Transistor-regulated direct current power supply with remote programming capabilities

Claim 1

IN A DIRECT CURRENT POWER SOURCE OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, LINES RESPECTIVELY POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE, OUTPUT TERMINALS FOR SAID LINES, VOLTAGE-CONTROL MEANS INCLUDING A TRANSISTOR SERIES-CONNECTED IN ONE OF SAID LINES, MEANS FOR APPLYING DIRECT CURRENT INPUT VOLTAGE ACROSS THE RESPECTIVE INPUT TERMINALS OF SAID LINES, THE POTENTIAL AT SAID NEGATIVE LINE BEING FIXED EQUIVALENT TO A GROUND, A THIRD LINE, MEANS FOR APPLYING ACROSS SAID NEGATIVE LINE AND SAID THIRD LINE A REFERENCE POTENTIAL UNDER CONDITIONS WHEREAT THE POTENTIAL OF SAID THIRD LINE IS ALWAYS NEGATIVE WITH RESPECT TO THE POTENTIAL OF SAID NEGATIVE LINE, A FIRST RESISTANCE AND A SECOND RESISTANCE SERIES-CONNECTED WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AND CONSTITUTING JOINTLY A CONSTANTCURRENT DIVIDER CONNECTED ACROSS SAID THIRD LINE AND SAID POSITIVE LINE, SAID POWER SOURCE EMBODYING AN ELECTRICAL BRIDGELIKE CONFIGURATION WHEREIN SAID INPUT VOLTAGE WITH SAID VOLTAGE-CONTROL MEANS AND WITH SAID REFERENCE POTENTIAL CONSTITUTES ONE ARM OF SAID BRIDGELIKE CONFIGURATION AND WHEREIN SAID FIRST RESISTANCE AND SAID SECOND RESISTANCE CONSTITUTE THE OTHER ARM OF THE LATTER, TRANSISTORS CONNECTED TO CONSTITUTE AN INPUT COMPARATOR SYSTEM WHEREIN THE RESPECTIVE BASES OF SAID LAST-NAMED TRANSISTORS ARE FUNCTIONAL AS SENSING ELEMENTS, ONE OF SAID SENSING ELEMENTS BEING CONNECTED TO SAID CONSTANT-CURRENT DIVIDER AT AN INTERMEDIATE POINT OF THE LATTER, ANOTHER OF SAID SENSING ELEMENTS BEING CONNECTED TO SAID THIRD LINE, CERTAIN OF THE ELEMENTS AND MEANS FORMING PART OF SAID POWER SOURCE ELECTRICALLY CONNECTING SAID COMPARATOR SYSTEM AND SAID VOLTAGE-CONTROL MEANS AND BEING SO COORDINATED IN SAID POWER SOURCE AND WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AS TO ESTABLISH AND MAINTAIN DURING NORMAL OPERATION OF SAID POWER SOURCE NULL POINTS SUBSTANTIALLY AT SAID SENSING ELEMENTS AND A CONDITION OF SUBSTANTIALLY ZERO POTENTIAL BETWEEN SAID NEGATIVE LINE AND EACH OF SAID NULL POINTS, AN AUXILIARY TRANSISTOR HAVING A BASE-TO-EMITTER CIRCUIT, AND MEANS CONNECTING SAID BASE-TO-EMITTER CIRCUIT OF SAID AUXILIARY TRANSISTOR WITH RESPECT TO ONE OF SAID COMPARATOR TRANSISTORS TO RENDER THE LATTER NON-CONDUCTIVE UPON OCCURRENCE OF A CONDITION OF OVERLOAD APPLIED ACROSS SAID TERMINALS THUS TO CAUSE SAID ONE OF SAID COMPARATOR TRANSISTORS TO CUT-OFF.