Analog signals and digital signals are two widely used signal forms in signal processing and communication. Analog signal refers to a continuously changing signal, which can be a physical quantity such as voltage, current, electromagnetic wave, etc., which is common in communication, such as waveform, audio, etc., and has the advantage of being intuitive and easy to achieve, but poor confidentiality and poor anti-interference ability.
Digital signal refers to discrete, discontinuous signal, only "0" and "1" two states, with the advantages of strengthening confidentiality, improving anti-interference ability, etc., the technical requirements are complex, the occupied frequency band is wide, and the quantization error will be generated when the A D conversion is carried out, but it has the advantages of good anti-noise performance, easy encryption, easy error correction and error detection, easy to preserve, etc., so it is widely used in modern society.
The advantages and disadvantages of analog and digital signals are as follows:
Advantages of analog signals:
1.The signal changes continuously over time, is easy to process, intuitive and easy to understand;
2.High accuracy, especially in a wide range of measurements;
3.It is easy to perform mathematical calculations and analysis, and can accurately represent the changing trend of the signal
4.Simple electronic components can be used to generate and process at a relatively low cost.
Disadvantages of analog signals:
1.Signal transmission is susceptible to interference, which affects the accuracy of measurement;
2.It cannot be stored and must be transmitted in real time;
3.Limited data capacity makes it unsuitable for transferring large amounts of data;
4.Remote control and management is not possible.
Advantages of Digital Signals:
1.Easy to handle, can be programmed and controlled with a computer;
2.It can be stored and transmitted, and digital signals can be stored and transmitted without real-time transmission, which increases the fidelity and transmission distance of the signal
3.The signal is not susceptible to noise and interference;
4.Large data capacity, suitable for transferring large amounts of data;
5.It can be encrypted and decrypted in a variety of ways, increasing the security of signal transmission.
Disadvantages of Digital Signals:
1.Complex equipment and algorithms are required to process the signal, which is relatively costly;
2.Signal processing is slow and cannot be processed in real time;
3.Errors are susceptible to during processing and storage, such as quantization errors;
4.It is not possible to directly represent continuously changing signals, such as waveforms and audio.
It should be noted that in the process of processing digital signals, a rule needs to be set, the high level represents "1", the low level represents "0", and the introduction of clock synchronization signals can improve the processing speed of digital signals. Digital signals can also be sampled and quantized, e.g. 0 5V can be transmitted to digital signals.