This paper was presented at the Twenty-first Annual National Conference of the Society of Aeronautical Weight Engineers at Seattle, Washington, May 14-17, 1962. This paper is not Numeric but Philosophic. It deals with Idea, Perception, and Understanding.
Also it is directed toward the design groups who supply the various items (lines, pipes, etc.) that bridge the “Weight Transducer Interface”.
The Weight Engineer can find herein answers and questions. Answers to the problems of obtaining Valid Launch Weight Data. Questions to pose to the Design Engineer on the design and routing of the bridging items.
The primary requirement for accurate weight data is a quality weighing device, correctly installed, and in such condition that no extraneous forces act on the weighbridge.
In complex installations, such as required for liquid propellant rocket vehicle, the problem of “restraints” (physical shunts acting in parallel with the weight measuring device) becomes the Weight Engineer’s major concern.
Some “restraints” are obvious, others are more subtle. The following document discussed, with the assistance of photographs, the various types and conditions of restraints encountered in the Atlas program, together with the “fixes”. In the error analysis portion, various other sources of weight data errors are explored.