UCCN2043 Lecture Notes

1.0

Basics of Communication Systems

We begin the journey into the exciting field of telecommunications by studying the basic
building blocks of a telecommunication system. We will study the various types of
communication and how the electrical signal is impaired as it travels through the transmission
medium. With the advances in digital electronics, digital communication systems slowly are
replacing analog systems. We will discuss the differences between analog communication
and digital communication.
1.1

Basic Telecommunication System

A very simple telecom system is shown in Figure 1.1. At the transmitting end, there will be a
source that generates the data and a transducer that converts the data into an electrical signal.
The signal is sent over a transmission medium and, at the receiving end, the transducer again
converts the electrical signal into data and is given to the destination (sink). For example, if
two people want to talk to each other using this system, the transducer is the microphone that
converts the sound waves into equivalent electrical signals. At the receiving end, the speakers
convert the electrical signal into acoustic waves. Similarly, if video is to be transmitted, the
transducers required are a video camera at the transmitting side and a monitor at the receiving
side. The medium can be copper wire. The public address system used in an auditorium is an
example of such a simple communication system.

Source

Tranducer

Tranducer

Source

Transmission
Medium
Figure 1.1: Basic telecommunication system.
What is the problem with this system? As the electrical signal passes through the medium, the
signal gets attenuated. The attenuated signal may not be able to drive the transducer at the
receiving end at all if the distance between the sender and the receiver is large. We can, to
some extent, overcome this problem by using amplifiers between. The amplifier will ensure
that the electrical signals are of sufficient strength to drive the transducer.
But we still have a problem. The transmission medium introduces noise. The noise cannot be
eliminated at all. So, in the above case, we amplify the signal, but at the same time, we also
amplify the noise that is added to the actual signal containing the information. Amplification
alone does not solve the problem, particularly when the system has to cover large distances.
Note: As the electrical signal passes through the transmission medium, the signal gets
attenuated. In addition, the transmission medium introduces noise and, as a result, the
signal gets distorted.

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The objective of designing a communication system is for the electrical signal at the
transmitting end to be reproduced at the receiving end with minimal distortion. To achieve
this, different techniques are used, depending on issues such as type of data, type of
communication medium, distance to be covered, and so forth.

Figure 1.2 shows a communication system used to interconnect two computers. The
computers output electrical signals directly (through the serial port, for example), and hence
there is no need for a transducer. The data can be passed directly through the communication
medium to the other computer if the distance is small (less than 100 meters).

Figure 1.2: PC-to-PC communication.

Note: The serial ports of two computers can be connected directly using a copper cable.
However, due to the signal attenuation, the distance cannot be more than 100 meters.

Figure 1.3 shows a communication system in which two PCs communicate with each other
over a telephone network. In this system, we introduced a new device called a modem
(modulator-demodulator) at both ends. The PCs send digital signals, which the modem
converts into analog signals and transmits through the medium (copper wires). At the
receiving end, the modem converts the incoming analog signal into digital form and passes it
on to the PC.

Figure 1.3: PC-to-PC communication over telephone network.

Figure 1.4 shows a generic communication system. In this figure, a block "medium access
processing" is introduced. This block has various functions, depending on the requirement. In
some communication systems, the transmission medium needs to be shared by a number of
users. Sometimes the user is allowed to transmit only during certain time periods. Sometimes
the user may need to send the same data to multiple users. Additional processing needs to be
done to cater to all these requirements. At the transmitting side, the source generates
information that is converted into an electrical signal. This signal, called the baseband signal,
is processed and transmitted only when it is allowed. The signal is sent on to the transmission
medium through a transmitter. At the receiving end, the receiver amplifies the signal and does
the necessary operations to present the baseband signal to the user. Any telecommunication
system is a special form of this system. Consider the following examples:
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Figure 1.4: Generic communication system.

In the case of a radio communication system for broadcasting audio programs, the electrical
signal is transformed into a high-frequency signal and sent through the air (free space). A
radio transmitter is used to do this. A reverse of this transformation converting the highfrequency signal into an audio signal is performed at the receiving station. Since it is a
broadcasting system, many receivers can receive the information.
In a communication system on which two persons communicate with two other persons
located somewhere else, but only on one communication link, the voice signals need to be
combined. We cannot mix the two voice signals directly because it will not be possible to
separate them at the receiving end. We need to "multiplex" the two signals, using special
techniques.
In a mobile communication system, a radio channel has to be shared by a number of users.
Each user has to use the radio channel for a short time during which he has to transmit his
data and then wait for his next turn. This mechanism of sharing the channel is known as
multiple access.
Hence, depending on the type of communication, the distance to be covered, etc., a
communication system will consist of a number of elements, each element carrying out a
specific function. Some important elements are:

Multiplexer: Combines the signals from different sources to transmit on the channel.
At the receiving end, a demultiplexer is used to separate the signals.

Multiple access: When two or more users share the same channel, each user has to
transmit his signal only at a specified time or using a specific frequency band.

Error detection and correction: If the channel is noisy, the received data will have
errors. Detection, and if possible correction, of the errors has to be done at the
receiving end. This is done through a mechanism called channel coding.

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Source coding: If the channel has a lower bandwidth than the input signal bandwidth,
the input signal has to be processed to reduce its bandwidth so that it can be
accommodated on the channel.

Switching: If a large number of users has to be provided with communication

facilities, as in a telephone network, the users are to be connected based on the
numbers dialed. This is done through a mechanism called switching.

Signaling: In a telephone network, when you dial a particular telephone number, you
are telling the network whom you want to call. This is called signaling information.
The telephone switch (or exchange) will process the signaling information to carry out
the necessary operations for connecting to the called party.

Note: Two voice signals cannot be mixed directly because it will not be possible to separate
them at the receiving end. The two voice signals can be transformed into different
frequencies to combine them and send over the medium.

1.2

Types Of Communication

Based on the requirements, the communications can be of different types:

Point-to-point communication: In this type, communication takes place between two end
points. For instance, in the case of voice communication using telephones, there is one calling
party and one called party. Hence the communication is point-to-point.
Point-to-multipoint communication: In this type of communication, there is one sender and
multiple recipients. For example, in voice conferencing, one person will be talking but many
others can listen. The message from the sender has to be multicast to many others.
Broadcasting: In a broadcasting system, there is a central location from which information is
sent to many recipients, as in the case of audio or video broadcasting. In a broadcasting
system, the listeners are passive, and there is no reverse communication path.
Simplex communication: In simplex communication, communication is possible only in one
direction. There is one sender and one receiver; the sender and receiver cannot change roles.
Half-duplex communication: Half-duplex communication is possible in both directions
between two entities (computers or persons), but one at a time. A walkie-talkie uses this
approach. The person who wants to talk presses a talk button on his handset to start talking,
and the other person's handset will be in receive mode. When the sender finishes, he
terminates it with an over message. The other person can press the talk button and start
talking. These types of systems require limited channel bandwidth, so they are low cost
systems.
Full-duplex communication: In a full-duplex communication system, the two partiesthe
caller and the called can communicate simultaneously, as in a telephone system. However,
note that the communication system allows simultaneous transmission of data, but when two
persons talk simultaneously, there is no effective communication! The ability of the
communication system to transport data in both directions defines the system as full-duplex.

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Depending on the type of information transmitted, we have voice communication, data
communication, fax communication, and video communication systems. When various types
of information are clubbed together, we talk of multimedia communications. Even a few
years ago, different information media such as voice, data, video, etc. were transmitted
separately by using their own respective methods of transmission. With the advent of digital
communication and "convergence technologies," this distinction is slowly disappearing, and
multimedia communication is becoming the order of the day.
1.3

Transmission Impairments

While the electrical signal is traversing over the medium, the signal will be impaired due to
various factors. These transmission impairments can be classified into three types:
(a) Attenuation distortion
(b) Delay distortion
(c) Noise
1.3.1

Attenuation Distortion

The amplitude of the signal wave decreases as the signal travels through the medium. This
effect is known as attenuation distortion.
1.3.2

Delay Distortion

Delay distortion occurs as a result of different frequency components arriving at different

times in the guided media such as copper wire or coaxial cable.
1.3.3

Noise

Noise can be divided into the following categories:

Thermal noise
Intermodulation
Crosstalk
Impulse noise
Thermal noise: Thermal noise occurs due to the thermal agitation of electrons in a conductor.
This is distributed uniformly across the spectrum and hence called white noise. This noise
cannot be eliminated and hence, when designing telecom systems, we need to introduce some
method to overcome the ill effects of thermal noise. Thermal noise for a bandwidth of 1 Hz is
obtained from the formula:
N0 = kT
where
N0 is noise power density, in watts per Hz
k is Boltzmann's constant, with the value 1.3803 x 10-23 J/K
and T is temperature in Kelvin (K).
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Thermal noise for a bandwidth of B Hz is given by
N = kTB (watts)
If N is expressed in dB (decibels)
N
= 10 log k + 10 log T + 10log B dB watts
= -228.6 + 10 log T + 10 log B
Using this formula, thermal noise for a given bandwidth is calculated

Note: Thermal noise for a bandwidth of B Hz is given by N = kTB (watts) where k is

Boltzmann's constant and T is temperature. N is generally expressed in decibels.

Intermodulation noise: When two signals of different frequencies are sent through the
medium, due to nonlinearity of the transmitters, frequency components such as f1 + f2 and f1
f2 are produced, which are unwanted components and need to be filtered out.
Crosstalk: Unwanted coupling between signal paths is known as crosstalk. In the telephone
network, this coupling is quite common. As a result of this, we hear other conversations.
Crosstalk needs to be eliminated by using appropriate design techniques.
Impulse noise: This is caused by external electromagnetic disturbances such as lightning.
This noise is unpredictable. When the signal is traversing the medium, impulse noise may
cause sudden bursts of errors. This may cause a temporary disturbance in voice
communication. For data communication, appropriate methods need to be devised whereby
the lost data is retransmitted.
Note: Impulse noise occurs due to external electromagnetic disturbances such as lightning.
Impulse noise causes burst of errors.
Noise is the source of bread and butter for telecom engineers! If there were no noise, there
would be no need for telecom engineers for we can then design perfect communication
systems. Telecom engineering is all about overcoming the effects of noise.

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1.4

Analog versus Digital Transmission

The electrical signal output from a transducer such as microphone or a video camera is an
analog signal; that is, the amplitude of the signal varies continuously with time. Transmitting
this signal (with necessary transformations) to the receiving end results in analog
transmission. However, at the receiving end, it has to be ensured that the signal does not get
distorted at all due to transmission impairments, which is very difficult.
The output of a computer is a digital signal. The digital signal has a fixed number of
amplitude levels. For instance, binary 1 can be represented by one voltage level (say, 5 volts)
and binary 0 can be represented by another level (say, 0 volt). If this signal is transmitted
through the medium (of course with necessary transformations), the receiving end needs only
to detect these levels. Even if the signal is slightly impaired due to noise, still there is no
problem. For example, we can say that if the signal is above 2.5 volts, it is 1 and if it is below
2.5 volts, it is zero. Unless the signal is badly damaged, we can easily find out whether the
transmitted bit is a 1 or a 0.
The voice and video signals (output of the transducer) are always analog. Then how do we
take advantage of the digital transmission? Simple. Convert the analog signal into the digital
format. This is achieved through analog-to-digital conversion. At this point, let us assume
only that it is possible to convert an analog signal into its equivalent digital signal. We will
study the details of this conversion process in later chapters.
Digital transmission is much more advantageous than analog transmission because digital
systems are comparatively immune to noise. Due to advances in digital electronics, digital
systems have become cheaper, as well. The advantages of digital systems are:

More reliable transmission because only discrimination between ones and zeros is
required.
Less costly implementation because of the advances in digital logic chips.
Ease of combining various types of signals (voice, video, etc.).
Ease of developing secure communication systems.

Though a large number of analog communication systems are still in use, digital
communication systems are now being deployed. Also, the old analog systems are being
replaced by digital systems. In this course, we focus mainly on digital communication
systems.
Note: All the newly developed communication systems are digital systems. Only in
broadcasting applications, is analog communication used extensively.

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