Mechanical Computer (All Parts) - Basic Mechanisms In Fire Control Computers

A 1953 training film for a mechanical fire control computer aboard Navy Ships. Amazing how problems of mathematical computation were solved so elegantly in "permanent" mechanical form, before microprocessors became inexpensive and commonplace.

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  Education

[Jeremy Abel]

Oh man, did they make any more videos like this? I could watch this stuff all day.

[Goldman Sacks]

This video is simply great, analog precision is the only endless precision, even today

[Junaid Akbar]

didn't get to see it all working together :'(

[KingXArthur]

But can it run Crysis?

[ChronosTimeGod]

but with horrible accuracy

[swamiworldtraveler]

P.S. I run a weekly math/philosophy group called the 'Wing Circle'. The topic of our next meeting is 'mechanical calculators/computers'. Check out our web presence. Join if you are interested. Tnx for your consideration.

wwwDOTtinyurlDOTcomSLASHWingCi­rcle

[swamiworldtraveler]

AWESOME!

Interesting use of the word "computer". This device does not seem to have the basic components of a computer. Perhaps it would be better described as a "calculator". Dial in the numbers (inputs), and the mechanism calculates the predetermined equations, yielding the output(s). Pretty cool, whatever one chooses to call it!

[vincent7520]

A "computer" at that time was a huge sophisticated slide rule. Or or hundreds of slide rules working together

[vincent7520]

How clear it is… very didactic. Could still be shown to young students at school …

[shaider1982]

It's weird now to think of computers as having gears and other mechanical parts.

[iSolarSunrise]

This is the funniest and the most awesome video I've ever seen on "computers".

[shaider1982]

I bet those gears are precision ones and installed with virtually no backlash.