IBM 603 on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The IBM 603 Electronic Multiplier was the first mass-produced commercial electronic calculating device; it used full-size
IBM History, accessed September 21, 2020] (The earlier IBM 600 and released in the same year
Only about 20 were built since the bulky tubes made it hard to manufacture, but the demand showed that the product was filling a need. The commercial interest in the 603 came as a surprise to IBM and Thomas Watson Sr, head of IBM, felt that the device had limitations so Ralph Palmer and Jerrier Haddad were hired to develop a more refined and versatile device, the IBM 604 Electronic Calculating Punch.
The IBM 603 was the predecessor of the
Columbia University Computing History: The IBM 603
* US patent 2641408, filed October 26, 1951, issued June 9, 1953, Russel A. Rowley and Delmar C. Newcomb 603 Programmable calculators {{computer-stub
vacuum tube
A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric potential difference has been applied.
The type known as ...
s to perform multiplication and addition.IBM 603 The First Commercial Electronic CalculatorIBM History, accessed September 21, 2020] (The earlier IBM 600 and released in the same year
IBM 602
The IBM 602 Calculating Punch, introduced in 1946, was an electromechanical calculator capable of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. The 602 was IBM's first machine that did division. (The IBM 601, introduced in 1931, only multip ...
used relay logic
Relay logic is a method of implementing combinational logic in electrical control circuits by using several electrical relays wired in a particular configuration.
Ladder logic
The schematic diagrams for relay logic circuits are often calle ...
.) The IBM 603 was adapted as the arithmetic unit in the IBM Selective Sequence Electronic Calculator. It was designed by James W. Bryce, and included circuits patented by A. Halsey Dickenson in 1937.
The IBM 603 was developed in Endicott, New York
Endicott is a village in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 13,392 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area. The village is named after Henry B. Endicott, a founding member of the End ...
, and announced on September 27, 1946.
Only about 20 were built since the bulky tubes made it hard to manufacture, but the demand showed that the product was filling a need. The commercial interest in the 603 came as a surprise to IBM and Thomas Watson Sr, head of IBM, felt that the device had limitations so Ralph Palmer and Jerrier Haddad were hired to develop a more refined and versatile device, the IBM 604 Electronic Calculating Punch.
The IBM 603 was the predecessor of the IBM 604
The IBM 604 Electronic Calculating Punch was the world's first mass-produced electronic calculator along with its predecessor the IBM 603.
, a programmable device with more complex capabilities. The 604 used miniature tubes and a patented design for pluggable modules, which made the product easier to manufacture and service. US patent 2637763, filed July 9, 1948 , issued May 5, 1953, Ralph L. Palmer Throughout the following 10 years IBM would build and lease 5600 of the IBM 604.
References
External links
Columbia University Computing History: The IBM 603
* US patent 2641408, filed October 26, 1951, issued June 9, 1953, Russel A. Rowley and Delmar C. Newcomb 603 Programmable calculators {{computer-stub