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WTB D17B computer from Minuteman I

G

guitarhack

New Member
Joined
May 19, 2010
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WTB D17B computer from NS-10Q Inertial Guidance System Minuteman I Missile.

Boards, CPU, memory...
 
Have you worked on the D-17B? It's a beast.

I have to admit, if I had one, I'd use it as a base for a coffee table. The thing draws 25A at 28VDC, even without the cooling and peripherals.

Even the D37C was power hungry, but it runs a lot cooler and it weighs less than half as much. Granted, it loses serious "cool points" for not being round. ;)
 
No I haven't worked on one. I have 2 floating disk magnetic memory units and 25 of the coolest PC boards you've ever seen. I would like to find a complete unit.
 
guitarhack said:
I have 2 floating disk magnetic memory units...
Click to expand...

The disk memory had precision air bearings and was extremely reliable and could handle the high g missile ride. A key difference from today's disks was that it was the only memory the computer had except for a few registers. There was no such thing as high speed RAM in those days. Access times could range from 78 uS to a whopping 10 mS if you had to wait for a disk rotation. Programmers soon learned to carefully place there code in memory to avoid delays as it had to solve navigation and guidance equations in real time.

... and 25 of the coolest PC boards you've ever seen. I would like to find a complete unit.
Click to expand...
Yes, the modules were works of art and the use of diode logic made the Minuteman I computer the first solid state digital computer. It was designed in the late 50's by the Autonetics Division of North American Aviation.
 
dave_m said:
Yes, the modules were works of art and the use of diode logic made the Minuteman I computer the first solid state digital computer. It was designed in the late 50's by the Autonetics Division of North American Aviation.
Click to expand...

Are you sure about that claim? Magnetic core logic was popular in the late 50's (Seymour Cray even designed a system) The Univac SS machines for commercial use date from 1958 or so and there were doubtless earlier systems.
 
Chuck(G) said:
Are you sure about that claim? Magnetic core logic was popular in the late 50's (Seymour Cray even designed a system) The Univac SS machines for commercial use date from 1958 or so and there were doubtless earlier systems.
Click to expand...

Almost all the early "solid state" computers in the 50's used tube circuits for the clock drivers. I know the "Univac Solid State Computer" of the late 50's had some tubes in its CPU.

But you are right, there must have been some R&D or experimental units that were really all solid state before the D17, I don't really know.
 
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For those curious like me
Autonetics_D-17.JPG
 
D17b was all disk memory. About 2.5kWords. No core. It's Diode logic, DTL and DRL, mixed. Pain in the tookus to program for general"human interface" tasks, not bad for controls, though I'd rather use an HP-85 for a ground-based app any day, and an HP-71 for flight. ;)

Even the D37C/D had no core, just disk. The logic was similar (DTL/DRL), but in SSI ICs, so the system was a lot lighter, cooler, and less power-hungry. Coding was very similar. Neither was as pretty as the D17B. They look like hydraulic oil reservoirs.
 
What exactly are the "laws" of importing/exporting defunct military gear like this? Surely a D17B computer with the computing power of a Casio watch couldn't be a threat to national security?

Hey Nige, you guys still have some of our B-29's over there. Give 'em back!
 
I would think some nations (maybe Iran) would love to get the code/tech for anything intercontinental even if it is old and not that accurate for a nuclear missile. Once you figure out the design needed to guide something you just need more accurate sensors and a better processor to make it more accurate, so stuff like this obsolete equipment is probably not legal to sell/trade intact.
 
These old computers were demilitarized in the early 70's by overwriting their disk memory before being offered to colleges for engineering experimentation. Here is a link to the Tulane University report on the subject. It takes a while to download (2.5 MB pdf file) but has some interesting information.

Tulane Report on D17 re-utilization
 
That was a fascinating read, so much so I nearly forgot to pick my daughter up from school. Oops!

(And incidentally Quite a few people over here would like you to take your B-29s away!) ;-)
 
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