The FIBIAC — a 3D-Printed Electromechanical Computer

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The FIBIAC — a 3D-Printed Electromechanical Computer

Posted by Soulskill on Saturday May 12, 2012 @12:11PM from the don't-teach-them-how-to-breed dept.

Brietech writes "'Behold the FIBIAC! It's loud! It computes! It uses actual punch cards!' The FIBIAC is a simple, stepper-motor based, (mostly) 3D-printed electromechanical computer. The program is stored on a loop of paper punch-cards, and the machine uses three, 3-digit electromechanical counters for storage (which could be expanded to support more complicated programs) Watch a video of it computing the Fibonacci sequence, or jump on Thingiverse and build your own."

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Hew hew by TheBootyClean · 2012-05-12 12:12 · Score: -1, Offtopic

About six months ago, I was overexerting myself trying to get rid of a terrible virus on a client's PC (I own a PC repair shop and have been fixing computers for over 10 years). Given my level of expertise, I thought I'd be able to get rid of it fairly quickly and without hassle, but as was made evident by my colossal failure, I was horribly, horribly wrong.
I couldn't remove the virus no matter what method I used. I tried all the latest anti-virus software and all the usual tricks, but it was all in vain. Failure after failure, my life was slowly being sucked away as I spent more and more of my time trying to get rid of this otherworldly virus.
Frustrated and stressed by my own failure, I began distancing myself from my wife and children. After a few days, I began verbally abusing them, and it eventually escalated into physical abuse. I was slowly losing what remaining sanity I had left. If this had continued for much longer, it is highly probable that I would have committed suicide. A mere shell of what I once was, I barricaded myself in my bedroom and cried myself to sleep for days on end.
That's when it happened: I found MyCleanPC! I installed MyCleanPC right on the client's PC, ran a scan, and it immediately got rid of all the viruses without a single problem. MyCleanPC accomplished in record time what I was unable to accomplish after a full week. Wow! Such a thing!
MyCleanPC is outstanding! My client's computer is running faster than ever! I highly recommend you install MyCleanPC right this minuteness, run a scan, and then boost your PC speed in record time! MyCleanPC came through with flying colours where no one else could!
My client's response? "MyCleanPC totally cleaned up my system, and increased my speed!" All the PC repair professionals are using MyCleanPC to solve all of their problems. This should be reason enough for you to switch to MyCleanPC! It'll speed up your computer, rid it of all viruses, and you'll be able to work productively again! Wow!
Even if you're not having any obvious computer problems, you could still be in danger. That's why I very highly recommend that you still use MyCleanPC. After all, it will boost your PC & internet speed to levels you never would think are possible!
MyCleanPC: For a Cleaner, Safer PC.
1. Re:Hew hew by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 12:32 · Score: 0, Informative
  
  MyCleanPC? FuckOff.
2. Re:Hew hew by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 14:42 · Score: 0
  
  Yeah, it's a sad state of affairs when the authors of protection trojans think Slashdot is the way to spread their warez.
3. Re:Hew hew by jcr · 2012-05-12 14:47 · Score: 1
  
  The post above raises an interesting question: should spammers die in a fire, or is that too good for them?
  Discuss.
  -jcr
  
  --
  The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
4. Re:Hew hew by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 15:04 · Score: 0
  
  ten bucks says its our old friend the goatman but i aint clickin that shit, holmes
5. Re:Hew hew by macraig · 2012-05-12 15:48 · Score: 1
  
  How about printing every single instance of the spam on 24-pound bond paper and then make the spammer eat it? We could be generous and make the rate of consumption, say, one page every minute? Do we pre-shred it for him or make him fully masticate it? He'll have an entire minute to chew and swallow, after all.
6. Re:Hew hew by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 19:44 · Score: 0
  
  Meh, why let him chew the page? If the spammer is to ingest it, shove it straight up his arse into his intestines.
7. Re:Hew hew by macraig · 2012-05-12 21:51 · Score: 1
  
  Nope, that's digest mode!
8. Re:Hew hew by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 22:24 · Score: 0
  
  nope.avi
  mycleanpc is real, its shitty, and its spammed on radio and television as well as all over the internet :(
bro by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 12:39 · Score: -1

i have hella smelly farts today
Wow, imagine a Beowulf cluster of these! by jfdavis668 · 2012-05-12 12:40 · Score: 5, Funny

and how many cards that would take.
1. Re:Wow, imagine a Beowulf cluster of these! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 12:58 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  But does it run Linux?
2. Re:Wow, imagine a Beowulf cluster of these! by lister+king+of+smeg · 2012-05-12 13:53 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  maybe if you wrote a emulator for that 8 bit risc processor that emulated the arm running linux (http://linux.slashdot.org/story/12/04/02/191203/gnulinux-running-on-an-8-bit-processor). but if that was slow this would be monstrously so but it would be the ultimate geek cred
  
  --
  ---Saying gnome 3 is better than windows 8 not so much a compliment as it is damning with light praise.
Build your own? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 13:02 · Score: -1

Sure, build your own. All you need is a 3D printer (required quality unknown), a laser cutter (no problem, I have two in the garage; snerk), CNC mill (also have a couple of these laying around), and who knows what else.
Simple, real simple.</sarcasm>
1. Re:Build your own? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 13:38 · Score: -1
  
  What counts here is uncritical hype for 3D printers. Bre Pettis already has a cold, slimy hard-on going and the Slash editors need to suck it off!
2. Re:Build your own? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 13:48 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  To be fair, it doesn't actually make use of a CNC mill (and the 3D printer in the video is clearly a Makerbot Thing-o-matic).
3. Re:Build your own? by JohnBailey · 2012-05-12 15:12 · Score: 1
  
  Sure, build your own. All you need is a 3D printer (required quality unknown), a laser cutter (no problem, I have two in the garage; snerk), CNC mill (also have a couple of these laying around), and who knows what else.
  Simple, real simple.
  Wow... So building stuff requires tools.. Who knew..
  
  --
  It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his job depends on not understanding it.
4. Re:Build your own? by thephydes · 2012-05-12 19:08 · Score: 1
  
  You just don't get it do you? Of course he needs tools, you tool. Just as you need tools to find that porn so that you can play with your tool - which you are obviously better at than appreciating what someone else has done.
5. Re:Build your own? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 23:47 · Score: 0
  
  He used a CNC to cut the copper clad board.
Video is kind of disappointing by gman003 · 2012-05-12 13:21 · Score: 1

This thing is cool and all, don't get me wrong, but the video was a bit of a letdown. Very quiet (when the blog states one goal was "Have lots of moving parts (preferably loud ones)", and not a very good show of how it actually works. It didn't even use 2/3rds of the "digits" - the video stops after reaching 8, so only the first digit of each register was used.
Imagine... by machine321 · 2012-05-12 13:28 · Score: -1, Redundant

... a beowulf cluster of these.
1. Re:Imagine... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 13:46 · Score: 1
  
  Imagine two Beowulf clusters of these, running in parallel.
2. Re:Imagine... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 14:41 · Score: 0
  
  Imagine two hand-cranked beowolf clusters of these, running in parallel.
Does this mean... by TimothyDavis · 2012-05-12 15:29 · Score: 1

Does this mean that we are close to the diamond age?
Boy, that Hertz by macraig · 2012-05-12 15:39 · Score: 1

So how many gigaHertz is that CPU? What's its TDP? If I water-cool it can I overclock it?
1. Re:Boy, that Hertz by BKX · 2012-05-12 16:04 · Score: 1
  
  it's .000000001 GHz. TDP is something low. No.
2. Re:Boy, that Hertz by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 16:07 · Score: 0
  
  TDP is actually probably pretty high - It's using at least 4 stepper motors and an incandescent lamp as an alert signal!
Self-replication by raptor_87 · 2012-05-12 15:56 · Score: 3, Interesting

Is the computer sufficient to run a 3D printer?
1. Re:Self-replication by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 18:31 · Score: 0
  
  you'd be better of with $0.50 microcontroller
2. Re:Self-replication by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-13 03:16 · Score: 0
  
  It would be hilariously slow, but you could certainly wire a plotter or similar output to it. With three 'virtual counters' for the x,y,z axis', you could have a 1000x1000x1000 volume you could arbitrarily position something in. Just wire an additional card reader pin to turn on the 'output', whatever that may be (lowering a pen or turning on an extruder).
a loop of paper punch-cards by Artifex · 2012-05-12 19:26 · Score: 2

...why not punch tape?
I still have some from when I was a little boy and my parents brought home their used mylar gold/metallic green tape, and we made Christmas tree chains.

--
Get off my launchpad!
1. Re:a loop of paper punch-cards by jfdavis668 · 2012-05-13 02:45 · Score: 1
  
  Are you trying to make an actual Turing Machine?
Gnnnn by Helen+Keller · 2012-05-12 19:28 · Score: -1

Behold the FIBIAC! It's loud!
??? ...

--
Have you read my blog? Neither have I.
Cute, but... by Kergan · 2012-05-12 19:45 · Score: 2

Will it blend?
1. Re:Cute, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-12 20:36 · Score: 1
  
  I assure you, it will blend. Don't breathe this!
2. Re:Cute, but... by Yvan256 · 2012-05-14 02:36 · Score: 1
  
  Not sure it will blend, but at least it will shred.
Steampunk by Intrepid+imaginaut · 2012-05-12 23:07 · Score: 1

This is badly crying out to be a brass and mahogany Steampunk project.
But can it replicate itself? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-13 00:00 · Score: 0

The real test will be when it can be programmed to create an improved version of itself. To self-replicate/pro-create. It will then be time to "Be afraid, be very very afraid"...
Credibility by mbstone · 2012-05-13 01:37 · Score: 1

Who is going to believe the output of a machine named FIBIAC?
1. Re:Credibility by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-13 07:58 · Score: 0
  
  It's made of 3d-printed leg bones, who wouldn't believe it?
One step closer by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-13 04:03 · Score: 0

to a 3d printer that will print a 3d printer.
Matrix? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-14 03:23 · Score: 0

Replication