A 3D printed, electromechanical computer

If you had a machine that could print complex mechanical parts in an hour or so, what would you do? [Chris] is doing the coolest thing we can imagine and is building an electromechanical computer from 3D printed parts.

You may remember [Chris] from his efforts to getting his tiny, 1/10th scale Cray-1 supercomputer up and running. Even though he has the OS on a disk, actually booting the machine is a bit of a problem; much the same as his electromechanical computer project. Late last year we saw [Chris] building a few gears for his computer, but now he’s got a punch card reader that looks very much like a Jacquard loom.

Even though the computer doesn’t actually do anything yet, it’s amazing to think that [Chris] is building out of plastic that will run computer programs. You can check out the video of [Chris]’ video of his punch card reader after the break.

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Antique Electromechanical Calculating Machines

electromechanical calculator Hamann 505

The decision to use electronics for our calculating machines has long been decided.  However, that doesn’t mean that mechanical engineers didn’t put up a valiant, if ultimately futile, fight. [Dvice.com] has an interesting article comparing the calculating technology of the 1960s, such as the [Haman 505], to today’s iPad.

This comparison and pictures were made possible by [Mark Glusker]’s excellent collection.  These models can be divided into two categories, rotary calculators, and printing calculators. According to [Mark]‘s site, the printing calculators stayed on the market a few years after the rotary calculators, which were off the market by 1970.

Although we may never see machines like these made again, anyone even a little bit mechanically inclined would be hard pressed not to be inspired by this collection. Be sure to check out the video of a [Madas 20BTG] calculator after the break to see what one of the rotary models looks like in action! [Read more…]