Function generator

Claim 1

ELECTRONIC FUNCTION GENERATING APPARATUS FOR GENERATING AN OUTPUT VOLTAGE WHICH VARIES AS A DESIRED FUNCTION OF AN INPUT VARIABLE, COMPRISING IN COMBINATION: A PLURALITY OF P+N INPUT LINES FOR RECEIVING A FIRST PARALLEL DIGITAL INPUT SIGNAL OF P+N DIGITS COMMENSURATE WITH SAID INPUT VARIABLE; A DECODING SWITCHING CIRCUIT CONNECTED TO A PLURALITY P OF SAID P+N INPUT LINES OF SAID FIRST INPUT SIGNAL AND OPERATIVE TO SELECT AND ENERGIZE DIFFERENT ONES OF A SECOND PLURALITY OF 2P CONDUCTORS, DEPENDING UPON THE VALUE OF SAID P DIGITS OF SAID FIRST PARALLEL DIGITAL INPUT SIGNAL; A MATRIX SWITCHING CIRUCIT HAVING A PLURALITY OF ROW SIGNAL; A CONDUCTORS AND FIRST AND SECOND GROUPS OF COLUMNS OUTPUT CONDUCTORS, SAID INPUT CONDUCTORS BEING SELECTIVELY CON NECTED TO VARIOUS OF SAID OUTPUT CONDUCTORS IN ACCORDANCE WITH SAID DESIRED FUNCTION OF SAID VARIABLE TO PROVIDE THIRD AND FOURTH PARALLEL DIGITAL SIGNALS ON SAID COLUMN OUTPUT CONDUCTORS, A FIRST DIGITAL-TO-ANALOG CONVERTER RESPONSIVE TO THE DIGITAL SIGNAL ON SAID FIRST GROUP OF COLUMN OUTPUT CONDUCTORS AND TO A REFERENCE VOLTAGE FOR PROVIDING A FIRST ANALOG VOLTAGE SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO BOTH THE VALUE OF SAID THIRD DITIGAL SIGNAL AND TO SAID REFERENCE VOLTAGE; A SECOND DIGITAL-TO-ANALOG CONVERTER RESPONSIVE TO THE DIGITAL SIGNAL ON SAID SECOND GROUP OF COLUMN OUTPUT CONDUCTORS AND TO A REFERENCE VOLTAGE FOR PROVIDING A SECOND ANALOG VOLTAGE SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO BOTH THE VALUE OF SAID FOURTH DIGITAL SIGNAL AND TO SAID REFERENCE VOLTAGE; A THIRD DIGITAL-TOANALOG CONVERTER CONNECTED TO N OF SAID P+N INPUT LINES TO RECEIVE N DIGITS OF SAID INPUT SIGNAL AND CONNECTED TO SAID SECOND ANALOG VOLTAGE SIGNAL FOR PROVIDING A THIRD ANALOG VOLTAGE SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO BOTH THE VALUE OF SAID N DIGITS OF SAID INPUT SIGNAL AND TO SAID SECOND ANALOG VOLTAGE SIGNAL; AND UTILIZATION MEANS INCLUDING SUMMING MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID FIRST AND THIRD ANALOG VOLTAGE SIGNALS.