Patent ID: 7334182

Claim:
An electronic component comprising: a. a memory chip defining first, second and third memory addresses with elapsed times of the electronic component storeable in the first, second and third memory addresses; and b. a processor with a program loaded on the processor, the program comprising the steps of: i. writing a first elapsed time of the electronic component to the first memory address of the memory chip; ii. after a first pre-determined time interval, writing a second elapsed time of the electronic component to the second memory address of the memory chip; iii. after a second pre-determined time interval, writing a third elapsed time of the electronic component to the third memory address of the memory chip; iv. reading the elapsed times stored in the memory addresses; v. comparing a difference in the elapsed times written to the sequential memory addresses to a corresponding one of the pre-determined time intervals wherein the elapsed time written to a latter of the sequential memory addresses is out-of-sequence if the difference is greater than or less than the corresponding one of the pre-determined time intervals; and iv. discarding the out-of-sequence elapsed time.