The Curta is a mechanical calculating machine in form of a cylinder with a crank at the top side. The operational principle is that the double Staffelwalze. It is still the smallest in series manufactured mechanical four-species calculator of the world.

One can hold it in a hand and enter over placing slidegate valves the numbers and release by means of a small crank the computing method. The Curta controls the four basic operations of arithmetic and could originally up to eleven-digit, later fifteen-digit results supply. Their characteristic is that it possessed contrary to the otherwise at the time at that time usual calculating machines in place of a computing transmission per place only such a transmission, which computed the individual places successively.

It was heart-strongly designed by the Austrian office machine manufacturer Curt. Heart-strongly beech forest terminated the construction plans in the KZ. The Curta went only to the war into Liechtenstein at the particularly created Cortina AG into production. It was at their time a technical sensation. She should be called Liliput original; the name Curta leads itself off from the first name of the technical designer.

Production start was in October 1948. This type I was 85 mm high and had a diameter of 53 mm. It possesses a Einstellwerk with 8 places and a result speedometer with 11 places. Starting from January 1954 additionally the type II with a 11-digit adjusting and 15-stelligen result speedometer was produced. It is somewhat larger with 90x53 mm. Altogether until November 1970 altogether approximately 140,000 copies of the Curta were produced. The price of the execution I was in the year 1965 about 425 DM, the larger Curta II cost 535 DM.

Literature

• Curt heart-strongly - no gift for the leader - fate of a highly gifted inventor, CH. Holub, And B. H. Joss, May 2005.
• Spektrum der Wissenschaft, March 2004.
• Tubing mountain, Albert: Theory and practice of the calculating machines, Stuttgart: B.G. Teubner, 1954.

The function mode of the Curta is described starting from page 14.

Video/DVD

• Curta - a legend, the Videofilm shows the assembly of one the last CURTA's.

Related links

• http://www.curta.de - extensive information about Curta, arranged of January Meyer.
• Information about Curta and Curt heart-strongly. Book order '' no gift for the leader '' and video order '' Curta - a legend ''.

Articles in category "Curta"

We found here 3 articles.

Related Websites

We found here 4 related websites.

• Curta-Simulator
  Curta-Simulator. ... Jan Meyer's Curta Simulator. Source: www.curta.de.


• Curta.Org, Your Complete Curta Calculator Site
  Curta.org for information about Curta Calculators.


• Curta.Org, Your Complete Curta Calculator Site
  Curta.org for information about Curta Calculators.


• The CURTA Calculator Page
  Now at the Calculator Reference, the new Curta Calculator poster printed in the ... Introducing the classic Curta Calculator poster for all Curta fans. ...