# How the ENIAC Computer Processes Data Using Electronic Pulses

> A foundational 1964 patent describing how the ENIAC computer used sequences of electronic pulses to store, read, and process numerical and qualitative data.

- **Patent:** US 3120606
- **Original title:** Electronic numerical integrator and computer
- **Owner:** Sperry Rand Corp
- **Granted:** 1964
- **Status:** Public domain (expired)
- **Times cited:** 16
- **Field:** semiconductors, mechanical

## What it does

The patent describes a system that uses electronic pulses to represent information. It generates sequences of pulses and divides them into groups. Some pulses are selected to represent quantitative values (the numbers being calculated), while others represent qualitative values (the instructions or commands for what to do with those numbers). The system reads this data, stores it, and then uses the qualitative pulses to trigger specific switching operations that act upon the quantitative values.

## What it does NOT cover

- Does not cover modern binary computing architectures using transistors or silicon chips.
- Does not cover software-based programming methods stored on magnetic or solid-state memory.
- Does not cover general-purpose computers that do not rely on this specific pulse-sequencing hardware architecture.

## The clever bit

It treats information as a series of electronic pulses where the timing and selection of the pulse determines whether the computer is 'thinking' (qualitative) or 'calculating' (quantitative).

## Real-world examples

1. ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer)

## Why it matters

This patent represents the core logic of the ENIAC, one of the world's first general-purpose electronic digital computers. It marked the transition from mechanical calculation to electronic processing, fundamentally changing how humanity approaches complex mathematics and logistics.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does How the ENIAC Computer Processes Data Using Electronic Pulses cover?

A foundational 1964 patent describing how the ENIAC computer used sequences of electronic pulses to store, read, and process numerical and qualitative data.

### Who owns patent US 3120606?

Sperry Rand Corp owns this patent, granted in 1964.

### When does this patent expire?

This patent has expired and is now in the public domain — anyone can use the invention freely.

### What is patent US 3120606 cited by?

This patent has been cited by 16 later patents that build on its ideas.

### What problem does this patent solve?

This patent represents the core logic of the ENIAC, one of the world's first general-purpose electronic digital computers. It marked the transition from mechanical calculation to electronic processing, fundamentally changing how humanity approaches complex mathematics and logistics.

### What does this patent NOT cover?

Does not cover modern binary computing architectures using transistors or silicon chips.

**Full plain-English explainer:** https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/3120606/eniac-electronic-computer

**Original patent:** https://patents.google.com/patent/US3120606

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_Source: PatentBrief — https://patentbrief.org. Patent facts are from public records; the plain-English explanation is PatentBrief's._


## Related patents

Semantically similar inventions in the PatentBrief corpus:

- [How Alan Turing Designed Early Computer Memory Systems](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/2799449/turing-computer-data-storage) — A 1951 patent by Alan Turing and colleagues describing methods for moving data between different storage types in early digital computers.
- [How Wang An Invented the Magnetic Pulse Memory Core](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/2708722/magnetic-core-memory-wang) — A 1949 invention by An Wang that used magnetic cores to store and transfer binary data, forming the backbone of early computer memory.
- [How Early Hard Disk Drives Accessed Data Quickly](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/3503060/hard-disk-drive) — A 1970 patent detailing a mechanical system for moving read-write heads across magnetic disks to retrieve stored information rapidly.
- [The Invention of the Transistor](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/2524035/point-contact-transistor) — Bell Labs' 1950 patent for the point-contact transistor, the fundamental electronic component that makes all modern computing possible.
- [The Invention of the Modern Field-Effect Transistor](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/3102230/mosfet-field-effect-transistor) — This 1960 patent describes the fundamental structure of the MOSFET, the tiny electronic switch that powers every modern computer processor.