an apparatus or method for weighing and / or measuring the flow rate of quantity of a particulate flowing out of a hopper wherein the hopper is isolated from the other components of the apparatus . the apparatus and method are adapted to generate a decoupling point boundary that demarcates the total amount of particulate in the hopper into portions that are not fully supported and portions that are fully supported by the hopper . the particulate is in continuous contact with itself from the inlet to the outlet , with the particulate contained between the isolated hopper and the rest of the components of the system by a flexible coupling or some other method of containment . the invention has the advantages of higher accuracy , decreased cost and complexity , and greater reliability than other solid particulate weighing systems of the prior art , particularly when dealing with low density particulates .