【Oki Electric Industry】 OKIMINITAC Series

The OKIMINITAC5000, announced by Oki Electric industry in 1966 as a computer for office use, performed both real-time and batch processing for billing, and was capable of simultaneously processing different jobs with up to 8 OKITYPER typewriters. To achieve this functionality, the main memory unit was 16 kilobytes magnetic core, and sorting processing was done with a 67 kilobytes magnetic drum.

The OKIMINITAC500, which was marketed next in 1967, was capable of simultaneous and automatic calculation and making table generation, and the necessary data could be output to paper tape for linking with a large electronic computer or for transferring data. Processing procedures used a system which 10 types of instructions were combined, and stored in memory from a program board. The front panel of the OKIMINITAC500 was equipped with program select switch panel, for truncating up/down and rounding, a comma insertion, a constant/date, a constant dial, print digit dial and truncate digit dial. A program patch board was housed in the lower pocket, and by using these switches and the program patch board, we could to generate multiple bills together with the OKITYPER.

The OKIMINITAC710, which used the stored program system, was marketed in 1971, and was not limited to billing processing. It was used for a wide range of clerical tasks, including classification and tabulation. ICs were used throughout for arithmetic units, and the design was compact, housing the main unit in the bottom of the typewriter. The system also allowed for paper tape input/output, and was equipped with a numeric keypad. The memory unit stored 400 words, and the number of instructions was 32.