Imperial College Computing Engine

Imperial College Computing Engines

ICCE I

The first Imperial College Computing Engine, ICCE I , was constructed by Sidney Michaelson, Tony Brooker and Keith Tocher in the Department of Mathematics] at Imperial College London in the late 1940's and early 1950's. It was a relay based machine which gave relatively slow but highly reliable service. Its current whereabouts is unknown.

ICCE II

ICCE II was constructed by Sidney Michaelson, Keith Tocher and Manny Lehman in the the early 1950's. This valve based machine was never completed. ICCE II was taken by Keith Tocher to British Steel. Its current whereabouts is unknown.

Influence on other machines

ICCE I and II influenced the design of SABRAC, the second computer constructed in Israel by The Israeli MoD Scientific Department .

Project Termination

In 1956/7 - The project was forcibly terminated. Staff dispersed. Keith Tocher went to work at British Steel, Sidney Michaelson went to the University of Edinburgh and founded the department of computer science and Manny Lehman joined the Israeli MoD Scientific Department which subsequently became Rafael

See Also

Tocher KD, Report on the Work of the Computer Group, Dept. of Maths., Imp. Col, London, 1952 Wilks MV and Stringer LJB, Micro-Programming and the Design of the Control Circuits in an Electronic Computer, Proc. Camb. Phil. Soc., vol 49, no. 2, 1953 Tocher KD, Proposed Code for ICCE II, Dept. of Maths., Imp. Col., London 1955 Tocher KD, Classification and Design of Operation Codes for Automatic Computers, Proc. IEE, 103B, Supplement 1, Apr. 1956 Tocher KD and Lehman MM, A Fast Parallel Arithmetic Unit, Proc. IEE 103B, Supplement 3, Apr. 1956, pp. 520 - 527 Lehman MM, Parallel Arithmetic Units and Their Control, PhD Thesis, University of London, Feb. 1957, 160pps.+ Lehman MM, Short-Cut Multiplication and Division in Automatic Binary Digital Computers with Special Reference to a New Multiplication Process, Proc. IEE, vol 105, Part B, No 23, Sept 1958 , pps. 496 - 504 Tocher KD, Techniques of Multiplication and Division for Automatic Binary Computers, Quart. J. of Mechanics and Appl. Maths., v. 11, p. 3, 1958, pps. 364 - 384 Cunningham RJ, Computing, in A Centenary History of the City & Guilds College, 1885 - 1985, ICST, 1984,

      pp. 169 - 188

http://www.macs.hw.ac.uk/~greg/icce/