Transient suppressor

Claim 1

IN A CIRCUIT INCLUDING A LOAD, A SOURCE OF VOLTAGE FOR SUPPLYING THE LOAD WITH CURRENT, MEANS INCLUDING A PAIR OF CONDUCTORS FOR CONNECTING THE SOURCE OF VOLTAGE TO SAID LOAD AND ACROSS WHICH A TRANSIENT VOLTAGE OF ANY POLARITY MAY APPEAR WHICH CAN REACH AT LEAST A MINIMUM UNSAFE LEVEL SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN THE MAXIMUM VALUE OF THE OUTPUT OF SAID SOURCE OF VOLTAGE, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING TRANSIENT VOLTAGE SUPPRESSION MEANS CONNECTED ACROSS SAID PAIR OF CONDUCTORS, SAID TRANSIENT VOLTAGE SUPPRESSION MEANS COMPRISING A SYMMETRICAL BI-DIRECTIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR CURRENT CONTROLLING DEVICE INCLUDING SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL MEANS AND TWO LOAD TERMINALS IN NON-RECTIFYING CONTACT THEREWITH AND COUPLED ACROSS SAID CONDUCTORS, SAID SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL MEAN BEING OF ONE CONDUCTING TYPE AND INCLUDING MEANS FOR PROVIDING A FIRST CONDITION OF RELATIVELY HIGH RESISTANCE FOR SUBSTANTIALLY BLOCKING CURRENT SUBSTANTIALLY EQUALLY IN EITHER DIRECTION THERETHROUGH BETWEEN THE LOAD TERMINALS, SAID SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL MEAN INCLUDING MEANS RESPONSIVE TO VOLTAGE OF AT LEAST AN UPPER THRESHOLD VALUE IN EXCESS OF SAID MAXIMUM VALUE OF THE OUTPUT OF SAID SOURCE OF VOLTAGE AND LESS THAN SAID MINIMUM UNSAFE VOLTAGE LEVEL APPLIED TO SAID LOAD TERMINALS FOR ALTERING SAID FIRST CONDITION OF RELATIVELY HIGH RESISTANCE OF SAID SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL MEANS FOR SUBSTANTIALLY INSTANTANEOUSLY PROVIDING AT LEAST ONE PATH THROUGH SAID SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL MEANS BETWEEN THE LOAD TERMINALS HAVING A SECOND CONDITION OF RELATIVELY LOW RESISTANCE FOR CONDUCTING THE CURRENT THERETHROUGH SUBSTANTIALLY EQUALLY IN EACH DIRECTION THERETHROUGH TO SUPPRESS SAID TRANSIENT VOLTAGE,