Scale and flexure assembly

A flexure assembly for mounting a load-receiving platform to a fixed base, said base having associated therewith a force sensing device for coupling to said platform, said assembly comprising first means for coupling said assembly to said platform;

• second means for coupling said assembly to said base, said second coupling means being positioned relatively below said first coupling means;
• at least one flexure member including a stack of at least two flexible leaves, said flexure member being positioned between said first and second coupling means for joining said first coupling means to said second coupling means, said member being rigidly connected at the lower end thereof to said first coupling means, said member being positioned relatively below said first coupling means, said member being rigidly connected at the upper end thereof to said second coupling means, said member being positioned relatively above said second coupling means, said first and second coupling means substantially facing each other with said member therebetween;
• said stack being inclined from the vertical and being sufficiently rigid to support said platform from said base, said stack further being sufficiently flexible to tend to deflect and traverse a slight arc in response to a loading force being applied to said platform by receiving a load thereon, each of said leaves having a substantially planar shape when in a non-deflected state and lying substantially parallel planes when in the nondeflected state, whereby said force sensing device can be coupled to said platform along a substantially horizontal axis to thereby render an indication of the magnitude of said load.

A scale assembly comprising:

• (a) a load-receiving platform for accepting a loading force;
• (b) a plurality of semi-rigid, laminated leaf means for mounting said platform to a relatively fixed support surface, said leaf means for coupling at one end to said support surface and at the other end to said platform, said leaf means being inclined from the vertical and being sufficiently rigid to support said platform from said surface, said leaf means further being sufficiently flexible to have a tendency to deflect in an arc having both a horizontal and vertical direction in response to a load being applied to said platform by receiving weight thereon;
• (c) at least one force sensing means centered substantially symmetrically with respect to said plurality of leaf means underneath said platform and coupled to said platform along a substantially horizontal axis, said force sensing means for receiving a force directed along said axis and in response thereto
• rendering an output signal indicative of the
• magnitude of said loading force, whereby said force sensing means can measure the loading force by responding to the tendency of the platform to deflect in a horizontal direction in response to said loading force.

A scale comprising:

• (a) a platform for accepting a downwardly directed loading force;
• (b) at least four leaf spring assemblies for suspending said platform from a relatively fixed support surface, said assemblies being space about and adjacent to the perimeter of said platform to support said platform therefrom in a substantially balanced manner, each said assembly having a stack of leaf springs separated by shims, said stack being fixedly attached along a first side thereof to a first coupling means associated with said surface and being fixedly attached along a second side thereof opposite said first side to a second coupling means associated with said platform, each said stack being inclined from the vertical at a preselected angle, first and second ones of said stacks lying in substantially a first plane and the other two said stacks lying in a second plane substantially parallel to the first, said springs being flexible and sufficiently rigid to support said platform away from said surface, while being sufficiently flexible to deflect in a direction having both a downwardly directed component and a vertically directed component in response to application of said loading force;
• and
• (c) load cell means operatively connected to said platform through a horizontal link to respond to the horizontal component of said deflection by producing a signal indicative of the magnitude of the loading force, whereby said signal varies with said magnitude in a substantially linear mathematical relationship.