10074441Design and Characterization of a Blackbody for the calibration of non-contact medical thermometersClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKEar thermometers are widely used in a clinical setting for the measurement of patient temperature, whereas forehead thermometers have been increasingly used during the pandemic as a method of fever screening. For reliable body temperature measurement, the performance of the devices needs to be validated by calibration using a suitable blackbody source. For a source to be suitable it must have a sufficiently high emissivity, sufficiently large opening to completely fill the field-of-view of the thermometer, good temperature uniformity and a means to measure the temperature which is traceable to the International Temperature Scale of 1990 (the ITS-90). The need for better understanding of the performance and calibration of both forehead and ear thermometers has been recognised internationally by the BIPM Consultative Committee for Thermometry (CCT) - [https://www.bipm.org/en/committees/cc/cct/guides-to-thermometry][0] The ISO 80601-2-56:2017 standard provides the specifications for suitable blackbody sources, but these are based on stirred liquid baths which are relatively cumbersome to use. Designing and developing a blackbody which has the required specifications, but which does not rely on a water bath, would provide users with a more practical solution for the calibration of ear and forehead thermometers and help ensure they are fit for the intended use. We have a range of existing products used to calibrate non-contact thermometers but these are primarily designed for the more generic infrared thermometers, not medical thermometers. The requirements for the laboratory performance of medical thermometers, and hence the blackbody sources used to calibrate them, tend to be more stringent, and it is not clear, without further study, whether or not Isotech's sources are suitable for the calibration of medical thermometers in their current design. Working with NPL, Isotech will be able to determine the suitability of an existing calibrator for these medical thermometers, from analysis and modeling we can learn of the optimal geometry and then have evidence of the performance. Then we will be able to sell our product into a new market both in the UK and overseas via our global distribution network. Having a portable product, of known performance, will enable routine calibration of the devices by users. [0]: https://www.bipm.org/en/committees/cc/cct/guides-to-thermometry