Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

True value and uncertainty in measurement

Published

Author(s)

Raghu N. Kacker

Abstract

We will discuss the concept of true value and its connection with the uncertainty in measurement as defined in the Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement (GUM), and three subsequent documents from the Joint Committee for Guides in Metrology (JCGM): JCGM 101, JCGM 104, and JCGM 200. Most measurands of interest in metrology are ordinary measurands – that are specified by a description. The description of an ordinary measurand is necessarily incomplete because only significant measurand-affecting quantities are specified. Therefore, every ordinary measurand has a range of true values. The concept of uncertainty in measurement established by the GUM is concerned only with the values assigned to the measurand based on measurement. Since uncertainty in measurement does not refer to the concept of true value, it applies whether the measurand has a unique true value or a range of true values. The JCGM 101 has introduced a concept of uncertainty in measurement called a coverage interval with a stated coverage probability. The concept of a coverage interval with a stated coverage probability does not apply to an ordinary measurand that has a range of true values. When it applies, an evaluated coverage probability is never strictly correct.
Citation
Measurement
Volume
1065
Issue
21

Keywords

BIPM, CIPM, Coverage interval, Coverage probability, GUM, GUM-S1, JCGM, Measurement, True value, Uncertainty, VIM1, VIM2, VIM3

Citation

Kacker, R. (2018), True value and uncertainty in measurement, Measurement, [online], https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1065/21/212003 (Accessed March 29, 2024)
Created September 2, 2018, Updated September 18, 2020