ABSTRACT
The field of signal processing as applied to telemetry systems is diverse. The designer's ultimate goal is to produce the telemetry frame or data packet for the payload system. In the Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) process, the data acquisition portion of the payload segment generates the data and the user segment processes the data to prepare them for the operator's display. This chapter covers the following signal processing topics: signal types, signal bandlimiting, the sampling theorem, quantization effects, sampling hardware and signal reconstruction. The system designer has two variables to consider when configuring the PCM sampler: the rate at which the encoder samples the signal and the number of sampling levels the encoder uses to represent the signal. The essential bandwidth serves as a practical substitute for an absolute band limit for naturally occurring signals. Analysts also apply the essential bandwidth concept to signals that do not have an analytic equation describing the Fourier Transform.
