Motor control system and method

A method and apparatus for catching a rotating motor is described. Switches (typically the lower switches) of an inverter of a motor drive circuit are short-circuited for a brief period of time. The pulses generated by this process are analyzed to determine the speed and direction of rotation of the motor. The pulses are checked to determine whether they are orthogonal. If they are, the motor velocity determination is deemed to be reliable and then motor is magnetized and normal motor control can be resumed. If not, the motor velocity determination is deemed to be unreliable and a magnetization pulse before the velocity determination step is repeated.