The Measuring Instruments (Material Measures of Length) Regulations 2006 (revoked)

Regulations 2(1) and 14(1)

SCHEDULE 1 U.K. ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS

1.  The essential requirements are the relevant requirements relating to material measures of length contained in Annex I and MI-008 set out in this Schedule. U.K.

Definitions U.K.

2.  In this Schedule—

“influence quantity” means a quantity that is not the measurand but that affects the result of measurement;

“measurand” means the particular quantity subject to measurement;

“rated operating conditions” means the values for the measurand and influence quantities making up the normal working conditions of a material measure of length;

Allowable Errors U.K.

3.—(1) Under rated operating conditions, the error of measurement shall not exceed the maximum permissible error (MPE) value set out in paragraph 14.

(2) Unless stated otherwise, MPE is expressed as a bilateral value of the deviation from the true measurement value.

(3) The manufacturer shall specify the climatic environment in which the material measure of length is intended to be used and other influence quantities likely to affect its accuracy, taking account of the requirements laid down in this Schedule.

Reproducibility U.K.

4.  The application of the same measurand in a different location or by a different user, all other conditions being the same, shall result in the close agreement of successive measurements. The difference between the measurement results shall be small when compared with the MPE.

Repeatability U.K.

5.  The application of the same measurand under the same conditions of measurement shall result in the close agreement of successive measurements. The difference between the measurement results shall be small when compared with the MPE.

Durability U.K.

6.  A material measure of length shall be designed to maintain an adequate stability of its metrological characteristics over a period of time estimated by the manufacturer, provided that it is properly installed, maintained and used according to the manufacturer's instruction when in the environmental conditions for which it is intended.

Reliability U.K.

7.  A material measure of length shall be designed to reduce as far as possible the effect of a defect that would lead to an inaccurate measurement result, unless the presence of such a defect is obvious.

Suitability U.K.

8.—(1) A material measure of length shall have no feature likely to facilitate fraudulent use, whereas possibilities for unintentional misuse shall be minimal.

(2) A material measure of length shall be suitable for its intended use taking account of the practical working conditions and shall not require unreasonable demands of the user in order to obtain a correct measurement result.

(3) A material measure of length shall be robust and its materials of construction shall be suitable for the conditions in which it is intended to be used.

Protection against corruption U.K.

9.  A hardware component that is critical for metrological characteristics shall be designed so that it can be secured. Security measures foreseen shall provide for evidence of an intervention.

Information to be borne by and to accompany the material measure of length U.K.

10.—(1) A material measure of length shall bear the following inscriptions—

(a) manufacturer's mark or name;

(b) information in respect of its accuracy;

(c) measuring range;

plus, when applicable:

(d) information in respect of the conditions of use;

(e) identity marking;

(f) number of the EC-type examination certificate or the EC design examination certificate; and

(g) information whether or not additional devices providing metrological results comply with these Regulations.

(2) A material measure of length of dimensions too small to allow it to bear the relevant information shall have its packaging, if any, and the accompanying documents required by the provision of these Regulations suitably marked.

(3) The material measure of length shall be accompanied by information on its operation, unless the simplicity of the measure makes this unnecessary. Information shall be easily understandable and shall include where relevant—

(a) rated operating conditions;

(b) the upper and lower temperature limit, whether condensation is possible or not, open or closed location;

(c) instructions for installation, maintenance, repairs, permissible adjustments;

(d) instructions for correct operation and any special conditions of use.

(4) The scale interval for a measured value shall be in the form 1 x 10ⁿ, 2 x 10ⁿ or 5 x 10ⁿ, where n is any integer or zero. The unit of measurement or its symbol shall be shown close to the numerical value.

(5) Millimetre scales shall be numbered every centimetre and material measure of lengths with a scale interval greater than 2 cm shall have all scale marks numbered.

(6) The nominal value shall be marked on the material measure of length accompanied by the unit of measurement used.

(7) The units of measurement used and their symbols shall be in accordance with the provisions of Community legislation on units of measurement and their symbols.

(8) All marks and inscriptions required under any requirement shall be clear, non-erasable, unambiguous and non-transferable.

Indication of result U.K.

11.  The indication of any result shall be clear and unambiguous and accompanied by such marks and inscriptions necessary to inform the user of the significance of the result. Easy reading of the presented result shall be permitted under normal conditions of use. Additional indications may be shown provided they cannot be confused with the metrologically controlled indications.

Conformity evaluation U.K.

12.  A material measure of length shall be designed so as to allow ready evaluation of its conformity with the appropriate requirements of these Regulations.

Reference Conditions U.K.

13.—(1) For tapes of length equal to or greater than five metres, the maximum permissible errors (MPEs) are to be met when a tractive force of fifty newtons or other force values as specified by the manufacturer and marked on the tape accordingly, or in the case of rigid or semi-rigid material measure of lengths no tractive force is needed, is applied.

(2) The reference temperature is 20°C unless otherwise specified by the manufacturer and marked on the material measure of length accordingly.

MPE U.K.

14.—(1) The MPE, positive or negative in mm, between two non-consecutive scale marks is—

(a + bL), where—

(a) L is the value of the length rounded up to the next whole metre; and

(b) a and b are given in Table 1 below.

(2) When a terminal interval is bounded by a surface, the MPE for any distance beginning at this point is increased by the value c given in Table 1.

Table 1

Accuracy Class	a (mm)	b (mm)	c (mm)
I	0.1	0.1	0.1
II	0.3	0.2	0.2
III	0.6	0.4	0.3

(3) The MPE for the length between consecutive scale marks, and the maximum permissible difference between two consecutive intervals, are given in Table 2 below.

Table 2

Length i of the interval	MPE or difference in millimetres according to accuracy class
	I	II	III
i≤mm	0.1	0.2	0.3
1 mm < i ≤1 cm	0.2	0.4	0.6

(4) Where a rule is of the folding type, the jointing shall be such as not to cause any errors, supplementary to those above, exceeding 0.3 mm for Class II, and 0.5 mm for Class III.

Materials U.K.

15.—(1) Materials used for material measures of length shall be such that length variations due to temperature excursions up to ±8°C about the reference temperature do not exceed the MPE.

(2) Material measure of lengths made from material whose dimensions may alter materially when subjected to a wide range of relative humidity, may only be included in Classes II or III.