Apollo Computer Documentary from the 60's - Fascinating - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: VK3DRB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 02:08:02 pm
content: Every bit of this documentary is fascinating.They look like 7 segment LED's... from the mid 1960's? Impossible. Were they VFD's? They did not look like it. I am a bit stumped on that.The testing is very impressive, as is the calibre of these engineers.Enjoy!

author: dr.diesel
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 03:32:58 pm
content: That is simply amazing, what a tedious procedure. Those poor people winding those modules, probably still cross eyed,

author: Len
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 03:40:34 pm
content: Quote from: VK3DRB on September 09, 2015, 02:08:02 pmElectroluminescent.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer#DSKY_interface

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 04:03:45 pm
content: The 'verb' and 'noun' is also pretty clever given the human interaction possibilities of the computer. It still means the operator needs to learn all of them (maybe from a couple of hundred up to several 1000).

author: matseng
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 04:53:22 pm
content: Looking at the people in the video I got the distinct impression of the late 40ies or 50ies. Definitely not the end of late 60ies...

author: German_EE
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 08:08:07 pm
content: Here are the schematics:http://klabs.org/history/ech/agc_schematics/And a guy who built one in his basement:http://klabs.org/history/build_agc/Or you can run a simulator:http://www.ibiblio.org/apollo/

author: HP-ILnerd
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2015, 10:42:07 pm
content: Quote from: nctnico on September 09, 2015, 04:03:45 pmYeah, quite elegant. It made great use of limited memory/display space. The Space Shuttle used a very similar interface.http://history.nasa.gov/computers/Ch4-6.htmlGreat little documentary.

author: NickAmes
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: September 10, 2015, 03:29:54 am
content: Fran Blanche is trying to build an authentic replica of the DSKY display:

author: AF6LJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 10, 2015, 03:39:07 am
content: I will have to watch that first video. I don't remember seeing it.Much Coolness hides inside those old electronics.

author: LabSpokane
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 10, 2015, 04:06:11 am
content: Looking at all that damned spaghetti, it's a miracle we made it to the moon at all. For an interesting read on the MIT IL and the Apollo guidance computer, check out:http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Apollo-Human-Machine-Spaceflight/dp/0262516101/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1441857808&sr=8-1&keywords=Digital+ApolloIt's an odd perspective because they really regarded having humans in the loop as quite a nuisance.

author: VK3DRB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 10, 2015, 11:06:40 am
content: These people who developed the computer are in my opinion heroes of mankind who deserve accolades and whose names should be enshrined. Instead, most people have never heard of these great pioneers of technology but they all know about celebrities like that twerp Bieber and barge-arse Kim who have produced nothing of value to humanity.Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC)Dimensions: 24 x 12.5 x 6.5 inchesWeight: 70 poundsProcessor speed: 1 MHzMemory: 2,048 words (32,768 bits or roughly 4kB)Display: Seven-segment numericPrice: $150,000 (est.) (Today's equivalent of about $20 million)Apple iPhone 5sDimensions: 4.87 inches x 2.31 inchesWeight: 3.95 ouncesProcessor speed: 1.3GHz, dual-coreMemory: 64GBDisplay: 4-inch diagonal Multi-Touch display, 1136 x 640 pixel resolution at 326 ppiPrice: $399

author: LabSpokane
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 10, 2015, 02:51:52 pm
content: Quote from: VK3DRB on September 10, 2015, 11:06:40 amNo arguments there. I have a neighbor whose father was a scientist at JPL during the 60's. Feeding him bourbon and getting him to talk about his time during the space program is the best time there is.

author: German_EE
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 10, 2015, 08:32:34 pm
content: With all the stuff on the Internet this is a good time to be a space geek.

author: John_ITIC
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 11, 2015, 12:24:10 am
content: I have the same T-shirt as Fran (JPL). I have two kids in the right age so I managed to get onto the school tour at JPL in Pasadena twice!The Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) is very interesting as it is one of the very few that used integrated circuits. At the time, NASA bought about 80% of the IC production in the U.S. The AGC was designed at the Instrumentation Laboratory at MIT since they had experience with inertial guidance systems (a bunch of gyros and accelerometers that figured out the current location in 3D-space). The whole thing turned into a big mess because the software written for the thing was an unstructured mess; it got so bad that the whole Apollo program was at risk of not going to the moon "before the end of the decade" (1969/70). At the end, the software was sorted out but the inertial guidance system was actually only used as a secondary navigation. Instead ground-based navigation was done via telemetry. They did cross-check, though, and the AGC was dead-on so it actually worked. I'm not sure whether they flew any missions relying exclusively on the AGC navigation.And, no, the astronauts certainly did not know the whole instruction repertoire off the top of their heads; rather they went from check-lists and instructions from the ground when they needed to enter new program code into the AGC.Finally, here is another Youtube video about the AGC (from "Moon Machines" series) :

author: Mechanical Menace
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 12, 2015, 12:27:19 am
content: Quote from: VK3DRB on September 10, 2015, 11:06:40 am

author: sunnyhighway
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 12, 2015, 10:07:49 am
content: Quote from: VK3DRB on September 10, 2015, 11:06:40 amArduino MegaDimensions: 4 x 2 x 0.5 inchesWeight: 0.082 poundsProcessor speed: 16 MHzMemory: 256kB flash, 8kB SRAM, 4kB EEPROMDisplay: plenty of shields to choose fromPrice: $40Anyone tried to recreate a fully functional Apollo Guidance Computer using an Arduino with a display shield slapped on it?The specs suggest it should be possible...

author: albert22
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 12, 2015, 02:06:13 pm
content: Fixing position was one of the functions of the apollo computer. It had many more including passive thermal balance of the spacecraft (PTC). Named the "barbecue" mode which put the spacecraft in a roll to evenly distribute the heat thus reducing the requirements in heat shielding and weight.One of great importance was the reentry guidance and control during the atmospheric phase.Also maneuvers like TLI were performed by initiating the corresponding routines issuing the verb and noun. The computer then pointed the spacecraft in the right direction, eliminated the slosh of the fuel in the tanks by a small burn in the motor and made the burn and steering required to place the spacecraft in course.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_PGNCSQuote