[SIGCIS-Members] A paper on Konrad Zuse and Percy Ludgate

[Brian Berg]

This is absolutely fascinating.  Many thanks to Brian Randell for
positing this!
_________________________
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On Thu, Mar 28, 2024 at 3:25 AM Brian Randell via Members <
members at lists.sigcis.org> wrote:

> Dear SIGCIS:
>
>
>
> I trust I might be permitted to publicise here the fact that the paper:
>
>
>
>                 "How Percy Ludgate’s 1909 paper (and IBM) helped thwart
> Konrad Zuse’s Computer Patent in 1960"
>
>
>
> by Brian Coghlan, Ralf Buelow and myself has been accepted for publication
> in the IEEE Annals of the History of Computing. It is due to appear in
> Volume 46, Issue 3, July-September 2024.
>
>
>
> Paper Abstract:
>
>
>
> "This investigation outlines how Percy Ludgate’s 1909 paper describing his
> design for a mechanical computer, his “Analytical Machine”, was used in
> 1960 by a German patent attorney to thwart Konrad Zuse’s computer patent,
> just in time, as the patent (first applied for on 16th June 1941), was
> about to be granted. This narrative is then followed by analyses of, and
> discovery of proof of, the role of IBM in preventing Zuse from getting what
> would have been the premier patent on the concept of a programmable
> computer, and then by an exploration of how information about Ludgate’s
> 1909 paper was found by (or for) the opposing German patent attorney."
>
>
>
> The accepted paper is available online at:
>
>
> https://www.scss.tcd.ie/SCSSTreasuresCatalog/ludgate/lnk131.html
>
> In addition, English translations of all the relevant Zuse patent
> litigation documents are provided onlne (side-by-side with transcriptions
> of the German originals from the ZIB.de Zuse Archive file as interleaved
> PDF documents), together with a large number of other supporting documents,
> at:
>
>
> https://www.scss.tcd.ie/SCSSTreasuresCatalog/ludgate/lnk610.html
>
>
>
> Quoting from our paper's Concluding Remarks:
>
> "The very fact that Ludgate’s 1909 paper on his Analytical Machine was
> employed to thwart Zuse’s attempt to patent the computer refutes the
> prevalent assumption that Ludgate had no influence on modern computing, and
> that his work is just of historical interest. Whatever the scale of their
> influence, patents can impact the commercial activities in the sector they
> apply to. Hence Ludgate’s paper clearly did have a potential influence on
> the commercial future of computers, even if his work was unknown to the
> developers of the early electronic computers. However, we have deliberately
> avoided speculating on the types or the extent of the possible commercial
> consequences, either to Zuse’s company, or to the rest of the computer
> industry, of the thwarting of Zuse’s attempts to obtain what would have
> been the first patent on a programmable computer."
>
>
>
> We would however be interested to receive informed comments on this issue,
> and also suggestions as to any further avenues we might pursue in
> attempting to identify exactly how information on Ludgate's work reached
> the opposing patent attorney.
>
>
>
> Cheers
>
>
>
> Brian Randell
>
>
>
>
>
> —
>
>
>
> School of Computing, Newcastle University, 1 Science Square, Newcastle
> upon Tyne, NE4 5TG
>
> EMAIL = Brian.Randell at ncl.ac.uk   PHONE = +44 191 208 7923
>
> URL =  https://www.ncl.ac.uk/computing/staff/profile/brianrandell.html
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