For more see the [[Site.KeplersLetters|extracts from the text of letters from Schickard to Kepler, sketches of mechanism, and notes to artisans constructing the final machine]]. For discussion of the question of whether Schickard or Pascal should be credited as the inventor of the calculator see [[Site.SchicardvsPascal|Schickard versus Pascal - an empty debate? ]].

For more see the [[Site.KeplersLetters|extracts from the text of letters from Schickard to Kepler, sketches of mechanism, and notes to artisans constructing the final machine]]. For discussion of the question of whether Schickard or Pascal should be credited as the inventor of the calculator see [[Site.SchicardvsPascal]].

For more see the [[Site.KeplersLetters|extracts from the text of letters from Schickard to Kepler, sketches of mechanism, and notes to artisans constructing the final machine]].

A caveat needs to be inserted that the Schickard drawing does not work when implemented as shown when a large number of carries must be done simultaneously (for example when 1 is to be added to 899999 to give 900000) because too much force is required to move all the wheels by the required amount at once.  A simple mechanical improvement can allow this to happen, but whether it was ever used on a Schickard machine, if one was actually ever constructed, remains a mystery.

This smoothly and fully working replica was constructed through a collaboration of three European public museums and one private museum, under the coordination of Reinhold Rehbein, and draws heavily also on the pioneering work of Baron Bruno v. Freytag[^For a brief biographical sketch of Baron Freytag see [[http://www.begriffslogik.de/personen/freytag.html]] (viewed 4 Jan 2012)^] who constructed the first replica in 1957.  (This replica shares with the Schickard drawing the problem of not being able to cope with long simultaneous carries.) A well structured set of instructions on the use of the Schickard calculator can be found in an article by Friedrich W. Kisterman.[^Friedrich W. Kisterman, "How to use the Schickard calculator", //IEEE Annals of the History of Computing//, January–March 2001, pp. 80-85.^]

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Wilhelm Schickard (1592-1635),[^For a short biography of Schickard see http://history-computer.com/People/SchickardBio.html (viewed 4 Jan 2012^] a German mathematician and clergyman, designed and built a device which could add, subtract, multiply and divide which he called the "calculator-clock."[^For more on the Schickard see for example, [[http://history-computer.com/MechanicalCalculators/Pioneers/Schickard.html]] (viewed 3 Jan 2012).^]  The machine was based on the newly invented "Napier's Rods" which in a particularly efficient form constitute the vertical section of the machine.  The approach appears to anticipate the embodiment of Napier's rods developed by Gaspar Schott who in 1668 turned the rods into cylinders and fixed them in a box ("cistula") so that the right one could be made visible simply with a turn of the knob.  A similar cistula, in Schickard's machine, is  mounted above an adding machine based on interconnected gear wheels.

||border=0 width=80%
||  %width=300px% http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/SchickardSketch.jpg||  %width=300px%  http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/Schickard1.jpg||
||  Original sketch by Schickard ~1623[^Max Caspar, in his research into the Kepler archives in the Pulkovo Observatory (near St Petersburg, Russia) found a slip of paper in Kepler's Rudolphine Tables which appeared to have been used as a book mark, but containing Schickard's original drawings for his "Calculating Clock" in a letter to Kepler. Somewhat after Dr Franz Hammer whilst carrying out research in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek (Stuttgart, Germany)found a sketch of the machine together with instructions (reproduced here).^] ||  Reconstruction from Schickard's descriptions (Collection Calculant) ||
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||  %width=300px% http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/Schickard2.jpg ||  %width=300px% http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/Schickard3.jpg||
|| Second sketch by Schickard[^found by Dr Hamer in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek^] || Note by Schickard to artisans building his machine[^found by Dr Hamer in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek^] || 
 

||  Original sketch by Schickard ~1623[^Max Caspar, in his research into the Kepler archives in the Pulkovo Observatory (near St Petersburg, Russia) found a slip of paper in Kepler's Rudolphine Tables which appeared to have been used as a book mark, but containing Schickard's original drawings for his "Calculating Clock" in a letter to Kepler. Somewhat after Dr Franz Hammer whilst carrying out research in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek (Stuttgart, Germany)found a sketch of the machine together with instructions (reproduced here).^] ||  Reconstruction from Schickard's descriptions in this collection ||

Wilhelm Schickard (1592-1635),[^For a short biography of Schickard see http://history-computer.com/People/SchickardBio.html (viewed 4 Jan 2012^] a German mathematician and clergyman, designed and built a device which could add, subtract, multiply and divide which he called the "calculator-clock."[^For more on the Schickard see for example, [[http://history-computer.com/MechanicalCalculators/Pioneers/Schickard.html]] (viewed 3 Jan 2012).^]  The machine was based on the newly invented "Napier's Rods" which in a particularly efficient form constitute the vertical section of the machine.  This appears to be rather similar to the embodiment of Napier's rods developed by Gaspar Schott who in 1668 turned the rods into cylinders and fixed them in a box ("cistula") so that the right one could be got simply with a turn of the knob. To precisely such a cistula in Schickard's machine is  attached an adding machine based on interconnected gear wheels, which enabled also a "carry" between digits was designed and intergated into the base, along with a further register for storing numbers at intermediate stages in calculations. None of Schickard's devices have survived. However, various replicas have been constructed from the drawings and description left in a letter from Schickard to Keppler.  One replica is in this collection.

This smoothly and fully working replica was constructed through a collaboration of three European public museums and one private museum, under the coordination of Reinhold Rehbein, and draws heavily also on the pioneering work of Baron Bruno v. Freytag[^For a brief biographical sketch of Baron Freytag see [[http://www.begriffslogik.de/personen/freytag.html]] (viewed 4 Jan 2012)^] who constructed the first replica in 1957.  A fine set of instructions on the use of the Schickard calculator can be found in an article by Friedrich W. Kisterman.[^Friedrich W. Kisterman, "How to use the Schickard calculator", //IEEE Annals of the History of Computing//, January–March 2001, pp. 80-85.^]

||  Original sketch by Schickard ~1623[^Max Caspar, in his research into the Kepler archives in the Pulkovo Observatory (near St Petersburg, Russia) found a slip of paper in Kepler's Rudolphine Tables which appeared to have been used as a book mark, but containing Schickard's original drawings for his "Calculating Clock" in a letter to Kepler. Somewhat after Dr Franz Hammer whilst carrying out research in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek (Stuttgart, Germany)found a sketch of the machine together with instructions (reproduced here).^] ||  Replica based on Schickard's descriptions in this collection ||

||  Original sketch by Schickard ~1623[^Max Caspar, in his research into the Kepler archives in the Pulkovo Observatory (near St Petersburg, Russia) found a slip of paper in Kepler's Rudolphine Tables which appeared to have been used as a book mark, but containing Schickard's original drawings for his "Calculating Clock" in a letter to Kepler. Somewhat after Dr Franz Hammer whilst carrying out research in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek (Stuttgart, Germany)found a sketch of the machine together with instructions (reproduced here).^] ||  Replica in this collection ||

||  Original sketch by Schickard ~1623[^Max Caspar, in his research into the Kepler archives in the Pulkovo Observatory (near St Petersburg, Russia) found a slip of paper in Kepler's Rudolphine Tables which appeared to have been used as a book mark, but containing Schickard's original drawings for his "Calculating Clock" in a letter to Kepler. Somewhat after Dr Franz Hammer whilst carrying out research in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek (Stuttgart, Germany)found a sketch of the machine together with instructions (reproduced here).^] ||  Reproduction of Schickard's Calculating Clock in this collection ||

||  Original sketch by Schickard ~1623[^Max Caspar, in his research into the Kepler archives in the Pulkovo Observatory (near St Petersburg, Russia) found a slip of paper in Kepler's Rudolphine Tables which appeared to have been used as a book mark, but containing Schickard's original drawings for his "Calculating Clock" in a letter to Kepler. Somewhat after Dr Franz Hammer whilst carrying out research in the Württembergischen Landesbibliothek (Stuttgart, Germany)found a sketch of the machine together with instructions (reproduced here).^] ||  Reproduction of Schickard in collection ||