info on old vacuum tube computer circuits?

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PRR

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 30, 2010
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11,143
Location
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> does anyone have links to books or info on old vacuum tube computer circuits?

Be aware of the big division in "computers".

We all know what digital computers are: they can count to 1 and build from there to larger numbers with "perfect precision".

But there were also analog computers. What is the path of a bullet of X weight with Y grains of powder fired at Z angle? Set up some capacitors and stuff, apply voltages proportional to the input data, and it will output a voltage proportional to height over time.

Or for a save-your-butt application: how far ahead of a moving bomber do you have to fire so it will fly into your bullets?

Bob Pease is actually kinda young to remember the early days, but worked in the field, and he has a good starter list at http://www.national.com/rap/vacuumtubes.html

Also see

http://dcoward.best.vwh.net/analog/index.html Analog Computer Museum and History Center
http://www.tpub.com/neets/book22/91a.htm
http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=28286
http://www.heathkit-museum.com/computers/ec-1.shtml Heathkit analog
http://www.elecdesign.com/Articles/ArticleID/2829/2829.html history of computers
http://ed-thelen.org/computer.html Nike analog computer missile control

Note that much analog computer work revolves around the concept of an ideal "operational amplifier", which has gain so high that its actual gain is set by passive feedback components which can model various math functions. We know the op-amp mostly as a "multiply by X" tool: a straight amplifier.

Note also that analog computer accuracy is limited by practical and physical factors. But in many practical problems, a close answer is good enough.

There were also tube digital computers, some working very much like a Pentium except with 0.1% of the devices which filled a room. Digital computer design and layout is very different from analog computers.
 
I was lucky enough to work on the Nike HPAR system in the Army.
I attended a 56 week school at Ft Bliss Texas and the went to Korea
to the site. Really interesting stuff there. I also saw these on EvilBay
the other day. The seller called them "socket adapters" See if you
reconize them:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5715680851

I had to buy them for my collection.
They are the Philbrick K2-W OpAmps!
 
Thanks PRR going through now. Just wondered for curiosities' sake (I'm quite happy with my Pentium :wink: )
 
During the day I manage a fly-by-wire experimental helicopter that still has some remnants of an analog computing system in it (actually it's just being used as individual op-amps, buffers and summers).

In the not too distant past, analog computers were the only way you could get reasonable 'real-time' performance from a computer, hence they saw lots of applications in advanced controllers and flight controls. Also, they tended to be good at non-linear differential equation solving...very fast, they could draw great Lornz attractors and other 'chaos' phenomena.

Cheers,

Kris
 
I have a Wayne Kerr Transfer Function Synthesiser here.....
Suggestions were,it was used to perfect the revolving gun turret swing,so that the gunner didn't grind slowly into the target nor swing so fast he peppered the bridge..... :shock:

It's hybrid,part germanium part E88CC.Came as a structure with 19U front plate with 8 10k pots,some timing switches connected to a bank of paper in oil timing caps.Each amplifier is a plugin,there's 5,on a frame with a handdrawn pcbs and some interesting side address tube sockets(made by painton,england which i've not seen elsewhere).9 connections to each card...5 for power i guess and 4 for signal?

It was incomplete and wasn't working so I've err..cannibalized the Brimar gold pins!(as you would expect :wink:)
And reused the power tranny(which was 10V @2A and +/-28.5V @150mA:unsure whether there was a voltage multipler somewhere for the HT) on my new mic preamp(which i'll premiere soon.)

I'm contemplating the reuse value of the side address tube sockets for size sensitive projects so i'd probably remove some,but otherwise if you want a loaded plugin pcbs to study or revive it will postage price.

Can provide photos if yer innarested....

Robert
 
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