The IBM Type 602 Calculating Punch, 1946. This electromechanical device performed addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division on data read from its built-in card reader, punching the results on the input cards themselves, or on subsequent cards, according to instructions from its plugboard program. Speed: 100 cards per minute. This was the first IBM machine to perform division.
The IBM Calculating Punch Type 602-A
Photo: IBM 602-A Manual; CLICK to magnify
|The 602 did not perform reliably in the field, and by 1948 was upgraded to the 602-A (a "602 that worked", designed by George Daly). This was the last of IBM's electromechanical calculators. The -A model is distinguishable from the original 602 by its V-necked input-card hopper, the little viewport above the output hopper, centered nameplate, and lower-slung racing stripe. It also had an entirely different control panel. For another photo of the 602-A and a bit more description, see the Ellie Krawitz paper . To see a typical 602-A control panel wiring diagram (in this case for crossfooting), CLICK HERE.|
Technical papers and manuals of the 1940s and 50s were full of plugboard wiring diagrams such THIS ONE, from "Mass Spectrometer Calculations on the IBM 602-A Calculating Punch" by W.H King Jr. and William Priestley Jr., in .
Most recent update: Wed Jun 9 15:48:39 2004