Digital Test Equipment: Flip-Flop And Clock

This digital test equipment consists of a type 202 flip-flop and type 403 clock. The static flip-flop has built-in output amplifiers, an indicator, a source for counting carry pulses, a complement input, and two transistor gates. Delay is 60 mµsec. This unit also can be used for all general purpose logical operations. The highly stable crystal clock produces a 40-mµsec, 2.5-v pulse every 100 mµsec. This output can be used to drive the flip-flop, as a time pulse distributor, or in other logical applications. Both units have graphic front panels and patchcord logical interconnections. Digital Equipment Corp., Maynard, Mass. (Electronic Design, May 11, 1960, p. 125)

The early digital modules from DEC were intended for engineering or scientific test setups. They were later joined by system modules which formed the basis for the company's first minicomputer. The PDP-1 was introduced later in 1960. DEC, or Digital, eventually grew into the giant minicomputer manufacturer that dominated the field during the '60s and '70s. The series stumbled, though, when the personal-computer era dawned and eventually Compaq Computer acquired DEC.