Architecture and Simulation of the Z1 Computer

Sketches of Z1

Full Computer Architecture of the Z1

Z1 Adder Simulation

Z1 ALU Simulation

Blueprints for the reconstruction of the Z1

The Z1 consisted of approximately 30,000 metallic parts. Zuse and his assistants created many diagrams that defined the dimensions of each component and provided instructions for producing them for the Z1's reconstruction. In the Konrad Zuse Internet Archive Repository, you can find the Z1 blueprints that Zuse created from 1987 to 1989.

·Die Prozessorarchitektur der Rechenmaschine Z1

Paper: Full Computer Architecture of the Z1

This paper by Professor Raúl Rojas was the first to provide a comprehensive description of the Z1, which was built by Konrad Zuse in Berlin from 1936 to 1938. It describes the machine's main structural elements, high-level architecture, and data flow between components. The information was extracted from a careful study of the blueprints that Zuse drew for the reconstruction of the Z1 for the German Technology Museum in Berlin, as well as from letters and sketches in notebooks.

First 3D simulation of the Z1 adder

Second 3D simulation of the Z1 adder

The Z1 consisted of various functional units, including the input, output, memory, and addition units. Each one was built for a specific purpose and was interconnected to the others. This interactive 3D simulation by Jakob Mischek illustrates how the Z1 adder works. Users can perform calculations by entering binary numbers and observe how the mechanism works, with transitions emphasized by color highlighting. The simulation is based on Konrad Zuse's original patent diagrams.

Simulation of the Z1 processor

This simulation by Oleg Sergin helps users understand and visualize the microprogram and data flow of the Z1 processor. Complete understanding requires interactive experimentation. This simulation makes the executable microprogram visible and gives you control over microinstructions and individual bits. You can test your own sequences of Z1 instructions. Click the question mark button on the simulation screen for detailed instructions and a list of sources.

360° Object Panorama

360° object panorama of the Z1 reconstruction

The Z1 was destroyed during WWII and that is why Konrad Zuse reconstructed the computer to be exhibited in the Deutsches Technikmuseum (German Museum of Technology). Here you can get a detailed look at this machine by a 360° object panorama. You can move around the machine, view at it from different heights and zoom in to the see the different elements of each functional unit.

(Flash version not operational at the moment.)

This project was supported by: