CMCs and the BIPM Key

Comparison Database

Raul Fernando Solís Betancur

rsolis@cenamep.org.pa

2015
 CIPM MRA

• Is the International Committee for Weights and

Measures Mutual Recognition Arrangement.
• Is the framework through which National Metrology
Institutes demonstrate the international equivalence of
their measurement standards and the calibration and
measurement certificates they issue.
• The CMC is the final product of all work in the CIPM
MRA.

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 Bureau International des Poids et
Mesures
• International organization that resides in Paris, France.
• Coordinate the international metrology activities like
comparisons, the units, the measurement capabilities,
etc.
• Keeps a database of all comparison, calibration and
measurement capabilities and provides worldwide
access to the results.

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 The BIPM Key Comparison Data
Base
• Containing Appendices A, B, C and D of the CIPM MRA.
• Appendix A: Participants in the CIPM MRA.
• Appendix B: Key and supplementary comparisons.
• Appendix C: Calibration and Measurement
Capabilities – CMCs.
• Appendix D: List of key comparisons.

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 Comparisons (I)

• They are the best way to show the level of your

measurement skill.
• You need to participate in almost one comparison to
validate yours capabilities and to include your CMC in
the database.
• Under the CIPM MRA, the comparison can be Key or
supplementary.
• The result are published in the Appendix B.

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 Comparison (II)

• CIPM Key Comparison

– Comparison between NMIs with the highest level of
skills in the measurement or the unit realization.
– The result of the comparison is a reference value of the
quantity.
• MRO Key Comparison
– Comparison between NMIs in a RMO when one or
more of the participants are in a CIPM Key comparison.
– Don’t change the reference value obtained in the CIPM
Key comparison.

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 Comparison (III)

• Supplementary Comparison: Is the comparison that

helps link the NMI capabilities with the reference values
(bilateral, pilots experiments, etc.).
• All of the participants of all comparison must be
signatory of the MRA.
• If one of the participants isn't a MRA signatory, the
comparison is only valid if you don’t include his data in
the comparison result.

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 Comparison (IV)

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 Comparison (V)

• The Universal Time Coordinated is our reference value

(Key comparison CCTF-K001.UTC, started since 1977
and still ongoing).
• The Circular T is the official document that reports the
key comparison results.
• The UTCr is a rapid solution for the laboratories that
seek to steer their definitions close to the UTC.

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 Circular T

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 UTCr results

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 SIM comparisons (I)

• The Time & Frequency Network is an pilot experiment

that acts like a regional comparison.
• SIMTFN is a method that allow bilateral comparison
between the T&F Key Comparison participants and the
rest of the laboratories.
• The objective of this comparison is the increase of the
calibration capabilities of all T&F laboratories in our
region.
• The results are published every hour in the SIMTF
webpage.

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 SIM comparisons (II)

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 SIM comparisons (III)

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 Calibration and Measurement
Capability (I)
• The MRA seeks to bring equivalence in all the
measurements in the world.
• The only way to ensure that this happens is to
normalize our way to measure and express the results.
• The Calibration and Measurement Capability (CMC) is
the final product of these process.

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 Calibration and Measurement
Capability (II)
• The BIPM has a list of CMC for the 9 metrology areas.
• Every NMI that is part of the MRA and can provide
enough evidence of their measurement skills in these
areas can register their capabilities in the Appendix C.
• The SIM region has only 6 laboratories with CMC in the
T&F metrology area (approximately 45 in total around
the world, December 2014).

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 Calibration and Measurement
Capability (III)
• For the declaration of your CMC you need:
• To be a signatory of the MRA (member or associate
state).
• A peer review in the service that you want to publish
(is better if the evaluator is from other NMI with a
CMC or a good reputation in the metrology area).
• To fulfill the quality assessment under the ISO/IEC
17025.

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 Calibration and Measurement
Capability (IV)
• For the approval of your CMC you need:
• A comparison with some NMI with link to the UTC.
• The approval of your Quality System from the SIM
QSTF.
• The approval of your technical capabilities from all
RMOs.
• Fulfilling all these points grants the incorporation of
your CMC in the Appendix C.

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 Calibration and Measurement
Capability (V)
• The CMC only had a vitality of 5 years. After that you
need to perform the same exercise to maintain yours
CMC.
• The values can be updated for better or for worse.
– This depend of the actual situation in your
laboratory (changes in your equipment,
environmental condition, calibration methods, etc.).

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 Calibration and Measurement
Capability (VI)
• To demonstrate vitality you need to show record of
your work by:
• Comparisons.
• Publications of your work (journals, conference
proceedings, etc.).
• Participation in the Working Groups.
• Advisories / third party audits.
• Trainings.
• Continuous improvement through R&D.

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 Classification of services in Time
and Frequency
• In the T&F metrology area, the measurement
capabilities are divided in three branches (version 1.0 of
December 2002):
• Time scale difference: synchronization with UTC or
UTC(k).
• Frequency: frequency difference.
• Time interval: duration of events.

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 Branch: 1
Time scale difference
• 1.1. Local clock
• 1.1.1. Local clock vs. UTC(NMI)
• 1.1.2. Local clock vs. UTC
• 1.2. Remote clocks
• 1.2.1. Remote clock vs. UTC(NMI)
• 1.2.2. Remote clock vs. UTC

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 Branch: 2
Frequency
• 2.1. Standard frequency source
• 2.1.1. Local frequency standard
• 2.1.2. Remote frequency standard
• 2.2. General frequency source
• 2.2.1. General frequency source
• 2.3. Frequency meter
• 2.3.1. Frequency counter
• 2.3.2. Frequency meter

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 Branch: 3
Time interval (I)
• 3.1. Period source
• 3.1.1. Period source
• 3.2 Time Interval source
• 3.2.1. Rise/fall time source
• 3.2.2. Pulse width source
• 3.2.3. Time difference source
• 3.2.4. Delay source

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 Branch: 3
Time interval (II)
• 3.3. Period meter
• 3.3.1. Period meter
• 3.4 Time Interval meter
• 3.4.1. Rise/fall time meter
• 3.4.2. Pulse width meter
• 3.4.3. Time difference meter
• 3.4.4. Delay meter

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 The CMC sheet (I)

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 The CMC sheet (II)

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 Calibration or Measurement
Service
Calibration or Measurement Service
Instrument
Quantity/ Instrument
Type or
Class or Artifact
Method
     

     

     

     

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 Calibration or Measurement
Service
• Quantity / Class: basically the branch that you want to
measure (frequency, time interval or time scale
difference).
• Instrument or Artifact: Is the device under test but in
terms of the sub points of the branch (1.x., 2.x., 3.x.,
1.x.x., 2.x.x and 3.x.x.).
• Instrument Type or Method: How you perform the
comparison or the data acquisition (direct frequency
measurement, direct comparison against UTC(k), etc).

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 Measurement Level or Range

Measurand Level or Range

Minimum Maximum
Units
value value
     
     

     

     

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 Measurement Level or Range

• Minimum Value: the lower number that you can acquire

in your measurement range.
• Maximum value: the highest number that you can
acquire in you measurement range.
• Units: the units of the values that you acquire.

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 Measurement
Conditions/Independent Variable
Measurement
Conditions/Independent Variable
Parameter Specifications
   
   

   

   

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 Measurement
Conditions/Independent Variable
• Parameter: every variable or condition that limit your
measurement capability (gate time, measurement time,
averaging time, signal amplitude, line impedance, slew
rate, etc.).
• Specification: the limits of the parameters in yours
measurement.

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 Expanded Uncertainty
Expanded Uncertainty
Is the
Coverage Level of expanded
Value Units
Factor Confidence uncertainty a
relative one?
         
         

         

         
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 Expanded Uncertainty

• Value: the uncertainty’s value that you want to declare.

• Units: the units of your declared uncertainty.
• Coverage factor: the value that you use to expand your
standard uncertainty (usually k=2).
• Level of Confidence: usually is 95%.
• Is the expanded uncertainty a relative one?: Indicates if
the value of uncertainty has turned relative.

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 Reference Standard used in
calibration
Reference Standard used in
calibration
Source of
Standard
traceability
   
   

   

   

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 Reference Standard used in
calibration
• Standard: your time and frequency reference.
• Source of Traceability: The INM is the one that has
traceability to the time unit.

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 List of Comparisons supporting this
measurement/calibration service
List of Comparisons supporting
this measurement / calibration
service
 
 

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 List of Comparisons supporting this
measurement/calibration service
• List of Comparisons supporting this measurement /
calibration service: The comparison that you have
participated in to show your measurement capabilities
to another NMI.

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 Comments to be published via the
web page
Comments to be published
via the web page
 
 

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 Comments to be published via the
web page
• Comments to be published via the web page:
information about the calibration, uncertainty, and
when the CMC is published.

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 Administration

Administration
NMI
Service Review Review
Service NMI
Category Status Comments
Identifier
         
         

         

         
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 Administration
• NMI Service Identifier: The internal ID for the NMI to
identify this service.
• Service Category: The CMC service identifier.
• NMI: The National Metrology Institute or delegated
metrology institute that publishes the CMC.
• Review Status: the actual situation of the verification of
your CMC.
• Review Comments: aditional information about the
verification process.

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 Example of filling a CMC Sheet

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 Example of filling a CMC Sheet

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 How the world see your CMC

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 Discussion
• What is the individual need of the NMI to register your
CMC in the KCDB?.
• The need for training and technical advising.
• You can start with a low level capability calibration
services like stopwatches, frequency meters or optical
tachometers (rubidium oscillator is enough for this).
• Do you need to increase your measurement capability
confidence? Do you need a pilot comparison?
• Tell us what you think.

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 Useful links
• SIM TFWG page: http://tf.nist.gov/sim/
• BIPM KCDB page: http://kcdb.bipm.org/
• CIPM MRA page: http://www.bipm.org/en/cipm-mra/
• BIPM T&F server page:
http://www.bipm.org/en/bipm-services/timescales/time-ftp.htm
l
• NIST uncertainty of measurements result page:
http://physics.nist.gov/cuu/Uncertainty/index.html

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 ¡Thanks!

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