Asynchronous counting devices

Claim 1

AN ASYNCHRONOUS COUNTING DEVICE CAPABLE OF COUNTING ACCORDING TO A MODULO THREE NUMBER SYSTEM COMPRISING: A FIRST, A SECOND AND A THIRD SUBSTAGE, EACH SUBSTAGE ARRANGED TO REGISTER A DISTINCT ONE OF THE NUMBERS OF SAID MODULO THREE NUMBER SYSTEM, EACH OF SAID FIRST, SECOND AND THIRD SUBSTAGES FURTHER COMPRISING AN INPUT SECTION ADAPTED TO RECEIVE COUNT PULSES, AN OUTPUT SECTION FOR PROVIDING AN OUTPUT SIGNAL IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE COUNT PULSES RECEIVED BY SAID INPUT SECTION AND A CONTROL SECTION; THREE FIRST MEANS, EACH CONNECTING THE CONTROL SECTION OF A SINGLE SUBSTAGE TO THE INPUT SECTION OF THE SAME SUBSTAGE, TO PERMIT SAID CONTROL STAGE TO CONTROL THE RECEIPT OF COUNT PULSES BY SAID INPUT SECTION, A PLURALITY OF SECOND MEANS, EACH CONNECTING THE INPUT AND OUTPUT SECTIONS OF A SINGLE SUBSTAGE TO THE CONTROL SECTION OF THE SAME SUBSTAGE TO ACTUATE SAID CONTROL SECTION IN RESPONSE TO THE CONDITION OF SAID INPUT AND OUTPUT SECTIONS AT THE TERMINATION OF A COUNT PULSE; THREE THIRD MEANS, EACH INTERCONNECTING THE INPUT SECTION OF A SINGLE SUBSTAGE TO THE OUTPUT SECTION OF THE SAME SUBSTAGE; AND A PLURALITY OF FOURTH MEANS INTERCONNECTING SAID INPUT AND OUTPUT SECTIONS OF ALL THREE OF SAID SUBSTAGES TO PERMIT THE RECEIPT OF SAID COUNTING PULSES BY SAID SUBSTAGES IN A PREDETERMINED SEQUENCE.