Appliance Design - February 2008 - (Page 10) NEwS watch rEtIrING aNaLOG. Analog devices such as cell phones, home alarms and car communication systems will stop working as communication carriers shut down the cellular networks that support them. The main carriers with analog service are AT&T Inc., Verizon Wireless and Alltel. In addition to the shutdown of analog signals, Alltel and AT&T will finish phasing out networks that use a first-generation digital technology known as D-AMPS or TDMA, which affect some older cell phones. Also affected are communication systems found in 2003 model year cars and older. Affected services include OnStar from GM, TeleAid from Mercedes-Benz and Lexus Link. These devices will not be upgradable. Some fire and burglar alarms can also be affected. arI + GaMa = ahrI enable Elo TouchSystems to port acoustic pulse recognition touch technology to small, hand-held and mobile devices. Tyco Electronics is based in Harrisburg, Pa., and its ELO TouchSystems operations are based in Menlo Park, Calif. On Jan. 1, the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and the Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association (GAMA) merged to become the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), which is headquartered in Arlington, Va. AHRI said that the merger was designed to benefit its 370 members by creating a single, influential entity to more effectively represent their interests, while continuing the work of both GAMA and ARI in establishing industry standards and certifying the performance of heating, cooling and commercial refrigeration equipment. The AHRI Board of Directors appointed Johnson Controls Vice President C. David Myers as chairman of the combined organization. The AHRI Board consists of the current directors of the two constituent associations and is representative of the membership and its different product areas. “The merger will create a more efficient and influential organization to serve the needs of cooling, heating, and commercial refrigeration equipment manufacturers and their customers,” said Myers. “The interests of the memberships of the two associations are so closely aligned that we expect a seamless integration.” AHRI has established an Integration Committee to work out the details of the structure and the governance of the new association. Decisions have already been made to maintain a product section structure that equally represents all AHRI members’ interests and to merge the standing committees of the two associations. AHRI’s 370 member companies account for more than 90 percent of the residential and commercial air conditioning, space heating, water heating and commercial refrigeration equipment manufactured and sold in North America. < cELLS SpENDING. Consumer spend- ing for cell phone service has outstripped spending for land-line phone service. The most recent government data shows that households spent $524 on average on cell phone bills in 2006, compared with $542 for residential and pay-phone services. As recently as 2001, U.S. households spent three times as much on residential phone services as they did on cell phones. Ic aGrEEMENt. Tyco Electronics’ ELO TouchSystems and AMI Semiconductor of Pocatello, Idaho, have entered into a joint development agreement. Under the agreement, AMI will develop an IC that will DrIVE GEtS MOBILE. Intel Corp. of Santa Clara released a new ultra-small solid-state drive for small, mobile handheld devices. The Z-P140 PATA solidstate drive is smaller than a penny and weighs less than a drop of water. The 2 For more Information Enter 101 10 applianceDESIGN AD02074BTM.indd 1 February 2008 1/3/07 12:29:46 PM www.applianceDESIGN.com http://www.tog-l-loc.com http://www.tog-l-loc.com http://www.appliancedesign.com
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