How to Integrate Your Scale with 3rd Party Tools & Platforms

Metrology equipment is vital for a diverse range of industrial and commercial operations. The good news is that there is an abundance of options available to businesses, both large and small.

However, as your operators become more familiar with your weighing systems, they’ll begin to notice inefficiencies. In these cases, it’s often sensible to turn to other scale manufacturers to find a resolution.

But, how do you integrate 3rd-party metrology solutions? Fortunately, the scale experts at Arlyn Scales have the knowledge, the experience, and the collaborative spirit to help you find the answer.

How to Integrate 3rd-Party Industrial Scale Hardware

To efficiently integrate alternative metrology hardware into your current workflow:

  1. Confirm Scale Compatibility
  2. Connect Hardware to Scale
  3. Configure the Hardware

3rd-Party Scale Integration, a Case Study: Arlyn UpScale

The weight indicator is a common target for upgrading, and digital scale displays are increasingly popular for their ease-of-use and functionality. Therefore, we’ll focus on integrating a digital indicator.

For this demonstration, we’ll look at the Arlyn UpScale Touchscreen Indicator for Industrial Scales. To integrate this digital indicator into your weighing platforms, you must:

1. Confirm Scale Compatibility

The UpScale is compatible with several industry leading brands and models. Some compatible models (and their supported functions) include:

  • All Ohaus Models (Weight Streaming)
  • A&D Model EK-600i (Weight Streaming, Remote Keys)
  • All Mettler Toledo Scales (Weight Streaming)

2. Connect Hardware to Scale

By connecting your scales to the UpScale Indicator, your operators can access exclusive features that meet the special requirements of your application.

Integration with A&D, Mettler Toledo, or Ohaus Scales

Any scale manufactured by A&D, Mettler Toledo, or Ohaus must be equipped with the RS-232 Interface Kit to be properly integrated with the Arlyn UpScale.

The RS-232 connects to the RS-232 connector of the Arlyn UpScale.

This exchange of data enables the Arlyn UpScale to process the weight data from your scale.

3. Configure the Hardware

Follow these steps to configure your new hardware for the first time.

Remember to refer to the Arlyn UpScale: 3rd-Party Scale Integration Guide often.

Screenshots are provided to clarify the steps below.

Configure the A&D Scale (for EK-600i)

Make a note of which model scale you have. Depending on the model, keys on the front panel will have different names for some functions.

The EK-600i, for example, has:

  • ENTER (instead of) PRINT
  • TARE (instead of) RE-ZERO
The A&D EK-600i

Using the button presses associated with your scale, follow these steps:

  1. Press and hold the SAMPLE key until you see the “Func” (Function) class.
  2. Press ENTER/PRINT key to enter this class.
  3. Set the Data Output Mode to Command and Stream:
    1. Toggle the SAMPLE button until you see “Prt” (Data output mode) function. Press the ENTER/PRINT button to set this to 0.
    2. Press the MODE button to back out.
  4. Set Baud Rate to 9600 bps:
    1. Toggle the SAMPLE button until you see “Bps” (Baud Rate) function. Press the ENTER/PRINT button to set this to 2 (9600 bps).
    2. Press the MODE button to back out.
  5. Set the Data Bits to 8 bit at No Parity:
    1. Toggle the SAMPLE button until you see “BtPr” (Data and Parity) function. Press the ENTER/PRINT button to set this to 2.
    2. Press the MODE button to back out.
  6. Press the MODE button to back out all the way to the main weight screen.
Configure the Arlyn UpScale for A&D Integration
  1. Third Party Model Select: AND_E600i
  2. Communication Setting:
    1. Baud Rate: 9600
    2. Data Bits: 8
    3. Stop: 1
    4. Parity: None
    5. Flow Control: None
  3. Advanced Settings:
    1. Coupler Mode: Callback
    2. Leave the rest of the settings as default.
  4. Press the APPLY button on the screen to finalize the setting.
Configure the Mettler Toledo Scale
  1. Press and hold the MENU button.
  2. Go to INT.FACE and press ENTER.
  3. Navigate to the following options and change each of them accordingly:
    1. BAUD: 9600 // Baud Rate 9600
    2. BIT.PAR.: 8/NO // Data Bits 8, No Parity
    3. STOPBIT: 1 BIT // Stop Bit 1
    4. HD.SHK: OFF // Handshaking off
    5. RS E.O.L: CR LF // End of Line – Carriage Return & Line Feed (CR LF)
    6. Press the “C” button to back out one level.
  4. Set the Print Output Frame to print out Gross Weight, Tare Weight, and Net Weight.
    1. Navigate to SINGLE and press ENTER.
    2. Set the value to “G/T/N” and press ENTER.
    3. Press the “C” button to back out one level.
  5. Set the Print Interval to print out every 1 second.
    1. Navigate to INTERVL and press ENTER.
    2. Set the value to 1 second and press ENTER.
  6. Press the “C” button to back out all the way to the main weight screen.

The Mettler Toledo scale is now set for communicating with the Arlyn UpScale.

Configure the Arlyn UpScale Indicator for Mettler Toledo Integration
  1. Third Party Model Select: Mettler Toledo
  2. Communication Setting:
    1. Baud Rate: 9600
    2. Data Bits: 8
    3. Stop: 1
    4. Parity: None
    5. Flow Control: None
  3. Advanced Settings:
    1. Coupler Mode: Callback
    2. Leave the rest of the settings as default.
  4. Press the APPLY button on the screen to finalize the setting.
Configure Ohaus Scale
  1. Press and hold the MENU-CAL button.
  2. Toggle the FUNCTION button multiple times until the RS-232 function is shown on screen.
  3. Configure the RS-232 function (default settings):
    1. Baud: 9600
    2. Data Bits: 8
    3. Stop Bits: 1
    4. Handshake: None
    5. Parity: None
    6. End: Yes
  4. Toggle the FUNCTION button multiple times until the PRINT function is shown on screen.
    1. Stable: Off
    2. A-Print: Off
    3. End: Yes
  5. Press the MENU-CAL button again to exit the menu
Configure the Arlyn UpScale Indicator for Ohaus Integration
  1. Third Party Model Select: Ohaus Navigator
  2. Communication Setting:
    1. Baud Rate: 9600
    2. Data Bits: 8
    3. Stop: 1
    4. Parity: None
    5. Flow Control: None
  3. Advanced Settings:
    1. Coupler Mode: Command Pull
    2. Leave the rest of the settings as default.
  4. Press the APPLY button on the screen to finalize the setting.

Optimize Your Scales with Superior Hardware from Arlyn Scales

When your weighing systems begin to reveal their inefficiencies, don’t hesitate: find superior alternatives that fix that gap in your workflow. At Arlyn Scales, we have decades of experience designing, producing, and improving industrial metrology solutions.

The Arlyn UpScale, for example, was born from a need for a versatile, reliable, and efficient digital indicator that could be compatible with a wide range of scales. In fact, since its introduction, we’ve discovered a number of advantages from upgrading to the UpScale.
If your operations could benefit from an upgrade, then you’re reading the right paragraph. To determine the best 3rd party tools and platforms for your scales, reach out to our team today.