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3.0 Measurement Standards

Learning outcomes
At the end of this topic you should be able to:
Identify the various standards in measurement
Perform conversions between measurement
units
Draw the hierarchy pyramid for measurement

3.1 Measurement units

Measurement units form the basis for
quantification of a measurand
E.g.:
Measurand

Units

Length

millimeters

Weight

kilograms

Determine flatness and parallelism using optical

flat
2.204
1 kg = ?
lbs lbs

In 1960, the Eleventh General Conference on

Weights and Measures formally established the
SI System
The Fourteenth General Conference on
Weights and Measures (1971) added the mole
as the unit for amount of substance:

The seven base units

Derived units with special names:

Derived units without special names:

s = r

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3.1.1 The Standard of Length

Activity 1
Ravi went to a new petrol station to
pump air into his cars tires. He found that
the pressure gages at the station used only
metric scales and the units were in kg/cm2.
He usually pumps in pressure of 32 psi for
all four tires. Can you help him to convert
the pressure to kg/cm2?
32 psi = ?? kg/cm2

3.1.2 The Standard of Mass

The kilogram is defined as the mass of the
International Prototype Kilogram, a platinumiridium weight kept at the International Bureau of
Weights and Measures
The International Prototype
is made from an alloy of
platinum (90%) and iridium
(10%), in the form of a
cylinder whose height and
diameter are nominally
39 mm. It has a density of
approximately 21 500 kgm3 and by definition a mass
of exactly 1 kg.

The Seventeenth General Conference on

Weights and Measures redefined the meter
directly in terms of the speed of light:
The meter is the length of the path traveled
by light in vacuum during a time interval of
1/299,792,458 of a second.
Do you know?
Speed of light is about 300 000 km/s

3.1.3 The Standard of Time

Thirteenth General Conference on
Weights and Measures officially adopted the
following definition of the second as the unit of
time in the SI System:
The second is the duration of
9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation
corresponding to the transition between the two
hyperfine levels of the ground state of the
cesium 133 atom.

3.1.4 Electrical Standards: Ampere

3.1.5 Temperature Standards

One ampere is defined as the current that

produces a magnetic force of 2 107 N/m on a
pair of thin parallel wires carrying that current and
separated by one meter.

Basic unit of temperature, kelvin (K), is

defined as the fraction 1/273.16 of the
thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of
water, the temperature at which the solid, liquid,
and vapor phases of water coexist in equilibrium

-7

The degree Celsius (C) is defined by:

2x10 N/m

1A

t (C) = T (K) 273.15

1m

where t and T represent temperatures in

degrees Celsius and in kelvins

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Absolute temperature takes units of degrees

Rankine (R), which differ from the kelvin by a
factor of 1.8:
T (R) = 1.8 T (K)
The degree Fahrenheit (F) is defined by
subtracting 459.67 from the temperature in
degrees Rankine:

Activity 3
Derive the equation relating temperature in
F to temperature in C.
Hence, convert the following temperatures to
C: (a) 100F, (b) 32F

Check your answers with those

obtained using a calculator.

T (F) = T (R) 459.67

Hierarchy of
length
measurement
standards

3.2 Hierarchy of Measurement Standards

Standard platinum
iridium meter bar

Primary
Standard
Secondary
Standard
Reference
Standard

Gage block set

Working Standard
Measuring Instrument

Digital
micrometer

LEARNING POINTS
1. Name the seven base units in the SI system.

3.3 Traceability

Result of a measurement, no matter

where it is made, can be related to a national
or international measurement standard, and
that this relationship is documented.

2. Draw the hierarchy pyramid for measurement

standards.

3. Which base unit uses an artifact (prototype)

as the standard?

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Example of
traceability chain for
measurement of
mass:

Typical calibration chain for micrometers:

www.nist.gov

Formal Definition of Traceability:

Traceability is defined as the property
of the result of a measurement or the value
of a standard whereby it can be related to
stated references, usually national or
international, through an unbroken chain of
comparisons all having stated uncertainties

3.4 Measurement using the optical flat

Optical flat is a disk made from stress-free

glass or quartz
Either one or both surfaces are ground, lapped
and polished to a high degree of flatness

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To make measurements with optical flats, we

need:
The part to be measured (reflecting surface)
An optical flat
A monochromatic light source
A suitable work surface
= 585 nm = 0.585 m
Optical flat being used to determine flatness of seal ring. Interference
bands on seal ring face show lines of constant depth. (Van Keuren Co.)
http://www.answers.com/topic/optical-flat

http://www.lapmaster.com/
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What is a monochromatic light source?

3.4.1 Interference of light waves

Monochromatic light is light that has a single

wavelength or color

Wavelength

b
Path 1

a
d

Path length difference

Path 2

L = abd - acd
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When

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Observer

L = /2, 3/2, 5/2, 7/2 etc.

destructive interference occurs
L = , 2, 3, 4 etc.

constructive interference occurs

when

Source
s

o o

Optical flat

Test surface

constructive
constructive
interference
interference

Interference
fringe pattern

destructive
interference

Difference in path travelled by light,

L = sbo - sao = ab + bc
Since is small, ab bc  L = 2ab
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If L = /2 or 3/2 or 5/2 or odd number of half

wavelength, destructive interference occur, and
total light intensity at point b is 0

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Destructive and constructive interference results

in an interference fringe pattern:
n=1 n=3
n=2
Optical flat

L
a1

/ 2

a2

Test surface

That is, destructive interference occurs whenever

L = (2n-1)/2, where n = 1, 2, 3 ...

Line of contact
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Since is small, ab bc

 L = 2ab

when n = 1, L = /2 = 2ab  ab = /4
when n = 2, L = 3/2 = 2de  de = 3/4
 Height difference between fringes = de ab = /2

/4 3/4 /2

Optical flat
/2

Test surface

Line of contact
R
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/2

Line of contact

Line of contact
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Line of contact

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Line of contact
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A-A

A-A

Convex surface

B-B

Concave surface

B-B

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C
D

Convex or
concave?

/2

R
C

R
Point C is at the same distance from the optical flat as
point B because both points are on the same fringe

1 2 3

However, difference in distance from optical flat of

point C and D is /2. Therefore, point C is lower than point
D. Hence, the surface is convex.

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B
C

/2

A-A

D
R

3 2

Flat at one end, increasingly

convex at the other
R
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B-B

C-C
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A-A

A-A

R
R

B-B

B-B

Flat throughout

Flat an center, drops at

the edges

C-C

C-C
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3.4.2 Measurement of parallelism of block gages

B

Optical flat
Reference block
gage

A-A

Test
block
gage

Are these parallel?

B-B

1/2 fringe

Two high points surrounded

by lower regions

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Non-parallelism along y-axis

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Non-parallelism along x- and y-axes

Z
Non-parallelism in y-axis

Y
X
B
5
4
3
2
1
A

D
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
C

B 1
5
4
3
2
1

Non-parallelism
Z

R
X

Non-parallelism

= (7 - 5)/2
= 0.575 m

5
4
3
2
1
C
A 1

Non-parallelism in x-axis

Difference in height AB = (5 - 5)/2 = 0 m

Difference in height AC = (1 - 0)/2 = 0.288 m
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Activity 4

Activity 3
An optical flat was used to assess the flatness of a
reflecting surface. Figure 1 shows the fringe pattern produced on
the surface. Points A and B represent points of contact between
the optical flat and the surface.
Sketch cross sections along lines X-X and Y-Y to show
the shape of the specimen block based on the fringe pattern.
Hence, estimate the difference in height between the highest and
lowest points along section Y-Y, given that the wavelength of the
light used in 0.585m.

In a test for parallelism, the fringe patterns on Grade 0 and

Grade 2 gage blocks were compared. The fringe patterns
obtained are shown in Figure (a). If the wavelength of the light
used is 0.585m, determine the difference in height between (i)
point A and point B, and (ii) point B and point C.
If the optical flat is rotated and the fringe pattern produced
on Grade 0 block gage is as shown in Figure (b), sketch the fringe
pattern that may be observed on Grade 2 block gage.
B

Contact point B

A
Gred 00
Grade

Contact point A

Grade
Gred 22

Gred 0
Grade
Figure
(b)

Figure (a)

Y
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