If you are still using them for accuracy reasons, you may be a little behind the technology times.
More than 20 years ago, the joint program by (then) Minolta Camera Company of Japan, (now Konica-Minolta) and (then) Land Pyrometers Ltd of the United Kingdom (now Land Instruments International Ltd) developed and successfully marketed extremely high quality, sensor-based short wavelength Infrared (IR) Thermometers that were the equal in performance to Optical Pyrometers in many parameters and superior in others.
They were faster, had built-in emissivity correction and were far more capable in most uses than Optical Pyrometers. Their product line today is extensive with many models for special uses. Visit our RTVendors Page for an extensive list and links to sensor-based Infrared Radiation Thermometer vendors.
Other companies like Chino Instruments of Japan, Ircon, Inc and Raytek Corporation of the USA joined the club of sensor-based devices, but as far as we know, the Minolta-Land Cyclops led the way in virtually replacing the venerable Optical Pyrometer in industry and scientific locales.
NB: These devices are not to be confused with the general purpose, low cost handheld IR Thermometers that pervade the market today, led by Raytek designs.
They are different types of instruments with very different uses. Needless to say, there are portable IR Thermometers on the market that are used at the low temperature measurement capability of low-cost, popular devices.
The Minolta-Land, Ircon-Chino, Raytek organizations offer advanced performance handheld for lower temperature uses but at significantly higher selling prices.
The one area where Optical Pyrometer has maintained an advantage over newer technologies is where one is looking at relatively hot, small incandescent objects in the field of view, such as tungsten wire during heat treating or annealing.
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