1 / 18

Liability, Standards, and Regulations Protecting the Public from Technology, to Some Extent

Liability, Standards, and Regulations Protecting the Public from Technology, to Some Extent. Prof. Rick Vaz ECE 2799 April 27, 2004. Overview. Liability Grounds and minimization Standards IEEE, UL, ANSI, ISO, NIST Regulations OSHA, CPSC, FCC, NTIA. Products Liability Law.

yael
Download Presentation

Liability, Standards, and Regulations Protecting the Public from Technology, to Some Extent

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Liability, Standards, and RegulationsProtecting the Public from Technology, to Some Extent Prof. Rick Vaz ECE 2799 April 27, 2004

  2. Overview • Liability • Grounds and minimization • Standards • IEEE, UL, ANSI, ISO, NIST • Regulations • OSHA, CPSC, FCC, NTIA

  3. Products Liability Law • What are grounds for liability? • Negligence • Breach of warranty • Strict liability (defects) • “carefulness” doesn’t matter—just harm • Who might be liable? • Component designers/manufacturers • System designers/manufacturers • Importers, wholesalers, and retailers

  4. Product Defects • Design defects • Inherent flaws in the product • Manufacturing defects • One bad assembly is all it takes • Marketing defects • Improper instructions, lack of warnings

  5. How To Minimize Liability • Responsible business and engineering practice • A culture of safety, caution, completeness • Careful procedures • Design and testing • Production • Documentation and record keeping • Quality assurance • Adherence to standards and regulations!

  6. Standards: Voluntary Consensus • Neither regulations nor laws • Goal: advance technology and commerce • Promote compatibility/interconnectivity • Address consumer safety/health concerns • Simplify product development/reduce costs • Verify new technology/create markets • Independent non-profit organizations: • IEEE, UL, ANSI, ISO • Nonregulatory federal organizations: • NIST

  7. IEEE Standards Association • “…technically sound and market relevant standards…that provide social, economic, and safety benefits to the public at large.” • 877 active standards • 20,000 members • 450 working groups and committees • 200 ballots/year • 100 new/revised standards/year

  8. Two of the 877 IEEE Standards • 696: computer system component interfaces (S-100 bus) • Physical connections • Timing and signal protocols • Electrical specs • Mechanical specs • 802: standards for LANs and MANs • 802.11: focusing on wireless LANs

  9. Underwriters Laboratories (UL) • Product safety testing and certification since 1894 • 886 standards • 17 billion “UL Marks” per year • Required by many municipalities • Focus on electrical products

  10. American National Standards Institute (ANSI) • “…to enhance global competitiveness…and quality of life…” • Nationwide voluntary consensus standards • Neutral forum, accredits orgs (IEEE, UL) • US representative to ISO

  11. International Organization for Standardization (ISO) • Federation of national standards bodies • 140 member nations • ANSI represents the US • Accomplishments: • Film speed code, bank card formats • MKS (SI) system, thread sizes, etc. • ISO-9000 (quality management) • ISO-14000 (environmental management)

  12. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) • Non-regulatory federal agency • Part of US Department of Commerce • 8 major labs, including Electronics and Electrical Engineering Laboratory (EEEL) • Measurement science and technology • Measurement standards • Technical support to law enforcement • Malcolm Baldridge Award • Organizational excellence

  13. Regulation: “It’s not just a good idea, it’s the law.” • OSHA—Occupational Safety and Health Administration • US Department of Labor • CPSC—Consumer Product Safety Commission • Independent, reports to nobody • FCC—Federal Communications Commission • Independent, reports to Congress • NTIA—National Telecommunications and Information Administration • US Department of Commerce

  14. OSHA: Keeping the Workplace Safe • Created in 1971 • On-the-job deaths reduced by half • 111 million workers covered • Electrical and mechanical hazards • Hazardous substances and waste • Work-related illness and injury

  15. CPSC: Keeping Products Safe • Oversees most consumer products • Exceptions: DOT, ATF, FDA,… • Develops voluntary standards • Issues and enforces mandatory standards • Monitors injury statistics • Educates and informs consumers • Obtains recalls

  16. FCC: Keeping the Spectrum Safe? • Allocating a public resource: the radio frequency spectrum • Radio, TV, wire, satellite, cable • Created by Communications Act of 1934 • Deregulation: Telecomm Act of 1996 • Regulates commercial use of spectrum • Good reference: the ARRL Handbook

  17. NTIA: Regulation for the Digital Age • Created in 1978 to oversee telecommunications policy • Runs “spectrum auctions” for FCC licences • Represents federal users of spectrum • Telecomm as a strategic national resource

  18. Managing the Spectrum • FCC works with NTIA to control frequencies from 900 kHz - 300 GHz • Priorities: efficiency, interoperability, public safety, economic activity • Balancing public and private interest • Below 30GHz, 93% shared • 5.5% private • 1.5% gov’t

More Related