Code converting apparatus

Claim 1

CODE-CONVERTING APPARATUS COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF ELEMENT-COUNTING CIRCUITS HAVING INPUT AND COCKINGSIGNAL PRODUCING CIRCUITS, RESPECTIVELY, SAID ELEMENTCOUNTING CIRCUITS BEING SEQUENTIALLY ARRANGED WITH THE INPUT CIRCUITS THEREOF OPERATIVELY COUPLED TO THE COCKINGSIGNAL CIRCUIT OF THE RESPECTIVE PRECEDING ELEMENT-COUNTING CIRCUITS, EACH COUNTING CIRCUIT BEING ACTUABLE ONLY AFTER THE RECEIPT OF A COCKING SIGNAL, A PLURALITY OF ELEMENT SELECTORS SEQUENTIALLY ARRANGED AND OPERATIVELY COUPLED TO ONES OF SAID ELEMENT-COUNTING CIRCUITS RESPECTIVELY, THERE BEING ONE ELEMENT SELECTOR FOR ONE ELEMENTCOUNTING CIRCUIT THEREBY PROVIDING A PLURALITY OF ELEMENTNETWORKS, EACH SELECTOR INCLUDING TWO ELEMENT-SELECTING AND ONE CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUITS HAVING INPUT AND OUTPUT CIRCUITS RESPECTIVELY, SAID OUTPUT CIRCUITS INCLUDING MEANS GENERATING SIGNALS IN RESPONSE TO THE ACTUATION OF THE RESPECTIVE ELEMENT-SELECTING AND CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUITS, SAID ELEMENT-SELECTING AND CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUITS BEING ACTUABLE ONLY AFTER A COCKING SIGNAL IS APPLIED TO THE INPUT CIRCUITS THEREOF, ONE ELEMENT-SELECTING CIRCUIT OF EACH ELEMENT-NETWORK HAVING ITS INPUT COUPLED TO THE COCKING-SIGNAL CIRCUIT OF AN ADJACENT ELEMENT-NETWORK, THE SECOND ELEMENT-SELECTING CIRCUIT OF EACH ELEMENT-NETWORK HAVING ITS INPUT COUPLED TO THE COCKINGSIGNAL CIRCUIT OF ITS ELEMENT-NETWORK, THE CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUIT OF EACH ELEMENT-NETWORK HAVING ITS INPUT COUPLED TO THE COCKING-SIGNAL CIRCUIT OF ITS ELEMENT-NETWORK, MEANS SEQUENTIALLY TRIGGERING INTO ACTUATION SAID ELEMENTNETWORKS, MEANS DISABLING ALL OF SAID COUNTING CIRCUITS EXCEPT THE ONE TRIGGERED, MEANS SELECTIVELY TRIGGERING A CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUIT A PREDETERMINED PERIOD OF TIME FOLLOWING THE ACTUATION OF PARTICULAR ONES OF SAID ELEMENT-SELECTING CIRCUITS, AND MEANS OPERATIVELY COUPLED TO ALL OF THE OUTPUT CIRCUITS OF SAID ELEMENT-SELECTING AND CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUITS AND RESPONSIVE TO SIMULTANEOUS OCCURRENCE OF SIGNALS THEREIN FOLLOWING THE ACTUATION OF ONE OF SAID CHARACTER-DEFINING CIRCUITS FOR GENERATING A SIGNAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ELEMENT-SELECTING CIRCUITS ACTUATED.