Announcements and Features

Lithium Battery Experts Needed for Development of New IEEE Standard

Contact:
Karen McCabe, IEEE-SA Marketing Director
+1 732 562 3824, k.mccabe@ieee.org

PISCATAWAY, N.J., USA, 22 August 2008 --Developers working on lithium batteries and related applications are invited to participate in the development of a proposed new IEEE standard. The standard will provide a format for the characterization of lithium battery technologies in terms of performance, service life and safety attributes.

"We'd like to get more interest and participation in refining this recommended practice, and for later documents on specific technologies, not just from developers but from any professionals who are interested," said Jim McDowall. chair of the IEEE Emerging Battery Technology Working Group. "Although we meet twice a year as a group, this doesn't require any travel or in-person attendance, as all of the participation can be done by email if desired."

When completed, the standard will provide a framework for developers to describe their energy storage products. The resulting information will assist users in evaluating the possible application of emerging energy storage technologies. In the stationary battery industry, the IEEE standards are widely used by both users and manufacturers.
The recommended practice will address lithium batteries utilizing secondary (rechargeable) electrochemistries, including lithium-ion, lithium-ion polymer, lithium-metal polymer and lithium-sulfur batteries. Primary (non-rechargeable) lithium batteries are beyond the scope of this document.

For more information, or to get involved in the IEEE Emerging Battery Technology Working Group, contact Mike Nispel, chair of the lithium battery working group, at mnispel@verizon.net or +1 610 937 4411.

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U.S. to Celebrate World Standards Day 2008 with a Focus on Intelligent and Sustainable Buildings

The global celebration of World Standards Day will spotlight the critical role of standards and conformity assessment programs in ensuring safety requirements; facilitating coordination among contractors, builders, engineers, and architects; and incorporating new technologies in the design and construction of intelligent and sustainable buildings. Read the full article. 19 March 2008

The IEEE has begun work on a new standard, IEEE P1707™, "Recommended Practice for the Investigation of Events at Nuclear Facilities." When completed, the standard will provide common terminology and recommended practices for initiating and conducting event investigations, analyzing data, producing results, and identifying corrective actions associated with facility personnel, processes, equipment and systems at nuclear facilities. The nuclear industry does not currently employ a common practice or approach to event investigations, which results in widely experienced terminology problems Read the full article 1 March 2008.

Four new IEEE standards allow cars to chat with each other and with roadside systems to spread the word about congestion, road conditions, and accidents Read the full article from March 2007 issue of The Institute.

More than two years have passed since the first IEEE standard was produced by a working group that welcomed companies as voting members. Previously, only individuals—often at the behest of the companies that employed them—could draft and vote on standards. But the new approach is going gangbusters: new standards are being hammered out in two years or less, compared with the four years needed previously. Read the full article (PDF, 20KB) from February 2007 issue of The Institute .

Standards Uproar Leads to Working Group Overhaul
The move this year to suspend the IEEE working group developing the latest version of high-speed broadband Internet access was rare, but not unprecedented. It forced the IEEE Standards Association’s Standards Board to take a hard look at who is on its working groups and to tighten procedures to ensure that IEEE standards are developed in a fair and open process. Read the full article (PDF, 39 KB) from The Institute December 2006 issue.

IEEE Begins Revision of Laptop Battery Standard
The IEEE has begun work on revising its laptop battery standard, IEEE 1625™, “IEEE Standard for Rechargeable Batteries for Portable Computing”, which was approved in 2004. This update targets an improvement in the overall performance of laptop battery systems and seeks to address recent calls to make these systems more reliable and robust. The revised standard, a part of the IEEE Livium™ family of battery standards, will be created within the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA) Corporate Progra with participation from the major laptop computer and battery manufacturers, including Apple, Dell, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Intel, Lenovo, Panasonic, Sanyo and Sony. The group will meet bimonthly in the U.S. and Asia; the project is expected to be completed within 18 months. IEEE 1625 guides the industry in planning and implementing controls for battery design and manufacture. It also defines approaches for evaluating and qualifying such batteries, verifying their quality and reliability, and educating and communicating with end users. Read the full article (PDF, 63 KB) from the IEEE Standards Association news.

PC Makers to Discuss Battery Standards Dell Inc. and Apple Computer Inc., which recalled nearly 6 million notebook batteries between them this month, are among PC makers planning to meet next month to discuss setting design and safety standards for lithium-ion batteries used in portable electronic devices. The batteries were blamed in rare fires that prompted this month's recalls, the largest electronic recalls involving federal product-safety officials. Read the full article (PDF, 19 KB) from YAHOO! News posted on 28 August 2006.

UWB Standardization Effort Ends in Controversy There are two principal approaches to UWB technology, and companies have held off making products, hoping an IEEE standardization effort could yield one protocol on which they could focus their efforts. Read the full article (PDF, 5 KB) written by David Greer in the July 2006 issue of IEEE Computer Magazine.

New Standard Identifies Eco-friendly Computers and Monitors The IEEE 1680 "Standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products"—also known as the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)—is the first U.S. standard that provides guidelines for identifying environmentally friendly desktop and laptop computers and monitors. "This standard makes it easy to identify what makes a green computer," says Jeff Scott, waste division director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). "You don't have to be an expert to know when you're getting a product that is better for the environment." To read the full article, visit The Institute Web site or download it here (PDF, 33 KB).

New Voluntary Standard Will Help Purchasers Buy Greener Computers: The IEEE and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a new voluntary environmental performance standard to help large computer buyers make environmentally sound purchases. The new IEEE standard – IEEE 1680TM, “Standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products” – was initiated by a group of manufacturers, environmentalists, and purchasers, and developed with support from the EPA. To view the joint announcement, visit the EPA website. For more information on the IEEE 1680TM standard, visit the IEEE-SA Web site.

9 Standards that Keep Your Computer Going: The Institute article describing the role IEEE standards play in your personal computer. Read article (PDF, 139 KB).

Report on the Korean Standards Association International Workshop to Develop a Standardization Education Model, November 26, 2003: Read more. (DOC, 36 KB)

ATTENTION - IMPORTANT DATES APPROACHING -- IEEE Sponsor in IEC Centenary Challenge: If you are interested in submitting a paper for this competition, you need to register the intention to submit prior to 7 April 2006 via the IEC Centenary Challenge Website. The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), in partnership with IEE, IEEE and VDE, and in association with The Economist, has launched the IEC Centenary Challenge. The IEC Centenary Challenge is a competition for papers on the economic, business and social impact of International Standards on business. Prizes of US$15,000, US$5,000 and US$2,000 will be awarded to the first, second and third place winners, respectively. For registration forms, rules and further information, go to IEC Challenge Website. Access the entire call for papers document here. (PDF, 14 KB) Go to IEC Challenge Web site.

Let's Not Overlook Standards: Engineers designing products know that they must comply with certain formal standards if the fruits of their labor are to be widely used, but few U.S. engineering students know much about them. The IEEE hopes to change that, thanks to educational materials about standards it put up on the Web this month. Its aim is to impart information about standards to university students, faculty members, and just about anyone else who might be interested. Article from the January 2006 Issues of The Institute. Read article. (PDF, 21 KB)

Strategic Standards : The purpose of this Web site is to raise the awareness level of individuals and organizations in private, public and academic sectors of the significance of global standards and the potential effects of such standards in the marketplace.

ICT industry’s Main Standard For Safety Updated (August 2005): The latest edition of the IEC’s best-selling standard in the field of information technology, scheduled for publication in the fourth quarter of 2005, has been updated to address the latest demands for safety in the IT and telecommunications sector. Read more. (DOC, 26 KB)

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Report to the Center for Global Standards Analysis on formation of the International Committee for Education on Standardization, 10 February, 2006: On 7-8 February, 2006, an international group of representatives met in Tokyo, Japan, to review reports from several participants concerning academic, private sector and public sector education programs for international standardization. Please read the full report for more details on this event. Read more. (DOC, 45 KB)

Report to The Center for Global Standards Analysis On Beijing Information Technology Standard International Forum, May 23, 2005: During the week of 16 May, 2005 there were 2 major conferences in Beijing: the “FORTUNE Global Forum,” and the Beijing Information Technology Standards Conference (“IT Standards Conference”). This report will focus on the IT Standards Conference held on Thursday 19 May, 2005. Read more. (DOC, 35 KB)

International Forum Schedule on China Beijing Information Technology Standard (DOC, 53 KB)

Global Technology Standards – a bridge to the future: Presentation developed by Donald E. Purcell, Chairman, The Center for Global Standards Analysis dated 19 May, 2005. View presentation. (PPT, 464 KB)

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Standards Hidden in Plain Sight: The Institute article about how IEEE Standards can be found behind technologies we use every day at home, at work, and at play. Read article. (PDF, 378 KB)

9 Standards that Keep Your Computer Going: The Institute article describing the role IEEE standards play in your personal computer. Read article. (PDF, 139 KB)

Note: PDF files require the free Acrobat Reader.

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