ownClouder Jürgen presents remarkable replica of 400-year-old Schickard calculator at the Vintage Computer Festival Europa

We are thrilled to share that ownCloud Software Developer Juergen Weigert presented a fascinating self-constructed replica of a 400-year-old calculator (die Schickardsche Rechenmaschine or the Schickard Calculator)?at the Vintage Computer Festival Europa (VCFe) 2023 in Munich earlier this month.

The audience was taken on a journey through history and shown how technology has evolved to make complex calculations possible today with ease. This exceptional piece of history left attendees in awe and won Jürgen the Audience Choice award.

The VCF is an international event that originated in the USA and has fast gained popularity in Europe. The festival aims to celebrate the history of computing and promote the preservation of historic computers, and also offers the public the chance to view and experience antique machines firsthand.

Jürgen, tell us a little about the original Schickard calculator.

Jürgen: The Schickard Calculator, named after its inventor Wilhelm Schikard, can be traced back to 1623, marking 2023 as its 400th anniversary. It uses a toothed-wheel system to carry out addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. His invention remained unknown for hundreds of years but now is widely regarded as the ancestor of calculators known today.

We would love to know more about the replica you built.

Jürgen: My machine is open source hardware design, I wanted to make it as simple as possible to rebuild and repair the machine. It is meant to be in active use at exhibitions, fairs, schools and museums. It is built from 3 mm plywood. If anything breaks, spare parts are available wherever a laser cutter can be found (your nearest hackerspace, school, or Fablab). The machine is fully functional. The source SVG files and some building instructions can be found here.

Fascinating! What inspired you to take up this project?

Jürgen: I am an active member of the association Fab Lab Region Nürnberg, an open workshop. Finding the laser cutter in our local Fablab was a real eye-opener for me. This machine cuts plywood boards more quickly and much more precisely than I could ever do manually.

This project combined my hobby of woodworking, my computer skills and my deep interest in mechanical engineering and electronics. The drawings for the machine are done in Inkscape. Along the process, I created several Inkscape extensions (written in Python), which are helpful in constructing such complex machines. Of course, it is my pleasure to share all of this with the community.

Congratulations, Jürgen, for this well-deserved recognition. We would surely look forward to your future endeavors. Good luck!