CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION OF COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

INTRODUCTION
Communication was one of the first applications of electrical technology. Today, in the age of fibre optics and satellite television, facsimile machine and cellular telephones, communications systems remain at the leading edge of electronics. The basic elements which communication system must have to be useful are as shown in Figure 1

Figure 1: Basic parts of a communication system

Chapter 1/Introduction 2

THE SOURCE
The source of the information signal can be analog or digital The source originates a message, such as a human voice, a television picture, video, audio, or digital data If the data is non-electrical (human voice, TV picture), it must be converted into an electrical waveform by a transducer Often described in terms of the frequency range that they occupy. Sources may be described by the frequency range they occupy
Telephone-quality frequency range is 300 Hz - 3 kHz Music frequency range is 20 Hz - 20 kHz Video requires a frequency range about 4.2 MHz

Chapter 1/Introduction

THE CHANNEL
A communication channel is the medium through which the transmitter output is sent. A communication channel can be almost anything. It can be:
Wire, coaxial cable Waveguide A pair of conductors Fiber-optic cable Radio Frequency/Radio link

Sometimes a channel can carry the information signal directly. For example, an audio signal can be carried directly by a twisted pair telephone cable. On the other hand, a radio link through free space cannot be used directly for voice signals.
Chapter 1/Introduction 4

THE TRANSMITTER AND RECEIVER

The transmitter will modify the baseband signal for efficient transmission The receiver will reprocess the signal received from the channel by undoing the signal modifications made at the transmitter and the channel The modulation is done at the transmitter while the demodulation or detection takes place at the receiver Some situations call for a carrier signal to propagate the signal and typically, this carrier will be modulated The information impressed upon the carrier is referred to as the modulating signal (AM,FM,PM) The frequency spectrum of the information signal is referred to as the baseband
Chapter 1/Introduction 5

COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
More complete general representation of a communication system can be shown in Figure 2.
Message gen. Encoder Tx Sig Channel ( distortion) Sig Rx Decoder Message rec.

Noise

Figure 2: A communication system

Noise - unwanted signal added to the original message. Distortion - signal is changed but nothing is added. Usually occurs in the transmission channel.
Chapter 1/Introduction 6

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
The basic parts of a communication system are very simple. The complexity comes when trying to create practical system to do specific tasks to exact specifications. Therefore, many other considerations must be taken into account: Range Power Cost Bandwidth Speed Reliability Convenience Accuracy / Quality

Chapter 1/Introduction

RANGE
The further information has to be transmitted, the more difficult it is to get the message through uncorrupted. Wired links require repeaters for longer distances but work well at low frequencies. However, high frequencies require special cables coaxial, waveguide and now fiber optic. Terrestrial radio links require different frequencies for different purposes:
Microwave for line-of-sight links HF long distance ionospheric communication across the world VHF variety short-range uses UHF give large bandwidth for TV

Chapter 1/Introduction

POWER
Less power required at the sending end, the simpler and cheaper is the transmitting installation required. Transmitted power is always kept to a minimum watts. Higher frequencies produce a higher proportion of radiated power from aerials. As in radio broadcasting, radiated power may need to keep high to allow the use of cheap receivers. Used multiplexing which enables more information to be sent for the same power.

Chapter 1/Introduction

COST
Has to be kept as low as is compatible with achieving the desired systems performance. For example, it is worth while spending many millions of pounds on the ground installations for transatlantic communication satellite reception but hundreds of pounds would be too much for a roof-top aerial for direct reception of educational TV from satellites in India.

Chapter 1/Introduction

10

BANDWIDTH
No information will be obtained at all unless the signal received contains at least a small range of frequencies - bandwidth. But, large bandwidth increase the cost and complexity of communication system. The narrower the individual channel the more channel can be sent simultaneously over the same link bandwidth. Thus considerable ingenuity goes into reducing channel bandwidth whilst retaining acceptable quality of information.

Chapter 1/Introduction

11

SPEED
Real-time transmission is very common (e.g. TV, telephone). If you send information more slowly you save bandwidth but take more time (e.g. fax, teleprinters). This may be acceptable and cheaper. On other hand, by sending information more faster more bandwidth is required but less time is taken. So, this may be necessary or even cheaper. Modulation and encoding methods might be used to get the best system.

Chapter 1/Introduction

12

RELIABILITY
The aims is to used the cheapest and simplest system which will give acceptable reproducibility of signal. For example, a telephone channel of an uncomplicated system has acceptable quality without achieving complete accuracy. Narrow bandwidths, low frequencies and intense multiplexing can be used. Digital data streams obviously need much greater accuracy and have to have much larger bandwidths to get it. It seems to be a trade-off between bandwidth and accuracy.

Chapter 1/Introduction

13

CONVENIENCE
The need for new systems to be compatible with older existing systems. Other aspects of convenience occur with:
Growth of multifacility networks. The use of larger and more comprehensive integrated circuits wherever possible. The need for ease of production and cheaper repair.

Chapter 1/Introduction

14

ACCURACY/QUALITY
The more accurate the received information signal must be compared with the original, the more complex and expensive the communication system has to be. Thus, economies can be made because there is absolutely no need to recover the signal at the receiver more accurately than it needs to be serve the purpose for which it was sent..

Chapter 1/Introduction

15

TYPES OF COMMUNICATIONS
There are three ways in which electronic communications is classified:
One-way or two-way transmissions Analog or digital signals Baseband or modulated signals

There are two basic types of communications which are:

One-way communication that normally referred to as simplex. Two-way communication that is known as duplex.

Chapter 1/Introduction

16

SIMPLEX
The information travels in one direction only. A common example of simplex communications is radio and TV broadcasting. Another example is the information transmitted by the telemetry system of a satellite to earth. The telemetry system transmits information about the physical status of the satellite including its position and temperature.

Chapter 1/Introduction

17

DUPLEX
When individual communicate with one another over the telephone, each can transmit and hear simultaneously. Such two-way communications is referred to as full duplex. Another form of two-way communications is known as half duplex where only one party transmits at a time. The communication is two-way but the direction alternates. For example, most of radio communications such as those used in military, fire, police and other services.

Chapter 1/Introduction

18

TYPES OF SIGNAL
There are two types of baseband signal: Analog signals - The electrical signal shows a continuous variation in time over a wide range of magnitudes. Often these variation is the same as that of an original non-electrical signal (e.g pressure and voltage for a microphone) so that the two are said to be analogous. Digital signals - Electrical signals consists of discontinuous pulses (or digits) each constant in value but changing abruptly from one digit to the next. They are usually coded signals as in a teleprinter. The most common type is binary coding where only one type of pulse occurs but they can be multilevel digits. Often a signal will start out analogue and be converted to digital.
Chapter 1/Introduction 19

TYPES OF SIGNAL
Classes of signal : (a) analogue (continuous); (b) analogue (discrete) or digital (binary); (c) functional representation of binary. V
(a)
Level

(b)

1
T

0
2T

1
4T

0
5T

1
t

(c)
1
Chapter 1/Introduction

N
20

TYPES OF SIGNAL
Baseband signal is used to refer to the original signal and specifically, it means the band or range of frequencies occupied by the baseband signal. Bandwidth (BW) is a frequency range within any band, without specifying the limits.
Band limits
Band limits

Baseband signal
Bandwidth
Chapter 1/Introduction

Any signal
Bandwidth

21

TYPES OF BASEBAND SIGNAL

Chapter 1/Introduction

22

IMPORTANCE OF MODULATION
In general, baseband signal cannot be transmitted usefully without modification. The vast majority of system communication would be either prohibitively or actually impossible without the changes of the signal (modulation). Examples:
Public telephone system would need a separate wire connection for each conversation. Radio link would require huge aerials and enormous power.

Therefore, we need to change the baseband signal in some way to enable efficient economic communication methods to be used.
Chapter 1/Introduction 23

TYPES OF MODULATION
A carrier is generated at a frequency much higher than the highest baseband frequency and usually the carrier is a sine wave. In all systems, the modulation is done at the transmitter, while, as an inverse process, called demodulation or detection, takes place at the receiver to restore the original baseband signal. Modulation can be divided into 2 categories:
Frequency translation
The baseband is moved to a higher frequency range by a higher frequency carrier The carrier is usually a sine wave

Sampling and coding

The baseband waveform voltage is allowed through for short periods of time at regular intervals and they are sent either coded or uncoded
Chapter 1/Introduction 24

TYPES OF MODULATION

Chapter 1/Introduction

25

ADVANTAGES OF MODULATION
Advantages produced by frequency translation
The use of frequency division multiplexing (FDM). This allow many signals to be sent simultaneously down the same channel. It gives economics use of equipment and enables complex systems to be designed The use of correct transmission frequency to give best transmission condition. This is especially important in radio links where aerial efficiency increases with frequency and the best frequencies may need to be selected for propagation through the troposphere or via the ionosphere. The use of time division multiplexing (TDM). This allow many signals to be sent simultaneously along the same communication link interleaving them in time. Reliability of transmission greatly increased. Noise corruption very much less likely. Received baseband reproduces original signal very accurately Signal processing much easier using standard logic and computing techniques. Facilitates design and production of complex systems at their most economic and reliable as in modern telephone systems. 26

Advantages produced by sampling

Advantages produced by coding

Chapter 1/Introduction

MODULATION IN GENERAL
In analogue modulation a continuously varying analogue through a transmission system, the baseband can be recover intact from the carrier. The carrier is a single frequency which can be represented generally as:
vc(t) = Ec sin ([ct+ Uc) vc (t) Ec [c t Uc
Chapter 1/Introduction

= instantaneous voltage as a function of time = peak voltage = frequency in radian per second = time in seconds = phase angle in radians
27

MODULATION IN GENERAL
There are only three things which can be changed which are the amplitude, frequency or phase reference. Each of these leads to one class of analogue modulation: Changing Ec - Amplitude modulation Changing [c - Frequency modulation Changing Uc - Phase modulation

Chapter 1/Introduction

28