HP Forum Archive 19

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Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #1 Posted by Michael de Estrada on 29 Apr 2009, 5:07 p.m. I saw this modified HP-67 for sale, and wondered if anyone knows what it is. There is some sort of connector on the back and a special keyboard template. Maybe it's some sort of equipment calibrator or tester? Any ideas? Custom HP 67

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #2 Posted by Dan Grelinger on 29 Apr 2009, 6:42 p.m., in response to message #1 by Michael de Estrada Probably a little more bland than that. Perhaps a power supply hack, or just a custom installed connector for a security cable.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #3 Posted by Jeff Davis on 29 Apr 2009, 7:39 p.m., in response to message #2 by Dan Grelinger Looks like someone was trying to use this as an auto phone dialer or something to use to test phone lines. The keyboard overlay shows the telephone letters. The connector on the back could connect to a telephone line???????

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #4 Posted by Martin Pinckney on 29 Apr 2009, 10:31 p.m., in response to message #3 by Jeff Davis Quote: The keyboard overlay shows the telephone letters. The connector on the back could connect to a telephone line??????? The letter assignments are not the same as standard telephone usage. Can't see enough of the connector to figure out what it is.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #5 Posted by Charles Oxford on 29 Apr 2009, 11:23 p.m., in response to message #3 by Jeff Davis the letters are color coded to the three shift keys yellow, blue and black. There would be a program to use those keys for text. most humbly, Charlie

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #6 Posted by Klaus on 30 Apr 2009, 9:46 a.m., in response to message #2 by Dan Grelinger If it is a power supply hack, maybe a "phase box" for synthetic programming was connected to it?

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #7 Posted by Dave Britten on 30 Apr 2009, 7:36 a.m., in response to message #1 by Michael de Estrada The overlay says "BENDIX" on it. Apparently they supply air brake systems for commercial vehicles. A google search of the part number (3602332-0001) yields a handful of hits that appear to be aircraft part lists. Interesting. The connector looks like it's threaded, but I'm guessing it's too small to be a coax F-connector.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #8 Posted by Randy on 30 Apr 2009, 11:35 a.m., in response to message #7 by Dave Britten Quote: Apparently they supply air brake systems for commercial vehicles Among other things... once upon a time, Bendix was also in the avionics business.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #9 Posted by Maximilian Hohmann on 30 Apr 2009, 12:51 p.m., in response to message #8 by Randy Hello! Quote: Among other things... once upon a time, Bendix was also in the avionics business. They still are in the business, they even keep their name, but they belong to Honeywell since many years (http://www.bendixking.com). I use their products at work every day. What that HP-67 could have been used for, I have no idea. Without the proper magnetic cards, this whole modified thing is useless anyway. Greetings, Max

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #10 Posted by Martin Pinckney on 30 Apr 2009, 1:06 p.m., in response to message #8 by Randy My mother had a Bendix clothes washer when I was little!

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #11 Posted by Steve Leibson on 30 Apr 2009, 11:14 p.m., in response to message #7 by Dave Britten Bendix also made a famous line of high-end electronic connectors favored by mil/aero contractors.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #12 Posted by Michael de Estrada on 1 May 2009, 12:25 a.m., in response to message #11 by Steve Leibson OK, guys. I asked the seller to post a photo of the connector, so here it is: 7-pin connector I remember seeing some mil-spec Amphenol connectors that looked like this. Usually used for data transmission between a computer and a controller. The Hp 67 would be the computer in this case.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #13 Posted by Katie Wasserman on 1 May 2009, 2:26 a.m., in response to message #12 by Michael de Estrada Goggling the Bendix part number, 3602332-0001, hits several military and aviation surplus dealers. One lists this as a "PLACARD" so apparently this was just the part number for the overlay. That sounds like a *very* military term to me. I'll bet that this is puppy is a Combat Model HP-67 Who knew that our beloved collectibles were used for such horrible purposes.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #14 Posted by Mike Morrow on 1 May 2009, 9:06 a.m., in response to message #13 by Katie Wasserman Quote: I'll bet that this is puppy is a Combat Model HP-67 Who knew that our beloved collectibles were used for such horrible purposes. I'm sure the "horrible" attribution must be whimsical. The cited abstract is interesting, and its date of July 1977 is very close to the time that the HP-67 was making it to the street in quantity. But...doesn't the unit on auction have a 1980 serial number, making it one of the last units off the HP-67 assembly line? I programmed an HP-67 for a fair number of calculations supporting operation of a ballistic missile submarine (magnificent machines and technology!) about that time. That worked so well that soon a government-purchased HP-97 replaced my personal HP-67. Support of defense is honorable use of our "beloved" machines.

Re: Customized HP-67, What is it? Message #15 Posted by Juan J on 1 May 2009, 9:01 p.m., in response to message #14 by Mike Morrow Quote: Support of defense is honorable use of our "beloved" machines. Hello, And part of a sort of tradition, too. From the Norden bomber computer and the artillery tables calculated with the first computers in World War II to the F-22 Raptor Common Data Processor, calculators and computers have played an important role in defense and weapons systems. Bomber crews and artillery gunners, to name two examples, have to perform a lot of calculations to get on target and hit it with their ammunition. There is not much space for thick data tables, and a compact device that replaces them is a welcome addition to their equipment. My two cents. JuanJ

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