The aim of the subject is to provide students with the basic knowledge necessary to approach thermal measurement and control problems, with reference in particular to civil and industrial engineering fields. The subject is quite interdisciplinary as it is also aimed at building a bridge between theory and practice, teaching the student to interact with physical world in its complexity, to adopt the simplest possible models without exceeding in simplification with the risk to miss meeting the desired level of uncertainty, and to take as a consequence realistic engineering decisions.

- Knowledge of general Metrology concepts, in particular for what concerns uncertainty in measurements and in the realization of reference standards for physical quantities related to temperature.
- Knowledge of uncertainty evaluation and specification techniques, and ability to apply them in measurement problems.
- Knowledge of general characteristics of sensors and transducers related to temperature, and electronic measurement instrumentation.
- Basic knowledge of control theory as applied to thermal control systems

Basic subjects in Calculus, Physics, Electrotechnics

Part 1
General characteristics of sensors and measurement systems: definitions and examples. Null sensors. Closed loop sensors.
Static characterisation of sensors: calibration procedures and calibration curve; sensitivity and linearity.
Errors and Type A and Type B Uncertainty evaluation, combination and propagation. Influence quantities.
Dynamic regime study of sensors and systems for thermal measurements. Response time. Dynamic error.
First and second order linear systems. Response to canonical input signals. Laplace transform method for the solution of differential equations. Transfer functions in the time domain and in the frequency domain. The Fourier transform.
Experimental determination of dynamic characteristics.
Basic features of Operational Amplifiers and their non-ideality as source of errors and uncertainties in interface circuits.

Part 2
Sensors of physical quantities relevant for thermal measurements:
- Measurements of pressure (principles, sensors, transducers)
- Temperature (thermodynamic scale, ITS-90 and reference standards, resistance and thermoelectric thermometry, radiation laws, pyrometers)
- Air humidity measurements (principles, sensors, transducers)
- Flux measurements (principles, sensors, transducers)

Part 3
Basics of automatic control theory. Control and regulation of thermal quantities. Static and dynamic analysis of regulated systems.
On-off and PID control systems. Mathematical models and optimal regulation.

Laboratory work on the realisation of electronic interfaces (at the Department of Electronics).
Laboratory lectures on measurements of Temperature, Humidity, Pressure and Flux, and on the regulation of a thermal process by and industrial PID controller (at INRIM).
Visits to INRIM laboratories where national standards of reference are held and developed for physical quantities.
Classroom exercises under supervision on uncertainty and exam type problems.

Teaching materials and information are made available through the didactic portal.
General text is E.O.Doebelin: Measurement systems, Mc Graw Hill

The final exam consists of a written test, aimed at assessing the level of familiarity acquired by the student with the subjects covered within the course, and an oral discussion aimed at assessing his promptness in elaborating correct answers to further questions on the written test and other related matters.
The written test includes a few open questions requiring a brief description or simple calculations, and several multiple choice questions on specific details of different subjects treated in the course.
No technical material is allowed at the exam.