DATAMATH  CALCULATOR  MUSEUM

Canon F-6

Date of introduction:  1975 Display technology:  Fluorescent
New price:   Display size:  8
Size:  6.5" x 3.3" x 1.25"
 164 x 84 x 32 mm3
    
Weight:  6.2 ounces, 176 grams Serial No:  517382
Batteries:  3*AA Date of manufacture:  year 1975
AC-Adapter:  AD-1 Origin of manufacture:  Japan
Precision:  8  Integrated circuits:  Hitachi HD3699
Memories:  1    
Program steps:   Courtesy of:  Joerg Woerner

The Palmtronic F-6 continued the scientific line of calculators sold by Canon. It is the direct successor of the F-5 and uses again a "TI-less" calculator brain. The major design in the housing was continued with calculators like the F-2, LD-10M, Palmtronic F-31 and LC-8M.

The top of the scientific calculators sold mid of the 1970's was the desktop series Canola F-10 and Canola F-11. Both used again a calculator architecture developed by Hitachi.

Later scientific calculators like the Palmtronic F-51 and Palmtronic F-71 missed again the TI brain. Don't miss the Toshiba SC-7100, a direct competitor of the F-6.

Running Mike Sebastian's "Calculator forensics" gives an unacceptable bad result of 12.199423 instead the expected value close to 9.0000. But even Texas Instruments failed one time with their algorithm, don't miss the rare SR-40 prototype. 

Another known side effect of the poor algorithm of the Hitachi calculator chips could be discovered with the unusual [ax] key:

Keystrokes

Results

[3] [ax] [3] [=] 26.999956

Rockwell uses - like most other companies - the equation:
ln(ax) = x * ln(a) to calculate the xth power of a.

It is easy to proove:

Keystrokes

Results

[3] [F] [ln] 1.0986119
[*] [3] [=] 3.2958357
[F] [ex] 26.999952



If you have additions to the above article please email: joerg@datamath.org.

© Joerg Woerner, January 11, 2002. No reprints without written permission.