Environmental Assessment Group of the IEEE -Standards Research
The Environmental Assessment Group of the IEEE is currently engaged in developing standards that outline environmental performance criteria of electronic products. The aim of the group is to ensure a safe design of electronic products to reduce their impact on the environment. The group develops standards for design and manufacturing and which can be applied in the industry by governments, consumers, corporate bodies, and institutions. The group plays an important role in enabling corporations to earn market recognition.
The IEEE 802 is of great significance in networking. IEEE 802 defines LAN standards for various physical components applied in a network such as cabling and interface cards (Stallings, 2009). The networking standards identified under the IEEE 802 define the physical layer specifications that are applicable to Ethernet and wireless technologies. By identifying defining standards in this field, IEEE 802 ensures that equipment from different manufacturers are able to share information and at high speeds. Some of the modulation methods established by the standard ensure that the networks are less vulnerable to interference. The standard recommends the use of Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA/CA) specifications to facilitate path sharing. The standard specifies the modulations for use such as phase-shift key (PSK) and the recent complementary code keying (CCK) which has higher speeds. Due to the complex nature of local network, IEEE 802 breaks it down into different segments such as medium access control (MAC), Logical Link Control (LLC), and the physical segment (Stallings, 2009).
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The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a standard-setting agency that is involved in development of standards applying to a variety of subject areas. ISO is a voluntary agency, however, majority of the member bodies are governmental standards institutions. The purposes of ISO are to ensure easy flow of goods and services in the international arena and to enhance cooperation in the areas involving technology, science, intellect, and economic activity. As such, ISO is involved in a broad range of sectors such as developing standards in the solar energy sector or even in the manufacture of screw threads. In the communication sector, ISO has been instrumental in developing standards guiding the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) communications architecture. ISO jointly develops standards in the networking and data communications sector. The joint effort is conducted in association with International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). In information technology area, ISO focuses on developing software standards. The agency is not concerned with hardware in this area.
ANSI refers to the American National Standards Institute, a non-governmental organization involved in overseeing development standards for various products, systems, processes, and services mainly in the U.S. ANSI is involved in developing standards in a variety of areas such as acoustic services, energy distribution, construction sector, dairy and livestock production, and other areas (“ANSI,” 2016). The agency also focuses on accreditation of standards developed by other bodies such as government agencies or other organizations. The main purpose of ANSI is to improve the global competitiveness of various local products by ensuring that standards organizations follow the correct protocol in developing procedures of standards. In the international front, ANSI promotes the application of U.S. standards in other countries as well. Although ANSI is involved in enhancing standards in technical areas of other agencies such as ISO and IEC, it is not the most important in communication technology since it is mainly concerned with oversight roles.
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The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is another agency involved in development of standards. IEEE was formed by engineers and scientists. The main purpose of the agency is to advance education and technical knowhow in the fields of telecommunications, electronics engineering, computer engineering, software development, information technologies, and other related fields (“IEEE Standards Association” 2016). IEEE seeks to advance innovations and development of new knowledge in the area of technology. In the area of standards, IEEE is one of the top standards development bodies in the industrial sector. The agency develops standards for various sectors such as information technology sector, telecommunications, energy and electrical power, consumer electronics, and other related sectors. IEEE boasts of the largest conglomeration of technical professionals. IEEE is thus the most important for communication technology. Its core objectives are centered on improving technical knowledge in various technology fields including communications.
There is a great need for federal regulating bodies such as NIST to ensure conformance to standards and ensure the welfare of the general public. NIST is a federal agency involved in setting standards for IT, formulation of metrics and in enhancing cybersecurity. NIST is important as a federal regulating authority since it focuses on areas that other regulating bodies have shunned such as cybersecurity and big data collections. Other non-governmental agencies may not have the capacity to engage in all sectors yet these may have significant impacts on the public as well as organizations. Sensitive issues such as national security are better handled by federal regulating bodies since this minimizes chances of outside interference. Federal regulating bodies such as NIST act as advisory bodies to other organizations. Lastly, NIST and other federal bodies brings together all other organizations in a bid to develop interoperable standards among them (“NIST,” 2015).
References
ANSI. (2016). About ANSI. Retrieved from: http://www.ansi.org/about_ansi/overview/overview.aspx?menuid=1
IEEE Standards Association. (2016). Consumer Electronics Standards. Retrieved from: https://standards.ieee.org/findstds/standard/consumer_electronics.html
ISO. (2016). Maintenance Agencies and Registration Authorities. Retrieved from: http://www.iso.org/iso/maintenance_agencies.html
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). (2015). Smart Grid Advisory Committee (SGAC) Report. Retrieved from: http://www.nist.gov/smartgrid/upload/NIST_SGAC_Final_Recommendations_Report_3- 05-12_with_Attachments.pdf
Stallings, W. (2009). Standards Organizations. Retrieved from: http://www.box.net/shared/9dtnzvwys8/1/15730219/164146343/1.
