US2896112A - Cathode ray tube apparatus - Google Patents

Description

P. H. ALLEN ETAL CATHODE RAY TUBE APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 20, 1945 July 21, 1959 v 3 Sheets-Sheet l IN V EN TORS.

July 21,1959

P. H. ALLEN ETAL CATHODE RAY TUBE APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 20, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS.

y 5 P. ALLEN ETAL 2,

CATHODE RAY TUBE APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 20, 1945 3 Sheets-Sht 5 IN VEN TORS respectively connected to the terminals 66 to 74 of the voltage dividing resistor 75 The terminal 74 of this resistor is also connected to ,the terminal 76 of the potentiometer 77, andqthe variable contactor 78 of this potentiometer is connected to the positive terminal of the cathode ray beam deflecting battery 79. The negative terminal of this battery is connected to the deflector plate 80 of the cathode ray tube and the deflector plate 81, associated with the plate 80, is connected through a variable resistor 82 to the contact electrode bus 56. i

An additional set of deflector electrodes 83 and 84 is provided in the cathode raytube for. the purpose of applying the initiating or 'firing pulse to the electron beam of the'cathode ray tube and, moving this beam from its initial position, as will be more fully described hereinafter. These auxiliary deflector electrodes 83and 84 are connected to the pickup coil 86 thr ough switches 87 and 88. The switch 87-is adapted to be closed whenever any oneof the keys 86 to 44, inclusive, is closed. Switch 88 is a carn operated switch adapted to be closed by the cam 90 only during one-half of the revolution of the shaft 89, so that an initiating pulse of only a predetermined polarity is applied to the auxiliary deflector electrodes 83-84. v s

The shaft 89 is a part of the cycling or firing pulse means, and has mounted thereon a permanent magnet 91, which in the full cycle position of theparts, occupies the position shown in Figure l with respect to the pickup coil 86. The shaft 89 is adapted to be cyclically driven by means of a cyclic clutch 92 from an electric motor 93. The cyclic clutch 92 is of conventional construction, being generally of the character disclosed in the patent to Carl M. Friden, No. 2,279,455, dated April 14, 1942, and produces one or more complete cycles of movement of the shaft 89, the cam 90 and the magnet 91.

The indirectly heated cathode 11, control electrode 14a, anode 14 forming parts of the electron gun and vertically deflecting electrodes 80 and 81 of the cathode ray tube 10 may be of generally the same construction as corresponding partsof cathode ray tubes now manufactured. The quenching or de-focusing electrode 16 may be positioned on either aided the anode 14, that is, it may be positioned either between the anode 14 and the auxiliary deflecting electrodes 83, 84 or between the anode 14 and the cathode 11. Furthermore, the auxiliary deflecting electrodes 83, 84 may, if desired, be positioned between the anode 14 and the de-focusing or quenching electrode 16, or they may be positioned on the other side of the deflector plates 80, 81.

The cathode ray tubes 110 and 210, shown in Fig. 3, are of the same construction as the cathode ray tube 10. The respective parts of the cathoderay tubes 10, 110 and 210 are similarly numbered and the corresponding reference numerals applied to the tubes 10 and 110 and associated apparatus are numbered so. as to differ by 100, for example, the electrode of the tube 10 designated by reference numeral 83 correspondsto the electrode 183 of the tube 110. Likewise, the reference numerals applied to the tubes 110 and 210 and the corresponding parts differ by 100 so that the corresponding electrode of the tube 210 is designated by reference numeral 283.

The electrical pulses produced by the selection tube, 10 as the cathode ray beam transmitted by the electron gun of this tube is stepped across a predetermined number of pairs of the contact electrodes 47 and 65, inclusive, may be. utilized for controlling other circuits such as disclosed in the parent application, Serial No. 611,608.

It will be seen by reference to the drawings that the contactors of the tube 10 are divided into two sets, one set being connected to the manually settable keys 36 to 44, inclusive, and the other set being connected to the voltage dividing resistor 75. It will be observed that one side of each of these sets of contactors is connected to one of the common buses 17 or 56.

The above described circuit and associated parts comprise a cyclically operable selection means of one order in which any selected number of electrical pulses from one to nine may be produced during each cycle of operation.

To condition the selection circuit for operation, one of the keys 36 to 44, is depressed to representxthe valve to be enteredinto the machine. For example, if the number 3 is to be entered into the machine, the key 38, or number 3 key is depressed. This setting of the respective keys conditions the units order to produce three electrical pulses for each cycle of operation, as will be apparent from the following description.

The number of times the item is to be entered into the register is controlled by the number of rotations of the shaft 89, i.e., the number of rotations of the permanent magnet 91 with respect to the pickup coils 86, the number of cycles being controlled by the length'of' time the clutch 92 is maintained engaged. i i

With the parts conditionedlas described above, the clutch 92 is engaged to cause one cycle of operation of the selection mechanism, i.e., onerotation of the shaft 89, the cam 90 and the magnet 91. In 'the' positionof the parts shown in Fig. 1, the switch 88 associatedwith' the leads'to the pickup coil 86are open, being engaged with the low portions of the cam 90. With this condition of the parts the south poleof the magnet 91 is inelfective with respect to the associatedpickup coil 86. During the rotation of the shaft 89 and the cam 90, the. switch 88 is closed for approximately one-half cycle be ginning about 90 from the, full cycle position of the parts shown in Fig. 1 and continuing for approximately 180 of rotation thereafter so that the switch 88 is closed to enable the respective circuits for the pickup coil 86 as the north pole of the magnet 91 is sweeping past the associated pickup coil.

As a part of conditioning this apparatus for operation, it is also to be assumed that the current supply battery 13 controls electrode battery 15a,,and the anode battery 15 is connected so that the cathode ray beam of the tube 10 is on and impinging against the rest position 85 thereof.

The effect of the rotation of the north pole of the magnet 91 past associated pickup coil 86 is to apply an electrical pulse to the auxiliary deflector plates of electrodes 83, 84 of tube 10 to raise the beam from its rest position 85 to impinge upon and close the circuit between:

the contacts 47 and 57, the electronflow from the electron emissive surfaces of one of these contacts effectively closes the circuit therebetween so" that the terminal 66.

of the voltage dividing resistor 75 is connected through the contacts 57, 47 to, the electrode bus 56'through the variable resistor 82 to the main deflector plate 81, the cooperating deflector plate being connectedto one side of the battery 79. The other side of the battery 79 is connected to one side of the variable impedance 75a,

and the other side of this impedance is connected to the variable contactor 78 of the resistor 77, the upper terminal 76 of which is connected to the terminal 74 of the voltage divider 75 so that a potential is applied between the plates 80 and 81 across resistor 80a sufiicient to raise the cathode ray beam from the contacts .47. and 57 to the contacts 48 and 58. When the circuit between the contacts 47 and 57' is closed, a pulse is supplied to the circuit of the potentiometer 77 across the gas tube 77a to be transmitted to a suitable utilizing circuit.

It will be noted that in raising the beam from the con-f tacts 47, 57 to the contacts 48,,58, it has passedacross the contacts 18-27 and closed thecircuits therebetween. However, the circuit including these contacts is open at the key 36 so that no result obtains. When the beam impinges upon the contacts 48, 58, anotherpulse is ap-..

plied to the utilizing circuitthrough the portion of the potentiometer between the terminal 76 and the variable contactor At the same time the portion of the voltv age .divid'er-betweemthe terminal66and thev tap. 457 is bypassed and as 2 1mm: a higher 'volta'g'e is' appliedlfroin' the. .source .f 79 to the deflector plates. 80' "and {11 across the resistorf "80a :this 'fh'igher voltage being, sufiicient to move or "deflect ,thejcathode ray. beam from the, electrodes 48 58, 5 across the electrodes 19,"'-2 8l}1 1 id to' the, 'electrodes 49 s9. Since the key 37 is open "f producedwhen the .beam is swept. across the tides '19' -2 8 However, a third 'pulse' im pr' es s ed porilthe utilizing circuit through theportion" of the. potentiometer 77 between the terminal 7 6 and the variablecontactor 78. When the beam of the cathode ray tube jwas mo a to impinge upon the -.contacts or electrodes ,f19 +59 ,,;the section vof the yolta ger divider 75 between the. taps ,67 and 68 was bypassed, as well as the previously by-passed section between the terminal 66 and tab 6 7 so that the vo t appliedv betw n the d fle r p1atesv80 andw8l across resistor 80a, isagain increased. ,The beamis again moved or deflected upward However, it willcbe noted that the key 38 is depressed and the contacts thereof closedrso thatgwhen the, beam of the cathode rayhtube impinges upon the electrodes 20-29 in, its upward move? ment iteffectively closes the gap. between thes ettwocon: tacts and .a negative potential is applied upon the quench.- ing or de-focusing electrode 16 so that the beam of the cathode ray tube is defocused, quenched or substantially quenched and as a result the circuit between the electrodes 20--29 is open thereby removingthe quenching potential from the electrode 16. However, it will be observed that the potential from the battery 7 9 also removed from the deflector electrode 81 so"that"when the beam of the'c'atho de ray tube is 're-established it impinges upon the'res'tposition 85'and willfcontinue'f'to impinge upon'lthis position until another pulse is applied to the auxiliary deflector electrodes 83, ,84',,a's previously described.

It will be observed that the stepping, of the cathode ray beam of the selection tube "10 is' automatic once it was raised or deflected fr'oinit's rest position: 85 @to the first pair of contactors 29 connected to the depressed key 38. Very rapid stepping of the 'bea m i s obtained in this manner and the rapidity of this beampsteppin'g may be"controlled by the choke 75a' which"in ay be a variable inductance, This choke 75a'inay be'ia resistor shunted condenser, if desired, "the condeuservbeing charged by thewelectri'c pulse froin'the battery 79am being 'di's chargedjthroug'h' the resistor shunt; "1 The conductor? connected to the" common bus Q45 ofth'e]. manually'settable key/s36 to" '44, ificlus'ive,"iis shown aseenneeteaj to the negative terminal of the battery 15 and the ,fc'athode "11 is also: shown as 1;on'ne c'tfed to this sa'mel' terminal; Accordingly, when" the 'd'e' focusing or quenching electrode 16 is energized itis. in effect connected to the cathodllL It is obvious. that the, cathode. 11" maybe connected, to

some intermdiatepoint of the battery 15 by means. of tapsior' a suitablevoltage c'livide'rlso that ,theelectrode'f16 maybe madeneg'ative with respect to the cathdde"when it is "energized. However, under certain conditions it may lnot'ib'e desirable to maketh'e electrode .16' more negativethan the'cathode since. the mpqseior this invene tion "may' be" accomplished san ly'by' de-focu'singl vthe beam and thismay be accomplished by making the'electrode 1 6 negative with rspect to 'the.anode "'1'4.

The beam" ofithe cathode'fray ltube' 10 'ir'iay' efocused or adjlistedfs'o that it is, suliicie'ntlylargelin 'eife'c Iei cro sssection to he'v'ablejt'o establish the circuitb'et'wee agfoup of ;e1eetre tes,1 "siihf as; electrode 47+57 aiid [18%;] similltaneously, ,Ian'd 'this r'way .the ;.quenchinfg "or Idesoon ds the beflin H nidijed ilpfto fihe, of IL ,m V t 4 w an. lu -a In Fig'f'2' is 'shown a modified form .of this invention in which the cathode ray be'am devicef employs magnetic beairtn defiecti'on H [The catho.deray tube ,is provided lecti'ode may, be energiiedias with an ereaiefi" gun 10b for projecting "a Baroda ra is beam consisting of an elongated concentration of elec-' trons 'in' "the "direction of the electrodes 10d. Altern e j'onesfiof these electrodeszltld are connected to the yoltagef divider "resi tor. 10. Interleaved between thee rodes gonnected. to theresistor 10e are electrodes nncted to the 'switchesf10ffhaving one of the term nal'sithereof connectedito a common, bus bar 10g,; "This bus bar ltlg is connected to' the positive terminaljof the battery '10h,;and the negative terminal .of the, battery is connected to the quenching electrode ltli whichis positioned in alignment'with the enema gun 10b so that, the electron beam normally passes through thei aperturefthereof. I The top terminal of the voltage dividing resistor, I0e' is connected to the, solenoid 101' employed fordeflecting the beamitlcof the cathode 'ray tube, and thefother' terminal of this solenoid is connected to the positive terminalof the battery 10k,the negative terminalhof this,batterybeiugfconnected to the positive terminglff the electron gun battery 10m and the negativel iterm nal of the, latter batteryis connected to" the cathode'of the electron gun.

The operation of this tubeis substantially the same as that o f'the tube shown.inFi'g, 1, except that in this case the cathoderfay b'eam 10c is used as a conductor substantially' throughout the length thereof so that as this beam ltldimpinges upon the electrodes 10d it closes the circuit of thedeflector solenoid 10 Beginning at the bottom elect-rode grate group 10dand assuming the beam 10c contacts this bottom electrode, current will flow, along the bearn to this bottom, elecrode thence through the entire resistor '10e and then through the solenoid'jltlj through t at ries' 10k ;;a,nd ,10mvto the cathodeof'the electrdn gun. i01 f current il ov v sets up a ma'gnetic field i the 'solenoid 10j 'of such. strength and polarityas to move'thebeam 10c up from the first of the'electr'odes 1 0diacross" the isjecondland to the third so that'then the currentjflows'hfrom the b'earn to this third electrode an through the appropriate, tap. of the resisto r l0e', ,through this"resistfor"jand' through the solenoid ,10j and batteries 10k and; "10m, to the icathode' of the elect'ron'rg'un 10b: Since the portion 1 of the resistor 10c between. the first and'fthirdelectrodes of the group 7 104 is by passed out of the: circuit, the. current flowing through the solenoid 10jis of increased strength so that the 'magnetic'field' set i this solenoid is stronger, specifically of such uP streng as to svetae beam 100 from the third electrode to the fifth electrode of the'group 10d, thereby oy-pa'ssing still, anothersection' of the resistor '10e out of'circuit and again: increasing'thelstrehgth of the magnetic field'jo f' the solenoidl'tij sufficiently to ra'ise the beam to the seventh electrode, of the group 10d and repeating this operation in stepfbyste'pv fashion increasing the, magnetic field of the solefioidltli untilthe beam 10c has reached' the second to thetop electrode of the .group 10d. Thereafter, the bearnv 10c would beIswept oil of the second to the top velect'r ode 'and the circuitof the solenoidltljlwould be interrupted, However, in tracing the operation as above, as c og nizance was taken of the switchesltlfwhich areprovidedto this apparatus for the purpose .ofcontrolling the scanning operation of the -beam[ If it is assumed thatthe, first switch of the group ltl is closedso that the second'electrlode of t hefgroup 10d is connected through this,switch,.to thepositive terminal of the battery 10h, then"whenlthe;b.eam I is, moved by the solenoid 10 upward from the first electrodeof the group 10d it' wo uld contact the, second of tl ese electrodes and apply an elec tric.,potential to the quenching electrode 10i and this quenchingpot ential wouldffunction to effectively inter-I rupt the beam 100,: Since the velectrode 10iiiunctions principallyto apply ,an electrostatic field to disturb the fpc iisjingifof the-beam, 100,, this electrode 101 \rnay be enclosed in a sheath 1011 of insulating materiaL; such as, BakeliteJQpheno-l condensation resin, v0r the like 'ona sheathiriateriall which is a very poor conductorpsuch as fBak'elite, impregnated with graphite, and this electrode may be supported upon the mouth ofthe electron gun 10b. It is, ofcourse, obviousthat the electron beam 10c will be shifted instep by step fashion up over the electrodes 10d until it impinges upon an electrode connected to one of the switches 10f that is closed. When the beam 100 contacts an electrode connected to a closed switch of the group 10f, the beam is quenched, as outlined above. In this way the tube 10a may be usedto produce a selected number of pulses, depending upon which of the switches 10 is closed, andthe desired number of pulses may be utilized, as previously described in connection with tube 10 in a suitable utilization circuit.

The circuit illustrated in Figure 3 is designed to provide successive triggering of a series or cascade oftubes 10, 110 and 210, which are similar in construction tothe tube 10 shown in Figure 1, from the lower tube 10to the higher orders 110 and 210 after an initial triggering pulse is applied to the lowest order tube 10. .The circuit also includes means for automatically re-cycling of the successive triggering pulses so that any selected number of cycles of operation of the calculating apparatus can be performed. 3

Immediately above the electrodes 1462 'andv1463 of tube 10 are a pair of electrodes 1466 and 1467 which are similar to the pair of quenching electrodes 18-27 and are similarly controlled by a zero key 1468 so that when the beam closes the contacts 1466-1467, aquenching or de-focusing potential is applied to the quenching electrode 16, as previously described in connection with the quenching contacts or electrodes 18-27. i

It will be noted that when the pulse is applied to the primary of the transformer 1464 a corresponding pulse will be induced in the secondary of this transformer and will be applied to the auxiliary deflector plates 183-184 of the tens order selection tube 110 to provide a triggering pulse for this tube. Thus, the electron beam of the tube 110 will be raised from its rest position 185 to impinge upon the triggering electrodes 1472 and 1473 of the tube 110 which are connected in series with the secondary of a transformer 1474 through a battery 1475. Immediately above the electrodes 1472-4473, the tube 110 is provided with a pair of quenchingflcontacts or electrodes 1476-1477 connected in the circuit of the selection tube 110 in the same manner as the electrodes 1466-1467 in tube 10. A zero key 1478 is :associated with the electrodes 1466-1467 to control thequenching circuit from the electrodes 1476-1477 to the quenching electrode corresponding to the electrode 16.

When a pulse is produced in the primary of the. transformer 1474, a triggering pulse is induced in the secondary of this transformer and is applied to the auxiliary asserts deflector plates 283-284 of the third or hundreds order of the selection tube 210 so that its electron beam will be raised from the rest position 285 to operate in conjunction with the triggering electrodes 1482-1483 and the quenching electrodes 1486-1487, in the manner previously described, the quenching electrodes becoming effective if the zero key 1488 is in switch closing position.

In connection with the operation of the successive triggering pulses, the zero key 1468, 1478 or 1488 of-any order tube is closed only when no value key inthis order of the keyboard is depressed. In this way the triggering pulse will be transmitted by a particular order' ofthe apparatus that is otherwise idle during a cycle of, operation, and the cathode ray beam thereof will be immediately quenched before it is raised sufiiciently to produce a digitation pulse. Where no zero key is employed the switch control of quenching of the beam may be eflected by providing a normally closed switch between the contact electrodes 1466-1467, for example, and quenching electrode 16,this normally closed switch being opened when any of the value keys 36 to 44 of the order are depressed.

The transformers 1464, 1474 and 1484 may be provided with a sufficient time delay so that, for example, the operation of the units order selection tube 10 and til its utilization circuit'operation is performed before the triggering pulse is applied to the auxiliary deflector plates 183-184 of the tube to startthe digitation operation in this second order selection tubeand in order to control this time delay, variablecondensers 1464a and 1484a may be connected across these transformers 1464, 1474 and 1484, respectively.

Inio'rder' to provide any selected number of successive cycles of operation of the selection mechanism, the triggering electrodes 1482-1483 of thethird order selection tube 210 are connectedin series with the primary of a transformer 1484 througha battery 1485, and the secondary of this transformerf1484 is connected through a switch 1489 in parallcl with the initial triggering circuit, including the key 1461 and the battery 1460. In this way, the triggering pulse from thethird order selection tube 210 will becarried back to the first order selection tube 10 to'start another cycle; ofgoperationof the apparatus and repetition of I this 'cy'cle 0f operation is continuous until the switch 1489 is opened 1 Ti U The circuit shown in Figure'3 for automatic successive cyclic triggering of the apparatus is especially useful for performing multiplying and dividing operations in a rapid fashion as described in our application, Serial No. 611,608.

...we claim: 1 U a t t l. Cathode ray..tube apparatus comprising a cathode ray tube having means for producing a cathode raybeam, a target for said beam, deflecting means for moving said beam over saidmtarget,1 a source of currentqsupplyrfor energizing saiddeflecting means and means connected to said deflecting means and controlled; by;said beam as said beam is deflected over said target for causing said beam to move. automatically over said targeta I Cathode ray tube apparatus comprising a cathode ray tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and beam deflecting means, a target for said beam, means for deflecting said beam to said target, and means for controlling the deflection of saidbeam in accordance with the position of said beam on said target aftersaid beam is deflected to said target, said last mentionednmeans being connected to advance said beam over said target automatically, i I

3.. A cathode ray tube device comprising a cathoderay tube having meanslfor producing a cathode fray beam, a target for said beam, deflecting means for moving said beam over. said target, a source of currentlsupplyfor energizing said deflecting means, saidtarget comprising a series of electrodes connected to said deflecting means and connections for connecting said electrodes sothat the voltage applied to said deflecting meansis' yaried by said beam to cause automatic shifting of said beam over said target without holding said beam on' any target position. n p p i p 4. Cathode ray tube apparatus comprising a cathode ray tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and beam deflectingjmeans, a target comprising an array of electrodes for said beam, and means for energizing said beam deflecting means in accordance. with the position of said beam on saidtarget, said last mentioned means beingconnected to advance said beam over said target aiitoniatically withoutholding saidbeam on any target position. H

5. A cathode ray tube device comprising a cathode ray tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and beam deflectingrneans, a target comprising an array ofelectrodes, means for applying different voltages to selected ones of said electrodes, and connections for connecting said last mentioned means to said beam deflecting means for energizing said beam deflecting means in accordance with the position of said beam on said target, said last mentioned means being connected to advance said beam over said target automatically without holding said beam on any target position.

6. A cathode ray tube device comprising a cathode ray tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam, Lil i vi. it at .r ,Li itmfi iu 5.4M Q v ,1-: Mm r l i l a target for saidbeam, deflecting means for moving said beam over said target, said target comprising two series of electrodes, one of said series having electrodes connected to. said deflecting means and means for selectively connecting electrodes in the other series to the cathode of said tube, for controlling the limit of deflection and intensity of the beam.

7. Electronic computing apparatus comprising a tube having meansfor producing a stream of electrons and means for deflecting said stream, a target for receiving said stream, means for selecting the position on said target to which said stream is to be deflected, means for rendering said stream ineffective after it is deflected to the selected position and an output circuit for receiving a signal characterized by the position to which said'stream was deflected.

8. Electronic computing apparatus as set forth in claim 7, further characterized in that the target comprises means connected to said means for deflecting the electron stream so that said stream is automatically deflected to a predetermined extent.

9. Electronic computing apparatus as set forth in claim 8, further characterized in that the means for rendering the stream ineffective comprises an auxiliary electrode connected to an array of electrodes included in said target.

10. Electronic computing apparatus comprising a tube having means for producing a stream of electrons and electromagnetic means for deflecting said stream, a target for receiving said stream, means for selecting the position on said target to which said stream is to be deflected in effecting a computing operation, means for rendering said stream ineffective after it is deflected to the selected position and an output circuit for receiving a signal characterized by the position of said stream when it was rendered ineffective.

11. Electronic computing apparatus comprising a tube having means for producing a stream of electrons, electrode means on which said stream is adapted to be impinged, electromagnetic means for sweeping said stream over said electrode means, means for selecting the position on said electrode means to which said stream is to be swept in effecting a computing operation, means for rendering said stream ineffective after it is swept to the selected position and an output circuit for receiving a signal characterized by the position to which said stream was swept.

12. Electronic computer apparatus comprising cathode ray tube having a series of contacts adapted to be closed by the cathode ray beam in effecting a computing operation, means connected to said tube responsive to the closing of one set of contacts to cause stepping of the beam of said tube to another set of contacts.

13. Electronic computer apparatus comprising a cathode ray tube having electromagnetic beam deflecting means and having a series of contacts adapted to be impinged by the cathode ray beam in effecting a computing operation, means responsive to the impinging of said beam upon selected ones of said contacts by said beam to alter the energization of said electromagnetic deflecting means and cause shifting of the beam to impinge upon a different one of said contacts.

14. Electronic computer apparatus comprising a chain of cathode ray tubes, each of said tubes having a series of target contacts adapted to be closed by the cathode ray beam thereof, means for connecting said cathode ray tubes so that the beams of said tubes are automatically caused to step across the series of contacts thereof, and

means for initiating the stepping of the beam of the first tube of said chain.

15. Electronic computer apparatus comprising a chain of cathode ray tubes, each of said tubes having a series of target contacts adapted to be impinged by the cathode ray beam in minor cycles of operation, means for each of said tubes for controlling the minor cycle of operation "10 thereof, means for initiating the operation of the first tube of said chain, and means for connecting said cathode ray tubes so that the beams of said tubes are automatically controlled to perform their minor cycles of operation after the operation of the first tube of the chain is initiated.

16. Electronic computer apparatus as set forth in claim 15, further characterized in that selected ones of said cathode ray tubes are provided with auxiliary beam deflecting means and the auxiliary beam deflecting means of one of said tubes is coupled to selected target contacts of the preceding tube in the chain.

17. Electronic computer apparatus as set forth in claim 15, further characterized in that each of said tubes is provided with means responsive to the beam thereof for producing a predetermined number of electric pulses in each minor cycle thereof.

18. Electronic computer apparatus as set forth in claim 15, further characterized in that each of said tubes is provided with adjustable means responsive to the beam thereof for producing a predetermined number of electric pulses in each minor cycle thereof.

19. Cathode ray tube apparatus comprising a cathode ray tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and beam deflecting means, a target for said beam, said beam deflecting means having means for deflecting said beam to said target, and means connected to said beam deflecting means and controlled by said beam for progressively deflecting said beam.

20. In a calculating device the combination of a cathode ray beam tube, said cathode ray beam tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and auxiliary deflector means and main deflector means and a plurality of sets of electrodes, said electrodes being mounted in' said cathode ray beam tube and being adapted to be swept by the beam thereof, a source of potential connected to said main deflector plates through one of the aforesaid sets of electrodes so; that predetermined potentials from said source are applied to said main deflectors through said one set of the aforesaid electrodes, a beam controlling electrode positioned in said tube, said beam controlling electrode being connected to said other set of said electrodes, a plurality of manually settable devices connected to said other set of electrodes for controlling said beam through pre-selected eectrodes of said other set, and means for applying an initiating pulse to said auxiliary deflectors for initiating the sweeping of the beam of said cathode ray beam device over said electrodes for the production of a predetermined number of electrical pulses.

21. In a calculating device the combination of a cathode ray beam tube, said cathode ray beam tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and auxiliary deflector means and main deflector means and a plurality of sets of electrodes including a first set and a second set, said electrodes being mounted in said cathode ray beam tube and being adapted to be swept by the beam thereof, a source of potential connected to said main deflector plates through the first set of the aforesaid sets of electrodes so that predetermined potentials from said source are applied to said main deflectors to eifect sweeping of the cathode ray beam from one electrode of said first set to the next, a beam controlling electrode positioned in said tube, said beam controlling electrode being connected to said second set of said electrodes, a plurality of manually settable devices connected to said second set of electrodes for controlling said beam through pre-selected electrodes thereof, and means for applying an initiating pulse to said auxiliary deflectors for initiating the sweeping of the beam of said cathode ray =beam device over said electrodes for the production of a predetermined number of electrical pulses.

22. In a calculating device the combination of a cathode ray beam tube, said cathode ray beam tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam and main deflectormeansand a set ,of electrodes, said electrodes being mounted in said cathode ray beam tube and being adapted to be swept bythexbeam thereof to produce pulses, a sourceof potentialconnected to said main deflector plates through said electrodes so that predetermined potentials from said source are applied to said main deflectors therethrough to elfect sweeping of the cathode ray beam from one electrode to the next, and settable means for quenching said beam after a predetermined number of pulses as determined by said setta-ble means have been produced.

23. In a calculating machine, an electrical circuit including a cathode ray tube and a seriesof contact sets therein for closing by the electron beam of saidtube for providing a pattern of output pulses forming 'a representation of digits from "1 to 9, said circuit also including means for causing movement of'said electron beam along said series of said contact sets and settable means for interrupting movement of said electron beam along said contact sets after a movement thereof corresponding to the value of the digit to be represented? 24 In a calculating machine, an electrical circuit ineluding a cathode ray tube having a'first series ofcontact sets for closing by the electron beam of said tube for providing a representation of digits from "1 to "9 and a second series of contact sets arranged alternately with the first series of contact sets, and settable means connected to said second series of contacts for rendering any selected one of said contact sets effective, thecifcuit to the'contact of said second set selected by said settable means being adapted tobe closed by the electronbe'am to interrupt operation thereof, said circuit also including means for causing step-by-step shifting of said electron beam along said series of said contact sets.

25. In a calculating machine, an electrical circuit including a cathode ray tube having a first series of contact sets for closing by the electron beam of said't'ube for providing a representation of digits from 1 to 9 and a second series of contact sets arranged alternately with the first series of contact sets for closing by the electron beam, a beam quenching electrode, a means including a plurality of keys representing the digits from 1 to 9 for selectively connecting said second series of contact sets 12 to said beam quenchingelectrode, said circuit also in cluding means for causing step by step shifting of said electron beam along said series of said contact sets, the

shifting of said beam being halted when said beam reaches a contact set of said second series connected to a closed key. I

26. In a calculating device the combination of a cath ode ray beam tube, said cathode ray beam tube having means for producing a cathode ray beam, auxiliary deflectorv means and main deflector means and a plurality of sets of electrodes, said plurality of sets of electrodes corresponding to the digits from 1 to 9, said electrodes being mounted in said cathode ray beam tube and being adapted to be swept by the beam thereof, a source of potential'conne'cted to said main deflector plates through one of the aforesaid sets of electrodes so that predetermined potentials from-said source are applied to said main deflectors through said one set of the aforesaid electrodes, a beam controlling electrode positioned iii-said tube, said beam controlling electrode being connectd to said other set of said electrodesLa 'pluralityofr' inanu ally settable devices representing values from 1 to 9 connected to said other set of electrodes for controlling said beam through pre-selected electrodes of said other set, and means for applying an initiating pulse to said auxiliary deflector means for initiating the sweeping of the beam of, said cathode ray beam device over said electrodes for the production of a predetermined number of electrical pulses.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Joel Feb. 21,

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