Apollo Comms Part 9: Mystery Up-Data Link Test Set

Marcel rescued a mystery box from the scrapper. Says "Up-Data" on it, we think it's from the Apollo program. Can Master Ken figure out what it is?

More videos on the Apollo Up-data box:

Fran's video on the edge-lit display:

Links to doc:

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00:00 Recap of previous episodes
01:12 How Marcel found the up-data box
02:29 Ken's overall functional description
04:15 Edge illuminated displays
05:23 Mysterious Motorola modules
06:52 Missing components
08:10 Initial power up attempts
10:05 Repairing the paper tape reader
12:11 Tally tape reader demo
13:26 First instrumented tests
16:23 We are missing a clock
18:30 Control tape encoding scheme
20:12 First tape reads
23:05 Reading in the correct digits!
25:10 Next steps

[MichaelEhling]

I love that you can reverse engineer such an obscure piece of kit.

[the_jcbone]

I guess there should be a 60ies computer room in the Smithsonian, where all the Apollo gear should be assembled in working condition. Including a CM in another hall, communicating back and forth. Well…

[lerkzor]

Such a shame that all that hardware software and documentation was not more carefully curated. MASSIVE thumbs-up to you and the team for resurrecting this old technology.

[rkirke]

Picard: Any findings on the box from Earth?
Data: Yes - Based on the construction and label, I've determined it was from early Earth space mission called Apollo and was used for updata.
Picard: What's updata?
Data: Not much captain, and you? *finger guns*
Picard: *face palm*

[klaasklapsigaar]

I love it when Ken explains stuff. Always straight to the point and a crystal clear argumentation. 👌

[pnjunction]

You have an incredible team! I'd love to see a special series with Master Ken explaining how to reverse engineer any unknown circuit (with elevator background music, of course).

[StringerNews]

Outstanding! When I was a boy around the time of Apollo, I remember flying to visit relatives in Texas, on a flight that stopped in Wichita KS. Many of the coach class passengers were young men with white shirts and skinny black ties, with carry-on items of HP portable oscilloscopes and IBM "Winchester" removable disk packs. Obviously they were aerospace engineers traveling between places where the big mainframe computers were and the factories in Wichita. No doubt some of them were working for contractors that were working on the moon shot. The general public never saw the actual hardware that made Apollo work, and with good reason.

For most of us, the idea that ground-based computers could communicate over phone lines was still science fiction, and the idea of doing it over a quarter-million miles of empty space was a bridge too far. But that's what was happening, and no doubt the Russians would have loved to get their hands on it. And in fact the Russians often did get their hands on US high-tech information because it was published in magazines. It was said that being a Russian spy was easy because of that. And we in the Free World were proud of that fact because the ideas kept coming faster than any closed society could hope to decode them.

[LMacNeill]

Give Ken long enough and he'll reverse-engineer the entire Apollo program. ;-) Marc, Ken, Mike, and Marcel will all be broadcasting from the Moon in 10 years or so. LOL.

[LiveeviL]

That is just absolutely incredible what you all are able to do. By far the most interesting channel of all!

[cairsahrstjoseph]

Fascinating to see these old systems operating again.

[bensharp]

It was amazing for me to watch this series, sir. I was just 8 to 14 years old during the Apollo missions. Thinking back about how brief that period was in history. In that time, my big brother, a licensed amateur radio operator (as am. I. now) who BUILT ALL of his equipment from. HEATHKITS in high school shop, was then a Green Beret senior staff sergeant, electronics & Comms specialist, on his 2nd and 3rd combat tours to Vietnam. (He went MIA, assumed Kia in January 69 Tet offensive, before Armstrong set foot on the moon that summer). We exchanged extensive letters during that period on what the astronauts were talking about in the Comms technical side (yes, I was a nerd!).
Watching your breakdown and rebuild series brought back so many wonderful memories so much that I had to go dig out those old letters and re-read them.
Thank you SO much for doing this series because now I know what he was trying to explain to me about IC's. I had no clue what they were. (HE was still working with Army equipment using transistors and TUBES!). Integrated Circuits Were just then coming into vogue with the military, so we had to come up with "code wording" to talk about them because any mention of them of equipment using them would be censored as top secret!
I am totally fascinated with old and antique communication equipment, although I don't have the skills (yet) to build out much of this old equipment, the few projects I have completed all have worked fabulously and I have worked the frequencies "old school" on much of it. I would LOVE to go back and get an electronic engineering degree NOW.
AGAIN, Thank You so much for doing this series!

[deathcard]

Ken is a Legend. He deserves a statue.

[SkyOctopus]

A big rubber mallet and some pipe-fitter's pliers on the table too. For when subtlety runs out.
Congrats guys, you have intimidated it back into working order.

[srfrg]

Amazing salvation job. You are saving an entire area of technology history. A most important one.

[jackflash]

So when VGER returns to earth, we'll be able to talk to it?

You guys never cease to amaze me with your abilities and determination.
Highly impressed and actually, jealous.

[your_utube]

I am truly amazed at the expertise and sheer camaraderie displayed here. This is one of the most remarkable channels here on YT. Curious Marc is living the dream and his dream team with him. Thanks for great content and your drive to share this remarkable journey with us. cannot thank you enough. I became 4 in 1969 having been born on 1st Aug 1965, so this is like a glance back to a time when I was just a baby and this is after all part of world history.

[FHDK]

Marc, Mike, Ken, Eric, all together form a "dream team" about vintage high tech electronics reverse-engineering !
All these skills grouped together, that is quite impressive. And the team grows up regularly.
I would love to see, in a near future, an RF transmission to (and from?) a real AGC, with these equipments! This would be a great achievement.

[jimcompton]

There used to be an electronics surplus / recycler on US 1 in Cocoa Florida. When I'd visit my father in law down there I would stop in. Thay had alot of this type of equipment in the late 70's early 80's. I did't buy much give I would have to get it back to the Chicago area. But this Apollo series brings back loads of memories.

[elioboezio]

My jaw drops - literally and repeatedly - as I watch you guys work!

[kingofbrutaltheocracy]

If these guys had a serious budget...they would be in space. Nice job saving history.