Ole Jorgensen Creative Workshop Universal Circle Slide Rule

This black plastic instrument is shaped like a pencil cup. A fixed scale labeled x³ is near the rim, with four rotating parallel bands below it. The first band is white and has x and x² scales. The second band is gray and has two x scales. The third band is white and also has two x scales. The fourth band is gray and has an x² scale. The bands do not move very easily. The scales labeled x are logarithmically divided and run from 1 to 9.5 once (they are similar to the C and D scales on other slide rules). The scales labeled x² are divided logarithmically from 1 to 10 and then from 1 to 9, and are similar to the A and B scales on other slide rules. The scale labeled x³ is divided logarithmically from 1 to 10 three times and resembles a K scale on other slide rules. There is no indicator.

The rim of the object is marked in white: UNIVERSAL CIRCLE SLIDE RULE. The bottom of the instrument is marked: ORIGINAL DESIGN BY OLE JORGENSEN CREATIVE WORKSHOP INC. COPENHAGEN DENMARK (/) © OLE JORGENSEN 1970 PAT. PEND. MADE IN DENMARK. Ole Jørgensen's Creative Workshop made a variety of plastic items in the early 1970s, including slide rule pencil cups and desk calendars. Some were marked as promotional items for other companies. It is not known whether Jørgensen ever received a patent for this device. By 1972, the company's production shifted from Denmark to Hong Kong. The company was dissolved around 1980.

References: Chris Gillings, "Universal Circle Slide Rule," http://chris.gillings.com/collect/slide/ucsr.html; "Universal Circle slide rule, 1970," Powerhouse Museum Collections Database, http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/collection/database/?irn=382846; "Historical Photos of People with Slide Rules and Related Ephemera," International Slide Rule Museum, http://sliderulemuseum.com/SR_Ephemera.htm; The London Gazette (24 January 1980), 1169, http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/48076/pages/1169/page.pdf; completed online auction records.

Currently not on view