Introduction - IBM 709 General Information Manual

IBM 709·7090 Data Processing System
Data processing sy~tems are finding new application
in virtually every phase of science, business, and in-
dustry. Rapidly expanding scientific investigations in-
volve many complex calculations. The vast amount
of data constantly being used in aircraft industries,
government agencies, and business establishments of
all kinds demand machines to compute, select, and
correlate data at electronic speeds.
Figure I shows the kind of problem that computers
are solving for scientists today. Many similar prob-
lems are encountered and solved in the scientific field;
however, the computer is adaptable to business appli-
cations as well. The computer can be, and is, used
for payroll, material inventory, or any of a great num-
ber of other business problems requiring prompt,
accurate results.
In the sample problem, the computer calculates the
density and velocity of air at each of the mesh-points
shown. From these data, engineers can evaluate the
lifting power and drag of the wing section. By solv-
ing a number of these problems, an optimum new
wing design is developed.
The mathematical formulas used are:
4.
p=
f
(p)
Figure 1. Aircraft Application
Equations 1, 2 and 3 are replaced by difference
equations over a network as shown in the figure. This
difference system and equation 4 form a set of simul-
taneous non-linear algebraic equations. These are
solved on the computer by repeating calculations,
called an iteration method. In this one typical prob-
lem, there are 800 equations, 100 iterations, 80,000
operations per iteration, and 8,000,000 operations per
solution.
Figure 2 shows a comparison, in time, between man-
ual methods of solution and solution by computers.
The times are approximate. This comparison shows
that computers of today now have the ability to solve
problems that cannot be solved in a lifetime of man-
ual labor.
One of the first things to be considered in a com-
puter system is an understanding of the functions of
its various components. A simplified computer sys-
tem consists of three main units as shown in Figure 3.
In a typical computer system, several types of input-
output devices are needed. These may be units such
~
r \
\ Pencil and paper
{ 15 years
Desk calculator
80 weeks
IBM 701
2 minutes
IBM 704
30 seconds
IBM 709
25 seconds
IBM 7090
5 seconds
Figure 2. Time Comparison of Computation Methods (Approxi-
mate)
Introduction 5