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Temperature
greatly influences many physical features of matter, and its influence on e.g. quality, energy
consumption and environmental emission is significant. Temperature, being a state of equilibrium,
makes it different from other quantities. A temperature measurement consists of several time constants
and it is crucial to wait until thermal equilibrium is reached before measuring. Metrology contains
mathematic formulas for calculating uncertainty. The polynoms are specified in ITS 90 table
(International Temperature Scale of 1990). For each measurement, a model that includes all influencing
factors must be created. Every temperature measurement is different, which makes the temperature
calibration process slow and expensive. While standards determine accuracy to which manufacturers
must comply, they nevertheless do not determine the permanency of accuracy. Therefore, the user
must be sure to verify the permanency of accuracy. If temperature is a significant measurable variable
from the point of view of the process, it is necessary to calibrate the instrument and the temperature
sensor. It is important to keep in mind an old saying: all meters, including sensors, show incorrectly,
calibration will prove by how much.
A thermometer without a traceable calibration route to recognised National Standards is fairly useless.
Yet we all buy mass produced thermometers which are supplied without a calibration and use them. I
assume we all hope that the manufacturer has been conscientious and has at least carried out
calibration checks on batch samples and has claimed a level of accuracy to the batch. But has the
manufacturer used suitable standards for the calibration? The only way of being confident in a
thermometer is to have it calibrated, then we can be sure that the reading it gives is meaningful. You
would not rely on the time from your wrist watch being accurate unless you had checked it would you?
Yet we run industrial plants with un calibrated thermometers! Temperature is one of the most
commonly measured physical quantities but its basis is not widely understood. Unlike other quantities,
such as mass and time, temperature is defined on a theoretical set of conditions whereas other units are
based on real physically realisable defined conditions.
In our modern society, it is important that the devices we use to measure the
physical quantities around us are accurate. From the weather to the medical
field, from the automotive industry to agriculture, obtaining accurate
measurements is essential to making decisions and performing tasks.
These measurement devices need to be verified that they give correct data to
enable us to make good decisions. Calibration, the process of verifying the
readings of an instrument match that of a standard, does just that. If a device is
not within a specified tolerance, it is adjusted so that it is within the bounds of the
specification.
Laboratories in particular use calibration to verify that the measurements that
they perform are consistent
Calibration is the activity of checking, by comparison with a standard, the accuracy of a measuring
instrument of any type. It may also include adjustment of the instrument to bring it into alignment with
the standard.
he accuracy of all measuring devices degrade over time. This is typically caused by normal wear and tear.
However, changes in accuracy can also be caused by electric or mechanical shock or a hazardous
manufacturing environment (e.x., oils, metal chips etc.). Depending on the type of the instrument and the
environment in which it is being used, it may degrade very quickly or over a long period of time. The
bottom line is that, calibration improves the accuracy of the measuring device. Accurate measuring
devices improve product quality.
Many users require, and probably expect, a more rigorous calibration to be performed
that reflects real world usage. Here, the preferred method is to test both the digital
thermometer and the temperature probe together (In other words a system test) and to
use a real heat source. The value displayed by the system being tested is then
compared against the standard (The system with a known or assigned accuracy from
the first paragraph!).