ScienceDaily (Mar. 25, 2009) — A team of researchers from the UPC Center for Technological Innovation in Static Converters and Actuators (CITCEA-UPC) has designed the device "100% Off," which disconnects electronic appliances in stand-by mode and reduces their power consumption to zero. The device is compatible with all existing appliances, and the technology is adaptable to other equipment manufactured in the future.
Over the course of a year, the relative cost of running an appliance is higher in stand-by than when it is switched on, as it spends more time in stand-by mode. According to a study carried out by the European Commission in 2005, household appliances in stand-by mode consume 50 TWh (terawatt-hours) per year in the EU alone. This figure, which is equivalent to the annual consumption of a country like Greece or Portugal, represents a total energy cost of 7000 million euros per year and the emission of 20 million tons of CO2.
100% Off will provide household energy savings of 12% by automatically overriding stand-by mode and switching appliances off. In Spain, where the average household spends €367 per year on electricity (according to the latest National Energy Commission report), the elimination of stand-by mode would represent an annual saving of €44.
The system, patented and marketed by the Madrid-based company Good For You, Good for the Planet, also protects against power surges and extends the useful life of appliances.
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