The Problem of Determining and Adjusting the Inter-Calibration Intervals of Measuring Instruments

The problem of determining and adjusting the inter-inspection and inter-calibration intervals of measuring instruments is analyzed. Well-known recommendations for describing the drift of the error of a measuring instrument in the course of use are analyzed. It is shown that the most universal recommendations for the selection of methods of determining or adjusting the intervals between inspections (calibrations) and a comprehensive critical analysis of these recommendations are presented in the document, OIML D10–2007, Guidelines for the Determination of the Calibration Intervals of Measuring Instruments. D10–2007 sets forth the most general approach to the description of these methods in different fields of application of measuring instruments of the greatest diversity and recommends five methods of reviewing the inter-calibration intervals. The selection of the most acceptable method is performed by the party involved in thes study, i.e., the designer, manufacturer, or user of the measuring instrument, or the calibration or testing laboratory. The development of procedures for determining and adjusting the inter-calibration intervals that take into account specific features characterizing the organization that executes these studies and the field of application of the measuring instruments and their operating regimes, the form and method of measurements and the extension of the procedure by type, group, or concrete copy of the measuring instrument must follow the selection of the method. The procedure may be created in the form, for example, of a standard of the organization.