overall: .4 cm x 18.7 cm x 18.7 cm; 5/32 in x 7 3/8 in x 7 3/8 in
Object Name:
analog computing component
Place made:
United States: New York, Queens, Long Island City
Date made:
ca 1940
Description:
In the analog computing devices built by Ford Instrument Company, two-dimensional cams like this one were used to generate functions of one variable. The input is represented by the angle of rotation of the cam, as controlled by the motion of the toothed edge. The output is the motion of a follower along the working surface of the cam. In this particular cam, the working surface is the groove and a pin that rides in the groove serves as the follower. The cam can be rotated through over a full circle, extending the range of the input function.
References:
On cams, see Audio Products, Inc., “<I>Basic Mechanisms in Fire Control Computers: Shafts, Gears, . . </I>., 1953. This is available online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vG0G95SpdBE.
A.B. Clymer, "The Mechanical Analog Computers of Hannibal Ford and William Newell," <I>Annals of the History of Computing</I>, 15, #2, 1993, 19-34.
