Electronic outline follower and reject system

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR TRACING A BOUNDARY COMPRISING (A) A CATHODE RAY TUBE HAVING A SCREEN AND MEANS FOR FORMING AN ELECTRON BEAM INCIDENT THEREON TO FORM A LIGHT SPOT, (B) FIRST BEAM DEFLECTING MEANS FOR DEFLECTING SAID BEAM IN ONE DIRECTION AND SECOND BEAM DEFLECTING MEANS FOR DEFLECTING SAID BEAM IN A DIRECTION TRANSVERSE TO SAID ONE DIRECTION, (C) OPTICAL MEANS FOR FORMING AND IMAGE OF SAID SPOT AT A POINT ON THE BOUNDARY TO BE TRACED, (D) LIGHT SENSITIVE MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE AREA OF SAID SPOT IMAGE DISPOSED AT ANY INSTANT ON ONE SIDE OF SAID BOUNDARY TO FURNISH AN ELECTRICAL ERROR SIGNAL OF A MAGNITUDE DEPENDENT UPON SAID AREA, (E) MEANS FOR GENERATING A DERIVED ELECTRICAL SIGNAL IN WHICH SAID ERROR SIGNAL APPEARS AS A TIME INTEGRAL, (F) MEANS FOR CONVERTING SAID DERIVED SIGNAL INTO TRACING SIGNAL COMPONENTS OF A FORM SO CO-RELATED TO SAID DIRECTIONS OF DEFLECTION OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND DEFLECTIONS MEANS AS TO PRODUCE SPOT DISPLACEMENT ALONG A PATH CURVING IN ONE DIRECTION OR IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION ACCORDING TO WHETHER SAID SPOT AREA IS GREATER OR LESS THAN A PREDETERMINED VALUE, (G) AND MEANS FOR FEEDING SAID TRACING SIGNAL COMPONENTS RESPECTIVELY TO SAID FIRST AND SECOND BEAM DEFLECTING MEANS TO PRODUCE MOVEMENT OF SAID SPOT IMAGE ALONG SAID BOUNDARY IN SUBSTANTIALLY CONTINUOUSLY OVERLAPPED RELATION THEREWITH.