low-power (sleep) modes. |
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This also seems to have clear meaning, more so than the existing standard symbol for "stand-by". |
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What kinds of devices does the project cover?
Our primary focus is office equipment—whether it ends up in offices, other commercial buildings, or in the home. However, the same issues increasingly apply to consumer electronics and other devices, and we are hoping to make the standards applicable to the broader range of devices.
Will this put any financial or other burdens on manufacturers?
No. We do not expect that the project's recommendations will require additional hardware expense for manufacturing electronics, and no additional design expense beyond reading and understanding the standard.
What is the relationship between this project and the U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR program?
This project is strictly complementary to ENERGY STAR. It is not an ENERGY STAR project, but we are working closely to ensure that the program and project enhance each other. The project only addresses user interface issues, which the ENERGY STAR program does not. ENERGY STAR sets figures for power levels and recovery times, and includes labeling of products; this project does none of those things.
Who is involved with the project, and why?
LBNL is leading the project, conducting the research, digesting and analyzing data, and coordinating the communication and discussion among other participants. The California Energy Commission is providing the funding and oversight. Industry associations (such as ITIC), government voluntary programs (such as ENERGY STAR), and non-profit efforts (such as TCO) provide their perspectives on the project and results.
Most critical is the manufacturers of office equipment designers and manufacturers. The Professional Advisory Committee included leading companies in the office equipment industry and was actively involved in directing this project to a successful conclusion. In addition, we have a wider group of companies that we keep informed of the project's progress, and solicit their comments as well.
Yes! Email or telephone Bruce Nordman . We value your insight on our progress to date, and on our future work. We can send you periodic project updates via email to keep you current.
What else is LBNL involved in regarding office equipment and consumer electronics?
LBNL has been active in research on building energy use and efficiency since the mid-1970s, and office equipment energy use since 1988. Current activities include:
Supporting the U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR program with research and technical consultation on office equipment and consumer electronics
Researching technical and policy options ot address standby/leaking electricity
Assessing the evolving energy use of information technology and its total energy use and effect on energy use in the U.S. in general
The logo is a combination of the "Power" symbol (currently called "Standby") and the new "Moon" symbol for sleep. The green color is selected to be visually distiguishable from yellow by all. The sketchiness of the lines is to show that we are specifying an outline of a standard user interface, not fine details. The background grid is adapted from that used to design international standard symbols; its color is not significant.
We didn't make this logo until May, 2002 as until that time we thought it premature to "endorse" any symbols or colors as being critical to power control. However, once the PAC endorsed the power and sleep symbols, we could use them.
