Deltar
[1] The Deltar was specifically designed and built to perform complex calculations necessary to predict tidal movements and the effects of interventions such as the construction of compartmentalisation dams in the Delta area of the Netherlands.
[3] The methodologies for solving differential equations of tidal motion were continuously researched and improved in the years after this, notably by J.P. Mazure,[4] H.J.
It remains a benchmark in the field of tidal calculation theory, and led to the award of the Conrad Medal by the Royal Netherlands Institute of Engineers to Dronkers in 1965.
[14] After the North Sea flood of 1953, the Deltacommissie (English: Delta Commission), led by A.G. Maris, the Director-General of Rijkswaterstaat, was established.
Although a Delta Plan had been conceived by van Veen before the flood, this event expedited the decision to progress it, with the Dutch coastline to be shortened by approximately 700 kilometres.
[17] Divided into multiple sections, each corresponding to a distinct part of the studied river system, the Deltar required initial configuration with precise values to simulate each segment accurately.
Inputs such as fluctuating tide levels and wind conditions, often encoded on punched tapes, were translated into electrical signals to drive the simulation.
[1][17][18] Each module of the Deltar represented water flow and levels at both ends of a river segment using electrical currents and voltages.
[1] A mechanical function generator, driven by a servomotor spindle, was integral to accurately modelling water behaviour in each river segment.
1. Analog river sections
2. Peripheral equipment ( Punched tape )
3. Operator controls
4. Measuring controls
5. Analog output (recorders)
6. Digital output (punched tape)
7. Design table (configuration of river setup)
8. Wind generator.
