Test Procedures for Battery Chargers and External Power Supplies (Standby Mode and Off Mode) and for Multiple-Voltage External Power Supplies

This page presents additional information on the notice of proposed rulemaking and subsequent public meeting, instructions for stakeholder comments, contact information, and more for Docket Number EERE-2008-BT-TP-0004. Return to the Battery Charger and External Power Supplies page for information on all of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) activities related to these products.

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Background

Section 310 of EISA 2007 amended section 325 of EPCA by establishing definitions for active mode, standby mode, and off mode. This section also directs DOE to amend its existing test procedures for both battery chargers and external power supplies to measure the energy consumed in standby mode and off mode. It also authorizes the agency to amend by rule any of the definitions for active, standby, and off mode so long as the agency takes into consideration the most current versions of Standards 62301 and 62087 of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).

As required by section 325(u)(1)(E) of EPCA, DOE is conducting a determination on whether energy conservation standards shall be issued for external power supplies outside of Class A. Although the current DOE external power supply test procedure (PDF 706 KB) can test high-power external power supplies, it cannot accommodate external power supplies that convert to more than one output voltage simultaneously. Therefore, in order to proceed with the determination analysis, DOE is including amendments to the test procedure to allow for the testing of multiple-voltage external power supplies.

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR)

DOE published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) on August 15, 2008, proposing amendments to existing test procedures for battery chargers and external power supplies to include provisions for measuring standby-mode and off-mode energy consumption. In this NOPR, DOE is also proposing a test procedure to measure the energy consumption of multiple-voltage external power supplies. In addition, DOE is proposing certain revisions to the single-voltage external power supply test procedure and reporting requirements for "Class A" external power supplies for public consideration.

NOPR and Public Meeting, EISA 2007 Test Procedures, Federal Register, August 15, 2008 (PDF 344 KB)

DOE held a public meeting on September 12, 2008, to receive comments on the issues presented in the NOPR.

Meeting Materials

All materials related to the public meeting, including the agenda, presentations, and any supplemental documents are posted here.

Public meeting agenda (PDF 102 KB)
Issues for Stakeholder comment (PDF 80 KB)
Presentation (PDF 1.9 MB)
Transcript (PDF 403 KB) A transcript from the public meeting is available for public inspection in the Building Technologies Program Reading Room, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays, at:
U.S. Department of Energy
Forrestal Building
Room 1J-018
1000 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20585
Telephone: (202) 586-9127

Final Rule

The final rule was published in the Federal Register on March 27, 2009 (PDF 462 KB).

Contact Information

Victor Petrolati
Project Manager
(202) 586-4549