Apparatus for establishing and maintaining a predetermined angular relation to a source of radiant energy

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR ESTABLISHING AN OPERATIVE RELATION WITH A DISTANT SOURCE OF RADIATION AND INDICATING DEPARTURES THEREFROM COMPRISING A PHOTO-SENSITIVE CATHODE, AN IMAGE DISSECTOR PLATE HAVING AN APERTURE, DEFLECTION-FIELD-ESTABLISHING MEANS, INITIALLY OPERATIVE MEANS INCLUDING A CURRENT INTEGRATOR FOR SUPPLYING SUCH CURRENTS TO SAID FIELD-ESTABLISHING MEANS AS CAUSE AN ELECTRON STREAM EMITTED BY SAID CATHODE IN RESPONSE TO IMPINGEMENT BY ENERGY FROM A DISTANT SOURCE OF RADIATION TO SWEEP IN A SEARCH PATTERN OVER SAID PLATE, INITIALLY INEFFECTIVE MEANS FOR SUPPLYING SUCH CURRENTS TO SAID FIELD-ESTABLISHING MEANS AS SWEEP AN ELECTRON STREAM PASSING THROUGH SAID APERTURE IN A SENSING PATTERN IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS FROM ITS CENTER AXIS ACROSS AND BEYOND SAID APERTURE, MEANS OPERATIVE IN RESPONSE TO PASSAGE OF AN ELECTRON STREAM THROUGH SAID APERTURE TO PRODUCE AN OUTPUT CURRENT, MEANS ACTUATED BY SAID OUTPUT CURRENT FOR INACTIVATING SAID INITIALLY OPERATIVE CURRENT SUPPLY MEANS TO TERMINATE THE SEARCH SWEEP OF THE STREAM AND CAUSE SAID INTEGRATOR TO HOLD THE STREAM IN A POSITION WHEREIN IT PASSES THROUGH SAID APERTURE, MEANS LIKEWISE ACTUATED BY SAID OUTPUT CURRENT FOR ACTIVATING SAID INITIALLY INEFFECTIVE CURRENT SUPPLY MEANS TO INITIATE THE SENSING SWEEP OF THE STREAM ACROSS AND BEYOND SAID APERTURE, MEANS FOR SEGREGATING THE RESULTANT OUTPUT CURRENT PULSES INTO SETS OF PULSES ACCORDING TO WHICH SIDE OF ITS STEADY STATE AXIS THE STREAM TRAVELS AS IT PRODUCES THE PULSES, PULSE INVERTING MEANS, PULSE INTEGRATING MEANS, AND MEANS FOR DELIVERING ONE OF SAID SETS OF PULSES DIRECTLY AND THE OTHER THROUGH SAID PULSE INVERTING MEANS TO SAID INTEGRATING MEANS TO PRODUCE AN INTEGRATOR OUTPUT OF A MAGNITUDE AND POLARITY REPRESENTATIVE OF THE MAGNITUDE AND DIRECTION OF A DEPARTURE FROM AN OPERATIVE RELATION BETWEEN THE APPARATUS AND THE SOURCE OF RADIATION.