Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE

Signal and Systems Lecture 1

Department of ECE

Solomon T. Mawcha
Address:

[email protected]

Mekelle University-Mekelle Institute of Technology

March 12, 2018

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Introduction

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Introduction

Introduction

The intent of this introduction is to give the reader an idea

about Signals and its applications. But we must first, at least
vaguely define what signals and systems are. Signals are
functions of one or more variables .
Signals are functions of one or more independent
variable(s) .
Anything which carries information
A quantitative description of a physical phenomenon

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Introduction

Representation of signal

x(t) : for continuous Signal, x[n] : for discrete signal

where t is continuous time value and n discrete time value

Figure 1 : Continuous and Discrete Signals

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Introduction

Examples of signals include

Speech signal: is a function of time.

A voltage signal: voltage across two points varying as a
function of time.
A photograph: color and intensity as a function of
2-dimensional space.
A video signal: color and intensity as a function of
2-dimensional space and time.

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Application Areas

1 Control
2 Communications
3 Signal processing

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Control Applications

Industrial control and automation (Control the velocity or

position of an object)
Examples: Controlling the position of a valve or shaft of a
motor
Important Tools:
1 Time-domain solution of differential equations
2 Transfer function (Laplace Transform)
3 Stability

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Communication Applications

Transmission of information (signal) over a channel

The channel may be free space, coaxial cable, fiber optic
cable
A key component of transmission: Modulation (Analog and
Digital Communication)

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Modulation

Analog Modulation: Transmitting audio signals

Figure 1 : Modulation.

Advantage: Higher frequency range ... good propagation

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Modulation

Frequency Modulation (FM), modulate the angle of the

carrier

Figure 1 : Frequency Modulation

Advantage: More robust to interference

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Digital Modulation

Amplitude, Frequency and Phase shift keying and their

variations
Used in CDs, digital cellular service, digital phone lines
and computer modems.
Advantages:
1 Can be encrypted
2 Electronic routing of data is easier
3 Digital storage faster
4 Multimedia capability

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Signal Processing Applications

Signal processing=Application of algorithms to modify

signals in a way to make them more useful.
Goals:
1 Efficient and reliable transmission, storage and display of
information
2 Information extraction and enhancement
Examples
1 Speech and audio processing
2 Multimedia processing (image and video)
3 Underwater acoustic
4 Biological signal analysis

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Multimedia Applications

Compression: Fast, efficient, reliable transmission and

storage of data
Applied on audio, image and video data for transmission
over the Internet, storage
Examples: CDs, DVDs, MP3, MPEG4, JPEG
Mathematical Tools: Fourier Transform, Quantization,
Modulation

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

JPEG Example

Figure 1 : Image Compression Signals

JPEG uses Discrete-Cosine Transform (similar to Fourier

Transform)
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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Biological Signal Analysis

Examples:
1 Brain signals (EEG) Electroencephalogram (EEG)
2 Cardiac signals (ECG)- electrocardiography
3 Medical images (x-ray, PET, MRI)-Magnetic resonance
Image
Goals:
1 Detect abnormal activity (heart attack, seizure)
2 Help physicians with diagnosis
Tools: Filtering, Fourier Transform

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Example

Brain waves are usually contaminated by noise and hard to

interpret

Figure 1 : Brain Signal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Biometrics

Identifying a person using physiological characteristics

Examples:
1 Fingerprint Identification
2 Face Recognition
3 Voice Recognition

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Biometrics

Active noise cancellation:Adaptive filtering

1 Headphones used in cockpits
Digital Audio Effects
1 Add special music effects such as delay, echo, reverb
Audio signal separation
1 Separate speech from interference
2 Wind sound from music in cars

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Applications of Signals and Systems

Filtering Example

Figure 1 : Brain Signal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Discrete-time and Continuous-time Signal

Signals may be classified as:
1 Discrete-time signals
1 are defined only at discrete time
2 the independent variable takes on only a discrete set of
values
3 Symbol n is used to denote the discrete-time independent
variable
4 represented by x[n]
2 Continuous-time signals
1 the independent variable is continuous
2 symbol t is used to denote the continuous-time independent
variable
3 represented by x(t)

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Discrete-time and Continuous-time Signal ...Cont’d

Figure 2 : Continuous and Discrete Signals

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Figure 2 : Continuous Signals

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Figure 2 : Discrete Signals

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Energy and Power signals

Energy Signal
1 Signal
R ∞energy is represented by Ex
2 Ex = −∞ x 2 (t)dt for Continuous-time signal
P∞
3 Ex = n=−∞ (x[n])2 for Discrete-time signal
Power Signal
1 Signal power is represented by Px
2 power signal has infinite energy
1
RT 2
3 Px = limT →∞ 2T x (t)dt for Continuous-time signal
R T−T
4 Px = limT →∞ T1 0 x 2 (t)dt for periodic Continuous-time
signal
1
PN 2
5 Px = limT →∞ 2N+1 n=−N (x[n]) for Discrete-time signal
6 If total energy is finite energy signal has zero power

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Figure 2 : Energy Signals

Example: The discrete-time signal

(
1 if 0 ≤ n ≤ 10
x[n] =
0 if otherwise

for which E∞ = 11 is a finite-energy signal.

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Figure 2 : Power Signals

Example 1: The constant signal x(t) = 4 has infinite

energy, but a total average power of 16:
1
RT 2 1
RT 2
P∞ = limT →∞ 2T −T x(t) dt = limT →∞ 2T −T 4 dt
1
limT →∞ 2T 2T ∗ 16 = 16
Example 2: For x(t) = Cejw0 t , the total average power is
C2
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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

A signal may have:

Finite energy, zero average power
Example : (
4 if 0 ≤ t ≤ 1
x(t) =
0 otherwise
for which E∞ = 16 is a finite-energy signal and P∞ = 0.
Finite average power, infinite energy
Example:If the signal has nonzero average energy per unite
time (nonzero power)
x[n] = 4 for all n then, P∞ = 16 and E∞ = ∞
Both P∞ and E∞ are infinite
1 Example: x(t) = 5t 2

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Periodic and non-period signals

Periodic Signals
1 periodic signal x(t) is a function that satisfies the condition
2 Xx = x(t + T ) for for all t Where is T is period
3 A discrete time signal x[n] is periodic if there is an integer
constant N > 0 such that x[n] = x[n + N] for all n.
4 the smallest value of T , T0 is called the fundamental period
5 f = T1 is fundamental frequency...measured in Hertz(Hz)
6 w = 2πT is angular frequency measured in radians per
second

Figure 2 : Continuous Sinusoidal Signals

Non-periodic
1 A signal Xt that for which there is no value of T to satisfy the
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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Even and Odd Signals

Even Signals
1 x(t) = x(−t) for for all t
2 even part of a signal is represented by Xe (t)
3 Xe (t)= 12 (x(t) + x(−t))
4 x(t) = t 2 − 40 is an even signal
Odd Signals
1 Xo (t)= x(t) = −x(−t) for for all t
2 odd part of a signal is represented by Xo (t)
3 X0 (t)= 12 (x(t) − x(−t))
1 3
4 x(t) = 10 t is an odd signal
every signal can be represented as a sum of even and odd
components
x(t) = e0.4t is neither odd nor even
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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Figure 2 : Even and Odd Signals

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Signal Classification

Deterministic and Random Signals

Deterministic Signals
1 is a signal about which there is no uncertainty with respect
to its value
2 can be described by a math relation or a table. (Give me an
example)
Random Signals or Stochastic
1 is a signal about which there is uncertainty before its actual
occurrence
2 cannot been described by determined math relation. It may
be defined by probability density function, distribution
function or etc. (Give me an example)

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Unit step
represented by u(t) for the continuous signals and u[n] for
discrete
and is defined as

1
 if t > 0
u(t) = 0 if t < 0

discontinuity if t = 0


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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Discrete-time Impulse and Step signal

Unit Step Discrete-time signal is represented by u[n]

and is defined as
(
1 if n ≥ 0
u[n] =
0 if n < 0

Unit Impulse Discrete-time signal is represented by δ[n]

and is defined as
(
1 if n = 0
δ[n] =
0 otherwise

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Figure 2 : Unit Impulse and step Signal-Discrete

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

A pulse signal

1 expressed using two step functions

2 example x(t) = u(t-2)-u(t-4)

Figure 2 : Impulse Signal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Rectangle

(
1 if − 12 <= t <= 1
2
x(t) =
0 otherwise

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Triangular

(
1-t if −1 <= t <= 1
x(t) =
0 otherwise

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Unit Impulse signal

the dirac delta function is represented by δ(t)
is defined as
(
0 if t is different from zero
δ(t) =
∞ if t = 0
R∞
where −∞ δ(t)dt = 1

Figure 2 : Impulse Signal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Complex Exponential signal

very important in signal and systems

is defined as x(t)=Cest where
√ s is a complex variable
given by s= a + jw and j = −1
est = eat ejwt =eat (cost(wt) + jsin(wt))
the conjugate of s is given by s∗ = a − jw
e∗st = eat e−jwt =eat (cost(wt) − jsin(wt))
cos(θ) = 21 (ejθ + e−jθ )
1
sin(θ) = 2j (e
jθ − e−jθ )

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Figure 2 : Real-valued Exponential

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Sinusoidal Signals

probably the most important elemental signal that you will

deal with is the real-valued sinusoid
in its continuous-time form, we write the general form as:
x(t) = Acos(wt + φ)
where A is the amplitude, w is the frequency, and φ
represents the phase
wt replaced with 2πft
Since sinusoidal signals are periodic, we can express the
period of these, or any periodic signal, as:
T = 2π
w

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic(useful) signals

Ramp Signals
is the integral of the step function u(t)
commonly denoted by r (t)
and is defined as
(
t if t ≥ 0
r (t) =
0 otherwise

Figure 2 : Ramp Signal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic operations performed on signals

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic operations performed on signals

1 Operations performed on the dependent variable

2 operations performed on the independent variable

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on dependent variable

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on dependent variable

Amplitude Scaling

1 y(t) = Cx(t)
2 Example Amplifier

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on dependent variable

Addition

1 for signals x1 (t) and x2 (t)

2 y(t)=x1 (t) + x2 (t)
3 Eg. Audio Mixer

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on dependent variable

Multiplication

1 for signals x1 (t) and x2 (t)

2 y(t)=x1 (t)x2 (t)
3 Eg. AM radio where x1 (t) is Audio signal and x2 (t) is
carrier wave

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on the independent variable

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on the independent variable

Time Scaling

y(t) = x(at)
if a >= 1, the signal y(t) is compressed version of x(t)
0 < a < 1, the signal y(t) is expanded version of x(t)

Figure 3 : Continuous and Discrete Signals

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on the independent variable

Time reversal(Reflection)

replace time t of the signal x(t) by −t

y(t) = x(−t)
Odd and even?

Figure 3 : Time Reversal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on the independent variable

Time shift
let x(t) denote a continuous time signal
the shifted version of x(t) will be y (t) = x(t − t0 )
t0 is the time shift
if t0 > 0, x(t) is shifted to the right with respect to the time
axis
if t0 < 0, x(t) is shifted to the left with respect to the time
axis

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Operation performed on the independent variable

Transformations of Independent Variable (time axis)

In general form x(αt + β) or x[αn + β]

Shift the signal by β
β > 0: shift to left
β < 0: shift to right
Scale or reverse the signal by α
α > 1 compress
0 < α < 1 stretch
α < 0 reverse

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections

What is System?

a system is a mathematical model of a physical process

that relates the input signal to the output signal
is interconnections of subsystems
Systems are used to process signals to modify or extract
information
Interconnections of Systems
1 to analyze the operation and behavior of the overall system,
it is important understand the interconnection of
subsystems

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections

A series or Cascade Interconnection

the output of one systems is the input to the next system

Eg. Radio receiver followed by amplifier

Figure 3 : Cascade Interconnection

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections

A parallel Interconnection
the same input signal is applied to two or more than two
systems
the output of the systems is added
eg. simple audio systems with several microphones..
speaker system

Figure 3 : Parallel Interconnection

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections

Combined Interconnection

contains both Series and parallel

Figure 3 : Combined Interconnection

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections

Feedback Interconnection
the output of system 1 is the the output and input to system
2
the output of system 2 is added to the external input
Electrical circuits

Figure 3 : Feedback Interconnection

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Outline

1 Introduction
2 Applications of Signals and Systems
3 Signal Classification
4 Basic(useful) signals
5 Basic operations performed on signals
6 Operation performed on dependent variable
7 Operation performed on the independent variable
8 Systems and Frequently encountered Interconnections
9 Basic System Properties

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

System with/out memory

Memoryless
1 its output for each value of the independent variable at
given time is dependent on the input at the same time
2 Eg1. y[n] = (2x[n] − x 2 [n])2
3 Eg2. y(t) =Rx(t) where R is resistor, x(t) is current and
y (t) is voltage
System with memory
1 its output depends on theP past values
n
2 eg1. Accumulator y[n] = k=−∞ x[k ]
3 eg2. Delay y[t] =x[n − 1]
Rt
4 eg3. Capacitor y (t) = C1 −∞ x(t)dt

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Invertibility and Inverse Systems

let a system S produces y(t) with input x(t), if there exists
another system Si which produces x(t) from y (t), then S is
invertible
a systems is said to be invertible if distinct input leads to
distinct output
if a system is invertible, then an inverse system exists
y(t) = 2x(t) and w(t) = 21 y(t)
eg. channel coding

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Causality

present output depends only on the past and present

inputs, not on the future inputs
output depends at t0 depends on x(t) for t <= t0
y(t) = x(t − 1) + x(t)
y(t) = x(t + 1) + x(t) and y[n]) = x[−n] are not causal

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Stability

bounded input results in bounded output

a system is said to be stable in the BIBO sense OR
small input leads to responses that do not diverge
pendulum

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Time Variance

time-invariant system is one whose parameters do not

change with time
if the behavior of the system is fixed overtime
y(t) is the output if x(t) is the input then
y(t − t0 ) is the output if x(t − t0 ) is the input
eg1. y(t) = sin[x(t)]
1 y1 (t) = sin[x1 (t)]
x2 (t) = x1 (t − t0 )
y2 (t) = sin[x1 (t − t0 )]
y1 (t − t0 ) = sin[x1 (t − t0 )]
eg2. y(t) = x(2t)

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Example time variance system

Figure 4 : Time variance

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Linearity

possesses the Superposition property

if the input contains the weighted sum, then the output is
the weighted sum of each of the signal
Superposition property contains scaling and additivity
property
1 the response to x1 (t) + x2 (t) is y1 (t) + y2 (t)
2 the response to a1 x1 (t) is a1 y1 (t) where a1 is any complex
constant
these two properties defining a linear system
a1 x1 (t) +a2 x2 (t) leads to a1 y1 (t) +a2 y2 (t)

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Figure 4 : Linear System

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Example 1 -Linearity
Consider a system S whose input x(t) and output y(t) are
related by
y (t) = tx(t)
Determine if it is linear or not.
Solution
y1 (t) = tx1 (t)
y2 (t) = tx2 (t)
x3 (t) = a1 x1 (t) + a2 x2 (t)
y3 (t) = tx3 (t)
y3 (t) = t(a1 x1 (t) + a2 x2 (t)) = a1 tx1 (t) + a2 tx2 (t)
which is equal to
a1 y1 (t) +a2 y2 (t)
so it is linear
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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE
Basic System Properties

Example 2 -Linearity

Given y(t) = x 2 (t), determine if it is linear or not.

Solution
y1 (t) = x12 (t)
y2 (t) = x22 (t)
x3 (t) = a1 x1 (t) + a2 x2 (t)
y3 (t) = x32 (t) = a12 x12 (t) + a22 x12 (t) + 2a1 a2 x12 (t)x22 (t)
which is not equal to
a1 y1 (t) + a2 y2 (t) = a1 x12 (t) + a2 x22 (t)
therefore, it is not linear

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE

”No one can do everything, but everyone can do

something”
Max Lucado, Outlive Your Life: You Were Made to Make A
Difference

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Signal and Systems Lecture 1 Department of ECE

Vielen Dank!

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