The result of new standardization efforts in energy management will allow devices such as home gateways, repeaters and set-top boxes to enter low power, energy saving or deep standby modes, resulting in energy savings of up to 1.3 TWh (terawatt-hours) in homes across Europe, equivalent to covering the annual residential needs of cities such as Athens, Copenhagen or Lisbon.
“With the increasing sophistication of connected homes, energy efficiency is becoming a key factor in the design of broadband equipment,” said David Cluytens, Chief Standards Architect at HGW SoftAtHome. “This work by the Broadband Forum reflects a collective global industry effort to align broadband technologies with sustainability goals, such as those set out in France’s Energy Transition for Green Growth Act,” he added.
The latest extensions incorporated into the Broadband Forum's TR-181 Issue 2 Amendment 20 Data Model will enable broadband service providers (BSPs) and manufacturers to design and introduce even smarter and more environmentally friendly products while maintaining high levels of performance and service for customers.
The BBF's TR-181 Device Data Model, when used in a User Services Platform (USP/TR-369) enabled network, introduces standardized mechanisms for controlling and monitoring the power consumption of embedded network technologies such as Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB, xPON, and Thread. The TR-181 model allows BSPs to manage connected devices and ensures interoperability between devices and management software from different vendors.
“These recent energy-saving efforts highlight how Broadband Forum members continue to seek ways to improve the economic and environmental sustainability of the industry,” said Craig Thomas, CEO of the Broadband Forum. “The TR-181 upgrade represents a significant step toward meeting sustainability goals in the coming years.”
Significantly, the update enables remote monitoring of the power consumption of individual hardware components. Power management capabilities can be remotely deployed as a containerized solution on hardware from various vendors.
The TR-181 update includes features such as Ethernet-sensed power-off (EDPD), LED brightness management, CPU frequency scaling, and the ability to dynamically control the number of active Wi-Fi Rx/Tx antenna strings.
