AUTOCALIBRATING DUAL SENSOR NON-CONTACT TEMPERATURE MEASURING DEVICE

A method and apparatus for measuring the temperature of an external body is disclosed. The apparatus comprises dual thermal sinks or reference bodies wherein heat flow sensors are mounted. By utilizing dual thermal reference bodies, which are at different temperatures, the method of the invention yields the absolute temperature of the external body by measuring the temperatures of the referenced bodies and the heat flow rates between each of the reference bodies and the external body. The apparatus automatically calculates the proportionality constant between the heat flow rates and the temperature differences between the external body and the reference bodies and thus calculates the external body temperature.