The Pump Unit, 1967

The Pump Unit, 1967

<< >>
Usage conditions apply
Downloads
Description
The first video games were played on this machine.
With the use of changing screen color and moving dots, TV Game Unit #2 allowed two players to compete against each other in seven different games. These games included a variety of chase games, a target-shooting game, and games that required the wooden handle attached to the unit’s lower right hand corner (see photograph). The handle was moved up and down, like a pump, in the course of certain games. In honor of this unusual game play, TV Game Unit #2 was rechristened “The Pump Unit.”
Baer and his team demonstrated the "Pump Unit" to Sanders senior management on June 15, 1967. The presentation was successful and now the team had a new goal: to turn this technology into a commercially viable product. After a few years and numerous test and advancements, Baer and his team delivered the “Brown Box,”[hyperlink] a prototype for the first multiplayer, multiprogram video game system. It would be licensed to Magnavox, who released the system as the Magnavox Odyssey in 1972.
Like all the Ralph Baer prototypes, the "Pump Unit" was later used as evidence in many patent infringement cases. It still bears many of the court exhibit labels left over from these trials, as can be seen from the photograph.
Location
Currently not on view
Object Name
game chassis
Date made
1967
patent holder
Baer, Ralph H.
inventor
Baer, Ralph H.
Physical Description
aluminum (overall material)
wood (handle material)
Measurements
overall: 6 1/2 in x 19 in x 14 in; 16.51 cm x 48.26 cm x 35.56 cm
ID Number
2006.0102.03
accession number
2006.0102
catalog number
2006.0102.03
Credit Line
Ralph H. Baer
See more items in
Medicine and Science: Computers
Popular Entertainment
Baer
Family & Social Life
Computers & Business Machines
Data Source
National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.   

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.

Note: Comment submission is temporarily unavailable while we make improvements to the site. We apologize for the interruption. If you have a question relating to the museum's collections, please first check our Collections FAQ. If you require a personal response, please use our Contact page.