Method and apparatus for monitoring the operation of a system

Claim 1

A MONITORING SYSTEM COMPRISING FIRST MEANS FOR PROVIDING A PLURALITY OF FIRST SIGNSAL REPRESENTING THE VALUES OF PERTINENT PARAMETERS OF A SYSTEM TO BE MONITORED; SECOND MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID FIRST MEANS COMPARING EACH OF SAID FIRST SIGNALS WITH AT LEAST ONE PRESELECTED LIMIT VALUE FOR GENERATING A PLURALITY OF SECOND AND THIRD SIGNALS, EACH OF SAID SECOND SIGNALS BEING GENERATED WHEN AN ASSOCIATED FIRST SIGNAL IS WITHIN SAID LIMIT VALVE, EACH OF SAID THRID SIGNALS BEING GENERATED WHEN AN ASSOCIATED FIRST SIGNALS HAS REACHED SAID LIMIT VALUE; THIRD MEANS COMPARING PRESELECTED GROUPS OF SAID SECOND AND THIRD SIGNALS FOR GENERATING A PLURALITY OF FOURTH AND FIFTH SIGNALS, EACH OF SAID FOURTH SIGNALS BEING GENERATED WHEN A PRESELECTED GROUP HAS A PREDETERMINED RELATIONSHIP, EACH OF SAID FIFTH SIGNALS BEING GENERATED WHEN A PRESELECTED GROUP HAS ANOTHER PREDETERMINED RELEATIONSHIP; AND FOURTH MEANS RESPONSIVE TO PRESELECTED GROUPS OF SAID FOURTH AND FIFTH SIGNALS FOR INDICATING WHETHER OR NOT SAID MONITORING SYSTEM IS OPERATING WITHIN ACCEPTABLE BOUNDARY CONDITIONS, SAID BOUNDARY CONDITIONS BEING DEFINED BY SAID PRESELECTED LIMIT VALUES.