CORDIC and the Hustler

Robert Cravotta's DSP Directory is now online on EDN'sWeb site. In it, Robert mentions the CORDIC algorithm, which has been used since Jack Volder developed the algorithm in the 1950s to efficiently calculate trig and transcendental functions using digital computation. Volder developed the algorithm for the first digital aircraft navigation computer, placed aboard the Convair B-58 Hustler nuclear bomber. Little known is the role the CORDIC algorithm played in getting HP into the calculator business. Interested in that bit of history? Look here.