Principles and practice of flow meter engineering,

The orifice is one of the oldest known devices used for the measurement of flow of fluids from vessels into the open air, its use in the case of closed-pipe flows does not appear to have been developed until comparatively recent years. The development of the Foxboro Meter occurred in 1904 when Thos. R. Weymouth, of Oil City, Pa., installed a flange union with thin orifice plates in a line in series with a standard Pitot Tube of the Towl type, with intention of studying its behavior and developing a simple rate-reading device to be used in measuring boiler fuel. This work later resulted in the development of the Foxboro Orifice Meter.