Film optical sensing device processes information for input to computers

An instrument that provides rapid, automatic processing of information into a form suitable for direct input to large-scale electronic computers has been developed by M. L. Greenough, H. D. Cook, M. Martens, and associates of the National Bureau of Standards(NBS)at there quest of the Bureau of the Census. Named FOSDIC(Film Optical Sensing Device for Input to Computers), the machine reads marks on microfilmed copies of documents that have been marked with an ordinary pencil or pen, and then processes the information into electric pulses which are recorded on magnetic tape for direct input to an electronic computer such as the Census Univac. FOSDIC is designed to reduce the work that now is involved in converting written records into a medium acceptable as input by data-processing machines. This is particularly true since FOSDIC allows considerable freedom in design of the documents and does not require the use of any special writing instrument.