Baldwin Calculating Engine from 1874. From the Smithsonian Institution, USA

Pinwheel calculators were invented independently by Frank S. Baldwin in the USA (1872) and Wilgott Theophil Odhner in Russia (1874). Image File history File links Baldwin_pinwheel_calculator. ... Image File history File links Baldwin_pinwheel_calculator. ... 1874 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The Smithsonian Institution Building or Castle on the National Mall serves as the Institutions headquarters. ... Categories: People stubs | 1845 births | 1903 deaths ...

History

In Russia, Odhner's arithmometers were mass-manufactured first in 1886 by W.T. Odhner, Maschinenfabrik & Metallgiesserei and later in 1891 by the Odhner-Gill factory (фабрика Однера-Гиля) in St.Petersburg. Pinwheel calculators were more popular in Europe (particularly in Germany) than in the United States. Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and Petrograd (Петрогра́д, 1914–1924), is a city located in Northwestern Russia on the delta of the river Neva at the east end of the Gulf of Finland... A satellite composite image of Europe // Etymology Picture of Europa, carried away by bull-shaped Zeus. ...

In 1924, Felix Dzerzhinsky, the head of the Russian Cheka, initiated the manufacturing of arithmometers. Later they were named arithmometer Feliks and served in the Soviet Union well into the 1970s, popularly known under the name "Iron Feliks". Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky (Феликс Эдмундович Дзержинский; September 11, 1877 - July 20, 1926) was a Polish Communist revolutionary, famous as the founder of the Bolshevik secret police, the Cheka, later known by many names. ... Cheka-KGB emblem: sword and shield The Cheka (ЧК in Russian) was the first of many Soviet secret police organizations. ... Iron Felix or Iron Feliks may refer to one of the following Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky. ...

Operation

"The operation of machines of this type was accomplished by means of pulling levers or knobs to set up the desired number. Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division were accomplished by means of revolving drums. For addition they revolved in one direction, and for subtraction the direction was reversed. For multiplication the revolutions were repeated in the same direction as for addition, and for division they were repeated in the same direction as for subtraction. Two sets of dials provided a means of reading totals. In one the accumulation of totals appeared; in the other, there appeared the figure which was added, subtracted, multiplied, or divided." (The Office Appliance Manual, p. 88) The principle of the lever tells us that the above is in static equilibrium, with all forces balancing, if F1D1 = F2D2. ... In its simplest form, multiplication is the sum of a list of identical numbers. ... In mathematics, especially in elementary arithmetic, division is an arithmetic operation which is the inverse of multiplication, and sometimes it can be interpreted as repeated subtraction. ... For other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation). ...