The article describes what scales are, a brief history of their creation is given, and two of their varieties are considered - floor and kitchen.
Ancient times
Since time immemorial, at the dawn of the emergence of broad trade relations, people have a need to accurately determine the weight and quantity of a product. And if, for example, with the same grain it is easier (you can measure it with buckets and other vessels), then what about something more overall and different in mass, for example, with poultry, meat and other non-bulk products? The first scales that were found by archaeologists date back to the 5th millennium BC and are made in Mesopotamia. Also, this device is clearly distinguishable on papyrus from Ancient Egypt, which dates from 1250 BC. e. But what are scales and what are they?
Definition
According to official terminology, a scale is an apparatus for determining the exact mass of an object through the influence of an internal mechanism or comparison with a reference value. The very first scales, which were used around the world for quite some time, were lever ones. In appearance and method of weighing, they could differ, but the principle was always the same. The most famous are cup. The goods were placed on one bowl, and the reference load (one or several) on the other. By balancing both sides, the mass was precisely determined.
We figured out what scales are, but by what principle do modern and same floorboards work?
Principle of operation
There are five of them. These are lever, spring (in which the weight is determined by the degree of compression or tension of the spirally twisted metal segment), tensometric (in which the corresponding sensor is deformed), hydrostatic (where the principle is based on the Archimedes law) and hydraulic.
In everyday life, spring and strain gauge are most common, since they are small in size, and the latter are highly accurate to a fraction of a gram. Now we know what scales are and what is the principle of their action. Let's talk about the most common in everyday life or production - floor and kitchen.
Floor
Such devices for determining the weight are used in enterprises working with bulky and massive loads, which are convenient to put and weigh on the floor, for example, by mail. In the latter case, they must be stable, accurate and durable.
The second area of their application is purely domestic. Here, floor scales are needed to determine the mass of people who monitor their weight. For example, athletes or just wanting to lose weight. They differ in small size and thickness, act on a spring or tensometric basis. In the first case, they work without any power sources, and for the second, batteries are needed. Although some models have small solar panels that charge a short-term energy storage in ten seconds .
Kitchen scale
Such scales are mainly used by restaurants and other institutions that produce food. They are characterized by high accuracy, to a fraction of a gram, small size, protected from moisture, dirt and high temperatures.
Also, kitchen scales are also used in household appliances, in cooking, where the exact mass of ingredients is especially important.
Other applications
A number of other organizations and fields cannot do without weights. They determine the weight of luggage of passengers at the airport, the mass of trucks at customs and elevators, containers in ports and railway terminals. Outlets - the place where we see the scales of various modifications most often.
This is an indispensable part of the equipment in chemical, physical and pharmaceutical laboratories and enterprises in the relevant areas where the accuracy of the mass of the components is extremely important.
Now we know what scales are, why they are needed, and what basic types of these devices exist today.