EDVAC ( E lectronic D iscrete V ariable has utomatic C omputer ) is one of the very first Ordinateur S electronic S. Contrairement to ENIAC, it operates in binary mode rather than decimal.

Origins of the project and plans

The concept of the EDVAC is developed before even as ENIAC is operational. It tries to solve the problems arising from the design of the ENIAC. Like the ENIAC, the EDVAC is built to face the needs for the Laboratory research ballistic ( Ballistics Research Laboratory ) of the US Army on Aberdeen Proving Ground, by the University off Pennsylvania. With this intention, the originators of the ENIAC, J. Presper Eckert & John William Mauchly are assisted by John von Neumann and some others and the project is based on the report submitted in 1945 by von Neumann ( First Draft off has Report one the EDVAC ).

The contract for the construction of this new computer is signed in April 1946 with a budget inital of 100.000 dollars, its final cost being nevertheless five times more raised and equivalent with the budget of the ENIAC.

Technical description

The computer is built to operate into binary with addition, subtraction and multiplication automatics and programmable division, the whole with an automated control and a capacity-memory of 1000 words of 44 Bit S. Étendue thereafter to 1024 words, its memory would have in current terms a capacity of 5,5 kilobytes.

It comprises nearly 6.000 vacuum tubes S and 12.000 Diode S, consumes 56 kw, occupies a surface of 45,5 m ² and weighs 7.850 kg. It is necessary, to make it function, three teams of thirty people who follow one another uninterrupted.

Installation and operation

The EDVAC is delivered to the Laboratory research ballistic in August 1949 after a certain number of problems were identified and solved. It is brought into service only in 1951 because of a conflict on the Brevet between University off Pennsylvania and Eckert & Mauchly (which meanwhile created their own company, Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation).

In 1960, the EDVAC turns at 8 p.m. per day with a eight hours average of error-free run time . It is in activity until 1961 when it is replaced by BRLESC.

References

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