The Water Integrator (russian: Гидравлический интегратор ''Gidravlicheskiy integrator'') was an early
analog computer
An analog computer or analogue computer is a type of computer that uses the continuous variation aspect of physical phenomena such as electrical, mechanical, or hydraulic quantities (''analog signals'') to model the problem being solved. In c ...
built in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
in 1936 by Vladimir Sergeevich Lukyanov. It functioned by careful manipulation of water through a room full of interconnected pipes and pumps. The water level in various chambers (with precision to fractions of a millimeter) represented stored numbers, and the rate of flow between them represented mathematical operations. This machine was capable of solving inhomogeneous
differential equation
In mathematics, a differential equation is an equation that relates one or more unknown functions and their derivatives. In applications, the functions generally represent physical quantities, the derivatives represent their rates of change, an ...
s.
[''Genesis Machines. The new science of biocomputing'', , from Martyn Amos, Atlantic Books, 2006, Ch. 2., Birth of the Machines, ff.]
The first versions of Lukyanov's integrators were rather experimental, made of tin and glass tubes, and each integrator could be used to solve only one problem. In the 1930s it was the only computer in the Soviet Union for solving partial differential equations.
In 1941, Lukyanov created a hydraulic integrator of modular design, which made it possible to assemble a machine for solving various problems. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional hydraulic integrators were designed.
In 1949–1955, an integrator in the form of standard unified units was developed at the NIISCHETMASH Institute. In 1955, the Ryazan plant of calculating and analytical machines began the serial production of integrators with the factory brand name “IGL” (russian: Интегратор Гидравлический Лукьянова - integrator of the Lukyanov hydraulic system). Integrators were widely distributed, delivered to Czechoslovakia, Poland, Bulgaria and China.
A water integrator was used in the design of the
Karakum Canal
The Karakum Canal (Qaraqum Canal, Kara Kum Canal, Garagum Canal; russian: Каракумский канал, ''Karakumskiy Kanal'', tk, Garagum kanaly, , ) in Turkmenistan is one of the largest irrigation and water supply canals in the world. St ...
in the 1940s, and the construction of the
Baikal–Amur Mainline
The Baikal–Amur Mainline (russian: Байкало-Амурская магистраль, , , ) is a broad-gauge railway line in Russia. Traversing Eastern Siberia and the Russian Far East, the -long BAM runs about 610 to 770 km (380 to 4 ...
in the 1970s. Water analog computers were used in the Soviet Union until the 1980s for large-scale modelling. They were used in geology, mine construction, metallurgy, rocket production and other fields.
Currently, two hydraulic integrators are kept in the
Polytechnic Museum
The Polytechnic Museum (russian: Политехнический музей) is one of the oldest science museums in the world and is located in Moscow. It showcases Russian and Soviet technology and science, as well as modern inventions. It was fo ...
in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
.
See also
*
History of computing hardware
The history of computing hardware covers the developments from early simple devices to aid calculation to modern day computers. Before the 20th century, most calculations were done by humans.
The first aids to computation were purely mechan ...
*
MONIAC Computer
*
Fluidics
Fluidics, or fluidic logic, is the use of a fluid to perform analog signal, analog or Digital data, digital operations similar to those performed with electronics.
The physical basis of fluidics is pneumatics and hydraulics, based on the theoret ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
MIT water computerTranslated article from Russian Magazin "''Science and Life''"about water integrators in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
Translation of an archived articlefrom O. V. Solovyov on the former webpage of the
Polytechnic Museum
The Polytechnic Museum (russian: Политехнический музей) is one of the oldest science museums in the world and is located in Moscow. It showcases Russian and Soviet technology and science, as well as modern inventions. It was fo ...
in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
Hydraulic Analog Computer Technical Reports A "''collection of technical reports from the USACE (US Army Corps of Engineers) that was written by the Civil and Sanitary Engineering Department at MIT as part of a contract to create a Hydraulic Computer for solving diffusion-type Partial Differential Equations''" from 1953
One-of-a-kind computers
Early computers
Analog computers
Soviet inventions