The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ENERGY STAR Partner Meeting was a couple weeks ago in St. Paul, MN and MET Labs was there. Following is a summary of key meeting discussions.
New Requirement for Dimmable CFLs and LEDs
The meeting agenda began with a roundtable, which was focused on dimmers. EPA has encouraged consumers to transition to CFLs and LED bulbs to save energy, but their performance with dimmers has sometimes been less than optimal. Some dimmers are exhibiting flickering, noise and limited dimming. As a result, consumers are getting frustrated and switching back to incandescent bulbs.
The EPA is establishing a working group to introduce some basic requirements for all ENERGY STAR-labeled dimmable lamps/bulbs. It will include requirements for:
- Flickering
- Dimmer level
- Noise level
The test method is based on recommendations from NEMA and LRC (Lighting Research Center). The EPA is also considering a proposal to have building codes include dimmers for both CFLs and LED bulbs.
Lighting Certification Update
There are also updates on some new standards being developed for lighting certification, which are as follows:
- LM-84: To measure lumen and color maintenance of LED lamps, light engines and luminaires
- LM-85: To measure electric and photometric measurements for high power LEDs
- TM-26: To project rated life for LED packages
- TM-28: To project long term lumen maintenance of LED lights based on LM-84 data
Consumer Electronics Expansion
For consumer electronics, EPA intends to expand the product category in 2013 to include:
- Small Network Equipment
- Climate Control
- IP Phones
- Game Consoles
Specification Revisions
In 2013, there will be standard revisions for:
- Set-Top Boxes
- Battery Charging Systems
- Televisions
Touch and voice activation functionality will also be evaluated to implement as a function of energy for products with such features.
See other ENERGY STAR testing updates from MET Labs.
Utilize MET for Energy Efficiency testing and/or certification.