Company:Digico Limited

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Digico Limited
IndustryComputer hardware
Founded1965
FoundersKeith Trickett and Avo Hiiemae
Headquarters
Stevenage
,
United Kingdom
Key people
Eric Lubbock (chairman)
Productsdata loggers, minicomputers

Digico was a British computer company founded in 1965 by Keith Trickett and Avo Hiiemae, two ex-ICL electronics engineers. Former MP Eric Lubbock was chairman from 1969 to 1983.[1] The company was based in Letchworth initially, moving to a new factory in Stevenage in 1973[2] and employing about 90 staff.[3]

Digico's first product was a laboratory data-logging and spectrum analyser hardware system named DIGIAC. This product had been developed before Digico was formed, so was an immediate source of income.[1] Digico soon developed a 16-bit minicomputer series, the Micro 16, for which it was best known for.[4]

Circa 1982, Digico started manufacturing a networked CP/M based microcomputer system with business software options, named Digico Prince.

Digico Micro 16

Digico quickly started developing a general purpose 16-bit minicomputer, the Micro 16, which became available in 1966. Digico was assisted by the Ministry of Technology and the National Research Development Corporation in this development.[1][2][5] The first version produced was the Digico Micro 16S (1968), followed by the 16P (1970), then the 16V in 1972.[4][6]

Example applications
available for Micro 16V[7]
Animal feed mix control
Car park control
Census analysis
Electroencephalography
Gas chromatography
ICL 1900 front ending
Invoicing
Machine tool control
Mass spectrometry
Stock control
Typesetting

The Digico Micro 16V had a standard memory of 4k words with 950 nano second cycle time, expandable to 64k words, and able to support up to 64 external interfaces. It had an optional microprogrammed floating-point unit.[7] The Micro 16V was supported by a simple and flexibly sized executive that could optionally support multiprogramming, disc files and teletypes.[8] The Micro 16V used semiconductor memory, rather than magnetic-core memory as in the previous models.[9]

The instruction set architecture is single accumulator based with instructions generally having a consistent 12-bit address field. A direct address thus limits memory size to 4k (4096) words in the current selected memory region, named a "stack". Three instructions (load, store, add) permit indirect addressing where the direct address contains the 16-bit address of the operand. A carry register supports multi-word arithmetic; there is no integer multiply or divide instruction. One instruction uses the address field to specify a variety of non-addressing sub-instructions such as shift, carry manipulation and input-output. Floating-point arithmetic is handled by software or an optional floating-point unit with its own registers that can work in 32, 48 or 80-bit modes.[7]

Digico primarily sold into the data logging market until 1969, when it expanded into areas like process control, stock control and front-end processors for the ICL 1900 mainframe.[1][10] In 1974 Digico had a turnover of over £1 million (equivalent to £10 million in 2023) and in 1977 well over £1 million.[11][12]

In 1978 the Digico Micro 16E stackable minicomputer, which was well suited to an office environment, won a Design Council Award for Engineering Products.[13][14]

Digico Prince

Circa 1982, Digico started manufacturing a CP/M based microcomputer with business software options, named Digico Prince, with a unique seven year maintenance guarantee.[15][16]

A more sophisticated multi-user Digico Prince II system was also available. The Digico 3800 user terminal had three Zilog Z80A processors, 64 kilo-bytes of memory and optionally two floppy disk drives. Up to three Digico 3800s could be connected to a 3810, 3820 or 3830 master workstation with a shared 5 MB Winchester disk drive. Up to 32 of these clusters could further be connected locally or remotely to a Digico 7800 server based on a Digico Micro 16E, providing more shared disc capacity and remote access to IBM, ICL and Honeywell mainframe computers.[17]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Hamilton, Ross (June 1997). Continuous Path: The Evolution of ProcesControl Technologies in Post-War Britain (PDF). Department of Computer Science (Thesis). University of Warwick. pp. 116, 120, 126. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Rugged simplicity pays off in mini computer sales". New Scientist: p. 342. 10 May 1973. https://books.google.com/books?id=0Nkt3JecB1IC. Retrieved 7 April 2019. 
  3. ↑ "About Digico". digico working group. http://digico-computers.com/about.htm. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Digico Hardware". digico working group. http://digico-computers.com/hardware.htm. 
  5. ↑ "NRDC backs low-cost computer". Electronics & Power 14 (2): 81. February 1968. doi:10.1049/ep.1968.0080. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/5176981. Retrieved 23 July 2020. 
  6. ↑ Searle, Nigel (20 September 1973). "Computer problem-solver". New Scientist: p. 702. https://books.google.com/books?id=IHnPv1wTBKIC&pg=PA702. Retrieved 7 April 2019. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 micro 16v computer manual (Report). Digico Limited. Archived from the original on 3 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190403205018/http://rabbit.eng.miami.edu/class/een521/16vmanual.pdf. Retrieved 6 April 2019. 
  8. ↑ (pdf) Digico Micro 16V Executive data sheet (Report). Digico Limited. SA-5301-0-1. http://www.computinghistory.org.uk/downloads/24973. Retrieved 6 April 2019. 
  9. ↑ "Current Projects". digico working group. Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130821101127/http://digico-computers.com/projects.htm. 
  10. ↑ "Small machine at the front". New Scientist: p. 688. 23 September 1971. https://books.google.com/books?id=YyIBV1ZqaiAC. Retrieved 9 April 2019. 
  11. ↑ "Minicomputer manufacturers in Britain". New Scientist. 6 June 1974. p. 602. https://books.google.com/books?id=HH2rKM_GWVEC&pg=PA602. Retrieved 14 April 2019. 
  12. ↑ Eiloart, Tim (2 February 1978). "Progress chaser". New Scientist: p. 292. https://books.google.com/books?id=5RHTCiRgnB0C&pg=PA292. Retrieved 7 April 2019. 
  13. ↑ "Micro 16E". Design Council Slide Collection. 1978. https://www.vads.ac.uk/digital/collection/DCSC/id/11845/. Retrieved 1 January 2026. 
  14. ↑ "search - Micro 16E". Design Council Slide Collection. 1978. https://www.vads.ac.uk/digital/collection/DCSC/search/searchterm/Micro%2016E. Retrieved 1 January 2026. 
  15. ↑ "The Prince — a micro computer that offers you everything". Personal Computer World 5 (3): 79. March 1982. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Personal-Computer-World/80s/PCW-1982-03-S-OCR.pdf. Retrieved 1 January 2026. 
  16. ↑ "Digico 16V Computer Manuals". http://www.vintage-icl-computers.com/icl2v. 
  17. ↑ "Multimicro Might". International/OEM Edition (Datamation): pp. 176·35–176·36. February 1983. https://bitsavers.trailing-edge.com/magazines/Datamation/198302.pdf. 




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