OnLIMS is a LIMS that has captured balance readings in production mining and assay laboratories since 1989, and balance LIMS integration is the interface it performs most: analytical balances and fire assay balances with auto-tare, connected so the weight lands on the worksheet with no manual transcription between the balance and the sheet.
RS-232 is still the standard
Many older balances still communicate over RS-232, and they weigh as well as they did the day they were installed. OnLIMS captures serial output directly — RS-232 or RS-485 — or through converters and Moxa device servers where the balance sits far from the workstation. There is no reason to replace a good balance to integrate it.
- Direct serial capture The reading transfers from the balance to the active worksheet cell — no keyboard in between, no transposed digits, no wrong row.
- Auto-tare for fire assay Fire assay balances with auto-tare are supported, keeping the weighing rhythm of a high-throughput fire assay line intact.
- Worksheet position mapping Weights land on their OnWSH worksheet positions, in templates that lay out samples with standards, blanks and duplicates in sequence — the weight belongs to the sample, verifiably.
- Field-level audit trail If a weight is ever corrected, the change is recorded: old value, new value, user, timestamp. Results lock on publish.
Brands in service
Balances from Mettler Toledo, Sartorius and Ohaus are integrated in production laboratories today. New balance models are added by configuration, not by recompiling the system; where no driver exists yet, one is written as part of the project. Weights captured at the balance also feed the bidirectional instrument interfaces downstream: where an instrument such as an ICP needs sample weights, OnLIMS writes them into the sequence file it hands to the instrument software.
Frequently asked questions
Can OnLIMS read an old RS-232 balance?
Yes. Many older balances still communicate over RS-232, and OnLIMS captures serial output directly — RS-232 or RS-485 — or through converters and Moxa device servers where the balance sits far from the workstation. There is no need to replace a working balance to integrate it.
Which balance brands does OnLIMS integrate with?
Balances from Mettler Toledo, Sartorius and Ohaus are in service today, covering analytical balances and fire assay balances with auto-tare. New models are added by configuration, not by recompiling the system; where no driver exists yet, one is written as part of the project.
What does direct balance capture change in practice?
It eliminates the transcription step between the balance and the worksheet: the reading transfers into the correct OnWSH worksheet position with no keyboard in between, so transposed digits and wrong-row entries disappear, and any later correction is recorded in a field-level audit trail — old value, new value, user, timestamp.
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