EPA Seeks Comment On Rovi-Developed Energy Star TV Spec Test Procedure
Natural Resources Canada released revised Energy Star TV specifications for imported products sold in the country. The specifications mirror the U.S. EPA’s revised specs for TVs in Energy Star versions 4.0 and 5.0 completed in September. Meanwhile, the EPA put out for stakeholder comment a test procedure developed by Rovi Corp. to measure the power consumption of TVs in download acquisition mode (DAM). NRCan said its version 4.0 of the spec will take effect May 1 and version 5.0 in May 2012.
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TV monitors have been removed from the new specifications, NRCan said, and new energy consumption requirements have been set for TVs used in restaurants, bars, hotels and the like. The specs set a new requirement that luminance in home mode be within 65 percent of the retail mode levels. There’s more than a 40 percent reduction in on-mode power consumption from version 3.0 to 4.0, NRCan said, and version 5.0 will require a 65 percent cut from 3.0 in on-mode power use. To display the Energy Star label, TVs made after April 30 must comply with version 4.0, the agency said. “For models remaining in stock that do not meet the new specification, the Energy Star symbol and related information must be removed from unsold, ineligible models."
To carry the label in Canada, products must be qualified by the U.S. Energy Star program, NRCan said. And to promote their Energy Star TVs in Canada, “manufacturers are required to sign a memorandum of understanding” with the U.S. EPA, it said. By signing a “participant administrative arrangement” with NRCan, manufacturers, retailers and distributors can take advantage of “promotional and communications opportunities provided by the program,” the agency said.
A test procedure for measuring DAM is being developed by the U.S. EPA, NRCan said, and once the testing requirements are completed, they'll be incorporated into the revised specifications. The DAM mode refers to the power used when the TV is downloading channel listing information for the electronic program guide when the device is “not producing a sound or picture."
The EPA said the deadline for comments on the Rovi test procedure for DAM is March 1. The test procedure was built on “concepts and requirements” discussed during the summer with those interested and outlined in previous drafts of the specification. The agency said it will hold an online meeting Tuesday to provide details of the test procedure and take questions.