Data storage and conversion system

Claim 2

A radar receiver and display system comprising: receiver means for receiving energy reflections from a target and producing a signal containing doppler frequencies which characterize the velocity and acceleration of said target; analysis means, connected to said receiver means and including a variable frequency oscillator, for producing an output signal which normally includes only noise but producing an output signal above a predetermined threshold whenever the frequency of said variable frequency oscillator is caused to match the doppler frequencies of said receiver means signal; threshold means connected to said analysis means and functioning to produce a signal of predetermined amplitude and duration whenever said analysis means output signal is above said predetermined threshold and at other times is substantially zero and display means connected to sAid threshold means to present indications representative of differing parameters of said target.

Claim 3

The radar receiver and display system of claim 1 wherein said display means includes a plurality of cathode ray tubes which present on the face thereof indications of the range, acceleration and velocity of said target.

Claim 4

The radar receiver and display system of claim 2 wherein said analysis means includes a clock for coordinating said indications on the faces of said cathode ray tubes and the variations of said variable frequency oscillator.

Claim 5

A radar receiver and display system comprising: receiver means for receiving energy reflections from a target and producing a signal containing doppler frequencies which characterize the velocity and acceleration of said target; range storage means including a plurality of storage devices and a commutator which individually and sequentially connects said storage devices to said receiver means; programmer means, including a clock, for coordinating the operation of various parts of said radar receiver and display system; a variable frequency oscillator; modulator means connected to said programmer means and functioning to control said variable frequency oscillator to sequentially produce during an analysis period of predetermined length a plurality of frequency patterns which are similar to the doppler frequencies which would be produced in said receiver means signal for targets of a predetermined nature; analysis means connected to said range storage means and to said variable frequency oscillator and functioning to produce a signal above a predetermined threshold whenever the frequency of said variable frequency oscillator matches the doppler frequencies of said receiver means signal; threshold means connected to said analysis means and functioning to produce a signal of predetermined amplitude and duration whenever said analysis means output signal is above said predetermined threshold and at other times is substantially zero and display means connected to said threshold means to present indications representative of differing parameters of said target, said indications being substantially free of the normal collapsing losses because of the manner of functioning of said threshold means.

Claim 6

A radar receiver and display system comprising: receiver means for receiving energy reflections from a target and producing a signal containing doppler frequencies which characterize the velocity and acceleration of said target; range storage means including a plurality of storage devices and a commutator which individually and sequentially connects said storage devices to said receiver means; programmer means, including a clock, for coordinating the operation of various parts of said radar receiver and display system; a variable frequency oscillator; modulator means connected to said programmer means and functioning to control said variable frequency oscillator to sequentially produce during an analysis period of predetermined length a plurality of frequency patterns which are similar to the doppler frequencies which would be produced in said receiver means signal for targets of a predetermined nature; analysis means connected to said range storage means and to said variable frequency oscillator and functioning to produce a signal above a predetermined threshold whenever the frequency of said variable frequency oscillator matches the doppler frequencies of said receiver means signal; threshold means connected to said analysis means and functioning to produce a signal of predetermined amplitude and duration whenever said analysis means output signal is above said predetermined threshold and at other times is substantially zero and display means connected to said threshold means to present indications representative of differing parameters of said target, said indications being substantially free of the normal collapsing losses because of the manner of functioning of said threshold means.

Claim 7

The radar receiver and display system of claim 4 wherein said display means includes a plurality of cathode ray tubes which present on the face thereof indications of the range, acceleration and velocity of said target.

Claim 8

The radar receiver and display system of claim 5 wherein said display means includes: a Velocity-Time cathode ray tube having horizontal and vertical sweep and intensity control inputs; velocity display storage means having a capacity to store signals for a predetermined number of analysis periods and connected to said threshold means and driven by said clock in such a way that signals from said threshold means are stored in a sequence representative of the velocity of a target and when said velocity display storage means has been filled by signals from said predetermined number of analysis periods, the signals from the oldest analysis periods are erased as newer signal are added and velocity display circuit means connecting the readout of said velocity display storage means to said intensity control input of said Velocity-Time cathode ray tube and connecting said clock to said horizontal and vertical sweep inputs of said Velocity-Time cathode ray tube in such a way that threshold signals stored in said velocity display storage means appear as bright spots which are positioned in one display dimension to be representative of target velocity and which in the other display dimension move from one side to the other of the display before disappearing.

Claim 9

The radar receiver and display system of claim 6 wherein the connection between said velocity display storage means and said threshold means includes an OR gate.

Claim 10

The radar receiver and display system of claim 7 wherein said display means includes: an Accleration-Time cathode ray tube having horizontal and vertical sweep and intensity control inputs; first and second acceleration display storage means, each having a capacity to store signals for a predetermined number of analysis periods, said first acceleration display storage means being connected to said threshold means during the first half of said analysis period and said second acceleration display storage means being connected to said threshold means during the second half of said analysis period, said first and second acceleration display storage means being driven by said clock in such a way that signals from said threshold means are stored in a sequence representative of the acceleration of a target, positive acceleration signals being stored in said first acceleration display storage means and negative acceleration signals being stored in said second acceleration display storage means, and in such a way that when said first and second acceleration display storage means have been filled by signals from said predetermined number of analysis periods, the signals from the oldest analysis periods are erased as newer signals are added and acceleration display circuit means connecting the readouts of said first and second acceleration display storage means to said intensity control input of said Acceleration-Time cathode ray tube and connecting said clock to said horizontal and vertical sweep inputs of said Acceleration-Time cathode ray tube in such a way that threshold signals stored in said first and second acceleration display storage means appear as bright spots which are positioned in one direction from a median position in one display dimension to be representative of positive target acceleration and in the other direction from said median position to be representative of negative target accelerations and which in the other display dimension move from one side to the other of the display before disappearing.

Claim 11

The radar receiver and display system of claim 8 wherein the connection between said first and second acceleration display storage means and said threshold means includes an OR gate.

Claim 12

The radar receiver and display system of claim 5 wherein said threshold means includes a plurality of threshold devices which are individually connected by said analysis means to said plurality of storage devices in said range storage means.

Claim 13

The radar receiver and display system of claim 10 wherein said display means includes: a Range-Time cathode ray tube having horizontal and vertical sweep and intensity control inputs; a multiplexing device; range display storage means having a capacity to store signals for a predetermined number of analysis periods and connected by said multiplexing device in sequence to individual ones of said plurality to threshold devices and driven by said clock in such a way that signals from said plurality of threshold devices are stored in a sequence representative of the range of a target and when said range display storage means has been filled by signals from said predetermined number of analysis periods, the signals from the oldest analysis periods are erased as newer signals are added and range display circuit means connecting the readout of said range display storage means to said intensity control input of said Range-Time cathode ray tube and connecting said clock to said horizontal and vertical sweep inputs of said Range-Time cathode ray tube in such a way that threshold signals stored in said range display storage means appear as bright spots which are positioned in one display dimension to be representative of target range and which in the other display dimension move from one side to the other of the display before disappearing.

Claim 14

The radar receiver and display system of claim 10 wherein said display means includes: first, second and third cathode ray tubes, each having horizontal and verticaL sweep and intensity control inputs; multiplexing means functioning to connect the intensity control inputs of said first, second and third cathode ray tubes with each of said plurality of threshold devices during each of said plurality of frequency patterns produced by said variable frequency oscillator and sweep control means connecting said clock to said horizontal and vertical sweep control inputs of said first, second and third cathode ray tubes in a way such that for each analysis period said first cathode ray tube will display signals from said threshold devices as bright spots that are positioned in one display dimension to be representative of target velocity and the other display dimension to be representative of target range; said second cathode ray tube will display signals from said threshold devices as bright spots which are positioned in one direction from a median position in one display dimension to be representative of positive target acceleration and in the other direction from said median position to be representative of negative target acceleration and which are positioned in the other display dimension to be represenative of target range and said third cathode ray tube will display signals from said threshold devices as bright spots which are positioned in one direction from a median position in one display dimension to be representative of positive target acceleration and in the other direction from said median position to be represenative of negative target acceleration and which are positioned in the other display dimension to be representative of target velocity.