Encoder circuits

Claim 1

IN AN ENCODER, A ROTOTABLE SHAFT MOUNTING A DISC HAVING AT LEAST A CONTINUOUS SINGLE TRACK THEREON COMPRISING SPACED CONDUCTIVE AND NONCONDUCTIVE SEGMENTS REPRESENTATIVE OF BINARY CODED CHARACTERS, SAID ROTABLE SHAFT IS ADAPTED TO BE RESPONSIVE TO ANALOG INFORMATION DERIVED FROM A REVOLVING SHAFT, SENSING MEANS FOR CONTINUALLY ENGAGING SAID DISC TO SERIALLY SENSE SAID SEGMENTS AND TO PROVIDE ELECTRICAL SIGNALS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SENSED BINARY CHARACTERS, AND SWITCHING MEANS HAVING TWO CONDUCTIVE CONDITIONS COUPLED TO BE CONTINUOUSLY AND SOLELY RESPONSIVE TO THE ELECTRICAL SIGNALS PROVIDED BY SAID SENSING MEANS FOR UNAMBIGUOUSLY REPRODUCING THE SENSED SEGMENTS AS BINARY CODED ELECTRICAL CHARACTERS IN TERMS OF THE CONDUCTIVE AND NONCONDUCTIVE CONDITIONS THEREOF WITHOUT REGARD TO THE DIRECTION OF ROTATION OF SAID SHAFT, SAID SWITCHING MEANS COMPRISING A PAIR OF TRANSISTORS EACH HAVING AN EMITTER, COLLECTOR AND BASE ELECTRODE, IMPEDANCE MEANS COUPLING THE COLLECTOR ELECTRODE OF ONE OF SAID TRANSISTORS WITH THE BASE ELECTRODE OF THE OTHER TRANSISTOR, COMMON IMPEDANCE MEANS CONNECTED TO THE EMITTER ELECTRODES OF EACH OF SAID TRANSISTORS AND A POINT OF REFERENCE POTENTIAL, IMPEDANCE MEANS COUPLED TO THE BASE ELECTRODE FOR THE TRANSISTOR AND THE POINT OF REFERENCE POTENTIAL, IMPEDANCE MEANS COUPLED TO THE BASE ELECTRODE OF SAID ONE TRANSISTOR AND A POINT OF NEGATIVE POTENTIAL RELATIVE TO SAID REFERENCE POTENTIAL, AND INDIVIDUAL IMPEDANCE MEANS EACH SEPARATELY CONNECTED TO THE COLLECTOR ELECTRODE OF ONE OF SAID TRANSISTORS AND THE POINT OF NEGATIVE POTENTIAL, AND MEANS FOR APPLYING THE ELECTRICAL SIGNALS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SENSED BINARY CHARACTERS FROM SAID SENSING MEANS IN PARALLEL CIRCUIT RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BASE-EMITTER CIRCUIT OF SAID ONE TRANSISTOR CONNECTED TO SAID REFERENCE POTENTIAL WHEREBY SAID TRANSISTORS ARE ALTERNATELY RENDERED CONDUCTIVE AND NONCONDUCTIVE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDUCTIVE AND NONCONDUCTIVE CHRACTERISTICS OF THE SENSED BINARY CHARACTERS.