Patent ID: 7928856

Claim:
An automated method of sampling an electrical condition of each of a plurality of channels so as to rapidly sample all of the plurality of channels, the method comprising: driving each of the plurality of channels with a modulated signal; providing a settable flag associated with each of the plurality of channels; selecting one of the plurality of channels; identifying if said settable flag associated with said selected one of the plurality of channels is set; in the event that said settable flag associated with said selected one of the plurality of channels is not set, and said modulated signal of said selected one of the plurality of channels is active: sampling an electrical condition of said selected one of the plurality of channels; and setting said provided settable flag associated with said selected one of the plurality of channels; in the event that either said settable flag associated with said selected one of the plurality of channels is set or said modulated signal of said selected one of the plurality of channels is not active, selecting a next one of the plurality of channels; and clearing, only in the event that all of said plurality of settable flags have been set, all of said plurality of settable flags, thereby rapidly completing the sampling of all of the plurality of channels.