Analog-to-digital instantaneous converter

Claim 1

IN AN OPEN ENDED ANALOG TO DIGITAL CONVERTER, MEANS FOR PROVIDING AN ANALOG INPUT SIGNAL OF SELECTED POLARITY, A STANDARD VOLTAGE SOURCE OF POLARITY OPPOSED TO THAT OF THE INPUT SIGNAL, REFERENCE MEANS FOR PROVIDING A PLURALITY OF GRADUATED MAGNITUDE FRACTIONS OF THE STANDARD VOLTAGE EACH BEING ONE HALF OF THE PRECEDING, A PLURALITY OF IMPEDANCE DEVICES OF STANDARD MAGNITUDE, A PLURALITY OF COMMON JUNCTIONS, ONE FOR EACH FRACTION OF THE STANDARD VOLTAGE, THE ONE FOR EACH FRACTION BEING CONNECTED IN THAT FRACTION SOURCE AND INDIVIDUALLY TO EACH PRECEDING FRACTION SOURCE THROUGH SEPARATE IMPEDANCE DEVICES. A PLURALITY OF COMPARATORS, ONE FOR EACH JUNCTION OPERATIVE TO PROVIDE AN INDENTIFIABLE SIGNAL WHEN THE POTENTIAL OF THAT JUNCTION ATTAINS A SELECTED LEVEL, AND A PLURALITY OF GATE MEANS, ONE FOR EACH COMPARATOR PRECEDING THE COMPARATOR FOR THE MINIMUM FRACTION OF STANDARD VOLTAGE, EACH CONNECTED TO THE