Magneto-optical analog to digital signal converter

Claim 1

IN ANALOG TO DIGITAL SIGNAL CONVERTER APPARATUS, IN COMBINATION, A SOURCE OF LIGHT HAVING A PREDETERMINED PLANE OF POLARIZATION, A PLURALITY OF LIGHT SENSITIVE ELEMENTS DISPOSED IN PREDETERMINED POSITIONS WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AND WITH RESPECT TO SAID SOURCE OF LIGHT, EACH OF SAID LIGHT SENSITIVE ELEMENTS HAVING SENSITIVE AND INSENSITIVE PORTIONS AND GENERATING AN ELECTRICAL OUTPUT SIGNAL WHILE LIGHT ENERGY IMPINGES ONLY ON A SENSITIVE PORTION THEREOF, THE SENSITIVE AND INSENSITIVE PORTIONS OF ALL SAID PLURALITY OF LIGHT SENSITIVE ELEMENTS BEING ARRANGED IN A PREDETERMINED PATTERN WHEREBY LIGHT REACHING CERTAIN SELECTED SENSITIVE PORTIONS PROVIDES OUTPUT SIGNALS FROM THE LIGHT SENSITIVE ELEMENTS WHICH ARE DIGITALLY CODED TO CORRESPOND TO A QUANTITY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE SELECTED SENSITIVE PORTIONS WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AND LIGHT REACHING CERTAIN OTHER SELECTED SENSITIVE PORTIONS PROVIDES OTHER OUTPUT SIGNALS FROM THE LIGHT SENSITIVE ELEMENTS WHICH ARE DIGITALLY CODED TO CORRESPOND TO ANOTHER QUANTITY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE OTHER SELECTED SENSITIVE PORTIONS WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER, LIGHT FILTERING MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE SOURCE OF LIGHT AND THE PLURALITY OF LIGHT SENSITIVE ELEMENTS AND EXCLUDING ONLY LIGHT HAVING A PLANE OF POLARIZATION AT A PREDETERMINED ANGLE WITH RESPECT TO SAID PREDETERMINED PLANE OF POLARIZATION, AND ANALOG SIGNAL MEANS INCLUDING MAGNETO OPTICALLY ACTIVE MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE SOURCE OF LIGHT AND SAID LIGHT FILTERING MEANS FOR SELECTIVELY CONTROLLING THE PLANE OF POLARIZATION OF LIGHT REACHING THE LIGHT FILTERING MEANS IN SELECTED AREAS THEREOF SELECTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE VALUE OF THE ANALOG SIGNAL TO THEREBY VARIABLY SELECT GROUPS OF SENSITIVE PORTIONS TO BE ILLUMINATED IN ACCORDANCE WITH VARIATIONS IN THE VALUE OF THE ANALOG SIGNAL.