This document specifies an acceptance sampling system of single, double, and multiple sampling plans for inspection by attributes. This document specifies sampling schemes indexed by acceptance quality limit (AQL) for inspection by attributes.

Its purpose is to incentivize the producer through the economic and psychological pressure of lot non-acceptance to maintain a process average at least as good as the specified acceptance quality limit, while at the same time providing an upper limit for the risk to the consumer of accepting the occasional poor lot.

Sampling schemes designated in this document are applicable, but not limited, to inspection of

• items, such as complete products, sub-assemblies or individual components,
• operations,
• materials in process,
• supplies in storage,
• maintenance operations,
• data or records, and
• administrative procedures.