You are seeing our new document Reader view. Click here to revert. Feel free to leave us feedback on this feature here.

Embed Doc
Copy Link
Readcast
Collections

CommentGo Back

The Ln scale

Robert Adams

1 Introduction

Earlier in this International Meeting a paper by Richard Hughes has introduced a number of rulesfor electronic calculations. Many of the scales are alien to slide rule collectors and are purely forimpedance and resonance calculations within electronic and electrical circuits.One scale that appears only on Pickett & Eckel, USA (Pickett) slide rules deserves closerinspection. It was one of the scales that went to the Moon as part of the Pickett 600 models

Ref 3

.The scale is useful and can be used in many areas of mathematics, physics and engineering. Whyit was not common on slide rules remains an interesting question. The answer lies, I think, in acurious mix of patent protection, ingrained manufacturing systems and a lack of promotion.The scale I am referring to is the Ln scale, which is a linear scale, used along with the C and Dscales for finding natural (base e) logarithms and exponentials.The following partial scan of a Pickett 515T shows the Ln scale at the bottom of the body.

Figure 1- Pickett N-515-T

Aluminium 308 x 38 x 2.5 mm open frame single line cursor (1965)

2 Log Scales

There are a number of scales on common slide rules that are called “log” scales.For instance there is the L scale, a linear scale, used along with the C and D scales for findingbase-10 logarithms and powers of 10.And then there are the LL scales commonly called log-log scales. These are exponential powerscales used for raising any number to a power (the range would normally be from about 0.00005 to20,000).The LL scales are useful for power calculations that are more complicated than basic squares andcubes, provided by the A, B and K scales. They also allow raising of non-integer numbers to non-

integer powers. Another important use of the LL scales is for the calculation of

in hyperbolicfunctions.

The third example of a log scale is the

Ln scale

3 What then is the Ln scale?

The Ln scale (the subject of this paper) is a linear scale, similar to the L scale, providing thenatural logarithm of numbers from 1 to 10 when used with the C and the D scale.Note that the Ln scales provide natural logarithms in the reverse fashion to the Log Log scales. Asa consequence using the Ln scale to find

will provide the answer on the D scale (or C scale if the Ln scale is on the slide). In either case this is a more convenient arrangement if multiplicationby

is required.

4 Invention of the Ln scale

The Ln scale was invented by a high school student, Stephen B. Cohen, in 1958. The originalintent was to allow the user to select an exponent

(in the range 0 to 2.3) on the Ln scale and reade

on the C (or D) scale and e

–

on the CI (or DI) scale. Pickett and Eckel were given exclusiverights to the scale in the early sixties. Later, Stephen Cohen created a set of "marks" on the Lnscale to extend the range beyond the 2.3 limit, but Pickett never incorporated these marks on anyof their slide rules.

4.1 Patent

It is probably simpler for me to cite the patent at this point. I cite the words from the Canadianpatent

CA 671991

(the only patent available to me at the time of writing)

which quotes theinventors as Maurice L. Hartung and Stephen B. Cohen (both citizens of the USA) and the ownersas Pickett and Eckel.The Canadian patent dates from 1963 whereas I believe the American patent extended from 1958.

“This invention relates to the a slide rule having an Ln-L scale arrangement for simplifying the use of a sliderule in computations involving the base e, reducing considerably the number of settings required incomparisons to the usual slide rule when this base is used.The present invention provides a slide rule including the combinations of coextensive logarithmic and linearscales in which for 10 divisions of said logarithmic scale there are 2.302585 + divisions of said linear scale,and a cursor movable along said scales and having a hairline against which they may be read enabling thedirect finding of powers of e and logarithms to the base e under the hairline of said cursor.A further object of the invention is to provide an Ln scale which is uniform or linear the same as a L scale,but bears relation to the L scale of the constant log e or 10 or 1 ÷ M = 2.302585 + for the full length of theLn scale compared to 1.0 for the full length of the L scale whereby the Ln scale may be used in problemsinvolving the base e in like manner as the L scale is used with problems involving the base 10.Another object is to provide an Ln scale which may be combined with out slide rule scales such as C and Dand bears relation to the C and D scales of the constant e or Naperian base (2.7182818 +1), and may alsobe combined with the CI and DI sales to find the powers of e, logarithms to the base, logarithms of properfractions, powers for negative exponents, and mantissas of logarithms by direct readings cross from the Lnan L scales to the C, D, CI and DI scales.

Another object is to provide a slide rule having Ln, L and C and / or D scales bearing the relationship perscale length in the following ratio:Ln = 2.302585 +L = 1.0C = 10.0D = 10.0 andWherein e of the C and D scales = 2.7182818 + and are coincident with 1 on the Ln scale, the values statedbeing more accurately identified as;2.302585092994045684017991454684 + and2.718281828459045235360287471353 + respectively,According to the MacMillan Logarithmic and Trigonometric Tables, Page 133.Still another object is to provide Ln and L scales of linear or uniform progression used in combination withother scales of logarithmic progression involving relative settings of the body and slide of the slide rulewhereby multiplication and division with powers, the logarithms of combined operations, the power of otherbases, and hyperbolic functions may be determined on a slide rule of our design.A further object is to provide a slide rule so scaled as to make possible combined operations with thepowers of e and logarithms to the base e, with the results accurate to three or four significant figures andreadable directly without the necessity of reading a value off one scale and then setting it on another one inorder to continue with another calculation. Thus a series of calculations involving the base e may beperformed without the use of a log log scale and without the necessity of reading off intermediate valuesand resetting scales, the final result only being directly read on the appropriate scale.Still a further object is to provide a slide rule having a scale for the base e capable of doing everything thatthe L scale does for the base 10.An additional object is to provide a scale for a slide rule which makes possible the reading of e to anyexponent between 0 and 2.3 directly on the C or D scale s of the rule, or e to any exponent between 0 and -2.3 directly on the CI or DI scales, as well as e to any power between 1 and 10 on the C or D scales, or e toany power between 1 and -0 on the CI or DI scales.Another additional object is to provide an Ln scale so related to all logarithmic scales of a slide rule thatproblems involving any logarithmic scale and the base w are greatly simplified , and particularly so incombined operations, in comparison with such problems when worked on a slide rule having no Ln scale.With these and other objects in view, our invention consists in the construction, arrangement andcombination of the various of our Ln-L scale slide rule, whereby the objects above contemplated areattained, as hereinafter moiré full set forth, pointed out in our claims and illustrated in detail on theaccompanying drawings…”

4.2 Instructions for the Use of the Ln scale

The instructions for the use of the Ln scale can be studied from numerous Pickett slide ruleinstruction manuals. The instructions for the use of guide marks however were never published byPickett and Eckel. To overcome this omission, the instructions have been transcribed and includedin the appendices to this paper. There are separate instructions, one for when the Ln scale is on thebody of the rule and another for when the Ln scale is on the slide.

4.3 Steve Cohen

I do not personally know Stephen Cohen and I have never seen a picture of Stephen. The followingis a compilation of a number of emails that may give an insight to the person that invented thisscale.

Email to the Slide Rule Forum,