analog computer

A device that performs operations on data that are represented within the device by continuous variables having a physical resemblance to the quantities being represented. Note: The earliest analog computers were constructed with purely mechanical components, such as levers, cogs, cams, discs, and gears. These components represented the quantities being manipulated or the operator-inserted values. Modern analog computers usually employ electrical parameters, such as voltages, resistances, or currents to represent the quantities being manipulated.