Binary digital comparator

Claim 1

A DIGITAL COMPARATOR FOR DETERMINING WHICH OF A PAIR OF BINARY NUMBERS IS GREATER COMPRISING A FIRST PLURALITY OF GATE MEANS CORRESPONDING IN NUMBER TO THE NUMBER OF DIGITAL ORDERS OF SAID BINARY NUMBERS, EACH SAID FIRST GATE MEANS HAVING A PAIR OF INPUT TERMINALS RESPECTIVELY CONNECTED TO BE RESPONSIVE TO A DIGIT OF ONE OF SAID NUMBERS AND THE COMPLEMENT OF THE CORRESPONDING ORDER DIGIT OF THE OTHER OF SAID NUMBERS, EACH OF SAID FIRST GATE MEANS HAVING AN OUTPUT TERMINAL FOR PRODUCING A NEGATIVE SIGNAL INDICATIVE OF THE COINCIDENCE OF BINARY "1" DIGITS AT BOTH SAID INPUT TERMINALS OF EACH OF SAID FIRST GATE MEANS, A SECOND PLURALITY OF GATE MEANS CORRESPONDING IN NUMBER TO THE NUMBER OF DIGITAL ORDERS OF SAID BINARY NUMBERS, EACH SAID SECOND GATE MEANS HAVING A PAIR OF INPUT TERMINALS RESPECTIVELY CONNECTED TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THE COMPLEMENT OF A DIGIT OF ONE OF SAID NUMBERS AND THE DIGIT OF THE CORRESPONDING ORDER DIGIT OF THE OTHER OF SAID NUMBERS, EACH OF SAID SECOND GATE MEANS HAVING AN OUTPUT TERMINAL FOR PRODUCING A NEGATIVE SIGNAL INDICATIVE OF THE PRESENCE OF COINCIDENCE OF BINARY "1" DIGITS AT BOTH SAID INPUT TERMINALS OF EACH OF SAID SECOND GATE MEANS, A DIODE SWITCH FOR EACH DIGITAL ORDER, EACH SAID DIODE SWITCH HAVING A CATHODE AND AN ANODE, SAID ANODE RESPONSIVELY CONNECTED TO THE OUTPUT TERMINAL OF A CORRESPONDING FIRST GATE MEANS, A TRANSISTOR SWITCH FOR EACH DIGITAL ORDER, EACH SAID TRANSISTOR SWITCH OPERATIVELY RESPONSIVE TO NEGATIVE SIGNALS FROM THE OUTPUT TERMINAL OF A CORRESPONDING SECOND GATE MEANS TO PRESENT A POSITIVE SIGNAL TO SAID CATHODE, SAID CATHODE RESPONSIVELY CONNECTED TO THE OUTPUT TERMINAL OF THE NEXT LOWER ORDER FIRST GATE MEANS, WHEREBY SAID DIODE SWITCH PRESENTS NEGATIVE SIGNALS FROM THE OUTPUT TERMINALS OF LOWER ORDER FIRST GATE MEANS TO OUTPUT TERMINALS OF UPPER ORDER FIRST GATE MEANS IN THE ABSENCE OF A POSITIVE SIGNAL FROM A CORRESPONDING TRANSISTOR SWITCH, AND A COMPARATOR OUTPUT TERMINAL CONNECTED TO THE ANODE OF THE DIODE SWITCH FOR THE MOST SIGNIFICANT DIGITAL ORDER OF SAID BINARY NUMBERS BEING COMPARED.