Use Of Digital Computer Research Articles

A Digital Computer for Use in an Operational Flight Trainer

The requirements for a digital computer for use in an operational flight trainer are presented with emphasis being placed on the real-time aspects of the problem. The general purpose digital computer is shown to be inadequate for this purpose and a special purpose digital computer is described which meets the requirements.

Sampled-data processing techniques for feedback control systems

IN THE past few years there has been considerable interest in sampled-data feedback control systems.1-6 In most cases, this interest was brought about by the fact that many data-gathering and transmission systems, such as radars, data links and similar components handled data in a sampled form. More recently, the contemplated use of digital computers, in essence sampled-data devices, in connection with process control, has necessitated some study of means for utilizing their capacity to compute for purposes of stabilizing and shaping control systems.7,8 By their nature, digital computers are sampled-data systems since their output is intermittent and in numerical form.

The economic use of digital computers

The paper considers the factors which determine the economic use of an automatic digital computer for scientific and engineering problems. The two types of problem (a) involving a small amount of repetition work, (b) involving an indefinite amount of repetition work, are dealt with, and the necessity for treating the problem by the correct technique is stressed.The author advocates the greater use of automatic computers as an economic method of solving many scientific and engineering problems rather than limiting their use to the solution of problems which would not have been solved by any other means.Recommendations are made for the use of standard programmes which are adaptable to a variety of problems, and the necessity of avoiding the human computer is stressed.

Digital computers as an aid in electric-machine design

DIGITAL and analogue computers are being recognized gradually as aids in design procedures applied to machines. Recently the Motor Network Calculator (MONECA), an analogue computer for single phase motor design, was described.1, 2 In addition there have been other references describing the use of network and differential analyzers to solve some problems touching on machine design. Thus far there has been very little reference in the literature directly pertaining to the use of digital computers in the machine design function. The purpose of this paper is to attempt to show that under some circumstances the digital computer has a definite place in the design procedure and to attempt to stimulate the use of this valuable tool for design activities.