As inventors refined telephone equipment during the late 19th and through the 20th centuries, they introduced automatic switches that worked faster and could handle more calls than human operators. As they began introducing computerized switching equipment new advances in software proved necessary to make best use of the more capable technology. In 1971, Erma Hoover and Barry Eckhart received U.S. Patent 3,623,007 for a method of processing tasks in an electronic switching system. Their invention served to flexibly prioritize operations in the computer so that surges in the number of calls would not slow the telephone system. Hoover received her Ph.D. from Yale and ultimately became supervisor in the systems engineering department of Bell Labs. This three-part circuit board performed a “low-level logic” function in Western Electric’s model no. 1 Electronic Switching System.
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.