Metrology Basic Concepts

and Principles
Mohd Erfy Ismail
Metrologist
Radiation Thermometry Lab,
National Metrology Laboratory,
SIRIM Berhad

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►“Welcometo the world of
measurement”

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 Content

► Introduction

► Basic terms

► Summary

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 Introduction

What is Metrology ?

Metrology is defined as the science of measurement, embracing

both experimental and theoretical determinations at any level of
uncertainty in the field of science and technology

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 Why accurate measurement is
required?
• Maintain quality control during production processes
• Comply with and enforce laws and regulations
 Fair trade
 Safety, health & environment
• Undertake research and development
• Calibrate instruments and achieve traceability to a
national measurement standard
• Develop, maintain and compare national and
international measurement standards

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 Early Measurement
• Length – ‘cubit’ parts of the body of Pharaoh; as early as
2800 to 2300 B.C
• Mass – ‘bega’ a unit of mass used in Egypt;as early as
8000 to 7000 B.C
• Volume – ‘hen’ the most important of all Egyptian
measurement unit equivalent to 477 cm3
• All other civilizations such as Syrians, Phoenicians,
Babylonians and Persians had their own measurement
units . The Chinese had their own too, and some are still
being used today
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 Present System – SI Units
• By international agreement reached amongst
the National Metrology Laboratories and
various Standardization Bodies of the world,
the present International System of Units
(SI), there are seven (7) absolute standards
(from seven base quantities)
• The international treaty, Metre Convention,
was signed in 1875

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Unit of Mass (1901)

kilogram, kg: The kilogram is the unit of mass;

it is equal to the mass of the international
prototype of the kilogram.

It follows that the mass of the international prototype

of the kilogram, m(K), is always 1 kg exactly.

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International Prototype of the kilogram
and its six official copies.
Malaysia Primary Standard

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Unit of Time (1967)
second, s: The second is the duration of
9 192 631 770 periods of the radiation
corresponding to the transition between two
hyperfine levels of the ground state of the
caesium 133 atom.

It follows that the hyperfine splitting in the ground

state of the caesium 133 atom, (hfs Cs),
is 9 192 631 770 Hz exactly.

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Caesium Clock
Malaysia Primary Standard

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Unit of Thermodynamic Temperature (ITS-90)

kelvin, K: The kelvin, unit of thermodynamic

temperature, is the fraction 1/273.16 of the
thermodynamic temperature of the triple point
of water.

It follows that the thermodynamic temperature

of the triple point of water, Ttpw, is 273.16 K exactly.

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Standard Temperature Sensor
 Unit of Length (1983)

metre, m: The metre is the length of the path

travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval
of 1/299 792 458 of a second.

It follows that the speed of light in vacuum, c0,

is 299 792 458 m/s exactly.

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Gauge Block Interferometer
 Unit of Electric Current (1948)
ampere, A: The ampere is that constant current which, if
maintained in two straight parallel conductors of infinite
length, of negligible circular cross-section, and placed 1
metre apart in vacuum, would produce between these
conductors a force equal to 2 x 10-7 newton per metre of
length.

It follows that the magnetic constant, 0, also known

as the permeability of free space is 4 x 10-7 H/m exactly.

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 Unit of Luminous Intensity (1979)

candela, cd: The candela is the luminous intensity, in a

given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic
radiation of frequency 540 x 1012 hertz and that has a
radiant intensity in that direction of 1/683 watt per
steradian.

It follows that the spectral luminous efficacy, K,

for monochromatic radiation of frequency
540 x 1012 Hz is 683 lm/W exactly.

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 Unit of Amount of Substance (1971)
mole, mol:
1. The mole is the amount of substance of a system which
contains as many elementary entities as there are atoms in
0.012 kilogram of carbon 12.

2. When the mole is used, the elementary entities must be

specified and may be atoms, molecules, ions, electrons,
other particles, or specified groups of such particles.

It follows that the molar mass of carbon 12, M(12C),

is 12 g/mol exactly.
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 INTERDEPENDENT OF THE BASE UNITS

Electricity A K Thermodynamics

Chemistry mol s Time

cd m Mechanics
Optics

kg
Mechanics

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SI DERIVED UNITS

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 Measurement
► Process of experimentally obtaining information about
the magnitude of a quantity

► Set of process having the object of determining the

value of the measurand, where measurand is the
quantity to be measured.
Example: length of a steel rod - the measurand is its length

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Basis of Successful Measurements

• Accurate instruments
• Traceability to national standards
• An understanding of result and its associated
measurement uncertainty
• Application of good measurement practice
• Performed by competent staff

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Selection of Measuring Instrument
Why correct selection of measuring instrument
is so important?

• It is one of the most important elements in a

measurement process
• If the selection is not correct, the measurement results
might be wrong, then......
• Wrong results will lead towards incorrect decisions,
then.......
• Incorrect decision will lead towards disastrousness or
negative implications
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Selection Criteria
• Range and magnitude of the parameter, including the
accuracy of measurement - should have the range to
cover effectively the range of the parameter to be
measured
• Resolution of the instrument – should be smaller than
the minimum unit of the measurement parameter to be
measured
• Accuracy or uncertainty – should comply with the
accuracy or uncertainty requirement of the parameter to
be measured

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Selecting of Instrument for Measurement
• Check whether tolerance and accuracy for parameter to
be measured have been stated or not
• Check whether range and resolution of the instrument
are appropriate for the measurement
• Check instrument accuracy whether it satisfies the
specified requirement – if it is not specified, you still
have to check the instrument to see if it is better than
one third of the tolerance

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Selecting of Instrument for Measurement
• If it is more than one third, then:
 Replace it with appropriate one, if not, it will affect
the quality of the product which could result in
rejection or rework
 However, if it does not affect the product quality,
then perhaps a strict/close tolerance specified is not
really appropriate and therefore, the tolerance could
possibly be increased/loosen to accommodate the
accuracy of the instrument

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 Measurement (cont.)

 From measurement – we obtain the result of

measurement
►Which consists of a set of quantity values
reasonably attribute the measurand usually
summarized as a single quantity value (average
value)

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 Measurement

Impact of incorrect
measurement-
we get wrong result
from an apparently
correct measurement.

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 Measurement

Impact of incorrect
measurement- Cost!!

Example: The Mars Climate Orbiter: A

Multimillion Dollar Mistake

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Calibration of Measuring Instrument
What is Calibration?
Calibration is a set of operation that establish, under
specified conditions, the relationship between values of
quantities indicated by a measuring instrument, a
measuring system or values represented by a material
measure, and the corresponding known values of a
measurand (the parameter that is being measured)

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 Calibration of Measuring Instrument
Why We Need Calibration?

• Accurate measurement is necessary in our daily life

• Accurate measurement is vital in science, industry,
commerce, health and safety
• In the measurement process, the QUALIFICATION of
the measurement results is the most critical aspect of
any experimental approach

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 Calibration - Definitions
Calibration Standard:
 An artefact that is calibrated against a reference standard and
is used to calibrate DUT

 Ensures traceability

Adjustment: DUT hardware or firmware modification to make the

measurement result of the DUT equal to that of a standard.

Artefact: A device, instrument or equipment used as a means of

transferring calibrated parameters to the DUT.

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 Calibration
► Basic requirement
 Reference standards
 Comparator or transfer equipment
 The test item
 Environmental monitoring equipment
 Procedure /method applied

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 Calibration Procedures/methods

1. Direct Method
2. Indirect Method
3. Null Method
4. Ratio Method
5. Substitution Method
6. Differential Method

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Hierarchy of measurement standards

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Direct Method of Calibration

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Indirect Method of Calibration

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Null Method of Calibration

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 The General Measurement System
The purpose of a measurement system is to present an observer
with a numerical value corresponding to the variable being
measured. In general this numerical value or measured value
does not equal the true value of the variable.

Input Signal Signal Data Outpu

Sensing t
conditioning processing processing
True element Measure
element element element
value d value

True Value = Measured Value ± Uncertainty

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 VERIFICATION OF BALANCE- example

STANDARD WEIGHT

Reference Weights Used :

For the calibration of weights of the particular
accuracy class, reference standard weights of the
next higher class should be used.

CALIBRATED STD.
WEIGHT

VERIFICATION OF
WEIGHING BALANCE
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Calibration, Verification & Conformance
Calibration:

The process of comparing the unknown with a reference standard

and reporting the results. The process may include adjustment to
correct any deviation from the standard.

Verification:

The comparison of measurement results against a specification,

whether they comply or do not comply with the specifications.

Conformance:

Declaration that the product conforms to its specifications such

as found in Certificate of Conformance.

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 Error of Measurement

 Consists of two components

►Systematicerror
►Random error

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 Systematic Error
►Systematic/bias errors are consistent and
repeatable (constant offset)
►systematic errors can be studied through
intercomparisons or calibrations

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 Random Error

►Random errors - arise from random fluctuations

 studied through statistical analysis of repeated

measurements (mean, standard deviation, and variance are
often used)

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 Some basic statistics

Sample and Population

sample population

q, s ( qk ) Infinite numbers
μ, σ

Finite, x
X

q1,q2,q3, …qn
Result of measurement only comes
from finite sample

We use properties of finite sample x to

estimate properties of population X

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 Basic Formulae

n
 Sample Mean S qk
q= k=1
n
 Experimental
Variance of 2 1 n 2
observation s ( qk ) = S ( qj - q)
n - 1 j=1

 Experimental
Standard deviation 1 n 2
s ( qk ) = S ( qj - q )
n- 1 1
j=

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 n
S qk
 Sample Mean q= k=1
n
 Experimental
variance of the 2 s ( qk )
2

mean q s( q) =
n

 Experimental
Standard deviation
s ( qk ) quantify how well q
of the mean q s( q) = estimates the expectation
n μq of q

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Relationship between Systematic error
and Random Error

Measured value
Random error

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 Correction versus
Measurement Error
► Measurement error
 Measured quantity value minus a reference quantity
value
Example: Angular error=measured angle – standard angle value

► Correction
 Value added algebraically to the uncorrected result of a
measurement to compensate for systematic error
Example: ‘True value’=measured value + correction

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 Repeatability
► Closeness of the agreement between results of successive
measurement of the same measurand carried out under the same
conditions of measurement
► Repeatability conditions include:
 Same measurement procedure
 Same observer
 Same measuring instrument
 Same location
 Same temperature
 Repeated over short period of time
► Repeatability can be quantified using the dispersion characteristic of
the measurement

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 Reproducibility
► Closeness of the agreement between results of successive
measurement of the same measurand carried out under changed
conditions of measurement
► Reproducibility conditions include:
 Principle of measurement
 Method of measurement
 Different observer
 different measuring instrument and standards
 different location
 time
► Reproducibility can be quantified using the dispersion characteristic of
the measurement

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 Repeatability
Measurement of diameter of plug gauge consecutively
within 10 minutes

Repeatability

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 Example of reproducibility
Day 1 (morning) Day 2 (afternoon) Day 3 (morning)

49.99941 49.99944 49.99944

49.99941 49.99946 49.99943

49.99942 49.99945 49.99943

49.99947 49.99948 49.99944

49.99944 49.99945 49.99944

49.99946 49.99946 49.99938

49.99938 49.99943 49.99943

Ave (/mm) 49.99943 Ave (/mm) 49.99945 Ave (/mm) 49.99943
StdDev (/mm) 0.00003 StdDev (/mm) 0.00002 StdDev (/mm) 0.00002

Total average (/mm) 49.99944

Std Dev (/mm) 0.00003 reproducibility

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 True value
 quantity value consistent with the definition
of a quantity
►isonly an idealised concept, and unknowable
►obtained by perfect measurement
 i.e measurement free from measurement error
► Example: in steel rod measurement-free from parallax
error. Perfect datum line etc.
►The use of value of the measurand is more
appropriate

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 Accuracy and Precision
► Accuracy
closeness of agreement between a measured quantity value and a
true quantity value of a measurand
The concept ‘measurement accuracy’ is not a quantity and is not given a numerical
quantity value. A measurement is said to be more accurate when it offers a smaller
measurement error

► Precision
closeness of agreement between indications or measured quantity
values obtained by replicate measurements on the same or similar
objects under specified conditions
Measurement precision is usually expressed numerically by measures of imprecision,
such as standard deviation

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Accuracy and Precision

Precise and
Precise but
Accurate
inaccurate

Imprecise and
Accurate but
inaccurate
imprecise

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 Metrological Traceability
The International Vocabulary of Basic and General
Terms in Metrology (VIM) 2008 defines
traceability as:
"property of the
measurement whereby the
result can be related to a
reference, through a
documented unbroken chain
of calibrations, each
contributing to the
measurement uncertainty."

Metrological traceability requires an

established calibration hierarchy.

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Measurement uncertainty increases
Calibration Hierarchy of length Instrument (Example)

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 Summary
► key to good measurement result
 Know your instrument very well,
 Factors affecting measurement,
 Patience

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THANK YOU

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