Signals, Spectra, and Digital Signal Processing

1
Introduction

Module 001 Introduction

At the end of this module you are expected to:

1. Recognize the physical quantities that are referred to as signals and the
importance of signal processing.
2. Classify the characteristics of signals in both continuous time and
discrete-time form
3. Explain the basic block diagram of digital signal processing

Signals are all around us and they are sent and perceived in different ways. When we wave
to a person, we are basically sending a signal. When a person talks and we hear the
person’s voice, we actually hear an audio signal. It doesn’t end there; our brain which is the
processor of the things we receive will analyze and interpret these signals.

Digital Signal Processing

Digital Signal Processing or DSP is a discipline that spans electrical engineering,
computing, mathematics and the physical sciences. It is distinguished from other
areas in computer science by the unique type of data it uses: signals.
The study of DSP deals with the mathematics, algorithms and techniques used to
manipulate these signals after they have been converted into a digital form to acquire
the necessary information from the original signal.
Among the many applications of DSP are the enhancement of visual images,
recognition and generation of speech, compression of data for storage and
transmission. The analog signal (also known as the continuous time signal) which
comes in various forms such as smoke, dust particles, water level, humidity, pressure
etc. is converted into a computer-readable format or a digital signal (thru digitizing
not digitalizing) and processed according to the desired output thru the use of DSP
system. Digital signals are those for which both time and amplitude are discrete.

DSP in the past

Imagine how people live before the emergence of DSP, in communication, mails
being sent through “snail mails” before the electronic mails, storage of data using
paper trails before the floppy disks; switchboard operator “manually” connects long
distance calls before mobile phones are accessible by the public and even using the
internet by the help of data compression.
In military, remote sensing was created to detect intruders; image processing which
creates a clearer image of pictures captured in the outer space and many other
technologies which are developed even more in these days.

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 The complexity, speed, and capability of DSP chips have grown exponentially since
the early 1980s and show no sign of slowing down.

21st century DSP

There are many applications of DSP that are continuously being studied. Listed
below are some of them:
 Image processing
 Neural networks
 Pattern recognition
 Digital communications
 Biomedical applications
 Speech processing
 Underwater acoustics
 Radar signal processing
 Astronomy
 Geophysical data analysis

There are things unimaginable before that are now happening because of DSP. Non-
conventional methods of processing signals are reconstructing signals are emerging.
The discoveries in using distinct vibrations from a bag of chips or a plant captured
from a video can be used to reconstruct the sound produced when these things were
hit by the sound waves.
DSP technology can be beneficial wherever programmable and power efficient
computing is needed. In the IoT, DSP will be a key technology for Low Data Rate LTE
and LPWAN standards to ensure low power and flexibility to support multiple
standards in a single device.
Most systems used now are in trend of embedding DSP technology in SoC (system
on chip) and they have wide arrays of applications. While there are signals that need
to be analyzed and extract information from, digital signal processing can be a great
tool.

Classifications of Signals
Signals are primarily classified into two: continuous time signal and discrete time.
Continuous time signals are often referred to as analog signals and they take on
values in continuous interval (a, b), where a can be -∞ and b, ∞. Unprocessed physical
quantities such as the audio signal that we hear are in the form of continuous time. Figure 1
shows an example of a waveform of an analog signal generated using MATLAB. The
continuous time domain representation of a female saying,
“The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.”
 Signals, Spectra, and Digital Signal Processing
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Introduction

Figure 1. Waveform of an analog audio signal represented in time domain generated in MATLAB.

Discrete time-signals on the other hand, are signals which are the preprocessed
signals which are to be used in digital signal processing. The process involve in converting
a continuous time to discrete time signal is referred to as sampling. It is represented
mathematically by a sequence of numbers x, in which the nth number in the sequence is
denoted x[n] and is formally written as:
x = x[n], -∞ < n <∞
x[n] = xa nT, -∞ < n <∞

Figure 2. Waveform of continuous time signal , y = sin ωt generated in MATLAB

Figure 3. Waveform of discrete time signal , y = sin ωn generated in MATLAB

Notice the difference in the notation of a continuous time signal, to discrete time
signal, while continuous time signal uses t, discrete time uses n, which represent the
number of sample which will be furthered, discussed in the next module.
Both continuous time and discrete-time can be furthered classified with the following:
 Deterministic signal
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 Signal which can be expressed in mathematical form example is y = A sin ωt
where it can be described as a sinusoidal signal with amplitude, A and is a
function of time, t.

 Non-deterministic signal
Signal which cannot be expressed in simple mathematical form example is
random noise. Random signal are expressed using probability.

Figure 4. (top) Waveform of deterministic signal in the mathematical form y = sin ωt;
(bottom) Waveform of a random noise generated in MATLAB

 Periodic signal
Signal which exhibits periodicity or can complete a certain pattern in one
cycle. Using the same signal in Figure 4. the deterministic signal is also
periodic since it has a complete pattern in cycle. Mathematically, it can be
determined by the ω in y = A sin ωt where ω is the angular frequency in
radians per second . The angular frequency is equal to the frequency
multiplied by a factor of 2π. Periodicity is an important characteristic of
signal used in spectral analysis.
 Aperiodic signal
Signal which cannot complete a certain pattern in one cycle. Also, using the
same example in Figure 4, the random signal didn’t exhibit periodicity.

 Even signal
Signal which exhibits symmetry in the vertical axis. An even signal may be
expressed in continuous time as x (t) = x(-t) or x(n) = x(-n) for discrete time
form.

 Odd signal
Signal which exhibits rotational symmetry with respect to the origin. An odd
signal may be expressed in continuous time as x (t) = -x(-t) or x(n) = -x(-n)
for discrete time form.
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Introduction

Figure 5. (top) Waveform of a discrete-time even signal

(bottom) Waveform of a discrete-time odd signal generated in MATLAB
DSP System
A basic block diagram of DSP system is represented by an analog-to-digital
converter, a digital signal processor and an analog-to-digital converter is shown in Figure 6.

Analog-to -Digital Digital Signal Analog-to-Digital

Converter Processor Converter
Signal in Signal out
Figure 6. Basic block of a DSP system

Signal in or the analog input

All signal processing begins with an input transducer. The transducer converts an analog
signal to typically an electrical signal. In signal-processing applications, the transducer can
take many forms. In audio signal processing, a microphone acts as the transducer in the
system. In communications, an antenna converts electromagnetic waves also to an
electrical energy.

Analog-to-digital converter (ADC)

There are a lot going on inside an analog to digital converter, an in-depth approach will be
discussed in the next module but the main concept behind the ADC is that from the
electrical signal coming from the transducer, it is converted into a stream of 0s and 1s
which can be read by the digital signal processor.

Digital Signal Processor

Oftentimes, the digital signal processor is represented by computers. It is where the
analysis and decision takes place. Using computer algorithms, the signals are processed
through the instructions to achieve the desired output.

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 Digital- to analog converter (DAC)
A DAC is used to convert digital signals consisting of 0s and 1s to varying analog signals
(such as a voltage signal).
An audio signal for example may come in and come out in the same continuous time form-
a processed version designed according to the desired output. It may be free from noise,
amplified, with effects such as reverberation. There are some signals however, according to
the desired output may come in the form of heat and may come out as a trigger to an
automation system. Such applications are widely seen nowadays in field programmable
gate arrays (FPGA) and microcontrollers for specific purpose applications which replace
the size and latency of some computers.

Glossary:

Algorithm: is a step by step procedure that must be followed to execute a certain task. In
DSP, this involves signal acquisition and creating codes that would make decision on
what to do to the signal.
Analog signal: a signal which is perceived by our senses such as sound which can be
heard, heat that can be felt, light which can be seen and the like.
Audio signal: other terminology for sound signal
Compression: is the transformation of a collection of data typically into a smaller file
size.
Digital signal: a signal which is converted in the form understandable by computers; that
is 1’s and 0’s
FPGA: stands for field programmable gate array. It is an integrated chip which is
programmed according to function and can execute commands in high speed.
Frequency: cycles per second (Hertz) another term used to describe the periodicity of a
signal.
IoT: Internet-of-things. Technology whose feature is accessibility of information and
control thru clouds.
Low Data Rate LTE: LTE being ‘Long-term-evolution’, a technology which is a standard
for high-speed wireless communication for mobile phones and data terminals having low
data rate means an improved rate of which data is being transmitted and received while
considering the complexity.
LPWAN: Low-Power Wide-Area Network (LPWAN) or Low-Power Network (LPN) is a
type of wireless telecommunication wide area network designed to allow long range
communications at a low bit rate among things (connected objects), such as sensors
operated on a battery.
Radar: acronym for Radio Detection and Ranging is a system used to detect location,
direction, distance and speed of aircrafts and other objects by firing pulses that are
reflected off the object back to the source. The signal detected is noisy and needs DSP to
get accurate results.
 Signals, Spectra, and Digital Signal Processing
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Introduction

Reverberation: similar to echo, it occurs when a sound continuously reflect on surfaces

causing it to be heard even the source already ceased
SoC: acronym for system on chip. It integrates all components of a computer or other
electronic systems to process analog signal, digital signal on a single IC or chip.
Spectral analysis: a procedure done to the signal, typically to observe its frequency
components. Random noise appears as high frequency signal when analyzed.
Sonar: acronym for Sound Navigation and Ranging. The function is practically the same
with radar, but is best used for underwater.
Transducer: a device that converts one form of energy into another

References and Supplementary Materials

Books and Journals
1. Proakis, J. G., & Manolakis, D. G. (2007). Digital signal processing. Pearson Prentice
Hall
2. Oppenheim, A.V., & Schafer, R.W. (2014)Discrete-Time Signal Processing. Pearson
Education Limited
Online Supplementary Reading Materials
1. 30 years of dsp: From a point solution for powering a toy to a pervasive technology.
http://www.newelectronics.co.uk/electronics-technology/30-years-of-dsp-from-a-
point-solution-for-powering-a-toy-to-a-pervasive-technology/45422/; Aug 14, 2017
2. There's still growing demand for DSP, say experts;
http://www.newelectronics.co.uk/electronics-technology/theres-still-growing-
demand-for-dsp-say-experts/117710; Aug 14, 2017
3. Digital Electronics Basics - Chapter 6: Analog to Digital & Digital to Analog Conversion.
http://www.ni.com/example/14498/en/. November 9, 2017

Online Instructional Videos

1. Good Vibrations: A Bag of Potato Chips and the Science of Sound.
http://www.wnyc.org/story/eavesdropping-using-vibrations-bag-potato-chips/;
November 9, 2017

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