Ferranti Plc

Other

Gec Ferranti Defence Systems Limited

Ferranti Limited (now Ferranti Plc)

John M Morrison

Melvyn R Bell

Charles M Stewart

Grant Edgar Ritchie

Charles McGregor Stewart

Donald A Longmuir

An optical system, for the remote determination of the position and orientation of a body in a frame of reference, e.g. a helmet within a cockpit of an aircraft, comprises co-operating light emitting means and light sensing means. At least three of one type of said co-operating means are located on the body and scanning optic means are arranged to scan the frame of reference with a pair of planar beams. The planes of the beams are inclined to each other and are arranged to provide a light path between the co-operating means. A signal processing means is operative to provide a signal indicative of the position and orientation of a body and a time during the scan of each respective beam in which the beam is coincident with each of the said means mounted on the body. In one embodiment three light sensing means are located on the body and the planar beams are beams of light from a light emitting means. In another embodiment three light emitting means are mounted on the body and these are scanned by planar acceptance beams on to at least one light sensing means.

Optical system for the remote determination of position and orientation

An intruder alarm system includes a number of sensors each of which comprises first and second series-connected resistances and a sensor switch connected in parallel with the first resistance. The first resistances of each sensor are different in value from one another, but their values are related in a known manner. The sensors are connected in series with one another by a connecting cable and to a constant current source. The voltage developed across the series-connected sensors is applied to a circuit arrangement operable to offset the effect of the total resistance of the second resistances of each sensor and of the connecting cable. An analogue-to-digital converter is responsive to the output of the circuit arrangement to deliver a digital output to an indicator which indicates the actuation of any sensor.

Intruder alarm system

Measurement-expressing apparatus for monitoring (n) switches, the state of each switch representing the state of a station, has a resistor in parallel with each switch, the (n) resistors having binary related resistances, a constant current is supplied to the parallel combinations of switches and resistors connected in series with each other, and signals each representative of the sum of the voltage drops within the series of parallel combinations are operated upon by an n-bit analogue-to-digital converter, the (n) outputs of the converter each being individually associated with a parallel combination, in each quantization period (t) of the converter, a signal is obtained on each converter output representative of one of the two possible states of the corresponding station, and signals of one form, provided on at least one output individually are accumulated in a counter over an interval (mt). The numbers accumulated by any counter in each of a plurality (p) of intervals (mt) are operated upon.

Measurement-expressing apparatus

Automatic equipment, in which each of a plurality of identical devices is positioned automatically to co-operate with processing means and/or test probes, has a TV camera considered as being arranged to move in a raster scan over each device, and to provide signals in response to detecting boundaries of an orthogonal pattern of device features. Initially, with a unique pattern of feature boundaries having been determined, and possibly by reference to the representation, provided by a display unit driven by the camera, of a manually, accurately, located device, there is caused to be generated, in each frame scan period, pairs of signals, individually corresponding to, and representative of a defined location for, a determined feature boundary, each signal representing a marker boundary as if detected by the camera. For each subsequent device, automatically, at least, coarsely positioned, if each determined feature boundary is detected by discriminating means, operating upon the corresponding pair of signals and the signal from the camera in response to detecting the determined feature boundary, not to be within a threshold distance of its defined location, the device is caused to be displaced automatically along the appropriate orthogonal axis, or axes, to become capable of co-operating with the processing means and/or test probes. The latter condition is obtained when the discriminating means detects that each of the determined feature boundaries are within the threshold distances of their defined locations.

Automatic equipment

A liquid display device comprises two spaced electrodes each having a resistance characteristic such that a potential gradient may be developed across the electrode. A liquid crystal material is located between the two electrodes. Voltage supply means are provided which apply an alternating potential across each electrode, such that the two potentials are of the same frequency, and, preferably, in quadrature with one another.

Resistive electrode LCD and voltage supply means

A circuit assembly has at least one component comprising a thin film module, or a discrete component, with leads extending therefrom, the assembly also including a substantially planar substrate supporting the component, and at least one connector with a block of electrical insulating material either adhering to or integral with the substrate, and with a plurality of connector pieces, secured to the block, co-operating with the leads, and comprising terminals of the circuit assembly.

Circuit assembly having a component with leads extending therefrom and a

Testing of thin film modules is facilitated by employing predetermined test procedures, so that analysis of the results is facilitated; and the test signals are supplied to, and the corresponding output signals are supplied from, the module terminals, a predetermined interface printed circuit board being connected to these terminals for this purpose, and so that electrical and mechanical damage to the module is obviated during the test procedures.

Testing of circuit arrangements

Currents greater than predetermined amount are prevented within a circuit arrangement by connecting the electrical supply to at least one conductor via a diode and a transistor, with the diode and the base-collector junction of the transistor in series between the conductor and the supply, and with the emitter connected via a resistor to a point maintained at an appropriate reference potential level, the transistor being in a grounded-base configuration, with the maximum possible collector current defined by the maximum possible emitter current.

Current limiting circuit arrangements

A radar receiver for a frequency-agile radar system includes a variable frequency oscillator and an automatic frequency control operable to exert fine control over the frequency generated by the local oscillator. Control means are provided to derive from a number of previous values of the local ocillator frequency a control signal for application to the local oscillator to bring the generated frequency close to that required for fine correction by the automatic frequency control.

Growing community of inventors

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

John M Morrison