photograph - AUTOMAP 1 Production – Army Survey Regiment, Fortuna, Bendigo, c1980

Historical information

This collection of 20 photos was most likely taken in 1980. The AUTOMAP 1 computer assisted cartography and mapping system was introduced in 1975. The components of AUTOMAP 1 were the Input Sub-System of four Wild B8s stereoplotters and three Gradicon digitising tables, the Optical Line Following Sub-System – Gerber OLF, the Verification Sub-System – Gerber 1442 drum plotter, the General Purpose Sub-system – HP21MX computer and the Output Sub-System – Gerber 1232 flatbed plotter). The first map was published in 1978 (Strickland 3665-3, 1:50,000). AUTOMAP 1 was the first computer assisted cartography and mapping system utilised by the Survey Corps and was the first system used by Australian mapping organisations. The history of the AUTOMAP 1 system is covered in more detail with additional historic photographs, in pages 116-118 of Valerie Lovejoy’s book 'Mapmakers of Fortuna – A history of the Army Survey Regiment’ ISBN: 0-646-42120-4. See items 6410.24P, 6183.19P, 6184.20P, 6200.5P, and 6222.17P for additional photographs of the AUTOMAP 1 system.

Physical description

This is a set of 20 photographs of Air Survey Squadron military and civilian personnel operating AUTOMAP 1 equipment at the Army Survey Regiment at Fortuna, Bendigo, c1980.
The photographs were on 35mm negative film and were scanned at 96 dpi. They are part of the Army Survey Regiment’s Collection. Photos .19P and .20P are printed on photographic and scanned at 300 dpi.
.1) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber plotter.
.2) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber plotter, LT Rob John
.3) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gradicon edit table, SPR Jamie McRae
.4) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gradicon edit table, SPR Steve Linane
.5) - Photo, black & white, c1980, 1130 System administration, unidentified.
.6) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Wild B8 stereo plotter, SPR Van Dalen?
.7) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Wild B8 stereo plotter, SPR Van Dalen?
.8) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber Optical Line Follower (OLF).
.9) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber OLF.
.10) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber OLF.
.11) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber OLF.
.12) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber OLF.
.13) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Data management, CPL Greg Gilbert.
.14) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Data management, CPL Greg Gilbert.
.15) - Photo, black & white, c1980, 1130 Operating System administration, SGT Denis Marshall.
.16) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Programming System, L to R: unidentified, SGT Alan Toogood.
.17) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Programming System, L to R: Robert Cox, WO1 Bob Mason, John Dean.
.18) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Programming System, L to R: Robert Cox, WO1 Bob Mason, John Dean.
.19) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gradicon edit table, CPL Chris Carter.
.20) - Photo, black & white, c1980, Gerber plotter, LT Rob John.

Inscriptions & markings

.1P to .18P - No personnel are identified
.19P - ‘CPL Chris Carter’ annotated on back

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