Weighing apparatus incorporating a self-balancing potentiometer system

Claim 1

IN A WEIGHING APPARATUS, MEANS FOR PRODUCING A VOLTAGE PROPORTIONAL TO A LOAD, MEANS FOR PRODUCING COUNTER VOLTAGE INCREMENTS IN EACH OF A PLURALITY OF ORDERS OF MEASUREMENT CORRESPONDING RESPECTIVELY WITH DIFFERENT UNITS OF WEIGHT, A PLURALITY OF STEPPING SWITCHES ASSOCIATED ONE WITH EACH OF THE ORDERS OF MEASUREMENT AND OPERABLE TO DETERMINE THE VALUE OF THE COUNTER VOLTAGES PROVIDED IN THE RESPECTIVE ORDERS; EACH OF SAID STEPPING SWITCHES COMPRISING A MOVING CONTACT SCANNING A PLURALITY OF FIXED CONTACTS, AMPLIFIER MEANS CONNECTED TO COMPARE SAID LOAD PROPORTIONATE VOLTAGE AND COUNTER VOLTAGE, SWITCH MEANS CONNECTED TO THE OUTPUT OF SAID AMPLIFIER TO RESPOND TO A CHANGE IN THE RESULT OF SAID COMPARISON, AND A GOVERNING STEPPING SWITCH UNDER THE CONTROL OF SAID SWITCH MEANS AND OPERABLE TO CONTROL THE SEQUENTIAL SETTING OF THE STEPPING SWITCHES IDENTIFIED WITH THE PLURALITY OF MEASURING ORDERS TO RENDER THE LATTER SWITCHES OPERABLE TO AUTOMATICALLY BALANCE THE LOAD PROPORTIONATE AND COUNTER VOLTAGES; SAID COUNTER VOLTAGE PRODUCTIVE MEANS COMPRISING A TRANSFORMER HAVING A SECONDARY WINDING INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF TAPPINGS PROVIDING A PLURALITY OF EQUAL VOLTAGE INCREMENTS, SAID TAPPINGS BEING DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO THE CORRESPONDING FIXED CONTACTS OF EACH OF SAID COUNTER VOLTAGE STEPPING SWITCHES, AND ATTENUATORS CONNECTED BETWEEN MOVING CONTACTS OF THE COUNTER VOLTAGE STEPPING SWITCHES AND AMPLIFIER SO THAT THE ATTENUATORS PROPORTION THE VOLTAGE DERIVED FROM THE MOVING CONTACTS ACCORDING TO THE RELATIVE VALUES OF THE PLURALITY OF MEASUREMENT ORDERS.