Data Communications &

Computer Networks
Lecture 5
Signal Encoding Techniques

Fall 2007

Agenda

Digital Data, Digital Signals

Digital Data, Analog Signals
Home Exercises

ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

Encoding Techniques
There are a number of transmission options
available today, depending on the encoding
technique
There are four possible combinations of
encoding techniques
Digital data, digital signal
Digital data, analog signal
Analog data, digital signal
Analog data, analog signal

We shall examine only the first two techniques

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Digital Data
Digital Signals

ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

1. Digital Data, Digital Signals

Digital signal
Discrete, discontinuous voltage pulses
Each pulse is a signal element
Binary data encoded into signal elements

Terms (1)
Unipolar
All signal elements have same sign, i.e. all positive or
all negative

Polar
One logic state represented by positive voltage the
other by negative voltage

Data rate
Rate of data transmission in bits per second

Duration or length of a bit

Time taken for transmitter to emit the bit
eg. For a data rate R, the bit duration is 1/R
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

Terms (2)
Modulation rate
Rate at which the signal level changes
Modulation rate is measured in baud = signal
elements per second

Mark and Space

Mark is Binary 1, Space is Binary 0

Interpreting Signals
Receiver needs to know
Timing of bits - when they start and end
Signal levels

What factors determine how successful the

receiver will be interpreting the incoming signal?
Signal to noise ratio
Data rate
Bandwidth
Encoding Scheme

ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

Encoding Schemes
considerations (1)
Signal Spectrum
Lack of high frequencies reduces required bandwidth
Lack of dc component also desirable since it allows ac
coupling via transformer, providing electrical isolation
Concentrate tx power in the middle of tx bandwidth

Clocking
Synchronizing transmitter and receiver
External clock
Sync mechanism based on tx signal with suitable
encoding
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Encoding Schemes
considerations (2)
Error detection
Can be built in to signal encoding

Signal interference and noise immunity

Some codes are better than others

Cost and complexity

Higher signal rate (& thus data rate) lead to higher
costs
Some codes require signal rate greater than data rate

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

Encoding Schemes

Return to Zero (RZ)

Nonreturn to Zero-Level (NRZ-L)
Nonreturn to Zero Inverted (NRZI)
Bipolar - AMI
Pseudoternary
Manchester
Differential Manchester

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Return to zero (RZ)

Signal amplitude varies between a positive
voltage, i.e. unipolar
Binary 1: a constant positive voltage
Binary 0: Absence of voltage (i.e. 0 Volts or
Ground)
Example:
1

1
+V
0 Volts
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

Non-return to Zero-Level (NRZ-L)

Two different voltages for 0 and 1 bits
Negative voltage for one value and positive for
the other, eg
Binary 0 : Positive
Binary 1 : Negative

Voltage constant during bit interval

no transition i.e. no return to zero voltage

Example:
0

0
+V
0 Volts
-V 13

Non-return to Zero Inverted

(NRZI)
Non-return to zero inverted on ones
Constant voltage pulse for duration of bit time
Data encoded as presence or absence of signal
transition at beginning of bit time
Transition (low-to-high or high-to-low)
or
denotes a binary 1
No transition denotes binary 0
NRZI is an example of differential encoding
Example:
0

ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

1
+V
0 Volts
-V 14

NRZ-L and NRZI format

examples

0V

0V

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Differential Encoding
Data represented by changes rather than levels
Benefits
More reliable detection of transition in the presence
of noise rather than to compare a value to a
threshold level
In complex transmission layouts it is easy to loose
sense of polarity of the signal

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

NRZ pros and cons

Advantages
Easy to engineer
Make efficient use of bandwidth

Disadvantages
DC component
Lack of synchronization capability

Used for magnetic recording

Not often used for signal transmission
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Multilevel Binary
Uses more than two levels
Bipolar-AMI (Alternate Mark Inversion)
zero represented by no line signal
one represented by positive or negative pulse
Binary 1 pulses alternate in polarity

Benefits with respect to NRZ

No loss of sync if a long string of ones (zeros still a problem)
No net DC component
Lower bandwidth
Easy error detection
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

Pseudoternary
Binary 1 is represented by absence of line signal
Binary 0 is represented by alternating positive
and negative pulses
No advantage or disadvantage over bipolar-AMI
No loss of sync if a long string of zeros (ones still a
problem)

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Bipolar-AMI and Pseudoternary

0

0V

0V

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

10

Disadvantages of Multilevel
Binary
Not as efficient as NRZ
Each signal element only represents one bit
The line signal may take on one of 3 levels
Each signal element, which could represent log23 = 1.58 bits
bears only one bit of information

Receiver must distinguish between three levels

(+A, 0, -A) instead of two in NRZ
Requires approximately 3dB more signal power for same
probability of bit error
bit error for NRZ at a given SNR is much less than that for
multilevel binary
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Biphase
Another set of coding techniques that
overcomes NRZ limitations
Biphase
Manchester
Differential Manchester

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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Manchester Encoding

0V

Transition occurs at the middle of each bit period

Transition serves as clock and data
Low to high represents binary 1
High to low represents binary 0
Used by IEEE 802.3 (Ethernet)
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Differential Manchester
Encoding

0V

Midbit transition occurs always and is used for clocking only

Transition at start of a bit period represents binary 0
No transition at start of a bit period represents binary 1
Note: this is a differential encoding scheme
Used by IEEE 802.5 (token ring LAN)
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

12

Biphase Pros and Cons

Advantages
Synchronization on mid bit transition (self clocking)
No dc component
Error detection
Absence of expected transition can be used to detect errors

Disadvantages
At least one transition per bit time and possibly two
Maximum modulation rate is twice as that of NRZ
Requires more bandwidth
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Modulation Rate (1)

Data rate or bit rate is 1/Tb, where Tb = bit duration
Modulation rate is the rate at which signal elements are
generated
Tb

Tb

D=

R
R
=
L log2 M

where
D = modulation rate in baud
R = Data rate in bps
M = number of different signal elements = 2L
L = number of bits per signal element

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

13

Modulation Rate (2)

For Manchester
Encoding, the
minimum size signal
element is a pulse of
the duration of a
bit interval.
Bit rate = 1/Tb

For a string of all

binary 0s or all 1s, a
continuous stream of
such pulses is
generated.
Hence maximum
Modulation rate is
2/Tb
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Digital Data
Analog Signals

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

14

2. Digital Data, Analog Signals

Transmission of digital data with analog signals
Example: Public telephone system (PSTN)
Voice frequency range of 300Hz to 3400Hz
Digital devices are attached to the network via a modem
(modulator-demodulator), which converts digital data to analog
signals and vice-versa
Modem
Corporate Network
Residence

PSTN
network

Server
Modem
Access Router
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Modulation techniques
We will examine three basic modulation
techniques
Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK)
Frequency Shift Keying (FSK)
Phase Shift Keying (PSK)

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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Modulation Techniques

31

Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK)

Values represented by different amplitudes of carrier
Usually, one amplitude is zero
i.e. presence and absence of carrier is used

s(t) = A cos(2fct)
s(t) = 0

binary 1
binary 0

where fc is the carrier frequency

Susceptible to sudden gain changes

Inefficient
Up to 1200bps on voice grade lines
Used over optical fiber
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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Binary Frequency Shift Keying

Most common form is binary FSK (BFSK)
Two binary values represented by two different
frequencies (near carrier)
s(t) = A cos(2f1t) binary 1
s(t) = A cos(2f2t) binary 0
where f1, f2 are offset from carrier frequency fc by equal but opposite amounts

Less susceptible to errors than ASK

Up to 1200bps on voice grade lines
High frequency (HF) radio (3-30MHz)
Even higher frequency on LANs using co-axial
cable
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Multiple FSK

More than two frequencies used

More bandwidth efficient
More prone to error
Each signalling element represents more than one bit
si(t)=A cos(2fit), 1<i<M

where, fi=fc+(2i-1-M)fd
fc = carrier frequency
fd = difference frequency
M = number of different signal elements = 2L
L = number of bits per signal element

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

17

BFSK example on Voice Grade

Line

1170 Hz

2125 Hz

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Phase Shift Keying (PSK)

Phase of carrier signal is shifted to represent
data
Binary PSK
Two phases represent two binary digits
s(t) = A cos(2fct)
s(t) = A cos(2fct+) = -A cos(2fct)

binary 1
binary 0

Differential PSK (DPSK)

Phase shifted relative to previous transmission rather
than some reference signal
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

18

DPSK

Binary 0: signal of same phase as previous signal sent

Binary 1: signal of opposite phase to the preceding one
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Quadrature PSK (QPSK)

Quadrature means a 4-level scheme
More efficient use by each signal element
representing more than one bit
e.g. shifts of /2 (90o)
Each element represents two bits
Can use 8 phase angles and have more than one
amplitude
9600bps modem use 12 angles, four of which have
two amplitudes

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

19

QPSK equation
Each signal element represents
than one
s(t)=A cos(2fct+/4)
s(t)=A cos(2fct+3/4)
s(t)=A cos(2fct-3/4)
s(t)=A cos(2fct-/4)

two bits rather

11
01
00
10

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Quadrature Amplitude
Modulation
QAM used on asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL)
and some wireless standards
Combination of ASK and PSK
Can also be considered a logical extension of QPSK
Send two different signals simultaneously on same
carrier frequency
Use two copies of carrier, one shifted by 90 with respect to the
other
Each carrier is ASK modulated
Two independent signals over same medium
At the receiver the two signals are demodulated and combined
to produce the original binary signal
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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QAM Levels
Two-level ASK
Each of two streams in one of two states
Four state system
Essentially QPSK

Four-level ASK, i.e. 4 different amplitude

levels
Combined stream in one of 16 states

64 and 256 state systems have been

implemented
Improved data rate for given bandwidth
Increased potential error rate
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Required Reading
Stallings chapter 5

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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Home Exercises

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Review Questions
List and briefly define important factors that can be used
in evaluating or comparing the various digital-to-digital
encoding techniques
What is differential encoding?
Contrast all digital encoding schemes listed in this
lecture (NRZL, NRZI, Bipolar AMI, Pseudoternary,
Manchester, Differential Manchester), outlining their
advantages and disadvantages
Define the modulation rate and write an expression
which relates it with the bit rate.
Explain the difference between ASK, FSK and PSK
modulation techniques
What is the difference between Binary PSK, DPSK and
QPSK?
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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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Exercises (1)
1. For the bit stream 01001110, sketch the
waveforms for the following codes
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)

NRZ-L
NRZI
Bipolar-AMI
Pseudoternary
Manchester
Differential Manchester

Assume that:
the most recent preceding 1 bit (AMI) has a negative voltage
the most recent preceding 0 bit (pseudoternary) has a negative
voltage.
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Exercises (2)
2.

The bipolar-AMI waveform representing the binary sequence

0100101011 is transmitted over a noisy channel. The received
waveform, which contains a single error, is shown in the following
figure. Locate the position of this error and explain your answer.

10

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ACOE312 Signal Encoding Techniques

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