INTRODUCTION TO SIGNAL PROCESSING:

Digital signal processing (DSP) is concerned with the representation of signals

by a sequence of numbers or symbols and the processing of these signals. Digital
signal processing and analog signal processing are subfields of signal processi
ng. DSP includes subfields like: audio and speech signal processing, sonar and r
adar signal processing, sensor array processing, spectral estimation, statistica
l signal processing, digital image processing, signal processing for communicati
ons, control of systems, biomedical signal processing, seismic data processing,
etc.
The goal of DSP is usually to measure, filter and/or compress continuous real-wo
rld analog signals. The first step is usually to convert the signal from an anal
og to a digital form, by sampling it using an analog-to-digital converter (ADC),
which turns the analog signal into a stream of numbers. However, often, the req
uired output signal is another analog output signal, which requires a digital-to
-analog converter (DAC). Even if this process is more complex than analog proces
sing and has a discrete value range, the application of computational power to d
igital signal processing allows for many advantages over analog processing in ma
ny applications, such as error detection and correction in transmission as well
as data compression.[1]
DSP algorithms have long been run on standard computers, on specialized processo
rs called digital signal processors (DSPs), or on purpose-built hardware such as
application-specific integrated circuit (ASICs). Today there are additional tec
hnologies used for digital signal processing including more powerful general pur
pose microprocessors, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), digital signal con
trollers (mostly for industrial apps such as motor control), and stream processo
rs, among others.
REAL TIME SIGNALPROCESSING:
I) Ability to collect, analyze, and modify signals in real-time.
II) Real-Time: As these signals are occurring.
In other words, we want to analyze and process signals while collecting them, no
t at a later time.
SIGNAL
Why Use Real-Time Processing:
A) Conventional methods:
I) Data collected at some location
II) Once all of data is collected, it then has to be processed in order to h
ave usable information
Quite frequently, data is collected and processed in two separate locations.

SIGNAL
A) Results:
I) Time and money lost.
II) Possibility of different machines to do collecting and processing.
III) Possibility of even different organizations/companies doing
collecting and processing .
WE USE REAL TIME SIGNAL PROCESSING TO MINIMIZE THE ABOVE AMBIQUITY:
Data is collected, analyzed and processed all in one location, on one machine.
A) Results:
I) No cost of money or time on movement of data.
II) No cost of separate machines to collect and process.
III) Ability to produce results much faster.
APPLICATION FOR USING REAL TIME SIGNAL PROCESSING:
Large amounts of signals are produced by the human body (heart, brain, e
tc.)
Real-time signal processing can enable us to understand the meaning of t
hese signals as they are occurring.
Results in better testing methods, better diagnoses, prevention of fatal
events.