Claims
- 1. A resistance decade box for applications where the adjustment of a resistance value to a precision of two significant digits is sufficient, wherein the improvement consists of the combination of circuit elements given below which acting together have the effect of incorporating a tens-multiplier into the method of setting a desired resistance value as well as reducing the number of components required for the manufacture of the device; these circuit elements and their manner of combination are:
- A first three-pole ten position digit-setting switch including interconnections among pole and pole position terminals on the switch forming five electrically distinct junctions which, when connected to a chosen feasible 10.sup.k resistance network, is able, by selection of its ten positions, to form the 10.sup.k decade of resistance values between two of the said junctions on the switch; said first digit-setting switch is serially connected with a second identically wired three-pole ten position digit-setting switch, and the extremes of the serial connection are connected to terminal posts provided for connection to external circuits; a sequence of six groups of four resistors, each group connected in a network configuration with five electrically distinct connection points, one point from each of the six networks connected together with a common junction of the first and second digit-setting switches, and the kth network of the sequence forming a 10.sup.k-1 resistance network capable of being interconnected to form the 10.sup.k-1 decade of resistance values by either the first or the second digit-setting switch when the remaining four points of the network are connected to the other four junction points on either the first or the second digit-setting switch; an eight-pole five position tens-multiplier switch whose consecutive positions connect four junction points of the first digit-setting switch to four respective connection points in the 10.sup.1, 10.sup.2, 10.sup.3, 10.sup.4, or 10.sup.5 resistance networks and simultaneously connect four junction points of the second digit-setting switch to four respective connection points in the 10.sup.0, 10.sup.1, 10.sup.2, 10.sup.3, or 10.sup.4 resistance networks; the five consecutive positions of the tens-multiplier switch thereby respectively connect the first and second digit-setting switches as a 10.sup.1 resistance decade module in series with a 10.sup.0 resistance decade module, a 10.sup.2 resistance decade module in series with a 10.sup.1 resistance decade module, a 10.sup.3 resistance decade module in series with a 10.sup.2 resistance decade module, a 10.sup.4 resistance decade module in series with a 10.sup.3 resistance decade module, or a 10.sup.5 resistance decade module in series with a 10.sup.4 resistance decade module, which has the effect of multiplying the value of the decade box resistance by 10 for each advance of the tens-multiplier switch position.
- 2. A resistance decade box for applications where the adjustment of a resistance value to a precision of two significant digits is sufficient, wherein the improvement consists of the combination of circuit elements given below which acting together have the effect of incorporating a tens-multiplier into the method of setting a desired resistance value as well as reducing the number of components required for the manufacture of the device; the circuit elements are:
- (a) Two terminal posts for connection to external circuits;
- (b) A first digit-setting switch, consisting of a three-pole ten position switch with interconnections among the pole and switch position terminals resulting in five electrically distinct junctions, a first junction formed by the connection of the terminal of the first pole to the terminal of the sixth position of the second pole; a second junction formed by the connection of the terminal of the second position of the first pole to the terminals of the fourth, seventh, and ninth positions of the first pole; a third junction consisting of the terminal of the third pole; a fourth junction formed by the connection of the terminal of the second pole to the terminals of the seventh and eighth positions of the third pole; a fifth junction formed by the connection of the terminal of the first position of the first pole to the terminals of the fourth and fifth positions of the second pole and the second and third positions of the third pole;
- (c) A second digit-setting switch identical to the first digit-setting switch;
- (d) A tens-multiplier switch, consisting of an eight-pole five position switch with the pole position terminals of the first and second poles interconnected so that the terminal of the first position of the first pole is connected to the terminal of the second position of the second pole, and the terminal of the second position of the first pole is connected to the terminal of the third position of the second pole, and the terminal of the third position of the first pole is connected to the terminal of the fourth position of the second pole, and the terminal of the fourth position of the first pole is connected to the terminal of the fifth position of the second pole; the position terminals of the third and fourth poles, the fifth and sixth poles, and the seventh and eighth poles have identical pairwise interconnections as those on the position terminals of the first and second poles;
- (e) Six groups of four resistors each, the first group consisting of a five ohm resistor, a first two ohm resistor, a second two ohm resistor, and a third two ohm resistor, said first group of four resistors connected together into a first resistance network with five electrically distinct connection points; the first connection point consisting of one terminal of the five ohm resistor; the second connection point consisting of the other terminal of the said five ohm resistor connected with one terminal of the first two ohm resistor; the third connection point consisting of the other terminal of the said first two ohm resistor connected with one terminal of the second two ohm resistor and one terminal of the third two ohm resistor; the fourth connection point consisting of the other terminal of the said second two ohm resistor; the fifth connection point consisting of the other terminal of the said third two ohm resistor; the second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth groups of four resistors are each connected respectively into a second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth resistance network exactly as the first group of four resistors, the sole difference being that the resistors comprising the second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth resistance networks have respectively 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000, and 100,000 times the values of the resistors comprising the first resistance network;
- the elements defined in (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) above are interconnected as follows: the first connection points of all six resistance networks defined in (e) are all connected in common with the fifth junctions of both digit-setting switches defined in (b) and (c); the rest of the connection points of the resistance networks are connected to pole position terminals of the tens-multiplier switch defined in (d) as follows: connection points two, three, four, and five of the first resistance network are connected respectively to the terminals of the first pole positions of eighth, sixth, fourth, and second poles; connection points two, three, four, and five of the second resistance network are connected respectively to the terminals of the first pole positions of the seventh, fifth, third, and first poles; connection points two, three, four, and five of the third resistance network are connected respectively to the terminals of the second pole positions of the seventh, fifth, third, and first poles; connection points two, three, four, and five of the fourth resistance network are connected respectively to the terminals of the third pole positions of the seventh, fifth, third, and first poles; connection points two, three, four, and five of the fifth resistance network are connected respectively to the terminals of the fourth pole positions of the seventh, fifth, third, and first poles; connection points two, three, four, and five of the sixth resistance network are connected respectively to the terminals of the fifth pole positions of the seventh, fifth, third, and first poles;
- the first, second, third, and fourth junctions of the first digit-setting switch defined in (b) are connected respectively to the pole terminals of the first, third, fifth, and seventh poles of the tens-multiplier switch defined in (d); the first, second, third, and fourth junctions of the second digit-setting switch defined in (c) are connected respectively to the pole terminals of the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth poles of the tens-multiplier switch defined in (d);
- a first terminal post for connection to external circuits defined in (a) is connected to the first junction of the first digit-setting switch defined in (b); a second terminal post for connection to external circuits is connected to the first junction of the second digit-setting switch; the connection between the fifth junctions of the first and second digit-setting switches result in a serial connection of the two digit-setting switches between the two terminal posts;
- with all of the preceeding elements so connected, and with the tens-multiplier switch in its first position, the rotation of the first digit-setting switch to its consecutive positions connect the second network of resistors in a sequence of configurations which create the sequence of resistance values 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, and 90 ohms between the first terminal post for connection to external circuits and the fifth junction defined in (b); the rotation of the second digit-setting switch through its ten positions connect the first network of resistors in a sequence of configurations which create the sequence of resistance values 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 ohms between the fifth junction defined in (b) and the second terminal post for connection to external circuits; the setting of the first and second digit-setting switches are thereby able to form every integer value of resistance between zero and ninety-nine ohms, and said resistance appears across the two terminal posts for connection to external circuits; furthermore, every advance of the position of the tens-multiplier switch increases the value of the resistors in the resistance networks connected to the first and second digit-setting switches by a factor of 10, thereby increasing the value of resistance appearing across the terminal post for connection to external circuits by a factor of ten.
APPLICATION AND RELATED DEVICES
This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 833,870, filed Sept. 16, 1977, now abandoned, entitled "Two Digit Resistance Decade Box," and in the name of Robert Edward Sherman, and the benefit of the earlier filing date is claimed.
US Referenced Citations (4)
Foreign Referenced Citations (3)
Number |
Date |
Country |
610282 |
Mar 1935 |
DE2 |
844757 |
Jul 1952 |
DEX |
534251 |
Mar 1941 |
GBX |
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
833870 |
Sep 1977 |
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