Datasheet

Chapter 1: Mechanical Adjustments · Page 25
If you measure an object's mass to be a certain number of grams, converting to kilograms
is a matter of using the conversion factor that will make the units you don't want cancel
out.
Problem: You measured your mass to be 280 g, and you want kg.
Solution: Multiply by the conversion factor with the g in the denominator.
g1000
kg1
1 =
It will cancel out the g in the numerator of the term you are starting with (280 g), and the
result will have units of kg.
1 ft = 0.3048 m 1 lb = 16 oz 1 lb = 453.592 g
Problem: Your scale gives you a measurement of 8 oz, but you need kilograms for your
SI force calculations.
Solution: There isn't a single term in information box to get you from ounces to
kilograms, but we do know how many ounces are in a pound, how many grams are in a
pound, and how many grams are in a kilogram. Knowing this, you can make three
fractions, all equal to 1, for conversion.
g1000
kg1
1kg1g1000
lb1
g6.453
1g6.453lb1
oz16
lb1
1oz16lb1
=→=
=→=
=→=
Next, all you have to do is multiply 8 oz by 1 three times. Look closely at the second line
of the calculation below. In this cascade of conversion factors, the oz measurements
cancel, then the lb measurements cancel, then the g measurements cancel, and you are
left with just kg units.