Analogue multiplier apparatus

Claim 1

AN ELECTRONIC ANALOGUE FOUR-QUADRANT MULTIPLICATION APPARATUS COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: CONVERTER MEANS FOR PROVIDING FIRST AND SAECODN ANALOGUE INPUT VOLTAGE E1 AND E2 REPRESENTATIVE OF FIRST AND SECOND VARIABLE QUANTITIES, RESPECTIELY, ANF FOR PROVIDING A CORRESPONDING PAIR OF OPPOOSITELY-POLED ANALOGUE INPUT VOLTAGES -E1 AND -E2; A VACUUM TUBE COMPRISING AN ELONGATED CATHODE STRUCTURE, A PAIR OF RADIALLY-SPACED CONTROL GRID STRUCTURES SURROUNDING SAID CATHODE STRUCTURE, A PLATE STRUCTURE SURROUNDING SAID CONTROL GRID STRUCTURES, SAID PLATE STRUCTURE HAVING DIAMETRICALLY-OPPOSED FIRST AND THIRD SECTIONS AND DIAMETRICALLY-OPPOSED SECOND AND FOURTH SECTIONS DEFINED BY ORTHOGONAL CLEAVAGE PLANES CONTAINING SAID ELONGATED CATHODE STRUCTURE, ONE OF SAID CONTROL GRID STRUCTURES HAVING TWO SECTIONS DEFINED BY ONE OF SAID CLEAVAGE PLANES, AND THE OTHER OF SAID CONTROL GRID STRUCTURES HAVING TWO SECTIONS DEFINED BY THE OTHER OF SAID CLEAVAGE PLANES; MEANS FOR APPLYING THE VOLTAGE E1 TO THAT CONTROL GRID STRUCTURE SECTION ELECTRONICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID FIRST AND FOURTH PLATE STRUCTURE SECTIONS, THE VOLTAGE -E1 TO THAT CONTROL GRID STRUCTURE SECTION ELECTRONICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID SECOND AND THIRD PLATE STRUCTURE SECTIONS, THE VOLTAGE E2 TO THAT CONTROL GRID STRUCTURE SECTION ELECTRONICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID FIRST AND SECOND PLATE STRUCTURE SECTIONS, AND THE VOLTAGE -E2 TO THAT CONTROL GRID STRUCTURE SECTION ELECTRONICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID THIRD AND FOURTH PLATE STRUCTURE SECTIONS; SAID PLATE STRUCTURE SECTIONS EACH PROVIDING A LOAD CURRENT EXPRESSED BY THE ALGEBRAIC SUMMATION