Function generators based on linear interpolation with applications to analogue computing

The use of function generators in electronic analogue computing and simulation greatly extends the range of problems which can be solved by these methods. This paper presents a technique in which diode units are used to approximate to the functions by linear interpolation. It is shown that the method can be extended to deal with a wide class of functions, including multi-variate functions. Analogue multiplication and division are discussed as particular cases of function generators, and formulae for the general function are developed. The results are presented of an experimental generator for sin x in the range ¿ ¿ ¿x ¿¿, in which the error is about 1 ¿% of the maximum output.