CHIVE COPY VOL. 8. NO.1 MARCH 1969

'---- N"""....,L EW T T ER

A MESSAGE FROM

THE NCSL CHAIRMAN

From my point of view, the highlight of my first quarter was the two-day planning workshop of the Board of Directors and Committee Chairmen held in Boulder, Colorado on January 15-16, 1969. The two topics of primary interest were 1) agreement on the main goals of NCSL for the coming months, and 2) reorganization of our committee structure to accomplish these goals effectively.

All but one of the Board members and most of the Committee Chairmen were present. Several of the latter also were present as members of the Board. For convenience in the discussion to follow, I hope I may refer to this group simply as the Board, without in any way minimizing the importance of those present who were not members.

Calibration Program and System Management

The workshop concluded that the key goal of NCSL should be the development of me thods for Calibration Program and System Management and the dissemination of information on these methods. The Board felt very strongly that NCSL is not a "pr es s ur e group" of standards l aboratories, but that our true mission is to reflect the point of view of higher management and to help evaluate objectively the need for, the functions of, and the benefits of standards laboratories. I have outlined here some of the maUl topics we discussed. We by no means con­cluded the discussion, but we did develop a basis for planning and action during the next several months.

Measurement Requirements

There is still an urgent need for better methods of identifying real meas­urement requirements for defining the real measurement problems. It is an im­portant function of NCSL to develop suitable methods.

A related problem is the traditionally poor communication between research people and standards people. Measurement requirements grow out of advanced research and development work, and they should be anticipated at an early stage to provide adequate lead time for measurement techniques and standards for engineering design, manufacturing, and maintenance. (Not discussed at the

'­ meeting but also important) of course, are measurement techniques and stan­dards for the research and development people themselves~)

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Measurement Accuracy

still "bugging" the system is a lack of commonly accepted and understood terminology} definitions} and interpretations} and the need for scientific approaches to replace such concepts as accuracy ratio and traceability re ~

quirements} which are well-intentioned but do not accomplish their purpose.

Test Equipment

Test equipment procurement and performance continues to be a major pr obl em. NCSL Member laboratories could provide information of incredible value on this topic. What is suggested is that NCSL analyze the available information on in­strument performance and develop procurement techniques which will assure the desired quality of test equipment (perhaps statements regarding test instru­ment reliability ) for use in test equipment procurement.)

Military-Aerospace versus Other Applications

The Board correctly recognized that many of the most stringent measurement requirements arise from the nation's military-aerospace programs. Meeting these requirements properly is a great service to our overall measurement system~ The Board felt that those who contract for high-technology hardware should work together more closely, in the interests of accuracy and economy of measurement. Notwithstanding a strong orientation toward layer organi­zations, brought on by military-aerospace problems, the Board strongly wishes to give more attention to the smaller laboratories. In this regard} it would be helpful to hear from our members who consider themselves as small labora­tories, regarding their problems.

NCSL Interaction with Other Organizations

The Board recognized that although NCSL members NCSL represent a substantial po~tion of the nation's GNP, NEWSLETTERNCSL is small in terms of the immediate dollar re~

EDI TORIAL PAN'8L sources and manpower at its disposal. Therefore we c ~ z . I.Ih 1t.e •• ••• • . • ~ i tor

E. J . Arsenault. •••• Cont. r-ab , B.'i l ':. ~ :­need to work effectively with other organizations J . F . Hadley •• • ~ •• . Cont r l1J. Erliwrin solving measurement problems. This means avoid­J . L. HaYQ"s • • • . ~ • . • Con t r ib , Editor

ing duplication of effort, using the results ob­ R. E. Ernst c on t r rb, E:ditor

tained by other organizations, and encouraging NCSL OrFlCERS

H.. W. Lan ce • • • • • • • • • • Ch,;;iintl3.r'Jother organizations (within their proper fields of Jg J... Ha ye s • ••• • • ••• • 1s 1,. v f ce -Cn en interest) to undertake to solve problems of inter­P. H. liunter . . . . .• • • • Se cre te.ryest to NCSL. To this end, our liaison with other D. L Hcr-vf.g 't'r-eeau r-es­

organizations must be strengthened. Ml\ILlNG ADDRES5

NCSL Se c r-ete r-Ia c N a ~, lonal &H'ea u. of 5t:.and.3l-Qs -2G:') .OlNCSL "Specifications" Gaithersburg, Md . 201W

The NCSL NFoI SLETI'ER I s published o..luart.erl.,y by NCSI.., and 1~ sen t. toThe Board noted that continuing difficulties are NCSL t~~mbe r Or -gan 17.;1. 1;10115 end t.o mcmber -s 01' ·1c t1 'V i1; 1 ~ s engage d in , Or con cer-ned vt cn , aeasurercen t. s ca nue r d s , Sub scrip t l.on ra te 1 05

encountered in the laboratories and on the produc­tion lines in producing equipment efficiently, to

$ 2. 00 pe r yea r ( for Member Organi ­zat .Ione t.h 15 i s 1.acluded a$ pa rt. or a nnua l dues..) App k dca Lfon co mail

typical specifications prOVided by procurement at s e co nd- clas s pos~e.e ru ces 15 perlllj,,ng at. Gs;..thel"sbu.rg, MJ.

agencies. The Board felt strongly that NCSL is tn~n excellent position to develop specifications for products which will yield a specified performance

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at a reasonable and economical cost. The Board felt that such NCSL specifica­tions could form a more satisfactory basis for procurement and production, and that they would be acceptable--indeed would be welcomed--by procurement agen­cies. Producing such specifications was accepted as a high priority goal for our organization.

Value of Calibration System to Product Reliability

logically this topic falls under the first su.bheading, "Ca l i br a t i on Program and System Management." However, it played su.ch a prominent part in the work­shop discussions that it deserves a separate treatment here.

One of t he urgent needs seen by the Board is to establish meaningfu.l methods for defining the valu.e of calibration systems to product reliability. The value of calibrations to the produ.ct gets directly to the heart of the economic im­pact of measurements. Produ.ct reliability is a salable ou.tpu.t, and if the value of calibrations to product reliability is demonstrated, management will no longer have difficulty in understanding the value of measurements. The costs and the benefits should be made visible'to management, so that the proper trade-offs can be made. The development of methods for defining the value of measurements to product reliability was accepted by the Board as a high-prior­ity goal for the near fu.ture.

Organization for Pu.rsuit of Goals

NCSL action toward its goals is spearheaded by the Board of Directors and by a system of Committees.

For the past few years, a great deal of the NCSL management responsibility has been delegated by -the Chairman to the four NCSL Vice-Chairmen. I propose to continue this mode of operation. Indeed, one of the prime topics of dis­cussion at the workshop was the grou.ping of responsibilities and assigning them to the Vice-Chairmen. Shown below is the grouping that was agreed u.pon.

I. NCSL Administration (Vice-Chairman Hadley) Organization, Finance, Nominations, Honors and Awards, Meetings and Program, Membership

II. Planning (Vice-Chairman Ernst) long-Range Plar.ning, International Coordination, National Meas­urement Requ.irements

III. Laboratory ~~nagement and Operation (Vice-Chairman Arsenault) Procu.rement Regu.lations, Measu.rement Agreement Comparison, Measure­ment Error Analysis, Workload Control, Calibration Procedu.res, Personnel Development

IV. NCSL Outouts--Service, Communication (Vice-Chairman Hayes) Newsletter, Directory of Standards Laboratories, Information, Calibration Procedures Library Guidance, Recommended Prac­tices (Processing), Pu.blicity.

The areas of responsibility are indicated primarily by listing the titles of last year's committees. However it was agreed tha~ some committees shou.ld be discontinued, others consolidated, and new ones organized. That work is in process. The Board will meet again in New York on March 26 to review progress, sharpen goals, and make fu.rther specific plans for the coming year.

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NBS SEMINP~S--1969

COMING--High Frequency and Microwave Power Seminar Scheduled for April 14-16 at Boulder, Colorado. Areas to be covered

include analysis and evaluation of calibration systems, mismatch and other transfer errors, and descriptions of NBS primary standards. Attendance limited to 30; fee-$225. Apply to P. A. Hudson, NBS Radio Standards Engrg. Division, Boulder, Colorado 80302.

COMING--High Frequency Calibration WOrkshop April 21-25 are the dates. Will be devoted to quantities presently

measured for calibration services to the public. Actual calibrations will be demonstrated as a basic part of the program which is aimed at the practising metrologist. Attendance limited to 50; Fee-$300. Apply to F. X. Ries, High Freq. C lib. Services, NBS R ~dio Standards Engrg. Division, Boulder, Colorado 80302.

COMING--Fifth Temperature Symposium Preliminary discussions have taken place among representatives of AlP,

ISA, and NBS to prepare fOr the organization of the 5th Temperature Symposium. June, 1971 js the tentative date, duration 4 to 5 days, and location Washington, D.C. The program will cover principles, methods, and instrumentation in all fields of application in which state-of-the-art advances in temperature measurement and control are apparent. MOre details later 0

PAST--Frequency and Time Stability ~eld February 18-20, with 54 in attendance; included three scientists from France, Canada, and SWitzerland. The discussions held were intended to assist and to stimulate further work in the field by the IEEE Technical Subcommittee appointed to define frequency stability, and whose chairman is Dr. James A. Barnes (~~). Requests for attendance exceeded the quota established, therefore, the Bureau is scheduling a second seminar on the same subject, in June. J. H.Shoaf is coordinating the repeat session, and presently is accepting reservations at NBS/IES Boulder Laboratories, Boulder, Colorado 80302.

NBS PERSONAL

Arnone NBS staff members receiving the Department of Commerce Gold Medals for distinguished and outstanding achievements, on October 29, 1968, were:

LOUIS COSTRELL, Chief of the Radiation Fhysics Instrumentation Section, for proposing and implementing a system for standard­ization of electronic nuclear instrument modules, with universal potential. HENRY J. KOSTKOWSKI, Chief of the Radiation Thermometry Section, for outstanding contributions to metrology in the field of optical radiation and high temperature thermometry. LAWRENCE M. KUSHNER, Director of the Institute for Applied Technology, far outstanding research and research management.

Some familiar (to NCSL members) names of people receiving the Silver Medal for services of unusual value to the Department were:

DAVID W. ALLEN, Atomic Frequency and Time Standards Section

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(Boulder), f'or- contributions to the 1I.W atomic time scales and the understanding of the statistics of atomic frequency standards. WILLIAM R. TILLEY, Chief of the Office of Technical Information and Publications, for leadership in promoting the exchange of technical information between gove,nment and private sectors of the Nation.

Effective January 3, 1969, NBS announced the retirement of Dr. I. C. SCHOONOVER as Deputy Director of the National Bureau of Standards, and appointment of Dr. L. M. KUSHNER to that position. Dr. H. E. Sorrows, formerly deputy Director of the NBS Institute ror Materials Research, replaces Dr. Kushner as Acting Director of the Institute for Applied Technology.

A. H. MORGAN, consultant to the Boulder Time and Frequency Division, retired from the Bureau and accepted a position a s A ~ s oc i ate Professor with Metro state College in Denver, on January 2 , 1969.

Recent reorganization move s at - oul der ve r es ul t ed i n some changes in administration. I n the Rad i o Standa d Engi neer i ng D'LvLs f.cn , G. E. SCHAFER heads t.ne Mi crowave ircuit Standa r ds Section, L. E . ID}NTLEY was appointed ch ief of t.he Ri g Frequency Impedance Standards Section. C. r.'i. Allred's Section was renamed to RF Transmission & Noise, and P. A. Hudson was appointed to head the renamed RF Power and Voltage Section.

WILLL~ A. WILDHACK, a leader in sponsoring formation of NCSL, recently retired from NBS. Most of Our readers will remember Bill as Associate Director for Measurement Services of the Institute for Basic Standards. He was responsible fOr coordinating the Institute's calibration and measurement services to science, industrY, and other government agencies. His fellow workers gave Bill a big party on March 11 to wish him happiness and good health i n retirement. We of NCSL wish him the same. FOr those who know how to ~ite. Bill's address is 415 N. Oxford St., Arlington, Va. 22310

Bill receives collage of past events Dr. Astin presents Bill with plaque

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Commerce Secretary M. H. Stans ha s .tes t gna t.ec Dr. A. V. ASTIN, NBS Direc­tor, to serve Lempor~rily as Acting Secretary for Science and Technology. This is the second time within a period of 18 months that this honor has been a ccor de d D:t". Astin. Serving as Act i ng Director-NBS i s Dr. L. Kushner.

A. J. Rapial, who read ~he Indian report to the 1968 Standards Labora­tory Conference, has complcteJ a year' of adva nced scientific training at the NBS Cryogenic Division - BouLde r , While engaged in research work at NB..S, Mr. Rapial also completed wo rk towa rd his MS degree in chemical engineering at the University of Colorado. He returns to his former position in India's Department of Atomic Energy, in September.

Word has j ust reached us that Dr. R. L. HUNTOON has come out of retire­ment (e ight mont.hs long ~) to take part in NBS I S Metric Study Program, in a consultant capacity. We look forward to hearing of, and from, him in the near fuLure.

NCSL WORKSHOP

Following the NCSL Board Meeting, thought was given by the officers to the subject of 1969 meetings. We have received word that Chairman Lance has accepted an invitation extended by ISAMESTIND Director J. Melcher, to par­ticipate in the ISA meetings scheduled for October 1969, at Houston, Texas. It is anticipated that participation will consist of a workshop and panel discussion centered around actions proposed at the January Board meeting.

NCSL PERSONAL

We note that LOEBE JULIE of Julie Research will be receiving an award for "outstanding achievement in industry and conunerce" at a dinner commemorating the 50th anniversary of the City College of New York, School of Engineering. He is one of 17 to be honored at the dLnner-, M9.rch 28, for significant achievement and contribution to special areas within the technical commun i t y .

NCSL Chairman Lance informed your Editor, at press time, that W. L. VANDAL had accepted the position of Chairman of the NCSL Meetings and Program Committee. Bill immediately will go into high gear in preparing fOr the workshop to be held in Houston in October, in conjunction with the ISA Conference.

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~SLBOARD ~ETrnG

Chairman H. W. Lance called a special meeting of the Board of Directors and committee chairmen, held at Boulder on January 15 & 16, 1969. Theme of the meeting was predominantly long-range planning, with consideration of short-range activities to implement the planning. In attendance part time were Dr. E. Ambler, Director of the Institute for Basic Standards of NBS, and the Boulder Laboratories Executive Officer, B. Birmingham: Among items of general interest to readers:

• NCSL has extended financial support to maintain the NCSL/NBS Secretariat at Gaithersburg.

• NCSL Membership was increased to 218, as of January 15. • The 1970 Standards Laboratory Conference will be held in

Gaithersburg, at a time to be determined later by the Board. • Greater efforts to be expended to determine and express the

value of a calibration system to a product. • It was agreed that the present Newsletter Editor would retain

the post for an interim period but would receive assistance from an Sditoyial Panel m de up of the NCSL Vice-Chairmen. In this corillect ion of~eys f om t r a de journals, to incorporate the Newsletter into the format of an exist ing journal, were rejected by the Board. Instead ar r angement s have been made to print the Newsletter commercially, distributing it as s~cond-class matter within the borders of the United States, and via air mail for non-national affiliates.

• A task-force approach to be sponsored that will obtain NCSL recommendations for Pr ocedur es to be used to achieve a desired level of product reliability.

NCSL Chmn Lance and 1st V-Chmn Hayes check Long-Range Planning Report

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• Arrangements were completed to transfer the contents of the NCSL Calibration Procedures Library to the US Interagency Data Exchange Program (IDF.P). Procedures will be transferred to microfilms and distributed in this form •

• NCSL Committee structure and scope wa s reviewed and comndttees reorganized into four basic groupings, each beaded by a Vice­Chairman:

I NCSL Administration, unde'r J. }'. Hac1,-"\ ;­II NCSL Plannin g~ under R. B. Ernst

III Laboratory Management & Operation, under E. J. Arsenault IV Communic8xion and Services, under J. L. Hayes

Specific COIT@it tee structures and appointed Chairmen will be announced by Chairman Lance shortly.

1968 STANDARDS LABORATORY CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS

Word has just reached us that the long delayed printing and distribution of the Proceedings of the 1968 Standards Laboratory Conference will be accomplished by May 29, 1969.

ACCTJRACY IS Ou'R POLICY

This notice is directed to representatives of NCSL Member Organizations who received copies of the Chairman's Annual Report for 1967/68.

During the month of December and somewhere between Massachusetts and Ge.ithersburg, Md., the last page of the Chairman I s Annua.l Report f'o'r 1967/68 was lost. Consequently 14 member organizations were omitted from Appendix C. In addition, geograph i ca l location of The Boeing Company was cr~nged during a typing session, from Seattle, Washington to Waterbury, Connecticut, much to the surprise of Past Chairman White and Member Delegate Charles E. Johnson of Boeing. Mr. Johnson has already received apologies from the Past Chairman; the remainder of the recipients of the Annual Report are reminded that Boeing still is headquartered in Seattle.

The member organizations accidentally ommitted during the reproduction stage of the last page of Attachment C are listed below:

U Cal /Lawrence Radiation Lab. Wave labs Co. Livermore, California S ~n Diego, California UNIVAC Western Electric Co. Utica~ New York Reading, Pennsylvania UNIVAC/DSD Western Electric Co. St. Paul, Minnesota Winston-Salem, NOr.th Carolina Varian Associates Westinghouse/Calib. & Gage Lab Palo Alto, CaLi.t'or-n'ia Sunnyvale, C' lifornia

Veritek Corp. Westinghouse/Defense & Space Center Van Nuys, C-lifornia Baltimore, Maryland Vitro Lab Westinghouse Research Lab. Silver Springs~ Maryland Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Volumetrics Weston In8truments~ Inc. Inglewood, California Newark, New Jersey

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NCSL COMMITI'EE CHAIRMEN APPOINTMENTS

At the time of going to press the following incomplete list of Chairmen was confirmed by NCSL Vice-Chairmen for 1969 operations:

Organization A. J. Woodington - General Dynamics /Con Finance D. I. Hervig - US Army Sentinel Prog. J\udi t W. H. McPhee - MIT Instrument Lab. Nominations O. L. Linebrink - Battelle Memorial Honors + Awards M. T. Angelo - Lockheed-California Meetings + Programs W. L. Vandal - McDannel-Douglas Newsletter C. E. White - General Radio Directory P. H. Long - Western Electric-Reading Informat ion J. Shackelford - LTV Electrosystems Calibration Procedures

Distribution A. Baughman - USAF-2802 IG+C Group R commended Practices K. Hedlund - US Naval Station - N. I. Long Range Planning J. R. Van de Routen - Bell Aerosystems National Measurement

Requirements R. Bailey - USAF - Newark AFB

Metric System Conver­sion (Special Corom) N. Smith - TRW Systems

NEW Th'EE FELLOWS

The IEEE Board of Directors announced that 127 members have been elected to the grade of Fellow, effective as of January 1, 1969. The grade of Fello~ is the highest membership grade in the Iib;E, and is attained by invitation only. A mark of unusual distinction, it is conferred only upon persons of outstanding and extraordinary qualifications in their particular fields. Members from among the Instrtllllentation and Measurement Group elected to Fellow, and their citations are:

Richard C. Boonton, Jr. - For the development of techniques for the analysis and optimal design of time-varying and nonlinear guidance and control systems.

Frankl.in S. Cooper - For studies in t he correlation of speech units from the physical, physiological, psychological, and phonetic aspects.

Jerry B. Minter - For contributions to radio signal generating/measuring.

Morris M. Newman - For contributions to aircraft lightning protection, and for development of techniques for the controlled study of natural lighting.

Jan F. Schouten - For contributions to research in visual and auditory perception, and to telecommunication.

Cornelius J. D. M. VerhageR - For contributions to the development of interest and education in the field of instrumentation and control.

Charles E. ifuite - For contributions to the organization and development of standardization activities in support of the national measurement system.

(HWL)

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NBS TECHNICAL NEWS

Lo.ser Sour ce Reflectometer Wo,...kers at the NBS Inst itute fo-r Basic St andl3.-rds h8.ve been able to attain

a signi ficant increase in p-recision ~nd accu-racy of directional-hemispheri­cal reflectance at high ternpe-ratu-re by design and construction of ~ laser­source integrating sphere r.eflectometer. It i s use ful up to 20 00K, with a precision a pp-roxi mat i ng 0 .0035 in re flectance units} expressed as the standard devil3.tion of six replicate measurements on the same specimen, and a constant erro-r of measurement of less than one pe-rcent of the measured value. The accuracy attained is ne arly independent of the geome t r i c distri­bution of reflected flux (except for retroreflectors) and hence the method is particularly advantageous for studying the effect of surface finish on ~eflectance. MOre details of the unit a~e available in NBS Technical Note 439 by G. F. Kneissl and J. C. Richmond, obtainable from the US Government Printing Office for 45 cents.

Hi h-Tem e-rature Strain Standard A team of NBS IBS workers -recently developed an extensometer system for

operation at tempe-ratures up to 1650 0C which has good -range, high -resolu­tion, and small random errors. The main component is a capacitive senso-r haVing an effective area dependent upon the -relat ive position of a movable grid and two stationary gr i ds . A lever system is used to trans fer the motion due to strain from a specimen to the capacitive sensOr. This is accomplished by a stationary leg, which is attached to the body of the extensometer, and a movable leg that is connected through a push rod to the sliding grid. Deformation of a specimen causes the leg (and grid) to move relative to the two stationary grids. The va-riation in capacitance be­comes a measure of the strain on the specimen.

4 If

I I

I Sensor 5 Specimen 2 Mooioble leg 6 Silver tube ref lee/or

:3 Stationary leg 7 Cooling gas flow

4 Concentric tubes

Cross-sectional view of the NBS extensometer

A converter, in which output voltage varies linearly With capacitance, is used as an indicator.. Direct readout is obtainable fo-r static extensions (strain). The capacitive sensor is housed inside a cylindrical tube that is surrounded by a silver radiation shield. A transpa-rent concentric tube encases t hi s apparatus , permitting cooling air to be circulated through the tubes, maintaining the interior tube and sensing element at a moderate temperature.

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The system has been thoroughly tes ted. Results show_~hat the system has a ~an ge of at least 2 . lmm, has a resolution of 2 . 5 x 10 rom, has random errOrS of about 5 x 10-4mm, and i s linear to within about 0.1 percent of the r ange.

New Precise Len gth-Measurement Technique A new stabilized l aser technique was "di s cl os ed in a paper by B. L. Bar.ger

and J. L. Hall of NBS/IES, published in the January 6, 1969 issue of the Physical Review Letters. It is based on the saturated absorption in methane vapor of radiation f~om a 3. 39-micrometer helium-neon laser; sever.al devices using this principle have been built.

Using saturated absorption to obtain a sha~p resonance, the two scien­tists have achieved a basic-line width for the signal of about one £art in 109 and t hey have demoDstrated a reproducibility of one part in 101 for two independent dev i ces. Stability has been found to be comparable to repro­ducibility. In t hes e lasers the output wavelength is in the infrared, but a visible helium-neon l ase- can be locked to it with extremely high stability and with bui lt-in provis ions for precisely measuring the wave­length of t he vis ible output radiation by interferometric methods.

In addition to poss ible cons iderations as a new international standard of length, the saturated absorption-type laser will have important applica­tions as an accurate length reference for geophysical measurements and in high-accuracy measurements of the speed of light.

Information Service on Engineering Standards The Information Section of the NBS Office of Engineering Standards

Services has a collection of over 16,000 engineering and related standards and specifications published by more than 350 U.S. trade, professional, and technical societies. The Section functions both as a technical library and as a referral activity in providing answerS to questions on engineering standards and standards activities. Written inquiries concerning published standards should be directed to: Information Section Office of Enginee~ing

Standards SerVices, National Bureau of Standards, Washington, D.C. 20234.

Pulse MeaSurements With Laser Light Modulated laser light can be used fOr accurate measurements of very short

(microsecond) high-voltage pulses. Recent work at Boulder, sponsored in part by the Atomic Energy Commission, has shown that laser light passed between high-voltage electrodes immersed in a Kerr Cell was modulated by pulses applied to the cell electrodes. The transmitted light was detected by a photomultiplier and recorded on an oscilloscope. Its oscillating intensity, dependent upon the strength of the electric field imposed by the applied voltage, was used fOr time-resolved measur.ements of the instantan­eous amplitude of the applied high-voltage pulse. Continuing work at NBS is expected to increase present acc~racy of 1 percent and to extend the system's measurement capability to 300 ~. A description of work already completed is given in an article by Cassidy, et aI, which appeared in the December 1968 issue of the IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement.

States Receive Standards On February 25, Governor R. W. Scott of NOrth Carolina received a new

set of weights and measures standards from NBS Director Allen V. Astin.

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The ceremony was conducted at the State Weights and Measures Laboratory in Raleigh.

Dr. Astin traveled to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on March 3 to present to Governor R. P. Shafer an identical set of weights and measures fo~ use in Pennsylvania. On March 7, Dr. L. M. Kushner, NBS Deputy Director, presented Wisconsin's set of standards to Governor W. P. Knowles.

These actions are part of a continuing service by the U.S. Government to replace standards supplied to all the states, many years ago.

NBS JOINT MEETING

The state of the art of measurements technology will be the theme of a meeting, May 6, at the NBS Boulder Laboratories, involving industrial firms in the Rocky Mountains area. Sponsors are the University of Colorado, the Federation of Rocky Mountain States, and the Colorado Office of State Tech­nical Services.

The primary aim of the conference is to provide invited executives of the industrial firms with information on how to find and to utilize the research capabilities and technical information available to them at the National Bureau of Standards and other federal laboratories. The conference will identify current expertise, data sources, technical resources and facilities, and will explore opportunities for wider application and use of technOlogy developed at NBS. Mr. R. Lemon, Office of University-Industry Relations, 306 Regent Hall, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo. 80302, is able to supply pertinent information.

INDIAN SYMPOS IUM

Shri Frem Prakash, Head of Weights and Measures Division, Indian MinistrY of Commerce, reports to the Editor on ~ symposium devoted to weights and balances, sponsored by the Directorate of Weights and Measures, the National Physical laboratory, (NFL) and the Indian Standards Institute (lSI). It was held at NFL in New Delhi, on December 19 & 20, 1968 and included representation from West Germany and the t~SR. In attendance were over 100 delegates representing, for the most part the Indian wei ghts and balances industrY. A prime factor in promoting the symposium was a hope and desire for the formation of a trade association of the manufacturers, an action which would be similar to that taken by thermometer manufacturers immediately follOWing a similarly-sponsored symposium in February, 1967.

In the description of the weights and measures symposium, it was interesting to note that the manufacturers' representatives put out a plea fOr establisp~ent of branches of NFL at all important centres--an innovation practiced by the t~SR gover nmen t through establishment of state laboratories and regional/state industrial laboratories. In the United States similar services to industry i".r e lJl'ovided through the offices of weights and measures, established and maintained individually by each state, but a nation-wide commonality of measurement i8 maintained by referral to the National Bureau of Standards as the sole legal source of accuracy.

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AMKRICAN ASSOCIATION FOR TEE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE NEWS

Dr. Zola Bronson of the National Science Foundation, Washington, D.C. was good enough to report on the meetings of the AAAS in Dallas, on December 1968 which were devoted to Continuing Education for the Engineer. The folloWing general conclusions were made:

• The community of working engineers, management, and the university does not consider technical refurbishment as a formal, continuing effort, to be a matter of primarY concern. Furthermore, the emphasis ~nd concern expressed in some circles about individuals getting rusty on the job, is considered to be unrealistic and impractical--if present work does not call for using the particular knowledge Or skills.

• A definite interest exists in the more positive activity of maintaining individual effectiveness and growth. For this purpose, emphasis is placed on expanding resources for updating and diversifying Or broaden­ing the engineers' horizon of operating competence.

• Upgrading the quality of informal continuing education, such as non­credit university courses, lectures, and related activities is a matter of considerable interest. To respond to this need, as well as to improve the status of continuing education teaching, one university objective should be to legitimize the effort by incorporating it into the engineering college curriculum.

• Central to the effectiveness of any organization's continuing education program is the professional staff's spirit. The latter is, in turn, largely a function of management policies and practices.

• None of the parties most directly concerned, management Or engineer employees, appear ready to recognize and understand the importance of more systema.t ically formalizing employer continuing education programs. Thus, no read interest Or effOrt was reported in appraising the effec­tiveness of individual cont inuing education modes, developing guidelines fOr employee participation, inte r e l a t i on hi ps of the individual's and management's responsibilities i n the area of conti nuing education, etc.

IEEE NEWS

R. A. SODERMAN, chairman of G-IM Technical Committee on High Frequency Measurements hopes that rf-connector userS will observe, practice, and report on the IEEE Standard on Precision Coaxial Connectors, No. 287 which appeared in the September 1968 issue of the Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement for trial use.

J. GB,~ CAMERON, of the Canadian Department of Defense writes to remind readers of the 1969 Electrical and Electronic Measurement and Test Instrument Conference (EEMTIC) to be held in Ottawa May 5 to 7, 1969. The meetings are sponsored by the IEEE ottawa Section and the IEEE Instrumentation and Measurement Group. Complete details are to be found on page 34 of the September 1968 Newsletter.

All eyes are directed toward New York in anticipation of the annual IEEE Irrt.ernat LonaL Convention and Exhibition, March 24 to 27, 1969. Merely by program numbers and weight along, the meetings far surpass anything else in the electronic field. Visitors may choose from 57 scheduled sessions, attend 2 two-day courses, sit in at 2 workshops Or listen in on 4 four-day tutorial

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Courses. The index to session topics lists 28 differ.ent subjects. And, of course, there is the exhibition at the Coliseum--four floors of items. Something for everyone.

ISA NE1.olS

ORVAL LINEBRINK was good enough to send u s a copy of the Metrology Division Newsletter. It was the first issue seen by us and it is note­vorthy for the large proportion of news devoted to committee activity. The message from Director J. C. Melcher was read with interest, particularly his statement related to the first public announcement at the ISA Symposium in October, of the changes to the IPTS and the Bureau's part therein. SorrY John, the NCSL Newsletter issue of September 1968, on page 17, carried the news in detail, as obtained during the SAMA meeting at Gaithersburg, on September 17.

other nevs, such as announcement of the successful formation of the Canaveral Section's Metrology Subsection on June 27, 1968, brought out the names of NCSL member delegates, active in the formation process. These include JOHN DEEDRICK, JOHN RILEY, and CHARLES STONE.

PRECISION MEASUREMENT ASSOCIATION NEWS

Boston Chapt er President JOHN J. GREELEY ha s announced plans for a panel program June 17, devoted to the subject "Instrumentation--Its Needs and Costs (specsmanship)", hopefully exposing the need for clearer specification language to assist the instrumentation purchaser.

Central ColOrado Section held its annual Seminar/Workshop on FebruarY 25-26 at the university of Colorado in Boulder. Concurrent sessions were conducted in the fields of electrical and dimensional standards. Speakers included Ed Nemeroff and H. Russ Brownell of Hallmark Standards, Jack Sutcliffe of Guildline Instruments, John Harrington of National Astro Laboratories, Frank Hlavek of Size-Control Co" and Charles Tuttle, Jr. of Johnson Gage Co. The meetings were well received, and a Credit to the program committee headed by Prof. W. Erickson and consisting of John Driscoll, Chris Keiffert, Jim leaney, and John Sappee.

The Second Annual Metrology Conference, organized primarily by the Los Angeles Section, was an ambitious and successful event, taking place on February 3 to 5 at the AmbassadOr Hotel in Los Angeles. As befOre, featured events were the instructional courses, technical sessions, and the annual banquet. Exhibits by 17 manufacturers helped round out the conference by providing things for the hands to feel, giving the earS and eyes a chance to relax. At the technical sessions 18 speakers covered subjects ranging from digital voltmeter calibration to laser holography. The PMA deserves praise fOr its ambitious programming and the success of its efforts.

The Boston Chapter presently is engaged in two activities of interest to all measurements act.ivities. They a.r e conduct i ng a n opinion poll concerned with the propos ed adotion of the metric sys t em in the U.S., and they are compiling a Measurements Handbook for use by metrologis ts.

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USA STANDARDS INSTITUTE NEWS

K. J. KOEP, NCSL representative to USASI CIOO Committee gives us the following information concerning subcommittee structure:

DC Ratio Devices Carl Boyer, Chairman AC Ratio Devices Roy F. Estoppey, Chairman AC-DC Transfer Devices C. Pete DeWitt, Chairman Definitions Jack C. Riley, Chairman Electrical Null Indicating Devices - John B. Yeager, Chairman Reference Voltage Devices Kenneth Miller, Chairman

The proposed IEEE St andar d on Reference-Standard Electrical ResistOrs has been forwarded to the USASI fOr vote on issuance as a proposed US Standard.

As of October 28 , 1968, the following committee status was in effect: • DC Ratio Devices: Proposed standard for high precision laboratory

potentiometers, Part 1, written. Proposed standard is released for trial use, and work is proceeding on Part 2. The definitions originally placed in the appendix of the proposed standard will be incorporated into the body of the standard.

• AC Ratio Devices: The draft for '~equirements for Decade Transformer Dividers (Voltage Type)" was published in July 1968, and distributed for a one-year trial period. It is expected, after revisions have been made on the basis of experience, to submit the standard to USASI for approval as a USA standard. Work is proceeding on Part 11­Current Ratio Devices.

• AC-DC Transfer Devices: A proposed standard for precise voltage and current transfer standardS is scheduled for submission at the March 25, 1969 committee meeting. A standard for power transfer is to follow later.

• Electrical Null Indicating Devices: The subcommittee work will proceed initially on fOur tasks a) dc null detectors, b) ac null detectors, c) ga l vanomet er s , and d) other null electronic devices.

• Reference Voltage Devices: This subcommittee has been recently formed; progress report after March '69 meeting.

PROGRESS OF BRITISH CALIBRATION SERVICE

A note from H. E. Burnett, B.C.S. Director, indicates satisfactory and steady progress is being made by his organization toward apProval of qualified calibration labOratories, now totalling seventeen. The measure­ment fields in which qualification is granted are 1) dc and low frequency electrical, 2) high frequency electrical, 3) mechanical, 4) fluids, 5) optical,and 6) thermal. Further information enclosed by Mr. Burnett inCluded copies of the schedules indicating the scope of approval for each laboratorY. In passing, the editOr wishes to stress that the schedules fOr similar laboratories are not carbon coptes of each other but are elaborately detailed fOr each measurement specific--quite thorough, eye opening, and without question reflecting the magnitude of the task of the examining and qualifying board.

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DO SPECIFICATIONS REALLY SPECIFY?

Do you rely on manufacturers ' specifications to describe the meaSUTement uncertainties of your test equipment? If so, does anyone, including the ufacturer, agree with your translation of your equipments' specifications ! With a little help from test equipment manufacturers, the user's task of re­solving specification translation Problems could be lessened. Improvement can be made if all the manufacturers would consider the definition of specification and abide by it.

A specification should consist of the necessary unequivocal statements that completely describe and qualify the test equipment characteristics. Unfortunately salesmanship and/or incompetence, instead of unequivocal statements, pervade many specifications. In fact, this practice is so common, one cannot retaliate with discriminant purchasing of test equipment. Because of this fact, specification translation functions may be required to establish a uniform interpretation of each instrument specification used in a company.

Describing measurement uncertainty is a common battleground in specifica­tion discussions~ Many manufacturers use accuracy* in place of uncertainty, p--obao Iy because the latter has a negative implication. A hypothetical example of a typical accuracy stat ement is: voltage measurement accuracy, iO.Ol% reading 0.01% full scale. ThiS statement describes the instruments' accuracy, but does not qualify it. How long will the instrument retain the flo.oli" quality vith no ad.justments? Six months? One day? "Doe s the "o.oli" quality exist if the ambie~t temperature rises to 300c or the line voltage falls to 107 volts? Manufacturers often supply information regarding temper­ature coefficient, stability (vith respect to time), line effects and other measurement uncertainty determining factorS, but rarely provide a total uncertainty-condition model as a gui de in accumulating these factors. Users cannot apply instrumentation knowing only uncertainty without the conditions to which it pertains.

It is a recognized f a ct that specifications cannot be presented in the widely used tabular format, yet remain free of all translation problems. However, the magnitude of these problems could be reduced considerably if completeness and clarity were substituted for the void in many of the specifications available today.

*Accuracy is used here in the commonly accepted negative intention form.

(J. L. Arther, Autonetics)

CONTROL OF STANDARDS

flKeeping Standards and Measurements Under Control in a Standards Laboratory" is the title of a paper recently pr es ent ed at the 23r d Annual ISA Conference. It shows in detail how Trend and Control Charts are established, how they can serve to minimize certain systematic errors, establish values of standards and assign uncertainty limits to these values, determine the normal variability of a measurement Process and its associated uncertainty, and how this information is pulled together in realistic un­certainty estimates and statements. Complimentary copies are available from the AuthOr, Rolf B. F. Schumacher, Autonetics, Department 073, RC02, 3370 Miraloma Avenue, Anaheim, California 92803.

(R. couture, Autonetics)

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THE METR IC SYSTEM BATl'LE RAGES ON

An article entitled "Why Adopt the Metric Sys t em," in Professional Engineer} February 1969} by H. E. Chesebrough, Director-General of SIMCA, contained seve ral points which too often are overlooked Or softpedaled in debates over the issue of metric sy st em. Mr. Chesebrough mentioned that when he moved to France he took with him several kitchen appliances, which he found difficult to use upon his arrival. French use of the metric system had nothing to do with his problems. The trouble rather was with the electrical standards in the U.S. and in France , such a s 60 -cycl e ver suS 50 ­cycl e current, 110-volt ve rSus 220-vol t supply mains. He states in his article "If I were in the electrical goods manufacturing business I would be mo;e conc erned about these standardization problems than I would about the problems of the inch vs. the met r'c system". In another part of the article, refe!"ing to thr ead.ed fastener s , he goes on to say "Here again the problem is not to de : ine them _n e ~ he the inch system Or the met ric s ystem, but to define the same thi ng i n 0 syst ems and to get over t he idea that a s crew must have a " hol e number of t h eads pe r inch Or per centimeter". He concludes with the expreESeQ f ee l ng t hat " "hat is needed is a new series of standard parts, des i gne d t o give the most efficient use of material regard­less of t he dimension Let us standardize things. This standardization will never be achieve~ solely through the dimensioning system..... I can't help but wonder however J what will be served by such a change--product improvement} international commer ce , trade relations, or emotions .•... "

An accompanying article by Gordon Henning of Boeing Company entitled "Let's Adopt the Metric System" digs into the background of national con­ver s i on to the metric system. Mr. Henning states quite simple "It is worthy of note that every case of national conve rsion has required a government action of s ome sort". His plea for adoption is based upon his feeling that, by the year 1990 Or 2000 J the U.S. would be faced with such a vast array of metric international standards} requirements, and products that compet i t i on by U.S. industrY would be impossible.

UNESCO CALL FOR HELP

~ne Fine Instruments Center at Seoul} Korea} a UNESCO Government Joint Project} is looking for training help in the field of repair and calibration of precision instrumentation. A memorandum from John E. Steel, Chief Tech­nical Adviser} indicates he is seeking assistance f r om existing American standards laboratory personnel, skilled in many of the most common fields of measurement.

Mr. Steel believes that any qualified metrologists who take part in the program through their compan i es , will benefit by the exchange of experiences. A reasonable fee and per diem, plus travel expenses to} from , and within Korea, are available as part of the consulting arrangement. If your company is interested in helping the effOrts of the United Nations in such an under­taking} contact should be made to Mr. J ohn E. Steel, Chief Technical Adviser, UNESCO Government Joint Project, Fine InstrQ~ents Center , C. P .O . Box 143, Seoul} KOrea.

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1969 DIRECTORY OF STANDARDS LABORATORIES QUESTIONNAIRE

The NCSL Directory Committee met at the National Bureau of Standards in Gaithersburg, Maryland on Wednesday, February 26, 1969 to complete plans for preparing the 1969 Directory of St an dar ds Laboratories. The time schedules for this publication are as follows:

• The questionnaires will be prepared and mailed to all member and non-member Laboratories of Record by March 15, 1969.

• As in the past, all laboratories desiring listing, whether NCSL member or non-member, should submit the questionnaire for the 1969 edition. This procedQre is used whenever a new edition of the directory is prepared, to assure current status of the laboratories and to eliminate discontinued or inactive labOratory listings.

• To be assured of listing, all laboratories should complete the questionnaire in its entirety, and return it no later than May 15, 1969.

• The final compiling and editing will be completed by the Directory Committee and submitted to the NCSL Secretariat Office by June 1, 1969.

• The target date for publication and mailing is late August or early Septemberj.962.

The format of the 1969 Directory will be changed this year in order to accommodate recommendations of both the membership and the NCSL Board of Directors. The directory will be loose leaf, with 8 x 10~ inches pa~e size.

In line with this change in format, the need to reduce the measurement capabilities information was considered by the committee. The committee agreed to simplify the electrical and physical capabilities by using broader descriptive terms. This resulted in the electrical section being reduced from 34 to 5 columns and the physical section from 23 to 10 columns. The recommended changes will be reflected in the shorter directory questionnaire for the 1969 Directory.

NCSL gratefully acknowledges past cooperation of member and non-member contributors to the directOry. Cooperation on the part of contributors again will' assure a useful directory. If you have any inquiries in regards to the directory please address them to:

NCSL Secretariat c/o National Bureau of St an dar ds -200 . 01 Washington, D. C. 20234

The questionnaires for the 1969 Directory should be returned to:

PAUL D. LONG, Chairman 1969 Directory Committee Western Electric Company, Inc. P.O. Box 241 Reading, Pennsylvania 19603

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REFERENCE MATERIAL FOR METROLOGISTS

NBS Special Publication 300

Since February 1961} measurement experts and those aSplrlng to the title} have referred to a set of three volumes edited by staff members of the National Bureau of Standards, "NBS Handbook Tl , Precision Measurement and Calibration 0 "

These volumes were published and distributed to meet the needs of a rapidly expanding industrial a ct i vity , most prominently, in the aerospace and military electroriic fields.

The articles contained in these three volumes were devoted to measurements in electricity and electronics ; heat and mechanicsj optics, metrology and radiation, and were reprints of previously pab~ished NBS material. While many of these articles a re still use ful, advance s i n t he t heory and practice of meas ure en t s h ve advanced ~o such a degree a ~o warrant a new collection of r e e ence te r i a l . A ccrding'L } a nev repri t col le .Lon i s be i ng assembled, o !mo' c " Special Publica.tlon 300. " e hir t een vol ume s comprising

the publica tion we r e lis t ed' the December i s s ue o f ~he ~ews le t ter .

We are happy t o report that t",.;o vol umes 0 the zo.Ll.e c t aon are pr e s ent l y available. They are "Pr e c i s i on Measuremen t and Calibr a tion, Tempe r a t ur e " and "Precision Measurement and Calibration, Electric i t y - Low Frequency~

Volume 2, on te~perature, edited by J. F. Swindells, is a far more complete collection than that included originally in Handbook 77. Much more material on low temperature (cryogenic) measurements has been presented, as well as advances in controlled temperature generation and measurement up to the range above 2200<)C. It is unfortunate that the timing of the publication of Volume 2 was previous to substantive changes in the International Temperature Scale and the Thermodynamic Scale adopted by the BIPM in October, 1968, as reported in the September and December issues of the Newsletter. This lack, however, is of small import to the neWly-arrived technician in the temperature-measure­ment field; the established experts already are aware of the changes and can expand the material in Volume2 as they lecture to trainees in measurement techniques.

Volume 3 on Electricity-Low Frequency, edited by F. L. Hermach and R. F. Dzuiba, contains fundamental papers by noted experts at NBS, and specific section papers devoted to standard cells and zener diodes; resistance, capaci­tor, and inductance measurements ; ac-dc transfer measurements ; high-voltage and surge measurements; dielectric and magnetics measurements. It represents a solid and comprehensive collection of imformative material well suited for serious workers in the measurement field.

Both volumes from the Supt. of Documents, US Govt. ptg. Office, Washington D. C. 20402. Volume 2 contains 513 pages and is priced at $4.75; Volume 3 has 489 pages and costs $4.50. These volumes are the beginning of a library for every serious measurement requirement.

At about the time yo u are reading this item, Volume 1 of the series will be available. Edited by H. H. Ku, and entitled "Statistical Concepts and Pro­cedures", the volume represents the dedi ca t ed work of a number of well known and re spected NBS workers. The subject is a difficult one and a dreary topic to many workers in the field of measurement. It is very much to the credit of people like Eisenhart, Youden, Natrella, Cameron, and Ku that statistics has been reduced to a palatable potion and, more important, has been presented to metrologists as a working tool to benefit each and every worker. In addition,

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the examples set by Pontius, Eicke, and Cameron in putting statistics to work in a practical way, by de vising t he Pilot Programs for Mass Measurement and Determination of a Working Standard Volt, have done much to popularize the use of sca t i st.Lcs in calibration laboratories.

Volume 1 starts with briefings on the measurement process, followed by a u i s cus s i on 01 precision, accuracy, and systematic error. In order to devise better calibration methods and techniques, the second chapter is related to Lhe design of experiments. It contains much of the experience one learns from work in baste and applied research, and is applicable to measurements in general.

The value of round robins, or interlaboratory ~ests as they are better described, is discussed in Chapter 3. It is interesting to note that the measurement agreement comparisons conducted by NCSL during 1964-67, contribute a good deal to t he material contained herein. The last three chapters are devoted to functional relationships, statistical treaGment of measurement data, and a number of miscellaneous topics. All in all, Volume 1 is a most interesting addition GO a collection of works devoted to statistics of meas­urements, and to a great extent complements Mary Natrella's contribution to measurement and experimental statistics finally published as NBS Hndbk 91, with Churchill Eisenhart as co-author.

There has been a title correction and a reVlSlon of the publication dates of the balance of the volume of NBS Spcl Pub 300, originally listed on page 18 of the December issue of the Newsletter:

Volume 4. Electricity-Radio Frequency May 15, 1969 5. Time and Frequency June 1, 1969 6. Calor imetry June 15, 1969 7. Mechanics July 15, 1969 8. Dimensional Metrology June 15, 1969 9. Radiometry + Photometry August 1, 1969

10. Colorimetry + Image Optics August 15, 1969 11. Spectrochemical Analysis June 15, 1969 12. Ionizing Radiation August 10, 1969

NBS Publication 304

In order to make popular the modern metric system, NBS has issued Special Publication 304, a four-color illustrated wall chart. The chart presents the six ba.se units of the present-day form of the InternaiIional System (S1), some derived uni ts defined directly in terms of the base; units, and the relation between 81 units and the customary US units. For inclusion in files or note­books, the Bureau a Lso has made the chart available as part of a four-page NBS Special Publication 30~A, which includes a "Brief History and Use of the English and Metric Systems of Measurement." Chart 304 is available at $ 050, folder 304A costs $.20j each may be obtained from the Supt. of Documents, Gov~. ptg. Office, Washington D. C. 20402.

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APPLICA~T ON FOR MEMB :~i'~SHIP

NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF STANDARDS LABORATORIES

Name of Labo~atory or Organization

Address City State Zip Code

hereby applies for membership in the National Conferences of Standards Laboratories and appoints as its Delegate:

Name

Title

who will serve until further notice. The sum of fifty dollarS ($50.00) is enc losed for membership dues f'or- the caLendaj- year 1969. Of this amount, two dollars ($2.00) is for our subscription to the NCSL Newsletter fOr that year.

Appointed by:

Title:

Date:

The NCSL is a continuing non-profit association whose members are either measurement standards and calibration laboratories, organizations maintaining such activities, Or other organizations which have related interests and are operated under academic, scientific, industrial, commercial Or government auspices.

Applications may be mailed to: National Conference of Standards Laboratories c/o National Bureau of Standards (200.01) Washington, D. C. 20234

Checks should be made payable to the National Conference of Standards Laboratories. If an otherwise qualified organization finds it impossible to become a member organization by payment of dues as such it may be granted member privileges by payment of an equivalent registration fee in advance of the Delegate's Assembly.