Experimental Television Center

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Experimental Television Center | experiments in analog video and new media

In the current world, information is the key to survival and not just success. Signals are the means through which information is transmitted from one point to another. So, it does not confine the jobs to anyone’s professional area. Every industry segment requires data to be transmitted and with technology improving you can easily see it in social media. According to a recent study, published last month by mobile marketing company URL Genius, which found that YouTube and TikTok track users’ personal data more than any other social media apps and there are services to increase the tiktok views and keep going viral in this social media which is one of the most important in digital media.

For signal engineers in manufacturing, electronics, technology, etc. Refer to the below image for the Analog vs Digital application example.

Let us understand the difference between analog and digital in detail:

Analog signal:

It is a continuous signal and can have infinite values in a given time period.
They can be quantified using amplitude or frequency across a time period.
Analog signals become weaker as they traverse. The transmission quality deteriorates during transmission as the interferences produce a lot of noise.
Some simple steps to reduce noise interference are to use short signal wires which are twisted. Electric machinery and other electric gadgets should be kept away from the wires. Using differential inputs can help in reducing noise common to the two wires.
Analog signals can be amplified using amplifiers, but they intensify noise as well.
All real-life signals are Analog.
The colors we see, the sounds we make and hear, the heat we feel are all in the form of Analog signals. Temperature, sound, velocity, pressure is all analog in nature.
Analog recording technique is used for storing analog signals. The record storing these audio signals can be played back later.
An electronic technique like wire and tape recording are some examples. In this method, the signals are stored directly in the media as physical textures on a phonograph record or as fluctuations in the magnetic field strength of a magnetic record.
In the chart below, the x-axis is the timeline and the Y-axis is the voltage of the signal. Between the time interval between point a and point b in the x-axis, the voltage value is between the value at point x and point y in the Y-axis. The number of voltage values between point x and point Y is infinite i.e., voltage value if taken at every small interval between the time a and time b is infinite.

This is the reason that Analog signals are said to capture infinite values in a given time period.

In the Analog clock image above, the time is 12 hrs. 8 min and 20 secs. But we can also tell the time if it was say less than 20 secs and more than 15 secs when the second’s hand has not yet reached the 20 sec’s line. So, this clock actually shows the time in nano and micro-nano secs as well. But since it is not calibrated, we are not able to read it.