Abstract :
Retiring in 1924, at the age of 74, Edward Weston could look back with satisfaction at the accumulation of over 300 patents, many honors, and a thriving company, the Weston Electric Instrument Corporation. He had reached a goal that few inventors in history have ever reached. He had become a criterion in a great new art, a standard of reference for everyone else. Although his competitors made and sold instruments for as little as one-third his own prices, he still sold more than they did. So good was his product that he scaled each instrument when it was made, guaranteeing its accuracy as long as nobody broke the seals and tampered with the mechanism. Much of his accomplishment was directly related to his personality. He was persistent, single-minded, a skillful inventor, and sometimes aloof, and he loved a good fight, especially in the courtroom when defending his patents. This article briefly outlines the life and work of Weston.
