COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, UNIT 3, 3rd year/1st part Prepared by: Er.

Sarbesh Chaudhary

UNIT 3

INTRODUCTION TO DIGITAL COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

DIGITAL COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

The block diagram of digital communication system is shown in the figure below. There are three basic signal
progressing as shown in the figure below, i. e. source coding, channel coding and modulation. It is assumed that the
source of information is digital by nature or converted into it using ADC.

+NOISE

Fig 3.1: Basic Block diagram of Digital Communication System

• SOURCE CODING

At the transmitter side the source encoder maps (convert) the digital signal generated at the source output into
another signal in digital form. Its objective is to eliminate or reduce redundancy in order to provide an efficient
representation
esentation of the source signal. At the receiver, the source decoder simply perform inverse mapping and
provide the original digital source output. The advantage of using source coding is a reduced bandwidth
requirement.

• CHANNEL CODING

At the transmitter, the channel encoder maps the incoming digital signal into channels input. Error detection and
correction signal is provided to the incoming signal. At the receiver, the channel decoder inversely maps the channel
output into an output digital signal. According to the error detection and correction signal, channel decoder
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COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, UNIT 3, 3rd year/1st part Prepared by: Er. Sarbesh Chaudhary

reconstructs the digital signal from the detector output. The combine use of channel encoder and decoder is to
provide reliable communication over a noisy channel. The aadvantage
dvantage of using channel coding is a minimized channel
noise.

• MODULATION & DEMODULATION

At the transmitter, modulator performs modulation of the digital signal in order to provide efficient transmission of
the signal over the channel. Modulator operates b byy keying shifts in amplitude, frequency or phase of a sinusoidal
carrier wave to the channel encoder output. The digital modulation techniques for doing these are Amplitude shift
keying, frequency shift keying of phase shift keying respectively. At the receiver,
eiver, the detector or demodulator is the
first stage which performs the demodulation of the modulated signal at its input.

Time Division Multiplexing (TDM)

The technique of separating the signals in time is referred to as time division multiplexing. The concept of TDM is
illustrated by the
he block diagram as shown below.

De

Fig: Time Division Multiplexing

The signals to be multiplexed are first individually band limited by low pass
pass-filter.
filter. The low pass filter outputs are
then applied to a commutator
tator at fixed interval of time. These samples are then transmitted to the pulse amplitude
modulator. The purpose of this modulator is to transform the multiplexed signal into a form suitable for
transmission over the common channel.

At the receiver end of the system, the received signal is applied to a pulse demodulator, which performs the inverse
operation of the pulse modulator. The narrow samples produced at the pulse demodulator output are distributed
to the appropriate low-pass
pass filters by means of a decommutator, which operates in synchronism with the
commutator in the transmitter. This synchronization is essential for the satisfactory operation of the system.

The most common type of modulation used with TDM system is PCM with PCMPCM-TDM
TDM system. Two oro more voice
band channels are sampled, converted to PCM codes, and then time division multiplexed onto a single metallic
cable pair or optical fiber cable.
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COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, UNIT 3, 3rd year/1st part Prepared by: Er. Sarbesh Chaudhary

Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM)

The technique of separating the signals in frequency is referred to as frequency division multiplexing. In FDM,
multiple signals that originally occupied the same frequency spectrum are shifted (each) to a different frequency
band and transmitted simultaneously over a single transmission medium. Thus, many relatively narrow band
channels can be transmitted over a single wideband transmission system.

It is an analog scheme, the information entering an FDM system is analog and it remains analog throughout
transmission. The balanced modulator is fed with the carrier and voice channel having frequency range of 300 Hz to
3400 Hz (nominal channel 0 – 4 KHz).

An example of the FDM signal three message signal is shown below where three band signals X, Y, Z modulates the
three separate carrier signals with the frequency F1, F2,F3 spaced in frequency domain with reasonable margin to
avoid overlapping in order to avoid crosstalk & intermodulation. The output of the each modulator is added to
produce a composite signal having three multiplexed message signals.

At the receiver, a composite signal is fed to three bandpass filter and the output of BPF is demodulated by the
demodulator in order to obtain the respective message signal, given by LPF output. FDM is used in telephone
system, telemetry, commercial broadcast, television and communication network.

Telephone channel is bandlimited to 300 – 3400 Hz (BW 3100 Hz) frequency slot of 4 KHz is assigned to each
telephone channel so that there is guard band of 900 Hz for each channel. The first three channels are multiplexing
at 12, 16 and 20 KHz to form a pre-group of 3 telephone channels. The multiplexing (frequency shifting) is SSB- USB.

MODEM
The name modem is a combination of the term Modulator and DEModulator. As the name implies, it performs both
function of modulation and demodulation. When used in transmitting mode, the modem accepts digital data and
convertsit into analog signals for use in modulating a carrier signal. At the receiver end, the modem demodulates
the carrier to recover the data.

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COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, UNIT 3, 3rd year/1st part Prepared by: Er. Sarbesh Chaudhary

FUNCTION

The block diagram of a modem is shown in the figure below. The basic idea of modem is to use tones to convey
information in contrast to the absolute voltage levels which convey information within a digital system. Depending
upon the modem design, the amplitude, frequency or phase of the tone differentiates a binary 1 from a binary 0.

As the modem transmits/receives data through RS-232, it generates the appropriate tone and then transmits it over
the link. For received signal, it performs the reverse operation and produces 1’s and 0’s by decoding the received
tones.

Modem also has other functions just beyond tone generation. For telephone lines they must provide the correct
signal levels during dialing and calling phases. The modem must manage the handshake lines between it and its
Data Terminal Equipment (DTE) and also must send the status signal to inform the condition of telephone line
through RS-232 interface.

MODES OF MODEM OPERATION

Modem can be described according to mode of operation used. There are three modes on which modem operates,
they are: Simplex, Half-Duplex &Full-Duplex.

• SIMPLEX

In this mode, transmission of data is in only one direction. Thus, the modem can only either transmit or receive
data. This type of modem uses only one transmission channel, so that no signaling is available in the direction from
the receiver to the transmitter. This is an economical method of data transfer, but it is very limited in its application.

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COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, UNIT 3, 3rd year/1st part Prepared by: Er. Sarbesh Chaudhary

• HALF-DUPLEX

In this mode, transmission of data is possible in both direction, but in one direction at one time and another
direction at a second time. Thus, the modem in this mode can transmit and receive data but not simultaneously. It
requires only one bidirectional transmission channel. It is faster than Simplex mode but slower than Full-Duplex
mode.

• FULL-DUPLEX

In this mode, transmission of data is possible in both directions at the same time. Thus, the modem in this mode can
transmit and receive data simultaneously. It requires two 2-wire circuits or one 4-wire circuit, one for each direction
of transmission. It is the fastest mode of operation.

According to transmission speed, modem is classified into three types, i.e. low, medium and high – speed
modem. Low-speed modem can transmit the data up to 600 Bps, whereas medium-speed modem can
transmit the data from 600 to 2400 Bps and high-speed modem can transmit the data from 2400 to about
10,800 Bps.

MODEM INTERCONNECTION

The modem communicates with DTE via RS-232 (Recommended Standard 232) jack specified by Electronic
Industries Association (EIA). Modem differs according to the method of interfacing with the communication circuits.
If the circuit is short and dedicated line, limited distance modem can be used.

There are two broad types of modems available for data transmission as well as voice application services; they are
Hardwired modem and the acoustically coupled modem.

Hardwired Modem:it is directly connected to the communication circuits in a semi-permanent way. Such
kind of modem is connected to the terminals/business machines or incorporated in the business machines.
As it is connected to communication circuit all the time, it can be accessed and interrogated at any time;
with appropriate equipment used this modem can receive and send data without human support.
Immobility is its only drawback.

Acoustically Coupled Modem:This solves the mobility problem. It consists of acoustic coupler which is built
into briefcase-sized units which include a typewriter like terminal and a printer, providing the ability to
access and use data from any telephone. This can be interconnected to any computer or business machine
which has dial-up internet capability.

THE END

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