M chapter.indd - Charles Babbage Institute

834
Erwin Tomash Library
Mallock, R. R. M. Mallock, R. R. M.
M 24
Mallock, R. R. M.
An electrical calculating machine. In Proceedings of
the Royal Society of London Series A, Vol. CXL, No.
A841, May 3, 1933.
Year: 1933
Place: London
Publisher: Royal Society of London
Edition: 1st
Language: English
Binding: modern buckram boards
Pagination: pp. 457–483
Size: 244x160 mm
Mallock was a demonstrator at the Cambridge University
Engineering Laboratories.
M 23 Frontispiece illustrating plane table, M 23
The Mallock machine was designed in 1931 to solve
linear simultaneous equations. It used a series of
interconnected transformers to represent the unknowns;
coils on the transformers represented coefficients, with
the number of turns being adjusted to indicate the value.
Each set of equations was set up as a closed circuit, and
an alternating current was applied. When the system
reached equilibrium, the solutions to the equations were
read from meters attached to the machine. The actual
machine was constructed, under Mallock’s supervision,
at the Cambridge Scientific Instrument Company in
1933. The company had intended to market additional
copies of the machine but never did so because the device
proved unable to deal with ill-conditioned equations.
Illustrations available:
Sample solution
Wiring for a problem on the Mallock machine, M 24