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Digital Signal Processors (DSP's)
A Digital Signal Processor, or DSP, is a semiconductor device used for processing signals digitally. A signal, in this context, traditionally refers to an analog signal (such as analog voltage) that has been converted into a digital one so that it can be processed mathematically. Nowadays, however, almost every piece of information has been digitized, so a digital signal may be any stream of digital data - digital audio/video data, betting odds, or even the weight of clothes in a washing machine. Analysis of such digital signals for a variety of purposes can be easily accomplished by a DSP.
Signal processing encompasses a large variety of actions performed on signals - filtering, encoding/decoding, compression/decompression, amplification, modulation, level detection, pattern matching, mathematical/logical operations, and much more. These processes are performed on a signal for a number of reasons: to enhance it; reduce its component noise; make its transmission and reception more effective, efficient, and faster; transform it; make it interact with other signals in special ways; facilitate its use in digital analysis, monitoring, or control; etc. A DSP has built-in capabilities to perform these signal processing functions easily.
A DSP is very similar to a
microprocessor. I
Current trends in technology seem to indicate the possibility though that the distinction between a DSP and a microprocessor will soon be gone. Microprocessors are becoming more and more sophisticated that some of them are now equipped with true DSP capabilities. It will just be a matter of time before high-end microprocessors will have the capability to perform high-end signal processing, or any high-end task for that matter.
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