Patent ID: 8614592

Claim:
A method of detecting one or more peak levels of an incoming signal, the method comprising: differentially amplifying the incoming signal and a feedback signal to generate an amplified differential signal representing one or more amplified differences between the incoming signal and the feedback signal; charging and discharging a capacitive load over a plurality of charging periods and associated discharging periods, wherein for each of the plurality of charging periods and associated discharging periods, charging the capacitive load is based on the one or more amplified differences and charging to one of one or more levels, each of the one or more levels identifying one of the one or more peak levels of the incoming signal; and discharging the capacitive load is from the one of the one or more levels to one of one or more reset levels, each of the one or more reset levels being lower than a minimum peak level of the one or more peak levels of the incoming signal, wherein discharging the capacitive load is responsive to a reset signal, the reset signal having a programmable duration based on N×T, wherein T is a cycle time of the incoming signal and N is an integer greater than zero, and wherein the capacitive load is in communication with the feedback signal.