Character recognition using curve tracing

Claim 1

IN A CHARACTER READER, A LINE PRODUCING SCANNER FOR AN AREA HAVING A CHARACTER, THERE BEING RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN THE SCAN LINES AND THE AREA, MEANS TO RECOGNIZE A FIRST CROSSING OF A CHARACTER LINE BY A SCAN LINE, A GATE SYSTEM SET BY THE FIRST CROSSING, RECOGNITION MEANS TO BECOME SENSITIVE TO A CROSSING OF THE CHARACTER LINE BY THE SECOND SCAN LINE WITHIN A PREDETERMINED SUB AREA OF THE SECOND SCAN LINE TIME AND PRODUCE AN OUTPUT IF THE SECOND SCAN LINE CROSSES THE CHARACTER LINE IN SAID SUB AREA, MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID OUTPUT TO AGAIN SET SAID GATE SYSTEM TO PRODUCE A SIMILAR SUB AREA IN THE THIRD SCAN LINE TIME AND CONTINUE TO SET SAID GATE SYSTEM SO LONG AS SCAN LINES CROSS THE CHARACTER LINE WITHIN SAID SUB AREAS, MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID OUTPUTS TO RECOGNIZE THE BEHAVIOR OF THE TRACE OF THE CHARACTER LINE FORMED BY THE PROPAGATION OF SCAN LINE CROSSING WITHIN SAID SUB AREAS, AND STORAGE MEANS FED BY SAID BEHAVIOR RECOGNITION MEANS.