# Ethernet enabled Weight Scale Recomendations **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Tags:** ignition79\ **Created:** [January 15, 2020, 1:59pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294 "2020-01-15T13:59:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![drewdin](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/drewdin/32/3363_2.png) [@drewdin](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/drewdin)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2020, 1:59pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/1 "2020-01-15T13:59:07Z")
I’m looking for a weight scale that is easily connected to ignition, does anyone have any recommendations of Ethernet scales that you have used or tried. I’m just starting my search and figured I would check here first. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![drewdin](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/drewdin/32/3363_2.png) [@drewdin](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/drewdin)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/2 "2020-03-17T15:38:11Z")
anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Sanderd17](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/sanderd17/32/8735_2.png) [@Sanderd17](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Sanderd17)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 4:07pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/3 "2020-03-17T16:07:19Z")
I think it’s more important to get the scale that fits your needs (sturdiness, size of the plate, precision, …). Ignition is generally not the problem when it comes to communication. We usually don’t connect to stand-alone scales, but rather to already automated check weighers and the like. For those, the supplier usually uses a regular PLC (to read the load cells but also run the belts), and Ignition is able to communicate with it. ---
**Author:** ![SBL\_MC](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/sbl_mc/32/56813_2.png) [@SBL\_MC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/SBL_MC)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 4:18pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/4 "2020-03-17T16:18:29Z")
If you find a scale that allows Modbus TCP connections you are set for plug and play. The scales that we have seen sends a telegram that you can use TCP drivers to receive. You will need to do some scripting to decipher the string, but its doable. ---
**Author:** ![pturmel](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/pturmel/32/3295_2.png) [@pturmel](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/pturmel)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 4:33pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/5 "2020-03-17T16:33:47Z")
I like the Mettler-Toledo scales and knock-offs that can be set to continuous transmit over (nearly) raw TCP. I script a listener thread and write to memory tags as data arrives. Such packets include useful information like motion/stable and tare data. ---
**Author:** ![drewdin](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/drewdin/32/3363_2.png) [@drewdin](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/drewdin)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 5:08pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/6 "2020-03-17T17:08:40Z")
Thanks for the suggestions, I have a few scales I want to use. Output options being USB, Ethernet and serial. I was just curious to see what other people used, I don’t want to spend a lot of development time incorporating it and wanted to see what other people used. Thanks Again ---
**Author:** ![Bart\_AT-Automation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@Bart\_AT-Automation](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Bart_AT-Automation)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2020, 2:12pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/7 "2020-08-24T14:12:53Z")
Hi Phil, Saw you have been connecting to Mettler-Toledo over raw TCP. Are you able to help me walk through the script listener thread that you created? ---
**Author:** ![pturmel](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/pturmel/32/3295_2.png) [@pturmel](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/pturmel)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2020, 2:50pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/8 "2020-08-24T14:50:35Z")
I don’t have that project in a VM at the moment, and am away from my office today. Maybe later this week. ---
**Author:** ![pturmel](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/pturmel/32/3295_2.png) [@pturmel](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/pturmel)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 3:26pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/ethernet-enabled-weight-scale-recomendations/31294/9 "2020-09-08T15:26:11Z")
Dug this out. It depends on the background thread management (clientserial.py) described in this post: > [@How to listen serial data without interruption](http://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/how-to-listen-serial-data-without-interruption/15709): > > I am using serial module to get data from a rs232 device, and the device is could only send its data to serial port ,but could not accept any request. the problem is I don’t know when the data will be send,so I need to listen the serial constantly to avoid lose any data. but unfortunately, there are no any event trigger on serial component in ignition . dose anyone meet the same problem and could give some help? (I’m using ignition 7.7.5) I put scripts on a timer , but datas always los… The above can be modified to run in the gateway with regular tags instead of client tags... I recommend that for most processes. It also needs an update to use the LifeCycle module instead of `system.util.getGlobals()`. See this topic for details: > [@system.util.getGlobals() not persisted across Designer Save](http://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/system-util-getglobals-not-persisted-across-designer-save/33869/14): > > Ok. New module “Life Cycle” w/ system.util.persistent(name) utility function. For v7.9: [https://www.automation-pros.com/ignition/Life%20Cycle-0.9.0.2004121825.modl](https://www.automation-pros.com/ignition/Life%20Cycle-0.9.0.2004121825.modl) For v8.0: [https://www.automation-pros.com/ignition/Life%20Cycle-0.9.0.2004121920-v8.modl](https://www.automation-pros.com/ignition/Life%20Cycle-0.9.0.2004121920-v8.modl) Test with a project script like this: # project script "Life" g = system.util.persistent('LifeTest') count = g.setdefault('editCount', -1) count += 1 g['editCount'] = count def editCount(): return count Print the return from Life.editCou… So, prereqs satisfied, this is the script, lightly edited for NDA compliance and copyright statement: [https://www.automation-pros.com/ignition/ethernetMettlerToledo.py](https://www.automation-pros.com/ignition/ethernetMettlerToledo.py) Have fun!