UNIVAC 1105
Encyclopedia
The UNIVAC 1105 was a follow-on computer to the UNIVAC 1103A introduced by Sperry Rand
in September, 1958.
The UNIVAC 1105 had either 8,192 or 12,288 words of 36 bit magnetic core memory, in two or three banks of 4,096 words each. Magnetic drum memory
provided either 16,384 or 32,768 words, in one or two drums with 16,384 words each. Sixteen to twenty four UNISERVO II tape drive
s were connected, with a maximum capacity (not counting block overhead) of 1,200,000 words per tape.
Fixed-point
numbers had a one-bit sign and a 35-bit value, with negative values represented in ones' complement format.
Floating-point
numbers had a one-bit sign, an eight-bit characteristic, and a 27-bit mantissa.
Instructions
had a six-bit operation code and two 15-bit operand addresses.
The UNIVAC 1105 used 21 types of vacuum tube
s, 11 types of diode
s, 10 types of transistor
s, and three core types.
A complete UNIVAC 1105 computer system required 160 kW of power (175 KVA, 0.9 power factor
) and an air conditioning
unit with a power of at least 35 tons (123 kW) for cooling input water. The computer system weighed 63,753 lb (29 t) with a floor loading of 47 lb/ft² (230 kg/m²) and required a room 49 x 64 x 10 ft (15 x 20 x 3 m). The floor space for the computer was approximately 3,752 ft² (350 m²). The power, refrigeration and equipment room was approximately 2,450 ft² (230 m²).
UNIVAC
UNIVAC is the name of a business unit and division of the Remington Rand company formed by the 1950 purchase of the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation, founded four years earlier by ENIAC inventors J. Presper Eckert and John Mauchly, and the associated line of computers which continues to this day...
in September, 1958.
The UNIVAC 1105 had either 8,192 or 12,288 words of 36 bit magnetic core memory, in two or three banks of 4,096 words each. Magnetic drum memory
Drum memory
Drum memory is a magnetic data storage device and was an early form of computer memory widely used in the 1950s and into the 1960s, invented by Gustav Tauschek in 1932 in Austria....
provided either 16,384 or 32,768 words, in one or two drums with 16,384 words each. Sixteen to twenty four UNISERVO II tape drive
Tape drive
A tape drive is a data storage device that reads and performs digital recording, writes data on a magnetic tape. Magnetic tape data storage is typically used for offline, archival data storage. Tape media generally has a favorable unit cost and long archival stability.A tape drive provides...
s were connected, with a maximum capacity (not counting block overhead) of 1,200,000 words per tape.
Fixed-point
Fixed-point arithmetic
In computing, a fixed-point number representation is a real data type for a number that has a fixed number of digits after the radix point...
numbers had a one-bit sign and a 35-bit value, with negative values represented in ones' complement format.
Floating-point
Floating point
In computing, floating point describes a method of representing real numbers in a way that can support a wide range of values. Numbers are, in general, represented approximately to a fixed number of significant digits and scaled using an exponent. The base for the scaling is normally 2, 10 or 16...
numbers had a one-bit sign, an eight-bit characteristic, and a 27-bit mantissa.
Instructions
Instruction set
An instruction set, or instruction set architecture , is the part of the computer architecture related to programming, including the native data types, instructions, registers, addressing modes, memory architecture, interrupt and exception handling, and external I/O...
had a six-bit operation code and two 15-bit operand addresses.
The UNIVAC 1105 used 21 types of vacuum tube
Vacuum tube
In electronics, a vacuum tube, electron tube , or thermionic valve , reduced to simply "tube" or "valve" in everyday parlance, is a device that relies on the flow of electric current through a vacuum...
s, 11 types of diode
Diode
In electronics, a diode is a type of two-terminal electronic component with a nonlinear current–voltage characteristic. A semiconductor diode, the most common type today, is a crystalline piece of semiconductor material connected to two electrical terminals...
s, 10 types of transistor
Transistor
A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals and power. It is composed of a semiconductor material with at least three terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current...
s, and three core types.
A complete UNIVAC 1105 computer system required 160 kW of power (175 KVA, 0.9 power factor
Power factor
The power factor of an AC electric power system is defined as the ratio of the real power flowing to the load over the apparent power in the circuit, and is a dimensionless number between 0 and 1 . Real power is the capacity of the circuit for performing work in a particular time...
) and an air conditioning
Air conditioning
An air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
unit with a power of at least 35 tons (123 kW) for cooling input water. The computer system weighed 63,753 lb (29 t) with a floor loading of 47 lb/ft² (230 kg/m²) and required a room 49 x 64 x 10 ft (15 x 20 x 3 m). The floor space for the computer was approximately 3,752 ft² (350 m²). The power, refrigeration and equipment room was approximately 2,450 ft² (230 m²).
Cost, price and rental rates
| Component | Cost | Monthly rental |
|---|---|---|
| Basic system, consisting of 8,192 words magnetic core, 16,384 words magnetic drum, central processor, peripheral control, and 16 Uniservo II | $1,932,000 | $33,060 |
| Additional equipment | ||
| 4,096 words magnetic core | $195,000 | $4,500 |
| 16,384 words magnetic drum | $60,000 | $1,500 |
| Floating point | $65,000 | $1,545 |
| Uniservo II | $20,000 | $450 |
| Card input-output | $55,000 | $1,310 |
| High speed printer | $185,000 | $3,300 |
External links
- BRL REPORT NO. 1115 March 1961: UNIVAC 1105 by Martin H. Weik