Array Automata

Abstract

The idea that two-dimensional data arrays could be processed by matching arrays of computers was first introduced by von Neumann (1951). It was not until the paper by Unger (1958) that it was seriously proposed to construct such an array. Unger proposed using simple one-bit computers (processing elements) and, although Unger’s work inspired many subsequent proposals (e.g., McCormick, 1963), it took some fifteen years for technology to develop to the point where array construction was an economic proposition.