White Paper: Efficiency Standards for External Power Supplies
CUI recently published a white paper about the efficiency standards for external power supplies. The technical paper provides an up to date summary of the most current regulations worldwide. The article was written by Jeff Schnabel, VP of Marketing of CUI.
Efficiency Standards for External Power Supplies
The global regulatory environment surrounding the legislation of external power supply efficiency and no-load power draw has rapidly evolved over the past decade since the California Energy Commission (CEC) implemented the first mandatory standard in 2004. Mandating higher average efficiencies in external power supplies has undoubtedly had a real impact on global power consumption. However, with the benefit of a reduced draw on the power grid come challenges and uncertainties for the electronics industry as it tries to keep up with this dynamic regulatory environment. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) who design external power supplies into their products must continue to monitor the latest regulations to ensure that they are in compliance in each region their product is sold. The goal of this article is to provide an up to date summary of the most current regulations worldwide.
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.As rapidly as regulations have changed over the past eight years, it is almost certain that they will continue to evolve as power technologies improve and the price of energy continues to rise. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), for example, has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) that would lay out the first mandatory regulations for external battery chargers and further tighten regulations on external power supplies. In what would effectively become the “Level VI” efficiency standard, the proposal on the table would mandate no-load efficiencies down to 0.1 W for external power supplies ranging from 1 W ~ 49 W, boost mandatory average efficiency by about 1%, and set standards for models with power ratings above 250 W for the first time.
More info: Efficiency Standards for External Power Supplies (pdf)
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