Burroughs Sample Calculator, Double 1/12 Fraction
date: label: date made
content: ca 1920
name: label: maker
content: Burroughs Adding Machine Company
notes: label: Description
content: In 1911 the Burroughs Adding Machine Company introduced a key-driven adding machine much like the Comptometer made by Felt & Tarrant Manufacturing Company. The Burroughs calculator, as the new machine was called, performed ordinary decimal arithmetic. Burroughs inventors soon designed special versions of the calculator to solve other problems. This is the model for one of them.
label: Description
content: This machine has a green metal plate under the keys and a black metal bottom, but no sides or cover for the numeral wheels. The five columns of octagonal plastic keys have concave keys for odd digits, flat ones for even ones. The rightmost and the middle columns have two keys, for 11 and 12. The other three columns have nine keys, numbered from 1 to 9. The complements of numbers on the keys are also given, with the numbers totaling 11 on the four right columns and 9 on the leftmost. There are four numeral wheels at the front. Two to the right have numbers from 0 to 11, the other two digits from 0 to 9. There is no handle. The numbers in the two rightmost columns add, and carry when the total passes 12. The middle two columns don’t seem to function. and the machine does not function. There are four rubber feet and as a rubber piece around three sides at the base.
label: Description
content: A red tag attached to the machine reads: PATENT DEPT (/) #231. A white tag attached to the machine reads: Reference Machine (/) 5 Columns (/) Double 1/12 Fraction (/) DO NOT REMOVE THIS TAG - REFER TO (/) LETTER 12/5/40 - JAS to GWL. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.
label: Description
content: Objects 1982.0794.47, 1982.0794.48, 1987.0794.49, and 1982.0794.89 are all from Burroughs Patent Department Model 231.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Michigan, Detroit
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
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content: Adding Machines
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content: Science & Mathematics
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Burroughs Corporation
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1982.0794.47
label: catalog number
content: 1982.0794.47
label: accession number
content: 1982.0794
objectType: label: Object Name
content: adding machine
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: rubber (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 13 cm x 15 cm x 28.2 cm; 5 1/8 in x 5 29/32 in x 11 3/32 in