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Eco-screen saves computer energy
ECO-FRIENDLY PC innovator VeryPC has unveiled its latest invention for cutting the energy wasted by computers.
The award winning Sheffield firm has launched PecoBOO – a piece of software that recognises when you stop looking at your computer monitor and puts it on standby, instantly cutting the power it is using by a factor of more than 100.
PecoBOO uses a standard webcam and some clever software, developed at its Parkwood Road Business Park headquarters, that recognises when you turn away from the screen, unlike conventional power management systems that put a computer on standby if a key isn't pressed or a mouse isn't moved within a certain time.
VeryPC's research shows that many users turn conventional systems off to avoid the irritation of the screen going blank when they are watching a piece of video, reading some text or looking and thinking.
What's more, some systems display a screen saver, which doesn't do anything for energy conservation and isn't really needed with modern day screens, while others take time to power back up when you do hit a key or move the mouse.
VeryPC's founder, Peter Hopton explains what started the company on the four month PecoBOO development programme.
"With many other computers on the market, the PC box consumes far more energy than its LCD monitor.
"We've worked so hard on energy saving at VeryPC that we've flipped that around. Now many of our GreenPCs use as little as half the power of their display.
"We realised that we had to find a way to apply better energy savings to the display itself. This revolutionary combination of facial detection with power management takes energy saving on your computer to a new level."
Peter likens PecoBOO to the light in a fridge, which switches off when you close the door.
He says it can cut the power consumed by a typical LCD monitor from about 40 Watts to 0.3 Watts when the user isn't looking at the screen and power everything up again in a second or less.
Privacy advocates need not be worried about the software, he stresses.
"PecoBOO uses face detection, not face recognition. It cannot tell who you are or even distinguish one user from another. No data is recorded. PecoBOO is not a security tool, it's an energy saving tool," he says.
VeryPC's PecoBOO invention is just one of a number of Eco-Power Management, or EPM, systems which VeryPC is building into its computers to reduce the energy they use without compromising performance.
"Our mantra is sustainability without compromise," adds Peter Hopton.
VeryPC's unveiling of PecoBOO comes just one week after Iceotope - another technology company founded by Mr Hopton - secured 750,000-worth of backing to take to market a revolutionary invention that could cut greenhouse gas emissions from computer centres.
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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