Metrology, and its various activities, is involved in most aspects of our daily commercial, economic, industrial, environmental and health lives.
Metrology is the science of measurement and its application, including experimental and theoretical determinations, with any level of uncertainty, and in any field of science and technology.
Measuring technology is used in the scientific and technical fields of the experimental determination of quantifiable sizes, provides parameters to engineering, among others, as well as data for evaluating the properties of technical devices and installations, such as their correct operation or their reliability and quality.
To accomplish its tasks, measurement technology calls upon certain specific areas of mathematics, error calculation, probability calculation and statistics.
Based on the above, approved and authorized official and informal means, methods, tools and organizations must be available to ensure the proper functioning of these tools.
It is also necessary to know and reduce their errors, in order to obtain accurate results, which allow us to make the right decisions in various areas.
That is why, throughout history, people have been interested in finding and developing measuring means, tools and devices, which help them facilitate and manage their lives in various areas.
In this article, we will learn the importance of metrology and its evolution in history.
Ancient civilizations were interested in the subject of measurement, to ensure transparency in business transactions, in addition to the need to build enormous temples and structures.
The ancient Egyptians used different measuring devices, in the field of lengths, which allowed them to build pyramids, tombs and enormous structures, which still stand today.
This is why the Egyptians are known as the fathers of modern engineering.
In Roman times, volumetric devices were used and were called amphorae, which are equivalent to a cubic foot and hold approximately 26 liters.
As for the Arabs, in pre-Islamic times, units of measurement began to be used on a physical basis, and there was a sharp difference between people in pre-Islamic times.
Then, with the introduction of a large number of foreign tribes into Islam, this difference and inaccuracy in the scales caused great controversy, with each tribe wanting to retain their traditional methods of measurement.
This is why Islam called for finding new methods of measurement that are precise and suitable for all tribes, and to stop using traditional Arab methods.
The human need to use scales arose from the beginning of civilization, and their quantities vary from city to city.
When people began to exchange goods between countries, the appearance of coins was a subject of great difficulty in negotiations.
This problem remained until the French initiative, during the reign of King Louis XVI. By the end of the 17th century, methods of measurement were adopted internationally, determining the length of a meter, the standard meter, which is a bar of platinum, and the standard kilogram, which is a cylinder of platinum, and other measures.
In order to unify the methods, means and systems of measurement between countries, it was agreed at that time to sign the Meter Agreement in 1875, and this agreement resulted in the establishment of the International Bureau of Weights (BIPM), based in France.
One of the most important responsibilities of this office is to maintain international standards, particularly the international kilogram of 90% platinum and 10% iridium.
The International Bureau is working on preparing copies and delivering them to interested countries, in order to compare all blocks in that country and achieve serialization of their reference standards.
With the development of technology and the beginning of the era of globalization, the standardization of measurement systems has become a great challenge between industrialized and developing countries, in order to facilitate trade processes between countries.
To conclude, metrology is the history in which we developed the discipline to define how we take measurements and standardize units and devices, so that measurements between spaces or continents have the same meaning.
When we consider how metrology affects our daily lives, we ask ourselves: how important is metrology?
The definitions and standardization created by metrology have led to industrial advances that have enabled the production and assembly of manufacturing projects at scales and intricacies that we would not have dared to dream of hundreds of years ago.
But they have also had a very direct impact on our daily lives. Gasoline is sold in standard units. We know how many of these units our car’s tank can hold.
We know how many kilometers we have traveled since our last fill-up and we have a gauge in the car that shows how much fuel is left.
While modern high-end metrology is used to push the precision and definitions of your devices, below the limit of visibility, even the simplest measuring instrument in your home is a metrology device, when it involves the three basic components: unity, measurement and comparison.
