Method and photocell device for obtaining light source position data

Claim 1

IN A SYSTEM FOR LOCATING A SPACE ORIENTED SOURCE FOR INCIDENT LIGHT WAVES HAVING CONTINUOUSLY CHANGING ANGLES OF INCIDENCE AND CONTINUOUSLY CHANGING VALUES OF INTENSITY, MEANS COMPRISING IN COMBINATION: (A) A SINGLE VOLTAGE-GENERATING PHOTOCELL INCLUDING AN N-TYPE SILICON BODY HAVING AT LEAST A FIRST AND A SECOND ELONGATED SURFACE DISPOSED IN MUTUALLY-OPPOSED, PARALLEL ALIGNMENT, AND AN ELONGATED P-TYPE SILICON LAYER DIFFUSED WITHIN THE FIRST SURFACE DEFINING A P-N JUNCTION BETWEEN THE BODY AND A FIRST SIDE OF THE LAYER AND PROVIDING AN EXTERIOR SURFACE DISPOSED ING A LIGHT-RECEIVING POSITION AT A SECOND SIDE THEREOF AND ALIGNED IN A MUTUALLY-OPPOSED RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FIRST SIDE OF THE LAYER AND EXTENDING COEXTENSIVELY AND IN GENERALLY PARALLEL ALIGNMENT WITH SAID P-N JUNCTION; (B) A FIRST PAIR OF VOLTAGE OUTPUT TERMINALS MOUNTED ON SAID BODY AND DISPOSED IN A MUTUALLY-SPACED RELATIONSHIP ALONG THE SECOND SURFACE THEREOF AND OPPOSITE SAID P-N JUNCTION; (C) A SECOND PAIR OF VOLTAGE OUTPUT TERMINALS SO ARRANGED AS TO HAVE A FIRST TERMINAL OF SAID SECOND PAIR OF TERMINALS DISPOSED ON THE SECOND SURFACE OF SAID BODY ADJACENT ONE TERMINAL OF SAID FIRST PAIR OF TERMINALS, AND TO HAVE A SECOND TERMINAL OF SAID SECOND PAIR OF TERMINALS DISPOSED ON THE EXTERIOR SURFACE OF SAID LAYER OPPOSITE SAID FIRST TERMINAL OF SAID SECOND PAIR OF TERMINALS, SO THAT THE TERMINALS OF SAID SEOCND PAIR OF TERMINALS ARE CAUSED TO BE DISPOSED IN COAXIAL ALIGNMENT AT OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID P-N JUNCTION; ARE CAUSED TO BE DISPOSED IN COAXIAL ALIGNMENT AT (D) A FIRST VOLTAGE DETECTING MEANS CONNECTED BETWEEN THE TERMINALS OF SAID FIRST PAIR OF VOLTAGE OUTPUT TERMINALS; AND (E) A SECOND VOLTAGE DETECTING MEANS CONNECTED BETWEEN THE TERMINALS OF SAID SECOND PAIR OF VOLTAGE OUTPUT TERMINALS, WHEREBY INDEPENDENT AND MUTUALLY-EXCLUSIVE OUTPUT VOLTAGE VALUES MAY BE SIMULTANEOUSLY DERIVED FOR COMPARISON FROM SAID FIRST AND SAID SECOND VOLTAGE DETECTING MEANS AS A SPOT OF SOURCE-GENERATED LIGHT WAVES IS CAUSE TO IMPINGE ON THE EXTERIOR SURFACE OF SAID LAYER, WITHIN AN AREA DIPOSED IN OPPOSED ALIGNMENT WITH AN AREA DEFINED BETWEEN THE FIRST PAIR OF TERMINALS, WITH A CHANGING VALUE OF INTENSITY AND A CHANGING RELATIVE POSITION, VARYING WITH RESPECT TO BOTH PAIRS OF TERMINALS, SO THAT THE POSITION OF THE SPOT RELATIVE TO THE PAIRS OF TERMINALS AND THE EXTERIOR SURFACE MAY BE ACCURATELY DETERMINED.