Bob, PF controllers can and will save energy in the USA using the
`ancient' meters installed outside our houses. Just last week, EDTN
had a pointer to why many engineers will have to deal with this. It's
not just for refrigerators anymore. It's about to be a standard...
Forget about how the power company looks at power and consider the
actual energy consumption from a switching power supply or an
appliance with motors.

   I'm not really responding to you directly but you happen to be in
my `sights' ;-) Normally, I would provide links but I've been up all
night, trying to catch up here...

   - Tom

At 11:17 AM 11/20/99 -0700, Robert M. McClure wrote:
>At 09:22 AM 11/20/99 +0000, Peter Cousens wrote:
>...
>>So as the consumer meter only measures current, you are getting less
>>power for your money
>...
>In the US, most consumer meters measure only actual power, not current
>and not voltage.  This has been the tradition for nearly 100 years.
>Don't know about the rest of the world.  Improving the power factor
>therefore, will not save you any significant amount of money.  The only
>savings is in the additional I square loss in the copper on your side
>of the meter.  Hardly significant.
>
>Bob McClure


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Handley
New Age Communications
Since '75 before "New Age" and no one around here is waiting for UFOs ;-)