Patent ID: 7266077

Claim:
A serial digital communication system, comprising: a master device having an input and an output; and a plurality of slave devices connected serially between said master device's output and input thereby forming a closed chain; each of said slave devices arranged to transmit a predetermined number of pulse-width-modulated (PWM) pulses to the device immediately following it in the chain upon receipt of an end-of-transmission (EOT) signal from the device immediately preceding it in the chain, and to transmit an EOT signal when the transmission of said predetermined number of PWM pulses is completed; said master device arranged to transmit an EOT signal to initiate said transmission of PWM pulses; each of said slave devices further arranged to passively buffer PWM pulses received from the slave device immediately preceding it in the chain such that each device's PWM pulses are transmitted in one direction sequentially to the input of said master device via the intervening slave devices, such that, upon transmitting said EOT signal, said master device receives a continuous stream of PWM pulses followed by a single EOT signal.