Logical Design of Ternary Switching Circuits

A logical design theory for ternary voltage switching circuits is developed. The theory is based on familiar binary switching circuit elements and simplification methods. The theory thus leads to simple electronic realization. The basic system of ternary switching elements consists of function realizable by means of either diode gates or a single triode (transistor). Various simplification methods for combinational circuits are described, namely a map method and two algebraic methods. The first algebraic method is an adaptation of the Quine method for determining the prime implicants of a given binary function, and the second is a modification of the Scheinman binary method.