Computer control apparatus

Claim 1

DIAGNOSTIC APPARATUS FOR USE IN THE MAINTENANCE OF A HIGH SPEED DIGITAL COMPUTER OPERABLE TO PROCESS BINARY CODED DATA IN ACCORDANCE WITH A STORED PROGRAM OF BINARY CODED INSTRUCTIONS, SAID COMPUTER INCLUDING MEMORY MEANS TO STORE SAID INSTRUCTIONS AND DATA AND TIME PULSE GENERATING AND DISTRIBUTING MEANS TO GENERATE AND DISTRIBUTE A PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF TIME PULSES IN EACH COMPUTER MACHINE CYCLE FOR NORMALLY CONTROLLING THE PRECESSING OF DATA IN ACCORDANCE WITH SAID INSTRUCTIONS, COMPRISING A COUNTER HAVING A PLURALITY OF BISTABLE DEVICES, MANUALLY OPERABLE MEANS TO SELECT A PORTION OF A PROGRAM OF INSTRUCTIONS INCLUDING A STARTING INSTRUCTION AND A TERMINAL PROGRAM STEP AND TO SELECT A NUMBER OF TIME PULSES, MAINTENANCE CONTROL CIRCUITRY FOR INITIATING SAID SELECTED PROGRAM PORTION AT SAID STARTING INSTRUCTION AND ENABLING SAID PROGRAM PORTION TO BE PROCESSED TO THE COMPLETION OF SAID TERMINAL PROGRAM STEP AT NORMAL COMPUTER SPEED AS CONTROLLED BY SAID TIME PULSE GENERATING AND DISTRIBUTING MEANS, MEANS TO TRANSFER TO SAID COUNTER DURING EACH MACHINE CYCLE THE BINARY CODED INFORMATION CONTENTS OF A REGISTER USED TO ADDRESS SAID MEMORY MEANS AND TO TRANSFER THE SELECTED TERMINAL PROGRAM STEP VALUE TO SAID COUNTER DURING EACH MACHINE CYCLE, MEANS TO UTILIZE SAID COUNTER TO COMPARE THE CONTENTS OF SAID REGISTER WITH THE SELECTED TERMINAL PROGRAM STEP VALUE DURING EACH MACHINE CYCLE, MEANS RESPONSIVE TO A SUCCESSFUL COMPARISON TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF THE PROCESSING OF DATA FROM SAID TIME PULSE DISTRIBUTING MEANS TO SAID MAINTENANCE CONTROL CIRCUITRY AND TO TRANSFER THE SELECTED TIME PULSE NUMBER TO SAID COUNTER, AND MEANS TO GENERATE UNDER THE CONTROL OF SAID COUNTER AND SAID MAINTENANCE CONTROL CIRCUITRY THE SPECIFIED NUMBER OF PULSES TO ADVANCE THE COMPUTER TO THE SELECTED POINT AND TO HALT THE COMPUTER AT THAT POINT.