Measuring instrument

In the physical sciences, quality assurance, and engineering, measurement is the activity of obtaining and comparing physical quantities of real-world objects and events.

*Planimeter

A planimeter, also known as a platometer, is a measuring instrument used to determine the area of an arbitrary two-dimensional shape.

A physical system that exchanges energy may be described by the amount of energy exchanged per time-interval, also called power or flux of energy.

A large variety of devices have been invented to measure time.

All measuring instruments are subject to varying degrees of instrument error and measurement uncertainty.

Instrument error refers to the error of a measuring instrument, or the difference between the actual value and the value indicated by the instrument.

Measuring instruments, and formal test methods which define the instrument's use, are the means by which these relations of numbers are obtained.

The results of testing can be qualitative (yes/no), quantitative (a measured value), or categorical and can be derived from personal observation or the output of a precision measuring instrument.

A force gauge (also force meter) is a measuring instrument used to measure forces.

The octant, also called reflecting quadrant, is a measuring instrument used primarily in navigation.

A protractor is a measuring instrument, typically made of transparent plastic or glass, for measuring angles.

A spirit level, bubble level or simply a level is an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal (level) or vertical (plumb).

An ammeter (from Ampere Meter) is a measuring instrument used to measure the current in a circuit.

A multimeter or a multitester, also known as a VOM (volt-ohm-milliammeter), is an electronic measuring instrument that combines several measurement functions in one unit.

An ohmmeter is an electrical instrument that measures electrical resistance, the opposition to an electric current.

An aneroid barometer is an instrument used for measuring pressure as a method that does not involve liquid.

*Tensiometer

A tensiometer as it applies to physics is a measuring instrument used to measure the surface tension of liquids or surfaces.

Virtual instrumentation is widely used in the development of modern measuring instruments.

* Measuring instrument

A tangent galvanometer is an early measuring instrument used for the measurement of electric current.

*Polarimeter

A polarimeter is the basic scientific instrument used to make these measurements, although this term is rarely used to describe a polarimetry process performed by a computer, such as is done in polarimetric synthetic aperture radar.

A densitometer is a device that measures the degree of darkness (the optical density) of a photographic or semitransparent material or of a reflecting surface.

Force platforms or force plates are measuring instruments that measure the ground reaction forces generated by a body standing on or moving across them, to quantify balance, gait and other parameters of biomechanics.

Instrumentation is a collective term for measuring instruments that are used for indicating, measuring and recording physical quantities such as flow, temperature, level, distance, angle, or pressure.

Universal measuring machines are measurement devices used for objects in which geometric relationships are the most critical element, with dimensions specified from geometric locations rather than absolute coordinates.

Although the emphasis in this area of metrology is on the measurements themselves, traceability of the measuring-device calibration is necessary to ensure confidence in the measurement.

See also Surveying instruments.

See also Astronomical instruments and.

In the physical sciences, quality assurance, and engineering, measurement is the activity of obtaining and comparing physical quantities of real-world objects and events. A measuring instrument is a device for measuring a physical quantity.