Reminds me of this gal I knew who used to have contests w/ her brother over who could lose the most weight by taking a dump...

Is it wrong I have weighted myself before using the bathroom, and then right after? I always wonder if those futuristic Japan Toilets do that. I know I read that some of them sample your fluids for analysis. I can see problems with this scale in the fact that bathroom floors aren't always clean, and could lead to rippage.

It can't be practical because it would have to rely on strain gauges to measure weight.
You would need a minimum of 3 SG's, possibly more or a cantilever mechanical design to balance the load to measure. (Think of the glass scales)

On an even thinner design, the floor would play a crucial role in getting the right measurement....

@aec007: Exactly.

I remember being surprised at the reading when I once accidentally weighed myself on a carpeted floor [using a regular electronic scale]...

Would be nice if practical.
I mean, the typical winter scene is you going half-asleep in the morning to your bathroom, kicking that freaking heavy cold metal scale with your little toe.

Yup, I weighed myself with the scale on carpet, and it was *weigh* off. (har har) Seriously, though, it read less than half my actual weight. In our (carpeted) bathroom, I have a piece of wood under the scale. That reduces the error to a couple of pounds.

Hmm, maybe using an array of piezoelectric sensors? Not sure how effective it would be, but it does sound like its complicating the whole solution.

When it comes to scales....the bigger....the better.

yeah I can't imagine being able to build the measuring part thin while keeping accuracy and cost down. Neat idea, but probably too advanced for current technology.