Nova Scotia’s TruckWeight Inc. has applied its Smart Scale wireless onboard scale technology to trucks, tractors, and trailers with mechanical spring suspensions. The scale is aimed at vehicles used in bulk distribution, agriculture, construction, forestry, containerized loads, heavy hauling, and other applications that use equipment with mechanical suspensions.

The new Smart Scale, first introduced for air suspensions in 2005, includes three components: an axle-mounted load sensor, a low-powered radio transmitter, and a small handheld wireless receiver. The load sensor measures subtle changes in the deflection of the axle, then feeds this data to the transmitter which relays it to the handheld receiver up to 500 ft  away. The result is a weight calculation that’s said to be accurate to within 1% compared to a certified scale.

The Smart Scale uses AA batteries for power and doesn’t need electricity from the truck or tractor. So users can actively manage the weight of an untethered trailer as it’s being loaded, with power units deployed elsewhere. That eliminates the time and inconvenience of hooking up a tractor in order to use a scale.

One handheld receiver can monitor both mechanical spring and air-ride sensors on the same vehicle or combination.