Apparatus and method for measuring time intervals between points on recurring signals

Claim 1

AN ELECTRONIC TIME INTERVAL MEASURING SYSTEM FOR MEASURING THE TIME INTERVAL BETWEEN TWO VOLTAGE LEVELS ON RECURRING SIGNALS, COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, MEANS FOR APPLYING THE RECURRING SIGNALS TO THE SYSTEM, A VOLTAGE GENERATOR CIRCUIT HAVING A VOLTAGE OUTPUT, SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS CONNECTED TO THE SIGNAL APPLYING MEANS AND CONNECTED TO THE VOLTAGE GENERATOR OUTPUT AND BEING ADAPTED TO SAMPLE THE RECURRING SIGNALS TO DERIVE THEREFROM A PEAK OUTPUT VOLTAGE HAVING AN AMPLITUDE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE AMPLITUDE OF THE SIGNAL AT THE INSTANT OF SAMPLING, SAID SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS HAVING MEANS FOR CONTROLLING THE INSTANT OF SAMPLING BY THE MAGNITUDE OF A VOLTAGE, SAID VOLTAGE BEING THE OUTPUT OF THE VOLTAGE GENERATOR CIRCUIT, MEANS FOR CONTROLLING THE MAGNITUDE OF THE VOLTAGE GENERATOR CIRCUIT OUTPUT, FIRST AND SECOND STORAGE MEANS CONNECTED TO THE OUTPUT OF THE SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS ADAPTED TO DETECT AND STORE THE PEAK OUTPUT VOLTAGE LEVEL OF THE SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS AT A FIRST AND SECOND PREDETERMINED INSTANT OF THE SAMPLING CYCLE, MEANS ADAPTED TO DERIVE FROM THE FIRST AND SECOND STORAGE MEANS A FIRST AND SECOND REFERENCE POTENTIAL CORRESPONDING TO THE SIGNAL VOLTAGE LEVELS BETWEEN WHICH THE TIME INTERVAL IS DESIRED TO BE MEASURED, FIRST COMPARATOR CIRCUIT MEANS CONNECTED TO THE OUTPUT OF THE SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS AND HAVING APPLIED THERETO SAID FIRST REFERENCE POTENTIAL, SAID FIRST COMPARATOR CIRCUIT MEANS BEING ADAPTED TO HAVE AN OUTPUT COMMAND PULSE WHEN A SUCCESSION OF PEAK OUTPUT VOLTAGES OF THE SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS CROSSES THE FIRST REFERENCE POTENTIAL, SECOND COMPARATOR CIRCUIT MEANS CONNECTED TO THE OUTPUT OF THE SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS AND HAVING APPLIED THERETO SAID SECOND REFERENCE POTENTIAL, SAID SECOND COMPARATOR CIRCUIT MEANS BEING ADAPTED TO HAVE AN OUTPUT COMMAND PULSE WHEN A SUCCESSION OF PEAK OUTPUT VOLTAGES OF THE SAMPLING CIRCUIT MEANS CROSSES THE SECOND REFERENCE POTENTIAL, AND TIME INDICATING CIRCUIT MEANS CONNECTED AND RESPONSIVE TO THE OUTPUT COMMAND PULSES FROM SAID FIRST AND SECOND COMPARATOR CIRCUIT MEANS WHEREBY THE INTERVAL BETWEEN THE OUTPUT COMMAND PULSES IS INDICATED, SAID INTERVAL BEING REPRESENTATIVE OF THE TIME INTERVAL DESIRED TO BE MEASURED.