Design of a Phantom Load Controller for Entertainment Centers

A phantom load is a device that consumes power while it is off or in standby mode. Phantom loads consume a large amount of wasted energy in the United States. Some research has shown that typical household phantom loads draw about 65 W, or 569 kWh per year, which amounts to an estimated 5-10% of a household’s expected energy usage 1 . Several of the highest energy offenders are located in centralized areas in a home including the home office, kitchen, and entertainment centers. An entertainment center can consist of, but is not limited to, a plasma television, VCR, DVD player, CD player, stereo receiver, and numerous gaming consoles. This centralized hub presents an opportunity to eliminate or minimize a significant number of phantom loads with minimal cost of inconvenience for the end user. The authors have designed a phantom load controller that can activate a series of outlets feeding the entire entertainment center by intercepting any infrared power-on request. Furthermore, the controller automatically senses when the components of the entertainment center are all in standby mode and turns them completely off. The controller itself consumes less than one watt.