Brilliant people are brilliant in everything. This common statement is fully applicable to the French scientist Blaise Pascal. The research interests of the inventor included physics and mathematics, literature and philosophy. It is Pascal who is considered one of the founders of mathematical analysis, the author of the basic law of hydrodynamics. He is also known as the first creator of mechanical computers. These devices are prototypes of modern computers.
At that time, the models were largely unique. In their technical features, they surpassed many analogues invented before Blaise Pascal. What is the story of Pascalina? Where can I find these designs now?
First prototypes
Attempts to automate computational processes have been carried out for a long time. The Arabs and Chinese have succeeded most of all in these matters. They are considered the pioneers of such a device as an abacus. The principle of operation is quite simple. For the calculation, it is necessary to shift the bones from one part to another. Products additionally allowed for subtraction operations. The inconvenience of the first Arab and Chinese abacuses was only due to the fact that the stones easily crumbled during the transfer. In some stores in the outback you can still find the simplest types of Arab abacus, however, now they are called accounts.
Relevance of the problem
Pascal began to design his car at the age of 17. The thought of the need to automate the routine computing processes of a teenager was prompted by the experience of his own father. The fact is that the parent of a brilliant scientist worked as a tax collector and spent a long time sitting behind tedious calculations. The design itself took a long time and required a large physical, mental and material investment from the scientist. In the latter case, Blaise Pascal was assisted by his own father, who quickly realized the benefits of developing a son.
Competitors
Naturally, at that time there was no talk of using any electronic means of calculation. Everything was carried out only at the expense of mechanics. To use the rotation of the wheels for the operation of addition was proposed long before Pascal. For example, a device created in 1623 by Wilhelm Schikkard was no less popular at the time . However, certain technical innovations were proposed in the Pascal machine that markedly simplified the addition process. For example, a French inventor has developed a scheme for automatically transferring a unit when a number is transferred to the highest category. This made it possible to add multivalued figures without human intervention in the counting process, which virtually eliminated the risk of errors and inaccuracies.
Appearance and principle of operation
Visually, Pascal's first summing machine resembled an ordinary metal box in which gears connected to each other were located. The user through the rotation of the dials set the necessary values for him. The numbers from 0 to 9 were applied to each of them. When a complete revolution was made, the gear shifted the adjacent one (corresponding to a higher level) by one unit.
The very first model had only five gears. Subsequently, the calculating machine Blaise Pascal underwent some changes regarding the increase in the number of gears. There were 6 of them, then this number increased to 8. This innovation allowed calculating up to 9,999,999. The answer appeared at the top of the device.
Operations
The wheels in Pascal's calculating machine could only rotate in one single direction. As a result, the user was able to conduct exclusively addition operations. With some dexterity, the devices were also adapted for multiplication, but it was much more difficult to perform calculations in this case. There was a need to add the same numbers several times in a row, which was extremely inconvenient. The inability to rotate the wheel in the opposite direction did not allow calculations with negative numbers.
Spread
Since the creation of the prototype, the scientist has made about 50 devices. Pascal's mechanical machine aroused unprecedented interest in France. Unfortunately, the product was never able to win wide distribution, even despite the resonance among the general public and in scientific circles.
The main problem of the products was their high cost. Production was expensive, of course, this negatively formed on the final price of the entire device. It was the difficulties with the release that led the scientist to sell no more than 16 models in his entire life. People appreciated all the advantages of automatic calculus, but did not want to take devices.
Banks
The main focus in the implementation of Blaise Pascal put it on the banks. But financial institutions, for the most part, refused to purchase a machine for automatic settlements. Problems arose due to the difficult monetary policy of France. In the country at that time there were livres, denier and su. One livre consisted of 20 sou, and su of 12 deniers. That is, the decimal system of calculus was absent as such. That is why it was practically impossible to use Pascal’s car in the banking sector. France switched to the calculation system adopted in other countries only in 1799. However, after this time, the use of an automated device was noticeably complicated. This already concerned the previously mentioned difficulties in production. The work was mostly manual, so each machine required painstaking work. As a result, they simply stopped making them in principle.
Authorities support
Blaise Pascal presented one of the first automatic calculating machines to Chancellor Segier. It was this statesman who supported the novice scientist in the early stages of creating an automatic device. At the same time, the chancellor managed to obtain privileges from the king for the release of this unit specifically for Pascal. Although the invention of the machine belonged entirely to the scientist himself, patent law was not developed in France at that time. Privilege from the royal person was received in 1649.
Sales
As mentioned above, the Pascal machine did not conquer much distribution. The scientist himself was engaged only in the manufacture of devices, his friend Roberval was responsible for the sale.
Development
The principle of rotation of mechanical gears, implemented in a Pascal computer, was taken as a basis for the development of other similar devices. The first successful improvement is attributed to the German professor of mathematics Leibniz. The creation of the arithmometer is dated 1673. Additions of numbers were also performed in the decimal system, but the device itself was distinguished by great functionality. The fact is that with its help it was possible not only to carry out addition, but also to multiply, subtract, divide and even extract the square root. The scientist added a special wheel to the design, which made it possible to accelerate repeated addition operations.
Leibniz presented his product in France and England. One of the cars even got to the Russian emperor Peter the Great, who presented it to the Chinese monarch. The product was far from perfect. The wheel that Leibniz invented for the subtraction later became used in other arithmometers.
The first commercial success of mechanical computers dates back to 1820. The calculator was created by the French inventor Charles Xavier Thomas de Colmar. The principle of operation is much like a Pascal machine, but the device itself is smaller, it is a bit easier to manufacture and cheaper. This is what predetermined the success of merchants.
The fate of creation
Throughout his life, the scientist created about 50 cars, to this day, "survived" units. Now you can reliably track the fate of only 6 devices. Four models are permanently stored in the Paris Museum of Arts and Crafts, two more in the museum in Clermont. The remaining computing devices have found refuge in private collections. About who now owns them reliably is not known. The health of the units is also a big question.
Opinions
Some biographers associate the development and creation of Pascal's summing machine with the shaken health of the inventor himself. As mentioned above, the scientist began his first work in his youth. They demanded from the author a tremendous strain of mental and physical strength. Labor was carried out for almost 5 years. As a result of this, Blaise Pascal began to pursue severe headaches, which then accompanied him for the rest of his life.