Weights, Set of

weights of various masses used to determine the mass of bodies by weighing. A set of weights can determine the mass of a body whose weight does not exceed the total weight of the weights in the set.

All sets of weights produced characteristically have, with respect to each order of magnitude mass, four weights whose masses are in the ratio 1:2:2:5. Four is the minimum number of weights permitting the reproduction of any mass from one to ten within a given order of magnitude. Thus, weights whose masses are 1, 2, 2, and 5 kg are sufficient to reproduce masses from 1 to 10 kg. A set of weights usually contains weights that cover two or three orders of magnitude, for example, from 1 to 500 g.