Data collection system

Claim 2

In a data collection system wherein items of data from selected ones of a plurality of remotely located terminal equipment units are sequentially read out and transmitted to a data collection station through three transmission lines, namely (i) a power feed transmission line, (ii) a common transmission line, and (iii) a signal transmission line, said data collection station including (a) means for supplying a voltage to a selected terminal equipment unit through said power feed line and said common line, and (b) means for transmitting clock pulses to said selected unit through said common line and said signal line, the items of data from said selected unit being sequentially read out in response to said clock pulses and transmitted to said data collection station through said signal transmission line, the improvement comprising means for establishing the voltage on said signal transmission line at a base level when said clock pulses are of one polarity and for establishing said voltage at one of two data levels, both different from said base level, when said clock pulses are of opposite polarity, the data levels of said voltage on said signal transmission line corresponding to the items of data of said selected terminal equipment unit to be read out and transmitted.

Claim 3

A data collecting system comprising: a plurality of remotely located terminal equipment units and a data collection station for obtaining data readings from selected ones of said units through three transmission lines, namely a power feed transmission line, a common transmission line, and a signal transmission line; means at said data collection station for (i) supplying a voltage to a selected one of said terminal equipment units through said power feed line and said common line, and (ii) transmitting clock pulses to said selected unit through said common line and said signal line; and means at said selected terminal equipment unit for sequentially reading out items of data in response to said clock pulses and transmitting said items to said data collection station through said signal transmission line, said reading out and transmitting means comprising: a binary coded decimal counter capable of counting four-digit decimal numbers; a first four-bit counter which is incremented in response to said clock pulses; and a second four-bit counter which is incremented by one for each circulation of the contents of said four-bit counter for sequentially selecting the digit positions of said binary coded decimal counter, and means for sequentially selecting and reading out the binary coded information in said selected digit position in response to the outputs from said first four-bit counter.

Claim 4

A data collecting system comprising: a plurality of remotely located terminal equipment units and a data collection station for obtaining data readings from selected ones of said units through three transmission lines, namely a power feed transmission line, a common transmission line, and a signal transmission line; means at said data collection station for (i) supplying a voltage to a selected one of said terminal equipment units through said power feed line and said common line, and (ii) transmitting clock pulses to said selected unit through said common line and said signal line; and means at said selected terminal equipment unit for sequentially reading out items of data in response to said clock pulses and transmitting said items to said data collection station through said signal transmission line, said reading out and transmitting means comprising: a binary coded decimal counter capable of counting four-digit decimal numbers; a first four-bit counter which is incremented in response to said clock pulses; and a second four-bit counter which is incremented by one for each circulation of the contents of said four-bit counter for sequentially selecting the digit positions of said binary coded decimal counter, and means for sequentially selecting and reading out the binary coded information in said selected digit position in response to the outputs from said first four-bit counter.

Claim 5

A data collection system as defined in claim 2 wherein said reading out and transmitting means further comprises a first diode matrix for logically processing the outputs from said first four-bit counter; a second diode matrix for logically processing the outputs from said second four-bit counter; means for sequentially selecting the digit positions of said binary coded decimal counter in response to the outputs from said second diode matrix; and means for sequentially selecting the binary digit positions of a binary coded decimal number in the selected digit position and for reading out a binary number in the selected binary digit position.