Do You Know The Meaning Behind The Symbol Of Power Button?

                   Today in digital world, all the people are interested in buying electrical and electronic devices. Technology has so changed that consumer appliances have become compact and easily affordable by a normal user. The electrical and electronics devices like Television, watching machine, Refrigerators, Microwave ovens, laptops, mobile phones etc. all uses the power button for switching ON and OFF the devices.

                  Every time when we switch ON and OFF these devices we come across the power button. These power buttons have a symbol which most of you may not be knowing the reason behind that. Did you ever think why the power button symbol looks like that?  Here is the Reason

                   We know that with the help of power symbol we can activate or deactivate device. International Electrotechnical Commission in 1973 included these power symbols as 60417 standards.

Here is the evaluation how the modern symbol for power switch came in to existence.

In the past day switches used to toggle between two positions for ON and OFF. These switches contains word POWER written on them and two positions were marked with ON and OFF for identification purposes.

                 As the time advanced and technology grown these level took the form of small switches containing numerical symbols like 0 and 1 for OFF and ON respectively used on toggle power switches.

             With the globalization and omnipresence of microprocessors these switches were changed to push buttons switches. The technology inside takes care of figuring out whether we mean ON or OFF.

                  At the same time push button versions like combining the 1 and 1 in a circle and on slash on off. But these versions make no sense.

                Finally, to create the symbol for a single ON/OFF button the “1” and “0” symbols were super-imposed on to each other to create the universally recognized power symbols used today.

ON (power)

IEC 60417 -5007

The power ON symbol (line, not one), appearing on a button or one end of a toggle switch indicates that ones the device’s switch is turned on the electrical current flows from the power source to the device in a straight line.

It also indicates connection to the mains and all those cases where safety is involved.

OFF (power)

IEC 60417-5008, JTC1 002

The power off symbol (circle not Zero) on a button toggle indicates that using the control will disconnect power to the device. It comes from the binary system (“0” means “off”)

Stand-by

IEC 60417-5009, JTC1 010

Stand by symbol (line partially within a broken circle), Indicates a sleep mode or low power state. The switch does not fully disconnect the device from its power supply.

ON/OFF (push-push)

IEC 60417-5010, JTC1 003

The power on-off symbol (line within circle), is used on buttons that switch a device between on and fully off states.

It also indicate connection or disconnection from the main power supply

           There is another symbol called waning Crescent moon which indicates sleep mode, is added by IEEE 1621, replacement for stand-by symbol.

Sleep mode save lot of electrical consumption for electronic devices like television, computer and remote controlled devices.

“O” refers to an “Open circuit” in which current cannot pass through, so the device is OFF.

“1” is not a “one” but is a vertical bar symbolizing a “closed circuit”, in which current will pass through, so the device is ON

An electrical switch is either open or closed. When the switch is open current cannot pass through i.e. switch is OFF. When the switch is closed current passes through it i.e. switch is ON

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