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Source:TEG NF,CH
Version 1.0
WARNING:
Toshiba considers the information in this paper correct to the best of its
knowledge at the time of printing. Toshiba assumes no liability for errors omissions or discrepancies, nor for any damages incurred based upon use of the information contained herein.
Computer certification -
safety for the customer
In a world where standards are all the rage, customers want to know all
about the standards according to which their PCs are designed and built.
The clearest way is for the products to be certified by recognised national and international bodies. The following is a short description of
the measures Toshiba undertakes to ensure prompt and high quality
certification of its products according to the best standards available.
1. Certified for what?
There are basically five issues over which computers could be certified
but only three of these types of certification are so far possible :
- Quality
- Ergonomics
- Power saving (green PC)
- Electrical safety
- Electro-magnetic compatibility
For mobile PCs, there are requirements by law on the last two in the list.
In addition quality can be measured according to international production
standards. Toshiba PC factories all have quality certification according
to the ISO 9004 norm. There are currently no agreed international
ergonomics standards for notebook or other mobile PCs. There are also no
international standards for power saving. The US Government has set
standards for desktop PC purchases and these are often used as a
measurement. All Toshiba notebooks are much better at power saving than
any desktop.
2. Designing products to pass certification
All the standards which products are by law required to reach are known to
manufacturers in advance. There is no secret about them and therefore no
reason why there should be delays in launching products because of the
certification process. Toshiba plans the certification into the timetable
of its product developments as an integral part of ensuring customer
satisfaction and safety.
Electrical safety requirements make demands on the design of the
electrical parts, and especially the mains adaptors. Toshiba's long
experience as an electrical equipment manufacturer ensures that the
designs used by Toshiba are always absolutely safe.
Electro-magnetic safety limits require more care. National standards vary
and Toshiba products have to meet the strictest of these. To ensure that
the wide variety of Toshiba product designs meet the standards, Toshiba
maintains its own, expensive test facilities in Japan (for details, see
below).
3. Testing standards
3.1 Ergonomics
There are no standard tests for mobile PCs. Approval signs on PCs relate
to electrical standards not ergonomics. Nevertheless, there has been a
move towards improving ergonomics in recent years. Toshiba PCs include a
range of features against which it is legitimate to make comparisons:
Screen size: Larger screens don't make more things visible (they all have
the same number of pixels, 640 x 480) but they do let things appear larger
which can be easier on the eyes. Toshiba offers a wider range of larger
screens (9.5 and 10.5 cm diagonals) than most other manufacturers. Note,
however, that a larger screen also expands the distance between the
individual pixels (the dot pitch), a measurement that is also used to
measure ergonomics for the eyes!
Keyboard layout: The position of the keys is important if the users are
used to typing on a desktop keyboard. Toshiba has always kept very close
to the standard layout avoiding placing keys in unusual positions at the
top of the keyboard where they are not easily accessible. The only
significant difference between Toshiba and IBM's 102-key keyboards was the
placing of the left-hand control keys Ctrl, Alt, Caps Lock and Shift. Up
until recently Toshiba kept to the old layout of the original IBM keyboard
although IBM changed with the 102-key layout (and the industry thereafter). On the T2400 Series Toshiba has now also moved over so that
these keys too conform to the 102-key layout.
Number of keys: The number of keys is a major factor in determining the
layout. If not enough are available then keys have to be doubled causing
strange layout effects. Toshiba has always included separate arrow and
cursor position keys. Home, End, PgUp and PgDn are available on all
Toshiba models in addition to the four arrow direction keys instead of
doubling up these functions using a special function key. Since 1989
Toshiba has also always included 12 F-keys to avoid strange finger-
acrobatics, especially under Windows. The much used insert and delete keys
are also always positioned at the front of the keyboard where they are
easily accessible, rather than at the back where there is a danger of
accidentally hitting other keys when you use them.
Keyboard position: To improve the position of the hands when typing,
Toshiba has, on its newer models, moved the keyboard to the back of the
keyboard space on a mobile PC. This makes it possible to have a hand-rest
space at the front to make typing comfortable. Both the Portégé
subnotebook Series and the new T2400 Series notebooks have this form.
Keyboard slope: On many models Toshiba also includes small feet at the
back of the machine to give the keyboard a slope similar to that in
standard desktop keyboards. This reduces strain on the hands as they are
required to move less for the keys at the top.
3.2 Quality
There is one internationally recognised standard for manufacturing
quality. All Toshiba PC factories are now certified according to this. ISO
9002 from the International Standards Organisation is also integrated into
European law as the highest quality in manufacturing. In 1993, Toshiba's
Regensburg Works in Germany received ISO 9002 certification in the very
short period of just one year. In addition many Toshiba suppliers are now
also certified according to the ISO standard.
3.3 Power saving (green PC)
Mobile PCs have long been ahead of desktops in terms of power saving
features. It is only since the US government created pressure due to the
realisation that thousands of PCs in use all day are wasting a large
amount of electricity, that desktops have also been fitted with
rudimentary power management. The green PC definition in the USA is an
attempt to standardise these requirements. Toshiba MaxTime system is much
more sophisticated and provides a good basis for comparative power saving.
All of the following features are included on Toshiba models:
Power-off systems: Does a PC switch off power to its components after
pre-set time limits? The screen back lighting and hard disk are the two
biggest power drains (up to 30% each of a notebook's power requirements).
Power-off to the PCMCIA slot (if there is one) should also be available.
Finally the system should switch itself off completely after a requisite
amount of time.
Power-use reductions: Is it possible to switch the processor down to a
lower rate either automatically after a longer period of time or by choice
when only low processing abilities are needed ( e.g. word processing)? The
latest line of Intel processors, the SL Enhanced versions, all feature
this ability. Check if it is being exploited. A clever system will also
use the SL Enhanced chip's "sleep" function. This allows a microprocessor
to reduce it's clock rate to 0 MHz when there is no work to do. Use of a
key or mouse immediately wakes the processor up again to allow work to
continue.
Resume functions: Much of the power a computer uses is consumed when the
system is started and the background programs are loaded (e.g. starting a
hard disk drive motor, loading MS-DOS and Windows and utility programs).
If a computer has a resume feature it is possible to close off all power
uses and save the memory and screen status in power-backed memory. A
desktop may use a small amount of mains power for this, a notebook should
do it with the main battery or use a special resume battery.
Some systems do not back data in memory but save it to hard disk. This
saves small amounts of power during the sleep period and means that there
is no limit on the length of time it will work but this method consumes
more power because the disk has to start up to resume. Battery backed
systems do not need to restart the hard disk.
3.4 Electrical safety
Toshiba PC products are thoroughly tested to meet all the electrical
standards in the countries where our main markets are situated. The
following list includes all the standards that all products are tested
for.
USA UL478 or 1950 for AC type
UL1012 for AC adapter
Canada CSA 220 or 950 for AC type
CSA 223 for AC adapter
Germany/E.C. TÜV (VDE) / EN60950
UK no requirement,
based on TÜV (VDE) / EN60950
Norway NEK-EN60950+EN60950 A1/A
Finland SETI: EN60950+EN60950 A1/A2
EMKO-TUE(74-SEC) 203/92
Sweden SEMKO SS-EN60950
Denmark DEMKO IEC950 / EN60950
Switzerland SEV - EN60950
Australia SAA for AC adapter
AS3108 and AS3250
AS3260 for AC type
Source: Toshiba Ome Works
QA & product safety
Note:
Inside the European Union, standards have been unified (European norm
EN 60950). Approval in one country means that goods are allowed to
circulate in all countries. The only electrical difference is the British
plug standard. Other European countries have also adapted this standard.
3.5 Electro-magnetic compatibility
Electro-magnetic compatibility is a growing concern. The problems
associated with emissions from computer monitors are well known. Of course
no mobile PCs have problems with this due to the use of LCD screens.
However there are controls to check other emissions from the electrical
circuitry and the backlighting on the screens. These ensure that products
do not interfere with the electrical functioning of other equipment and do
not emit any electro-magnetic waves which are damaging to health.
Toshiba, however, actively designs products to standards which are
consistent with those in the major market countries. This design element
is not theoretical but based upon practical tests which Toshiba carries
out in Japan. Toshiba Corporation is one of very few companies world-wide
that maintains its own absorber room to test product designs for electro-
magnetic interference. An absorber room is an expensive investment.
Firstly a room has to be constructed which is completely protected from
external man-made or natural emissions. The room where the tests are to be
done must be completely isolated so that the only measurable emissions
must come from the product being tested. A range of highly sensitive and
highly expensive equipment is then required to make the various tests.
The following list shows the tests which Toshiba undertakes for its PC
products.
USA FCC part 15
Canada DOC/CSA C108.8
Germany VDE0878/EN55022
UK/Ireland DE0871/0875/EN55014
Norway NEK-EN55022
Finland SETI: SPR pub.22/NAHR
Sweden -
Denmark -
Switzerland -
Australia AS3548
Source: Toshiba Ome Works
QA & product safety
By testing during the design process, Toshiba is able to ensure several
advantages for its products and users of those products. Using a company-
run laboratory rather than public offices during design stages is not only
cheaper (official test are expensive) but tests can be carried out more
often. Of course all products are also tested officially before release to
get the certification. These results are recorded. This procedure allows
Toshiba to create optimum combinations of protection for its customers at
the design stage. Products include EM-protection levels that ensure in
virtually all cases that they are well under the test limits. The extra
protection may increase weight a little and add to the costs but these
disadvantages are generally considered worthwhile for the safety they
bring. Finished products can then quickly pass through the public tests
with independent bodies. The results are measurable. Toshiba products are
well known among testing institutes for their good EMC characteristics. In
general Toshiba products always pass EMC test well before the public
product announcement date. This ensures that customers are not "teased"
with theoretical products whose design and safety is still not completed.
There are basically two tests which have to be passed in Europe. The Euro-
norm EN55022 tests electro-magnetic emissions with regard to the continental electrical system. Tests are made at a distance of 10 cm from the PC for emissions which disturb activity in the range 0-1 GHz. The
British and Irish electrical systems are based on a different electrical
mains system. The tests required for approval in these countries therefore
differ. EN55014 tests for emissions which disturb activity in the range 0-
30 MHz, again at a distance of 10 cm from the PC.
Conclusion
Checking for certification standards in a PC is an ideal way for users to
be sure that a company has not cut corners in the design of the PC.
Unfortunately many amenities which could be certified are not fully
standardized. All countries measure safety issues, electrically and
electro-magnetically. These are legal requirements, but even so customers
should be wary of products and suppliers with reputations for problems or
who admit to delays in certification. These may be ones where
certification was only just within the margin.
Quality is increasingly used as a measure by companies who want to be sure
that all the products they receive under longer term contracts will be
equally reliable. ISO standards are highly useful because they involve the
constant rechecking of systems. Other than this, the quality of a product
can best be judged when it is used for a test period.
The environment and ergonomics represent more subjective standards. Until
these are more formally defined, users must learn about the options before
they can judge between products. The guidelines above give users a range
of features against which to measure these two.
Nigel Fusedale