What is This?

That's the guidance system from my spaceship, been looking for it for years....I'll need that back....What ever you do don't plug it in....

Good one!

I would say that it is a very interesting piece of junk that at one time cost more money than 99% of the people will earn in their lifetime.

Any data plates on this device? Part numbers?

It looks like the azimuth might be adjustable. Perhaps its bearing was set by a rotating base underneath it?

Are there any RF coaxial connections? It sort of resembles an antenna array.

The mil-circular connectors and the lacing cord on the wire harness suggest military or space origins.

What is behind those black disks?

Are those synchros on the left side?

Can we get any pictures from the back?

There is a barely readable label on the back that looks more recent than the device. It says Visual Methods Inc. 5 Wortendyke Avenue, Montvale, NJ. It shows a model number that looks like HC454 Ser. No. 0357.

It looks like that business doesn't exist there anymore. There is company with that name that owns some patents.

The four discs appear to be clear plastic that rotate via wires wrapped around capstans. Each two diagonally opposed discs seem like they would spin together.

Yes, there seems to be several synchros or position transducers involved. Back picture below.

The fan looks similar to this Rotron.

I looked at their patents. None look related.

Searching US Patent Collection...

Results of Search in US Patent Collection db for:
AN/"Visual Methods": 4 patents.
Hits 1 through 4 out of 4

	PAT. NO.		Title
1	4,963,962		Optical surveillance assembly and camera
2	4,222,662		Access control system
3	4,175,775		Access control system
4	3,997,723		Compact unit for optical security system

The design and construction appears to be robust and professional. Possibly this was for light shows for a disco or rock concerts. The construction appears to be consistent for the 1970's era.

Yes, very robust design. Looks like it can handle a lot of shock and vibration. It does appear to have some kind of light source behind the spinning discs. I'm thinking a type of early heads-up display for aircraft or something. The chassis is painted a military green color.

I thought of this because many years ago a girl friend took me to a popular disco on Copacabana beach. Besides the very loud music (maybe that is why i now need a hearing aid) the disco featured an extravagant light show, synchronized with the music. Your device looks like something that could be used for this application. Of course, it is missing the power supply and the electronic drivers necessary to operate it.

Was her name Lola? And was she a showgirl with yellow feathers in her hair and a dress cut down to there?

That answer was definitely on the kinky side

Not Kinky at all, but very Manily.

Nup....
https://youtu.be/LemG0cvc4oU?t=4

First came out back in the day's that I wore an extremely short military hair cut and a uniform at the Academy...late '60s

Hey! That's the Coca Cola version, not the 'cherry cola' version.

That's almost as hard to find as the original "Money For Nothing" song.

Ruffles and chest hair. The best of both worlds. LoL

Nice pirate shirt…

Maybe a prop for a sci-fi movie.

They moved to Westwood, New Jersey. Established in 1978. Their CAGE Code information is below:

Details back

2R054 VISUAL METHODS INC CAGE Information CAGE 2R054 DUNS 069300986 StatusActive TypeU.S./Canada Manufacturer Established 07/03/1978 CAGE Update Date07/20/2007 CAGE Expiration SAM Expiration05/27/1998 Contact Information POC HERMAN KRUEGLE Phone 201-666-3950 Fax International Address 35 CHARLES ST P.O. Box City WESTWOOD County BERGEN State/Province NJ Country UNITED STATES Zip/Postal 07675 3106 Corporate URL

Also found this:

https://iaspub.epa.gov/enviro/fii_query_detail.disp_program_facility?p_registry_id=110031935360

They might be interested in seeing some of their heritage.

Not at 35 Charles St. anymore. Probably out of business.

https://www.amazon.com/CCTV-Surveillance-Video-Practices-Technology/dp/0750677686

and this:

https://patents.justia.com/inventor/herman-kruegle

and this:

https://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-adv.htm&r=4&p=1&f=G&l=50&d=PALL&S1=kruegle.INNM.&OS=IN/kruegle&RS=IN/kruegle

This guy seems to be all about camera stuff, so maybe a camera guidance device that keeps a mounted camera pointed at one set spot while traveling in an airplane...

Sonic Packaging Industries now

https://www.sonicpackaging.com/

My WAG is some type of a data recorder.

What area of the country did this thing turn up in a garage sale?

Hooker

Northern NJ

I suspected as much. A buddy of mine flew electronic snooping missions in Vietnam in the late '60's, mostly in Army U-21's. After Nam he went to Germany for a few years but then ended up at Lakehurst where the Army furiously continued to test all kinds of airborne electronic warfare equipment.

Some of those aircraft had so many antennas and stuff poking out of them they looked like spiny urchins. And of course most of those tests were extremely cloaked. My friend had clearances most people never heard of.

I have little doubt this piece of equipment (though somewhat structurally overbuilt, IMO, likely an early prototype) came from one of those airborne tests. There were so many different tests that I doubt this one will ever be precisely id'ed unless you can find someone who was directly involved.

Hooker

LinkedIn says Herman Kruegle is in Cambodia at some Palace Resort or something like that.

I'll bet he knows what it is.

This is still a classified TS device.It was recovered from the wreckage of a UFO in 1945.

It was studied for years,and scientists were not able to determine the purpose of all of the devices.

The dome was added to preserve the internals from contamination by Earth dust.

This was never supposed to be made public.

A fake patent and description was created to mislead anyone that accidentally discovered it.

4 men in black suits and sunglasses will be materializing in your living room soon.

They will not speak.Give them the device.

The memory of this will be erased from your brain,as well as all who viewed it on your primitive Earthling network.

Do not resist.Resistance will be painful and futile.

Zathra 199F232CDA-153349-110044064986

Thanks for all the comments and research. I see I have stumped a rather knowledgeable group!

Mark IV v 26.9 Turbo Encabulator

My guess is a heads up display for a fighter jet.

Hmmmm. it seems to resemble some of the work by my old colleague, Dr. Hans Zarkov...

So that's where it's gone; 'been looking everywhere for that.

There it is!I l remember putting in on the shelf of my moss covered 3 handled family Gradunza,and whoever stole that also has my Gradunza.

https://seuss.fandom.com/wiki/Moss-Covered_Three-Handled_Family_Gradunza

Send details on where,when,how you came to possess it.

The following statement is true:

The previous statement is false.

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It was used as a prototype for a multi-channel recorder using magnetic wire to record data,before tape,Cd's etc.

It was used by the military to record data from many different types of hardware.

It never made it into civilian market because of it's cost and complexity,and magnetic tape soon made it obsolete.

A single-wire recorder, for audio,was available to the public however,and was often used as a telephone recorder,and memos.

Here are a few examples:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/144045926528?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-213727-13078-0&mkcid=2&itemid=144045926528&targetid=4580496732614413&device=c&mktype=&googleloc=&poi=&campaignid=418233788&mkgroupid=1230353745471221&rlsatarget=pla-4580496732614413&abcId=9300542&merchantid=51291&msclkid=ca088e9d4a4c14f25259ee5a1461fad0

This belongs in a museum of recording technology.

I had one that was available to the public, but gave it to a friend of mine. He was retired air force and said they had a wire recorder as a "Black box" on aircraft.

He wanted it as souvenir.

It was much smaller than the one shown, totally enclosed and very rugged enclosure.

Do you have an image of the rear/front side seen here, without the dome? And also, the bottom of it with wiring harness, or is it solid on the bottom?

<...bought it at a garage sale ...>

Why buy it if one doesn't know what it is and what it does (rhetorical question - NNTR)?

It looks like a wire recorder that was used by the military for recording analog data. Similar recorders were used to record cockpit conversations or radio communications. It has a continuous wire that does not need to be rewound except for playback.

Here is a link to a site that specializes in antique electronics. A video of a wire reorder in action, playing back very old audio.

https://youtu.be/-QIB0jXcCfY

I think the dome over the unit is there to protect it from curious fingers, probably was on display at a museum and was thrown out by accident during cleanup operations because no one knew what it was. It certainly belongs in a museum of antique recording instruments, as in this link:

https://youtu.be/-QIB0jXcCfY

If it was not from a museum, it was probably from an old retired veteran that made the dome for it and thought a lot of it to protect it that way.

If you do not want it, I am sure the people at the link above would be delighted to get it and would preserve it for posterity.

You might even be able to get a credit for a charitable contribution.

Last century’s stock market ticker tape machine.

If the comments about wire recorders are on the right track (no pun intended), might be worth contacting the Museum of Magnetic Sound in Texas.

To make the label easily readable, black out everything with a felt pen, then rub the label with a cloth dampened with alcohol. The ink will stay in the recessed portions, making it stand out and totally readable. Do not put too much alcohol on the cloth or it will sink into the recesses and blur the text..