RAYDAC
Encyclopedia
The RAYDAC was a one-of-a-kind computer built by Raytheon
. It was started in 1949 and finished in 1953. It was installed at the Naval Air Missile Test Center at Point Mugu, California
.
The RAYDAC used 5,200 vacuum tube
s and 18,000 crystal diode
s. It had 1,152 words of memory (thirty-six bit
s per word), using delay line memory
, with an access time of up to 305 microsecond
s. Its addition time was 38 microseconds, multiplication time was 240 microseconds, and division time was 375 microseconds. (These times exclude the memory access time.)
Raytheon
Raytheon Company is a major American defense contractor and industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. It was previously involved in corporate and special-mission aircraft until early 2007...
. It was started in 1949 and finished in 1953. It was installed at the Naval Air Missile Test Center at Point Mugu, California
Point Mugu, California
Point Mugu , California is an unincorporated area and geographical promontory on the Pacific coast in Ventura County, near the town of Port Hueneme and the city of Oxnard. The name is believed to be derived from the Chumash Indian term Muwu, meaning beach, which was first mentioned by Cabrillo in...
.
The RAYDAC used 5,200 vacuum tube
Vacuum tube
In electronics, a vacuum tube, electron tube , or thermionic valve , reduced to simply "tube" or "valve" in everyday parlance, is a device that relies on the flow of electric current through a vacuum...
s and 18,000 crystal diode
Diode
In electronics, a diode is a type of two-terminal electronic component with a nonlinear current–voltage characteristic. A semiconductor diode, the most common type today, is a crystalline piece of semiconductor material connected to two electrical terminals...
s. It had 1,152 words of memory (thirty-six bit
Bit
A bit is the basic unit of information in computing and telecommunications; it is the amount of information stored by a digital device or other physical system that exists in one of two possible distinct states...
s per word), using delay line memory
Delay line memory
Delay line memory was a form of computer memory used on some of the earliest digital computers. Like many modern forms of electronic computer memory, delay line memory was a refreshable memory, but as opposed to modern random-access memory, delay line memory was serial-access...
, with an access time of up to 305 microsecond
Microsecond
A microsecond is an SI unit of time equal to one millionth of a second. Its symbol is µs.A microsecond is equal to 1000 nanoseconds or 1/1000 millisecond...
s. Its addition time was 38 microseconds, multiplication time was 240 microseconds, and division time was 375 microseconds. (These times exclude the memory access time.)