Mechanical Integrators and Differential Analyzers -- Integrators as Parts
Integrators as Parts
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Sometimes – as when aiming a gun from the deck of a ship – integration was only a small part of what a computing system did.In 1912, as a graduate student at Tufts University, Vannevar Bush designed a surveying instrument called a profile tracer that included an integrator. Later the Ford Instrument Company used a range of integrators in devices it built for the U.S. Navy from the time of World War I into the 1960s. A few of these are shown in this section. Another integrator was designed by Foxboro Company, of Foxboro, Massachusetts for use with its instruments for tracking fluid flow.
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Vannevar Bush's Profile Tracer
- Description
- This experimental instrument for land surveying consists of a mechanism in a wooden box that is suspended between two wooden wheels with rubber tires. The wheels are aligned as in a bicycle, with the box in between. There is a roll of paper mounted on top of the box. If one runs the wheels over a surface, the combined action of a servo-mechanism and an integrator produce a profile of the land traversed which is plotted on the paper. The engineer Vannevar Bush received a patent for this instrument in 1912, and it was the subject of the master's degree dissertation he wrote at Tufts University the next year. Servo-mechanisms, integrators, and the graphical display of results played a major role in several computing instruments Bush later designed. He also is remembered for ideas about information retrieval that inspired later thinkers to develop what is now called hypertext.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1912
- maker
- Bush, Vannevar
- ID Number
- MA.317853.01
- accession number
- 317853
- catalog number
- 317853.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Analog Computing Component - Integrator (Five-Inch Disc)
- Description
- Instruments for finding the area bounded by curved lines (integrators) date from the nineteenth century. This twentieth century example is based on a mechanism invented by British engineer James Thomson and used by his brother William (later Lord Kelvin) in constructing the first harmonic analyzer in 1876. The object shows modifications and refinements made by the American inventor Hannibal Ford to assure high accuracy and durability. It has two stacked balls, held by stiff springs, between a disk and cylinder, each made of hard steel. The balls are held in place by pairs of small rollers in a carriage. This design permitted the carriage to move even when the disk was not moving, a feature that is necessary when integrating with respect to a variable other than time. From about 1915 into the 1940s, Ford's integrators were used by the U. S. Navy in devices for aiming guns on ships.
- Reference:
- A. Ben Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1918-1955
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.06
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.06
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Analog Computing Component - Integrator (Four-Inch Disc)
- Description
- Instruments for finding the area bounded by curved lines (integrators) date from the nineteenth century. This twentieth century example is based on a mechanism invented by British engineer James Thomson and used by his brother William (later Lord Kelvin) in constructing the first harmonic analyzer in 1876. The object shows modifications and refinements made by the American inventor Hannibal Ford. It consists of a mechanism of hardened steel held in a metal frame. A disc at the bottom is linked by two adjacent balls to a rotating shaft at the top – there is a gear at the end of the shaft. Each of the balls has four vertical rollers on it. Rotating a horizontal gear at the front rolls the carriage for the balls crosswise.
- A mark etched into the front edge of the base of the frame reads: U.S. NO. 772.
- Ford's integrators were used by the U. S. Navy in devices for aiming guns on ships. They continued in use after Ford Instrument was acquired by Sperry in 1955. The precise date of this integrator is not known, although it most probably is from after 1930.
- Reference:
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1918-1955
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.07
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.07
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Analog Computing Component - Integrator
- Description
- Instruments for finding the area under curved lines date from the nineteenth century. This twentieth century example is based on a mechanism invented by British engineer James Thomson and used by his bother William (later Lord Kelvin) in constructing the first harmonic analyzer in 1876. The object shows modifications and refinements made by the American inventor Hannibal Ford. It has two stacked balls, held between a steel disk and relatively long aluminum cylinder. The carrier for the cylinder is linked to two metal springs.
- From about 1915 into the 1940s, Ford's integrators were used by the U. S. Navy in devices for aiming guns on ships. This Ford integrator is a relatively early one, for use in range keepers and computers.
- Objects 1982.0751.35, 1982.0751.36, and 1982.0751.37 are stored together in a wooden box lined with fabric that has a black handle. A tag on it reads: #78 Integrators 78a, 78b, 78c. The handle has two paper labels attached to it with string. One reads: Grand Central Terminal (/) Red Cap Service (/) Serial Number 35773 Red Cap Number 137. The other reads: No. 83583 Q.
- The accession file indicates that this integrator is earlier than object 1982.0751.06
- References:
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Accession file.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1920-1940
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.37
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.37
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Analog Computing Component - Integrator
- Description
- Instruments for finding the area bounded by curved lines (integrators) date from the nineteenth century. This twentieth century example is based on a mechanism invented by British engineer James Thomson and used by his brother William (later Lord Kelvin) in constructing the first harmonic analyzer in 1876. The object shows modifications and refinements made by the American inventor Hannibal Ford to assure high accuracy and durability. It has two stacked balls, held by stiff springs, between a disk and cylinder, each made of hard steel. The balls are held in place by pairs of small rollers in a carriage. This design permitted the carriage to move even when the disk was not moving, a feature that is necessary when integrating with respect to a variable other than time. From about 1915 into the 1940s, Ford's integrators were used by the U. S. Navy in devices for aiming guns on ships.
- The frame is painted white.
- A mark on the side of the frame, facing up, reads: 629823. A plasticized tag reads: #78b. The object is described in the accession file as a “4” Integrator cast frame construction of a design later than Item No. 7 used on Range Keepers and Computers.” Item No. 7 is 1982.0751.07.
- Objects 1982.0751.35, 1982.0751.36, and 1982.0751.37 are stored together in a wooden box lined with fabric that has a black handle. A tag on it reads: #78 Integrators 78a, 78b, 78c. The handle has two paper labels attached to it with string. One reads: Grand Central Terminal (/) Red Cap Service (/) Serial Number 35773 Red Cap Number 137. The other reads: No. 83583 Q.
- Compare 1982.0751.06 and MA.319517.
- References:
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Accession file.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1920-1955
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.36
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.36
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Analog Computing Component - Integrator Component
- Description
- This component has an aluminum frame with parts of other metals such as steel and brass. It includes shafts, gears, springs, and ball bearings. A metal label on one side reads: BUR. ORD. ASSEMBLY DRG. NO. (/) 186040 U.S. No. 75. Numerous parts have separate numbers
- A prior cataloging sheet indicates that this part had number 36 in the Ford Instrument Company collection. However, a tag with this number is on object 1982.0751.17. According to the donor’s list, number 36 was a component integrator used on dummy director Mark I which was built for testing purposes.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1939
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.20
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.20
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Analog Computing Component -Two Unit Component Integrator for the Computer Mark I.
- Description
- This object has a metal plate box construction, allen cap screws, and metal gears and ball bearings. It appears to be a two unit component integrator . A tag on the bottom reads: BUR. ORD. ASSEMBLY ORG. NO. (/) 210291 SER. NO. 1475 . Two other tags read: 166375 174. Two marks in ink read: 209428-5. According to the accession file, the two unit component integrator was developed by Hannibal Ford for the computer Mark I.
- References:
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Accession file.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1940
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.05
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.05
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Analog Computing Component - Integrator
- Description
- This iron and aluminum mechanism was built by Ford Instrument Company for use on Dummy Director Mark I, an instrument built for testing purposes. It has an iron box with a shaft carrying a gear and three metal rings that emerge from one side. And a shaft with two rings emerges from another side. A mark on one of the rings under the gear reads: 112-099. A piece of decaying tape on another side reads: #36 1/2” (/) INTEGRATOR.
- References:
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Accession file.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1956
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.17
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.17
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Analog Computing Component - Integrator from the ASN-7 Aircraft Navigation Computer
- Description
- This component has an aluminum frame and three gears on top. It appears to have two similar mechanisms on the inside – each includes a shaft, a screw with linkages, and a cylinder turned by rotating a gear on the outside. These gears are unequal but are linked by a third, double gear on the outside. A number on the side of the frame with gears reads: 70-577. A mark on both of the mechanisms that move along screws on the inside reads: 51-520. A plasticized tag on the side of the frame reads: #78a.
- Objects 1982.0751.35, 1982.0751.36, and 1982.0751.37 are stored together in a wooden box lined with fabric that has a black handle. A tag on it reads: #78 Integrators 78a, 78b, 78c. The handle has two paper labels attached to it with string. One reads: Grand Central Terminal (/) Red Cap Service (/) Serial Number 35773 Red Cap Number 137. The other reads: No. 83583 Q.
- According to the accession file, this is an integrator described as: Two unit used on ASN-7 Aircraft Navigation System.
- References:
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Accession file.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1956
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- 1982.0751.35
- accession number
- 1982.0751
- catalog number
- 1982.0751.35
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Ford Instrument Company Ball & Disc Integrator
- Description
- Instruments for finding the area bounded by curved lines (integrators) date from the nineteenth century. This twentieth century example is based on a mechanism invented by British engineer James Thomson and used by his brother William (later Lord Kelvin) in constructing the first harmonic analyzer in 1876. The object shows modifications and refinements made by the American inventor Hannibal Ford. It consists of a metal mechanism held in an aluminum frame painted white that is attached to a black bakelite base. The mechanism includes two (rather than just one) hardened steel balls that roll against one another. The bottom ball is turned by a disc on the bottom driven by an input gear. The top ball drives a roller.
- A metal tag on the front of the base reads: 2 ½ Inch (/) BALL AND DISK (/) INTEGRATOR (/) Presented by (/) FORD INSTRUMENT COMPANY (/) DIVISION OF SPERRY RAND CORPORATION.
- Ford's integrators were used in devices for aiming guns on ships of the U.S. Navy from about 1915 into the 1940s. The company merged with Sperry Corporation and, in 1955, became a subdivision of the newly established Sperry Rand Corporation. This object dates from after the establishment of Sperry Rand and before the donation of the object to the Smithsonian in 1961. A leaflet describes “Ford Precision DBR Integrators.” Here the acronym DBR is defined to mean “DIsk-Balls and Roller Integrator.”
- Compare 1982.0751.06 and 1979.0751.36.
- References:
- “Ford Precision DBR Integrators,” no date.
- Accession file.
- A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," Annals of the History of Computing, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1960
- maker
- Ford Instrument Company
- ID Number
- MA.319517
- catalog number
- 319517
- accession number
- 239018
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
