Convention of the Meter

The Convention of the Meter is the international treaty signed on May 20th 1875 with Paris (France) by seventeen States with an aim of establishing a world authority in the field of the Métrologie. It thus succeeds the International commission of the meter installation in 1870.

With this intention, three structures were created. Convention delegates thus to the General conference of the weights and measures, the International committee of the weights and measures and the International office of the weights and measures the authority to act in the field of the Métrologie, by ensuring a harmonization of the definitions of different the units from the physical sizes. This work finally led to the creation of the international Système of units (IF).

  • the general conference of the weights and measures (CGPM) is made of delegated Member States of convention (see below). It meets every four years on average. 22e CGPM took place in 2003, the following one is planned for 2007.

  • the international committee of the weights and measures (CIPM) is composed of eighteen people, each one resulting from a Member State different from Convention. Its function is to promote the use of uniform measuring units and to submit draft Resolutions going in this direction to the CGPM. With this intention, it is based on work of advisory committees.
  • the International office of the weights and measures (BIPM), based with Sevres not far from Paris, is under the monitoring of the CIPM and has as a load the conservation of the international prototypes of the measuring rods, as well as the comparison and the calibration between those and the national prototypes.

Convention was modified in 1921. It gathers today 51 Member States and 20 States associated with the general conference, including/understanding the majority of the industrialized countries.

States signatories (by date of adhesion)

1875 (States founders of Convention)

1876 to 1900

1901 to 1925

1926 to 1950

1951 to 1975

1976 to 2000

21e century

Associated states (by date of association)

External bond

  • Convention of the Meter on the site of the BIPM

  • Text of convention
  • Flow chart of the chain of responsibility under the aegis of Convention of the Meter

Random links:Microsoft Windows Server 2003 | University Aix-Marseilles III | Peter Blake | Sea of Ross | Várzea (Felgueiras) | Manyara (area) | Hautes-Pyrénées