Digital converter

Claim 1

IN COMBINATION FOR CONVERTING AN INPUT POTENTIAL HAVING AN AMPLITUDE REPRESENTING AN ANALOG QUANTITY INTO A PLURALITY OF SIGNALS DIGITALLY REPRESENTING THE QUANTITY, A REACTANCE MEMBER FOR STORING ENERGY, AN IMPEDANCE MEMBER, MEANS INCLUDING A CHARGING CIRCUIT AND INCLUDING THE REACTANCE MEMBER AND THE IMPEDANCE MEMBER IN THE CHARGING CIRCUIT FOR PRODUCING A STORAGE OF ENERGY IN THE REACTANCE MEMBER FOR A PARTICULAR PERIOD OF TIME AND AT A RATE DEPENDENT UPON THE INPUT POTENTIAL AND FOR PRODUCING ACROSS THE IMPEDANCE MEMBER A POTENTIAL OPPOSING THE INPUT POTENTIAL, A SOURCE OF REGULATED POTENTIAL, MEANS INCLUDING ELECTRICAL CIRCUITRY COUPLED TO THE SOURCE OF REGULATED POTENTIAL AND TO THE CHARGING CIRCUIT FOR VARYING THE REGULATED POTENTIAL IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE POTENTIAL PRODUCED ACROSS THE IMPEDANCE MEMBER, MEANS INCLUDING A DISCHARGE CIRCUIT COUPLED TO THE LAST MENTIONED MEANS AND TO THE REACTANCE MEMBER FOR PRODUCING A DISCHARGE OF THE REACTANCE MEMBER TO A PARTICULAR LEVEL AT A SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT RATE, AND DIGITIZING MEANS COUPLED TO THE LAST MENTIONED MEANS FOR ACTIVATION TO PRODUCE SUCCESSIVE SIGNALS DURING THE DISCHARGE OF THE REACTANCE MEMBER.