Key Points for Purchasing Infrared Thermometers
1. Understanding the measurement temperature range is an important performance indicator of infrared thermometers. Each model of thermometer has its own specific temperature range. It is recommended that you choose an appropriate range of infrared thermometer according to your measurement needs. The temperature range to be measured must be considered accurately and comprehensively, neither too narrow nor too wide. If the temperature range is too wide, it will reduce the accuracy of temperature measurement, and if the temperature is too high, the price will be expensive, which is not cost-effective economically; The temperature is too low to meet the requirements. According to the blackbody radiation law, the change in radiation energy caused by temperature in the short band of the spectrum will exceed the change in radiation energy caused by emissivity error. Therefore, short waves should be used as much as possible for temperature measurement. Generally speaking, the narrower the temperature measurement range, the higher the resolution of the output signal for monitoring temperature, and the easier it is to solve the problem of accuracy and reliability.
2. Understanding measurement accuracy and minimum resolution measurement accuracy are two different concepts that can be easily confused. Measurement accuracy is the only indicator to ensure the accuracy of measurement, and it is also a key indicator to determine the performance of infrared thermometers. Resolution is the minimum measure used to measure a specific temperature.
3. Understand emissivity. Based on customer feedback, measurement deviations often occur when using infrared thermometers, with emissivity being the main cause of errors in 50% of cases. Due to the fact that infrared thermometers are suitable for various occasions, the material and color of the surface of the object being measured are different (especially for various pipelines in HVAC systems), and their ability to emit infrared energy to the outside world is also different. By adjusting the emissivity, measurement errors caused by materials can be reduced. So whether the instrument has this function is crucial.
4. Understand the signal processing function. Given that discrete processes (such as part production) are different from continuous processes, infrared thermometers are required to have multiple signal processing functions (such as peak holding, minimum holding, and average) to choose from. For example, when measuring bottles on a conveyor belt, peak holding is used, and the temperature output signal is transmitted to the controller. Otherwise, the thermometer will read the lower temperature value between the bottles. If peak holding is used, set the response time of the thermometer to be slightly longer than the time interval between the bottles, so that at least one bottle is being
measured.
