Meterstick
A meterstick, metrestick, or yardstick is either a straightedge or foldable ruler used to measure length, and is especially common in the construction industry. They are often made of wood or plastic, and often have metal or plastic joints so that they can be folded together. Normal length of a meterstick made for the international market is either one or two meters, while a yardstick made for the U.S. market is typically one yard (3 feet or 0.9144 meters) long. ⓘ
Metersticks are usually divided with lines for each millimeter (1000 per meter) and numerical markings per centimeter (100 per meter), with numbers either in centi- or millimeter. Yardsticks are most often marked with a scale in inches, but sometimes also feature marks for foot increments. Hybrid sticks with more than one measurement system also exist, most notably those which have metric measurements on one side and U.S. customary units on the other side (or both on the same side). The "tumstock" (literally "thumbstick", meaning "inch-stick") invented in 1883 by the Swedish engineer Karl-Hilmer Johansson Kollén was the first such hybrid stick, and was developed with the goal to help Sweden convert to the metric system. ⓘ
The word meter measure also refers to other simple measuring devices besides the meter stick, such as the tape measure (usually 1.5 meters) for textiles, also known as a rolling meter. ⓘ
Composition
The folding meter rule consists of short strips of wood, plastic or metal, connected at the ends by riveted axles, making it collapsible. When unfolded, it usually has an overall length of one or two meters, sometimes three meters. Most folding meter sticks are two meters long, consist of ten links, and fold to a length of about 23 to 25 centimeters. A folding rule of only one meter can be folded to about 10 centimeters or 20 centimeters, depending on the number of links. In the past, folding yardsticks were divided into inches, which is where the name folding rule, still common today, comes from. They were usually painted yellow. Later, meter sticks were available in inch and millimeter divisions (front and back). Nowadays, in continental Europe, they are made in the metric system and divided into millimeters and centimeters. ⓘ
Accuracy
Accuracy classes are specified for linear encoders in accordance with EC Directive 2004/22/EC. The accuracy class (also referred to as EC accuracy class) can be found together with other markings in the initial area of the dimensional scale. ⓘ
The limits of error (positive or negative in mm) are expressed by the formula a + b × L. Here L is the size of the length to be measured rounded up to the nearest full meter, a and b can be taken from the table. If the limiting division step is a surface, the error limit for any distance starting at this point is increased by the value c given in the table. ⓘ
| Accuracy class | a (mm) | b (mm/m) | c (mm) ⓘ |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | 0,1 | 0,1 | 0,1 |
| II | 0,3 | 0,2 | 0,2 |
| III | 0,6 | 0,4 | 0,3 |
Further markings according to 2004/22/EC
Folding rules marked in accordance with 2004/22/EC have a CE marking in addition to the accuracy class. The CE mark is followed by a rectangle with an M and two digits. This is the so-called metrology marking. The digits are the last two digits of the year "in which the marking was affixed". In general, this is the year of manufacture of the folding rule. ⓘ
The metrology marking is followed by the identification number of the so-called notified body. A list of notified bodies in Germany is maintained by the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt. ⓘ
Variants
Additional measuring options for inches and angles
Sectional scales can have different graduations on the front and back. For example, carpenters or joiners sometimes use one side with metric divisions and the back with inches, since wood thicknesses are often specified with inch measurements. Some folding rulers have additional divisions for simple angle measurement (see pictures), for conversion between diameter and circumference, or a tile division. ⓘ
- Folding rule with angle measurements
Protractor graduation: here 30° and maximum 150°.
Angle graduation 2nd version: preset 45°, 60°, 75°, 90° ⓘ
Special version with depth measurement (Tirette)
Very rarely there are folding rules with depth measurement. Similar to a caliper, it consists of a metal strip about 5 mm wide, 1 mm thick and slightly over 15 cm long with embossed graduations and a small toggle about 2 mm in diameter at the upper end. It is guided in a milled groove at one end of the meter stick and can be pushed out over the end, for example, to measure the depth of blind holes. However, these folding rulers have not been able to gain sufficient acceptance due to their costly production combined with relative inaccuracy compared to a "real" "caliper", since a depth gauge is required mainly in the metal sector, where conventional folding rulers are rather uncommon. ⓘ
A tirette is used in the boules sport of pétanque for measuring when the distance of at least two cue balls to the target ball cannot be determined with the tape measure. ⓘ
Left-hand folding rule
There is a special version of the folding rule for left-handers. Held in the left hand, the numbers of an ordinary folding ruler are upside down. The left-hand folding ruler compensates for this by printing the numbers upside down (see illustration). ⓘ
Word origin and history
Folding or folding yardsticks made of bronze, brass or wood were already known in Roman times. ⓘ
The name folding rule indicates that it meant a rigid rod - a stick - of the length of a foot, cubit or fathom, divided into inches. The name was later retained for today's collapsible sticks. ⓘ
Development of today's mechanics
As early as Diderot's Encyclopédie from the second half of the 18th century, there are illustrations of riveted jointed folding rules in their present form. In the late 19th century, models were made with springs in the joint that locked the scale in the stretched and folded state. The brothers Franz and Anton Ullrich, who came from Maikammer, patented such a spring joint in 1886 after more than 30 years of development. Just three years later, the folding meter attracted a great deal of attention at the World Exhibition in Paris. Gustav Ullrich, the nephew of the inventor Anton Ullrich, founded the Stabila company in Annweiler am Trifels in 1889, which still exists today. Around the same time, the Swede Karl-Hilmer Johansson Kollén developed a collapsible yardstick that had the newly introduced centimeter scale in addition to the Swedish inch scale. ⓘ
Application
The meterstick is usually employed for work on a medium scale; larger than desktop work on paper, yet smaller than large scale infrastructure work, where tape measures or longer measuring rods are used. Typical applications of metersticks are for building furniture, vehicles and houses. Modern carpenters' metersticks are usually made to be folded for ease of transport. ⓘ
Metersticks may be used as pointing devices for posters and projections. Metersticks are also used as spars to make wings for remote controlled model aircraft that are made from corrugated plastic. ⓘ
Metre sticks have also been used as a method of corporal punishment in schools in the United Kingdom used to slap the palms of students to bring them in order. ⓘ
Museums
- List of folding rule museums ⓘ
Construction
Metersticks are often thin and rectangular, and made of wood or metal. Metal ones are often backed with a 'grippy' material, such as cork, to improve friction. They are relatively cheap, with most wood models costing under US$5. ⓘ