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.  In fact, it is regarded by many as a special microprocessor created particularly to process signals.  Both a microprocessor and a DSP can execute instructions, accept input digital data, perform operations on them, and output digital data. The fundamental difference between a DSP and a microprocessor is what their built-in processing capabilities were designed for. 

A DSP is a highly-specialized device that's equipped with a multitude of mathematical functions specifically intended for processing a digital signal, whereas a microprocessor is designed to be a general-purpose device.  A microprocessor would be able to handle many different applications, such as word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and, well, even digital signal processing.  However, it can not be as good as a DSP when it comes to serious DSP applications.   

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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See also:   DAC's;  ADC's;  Microprocessors;  What is a Semiconductor?