Muhammad Rizwan

10-BHA-BSCS-MTB-15
Assignment 01
TDM and FDM

Multiplexing is the name given to techniques, which allow more than one message to be
transferred via the same communication channel. The channel in this context could be a
transmission line, e.g. a twisted pair or co-axial cable, a radio system or a fibre optic system
etc.

A channel will offer a specified bandwidth, which is available for a time t, where t may .
Thus, with reference to the channel there are 2 degrees of freedom, i.e. bandwidth or
frequency and time.

CHANNEL
BL BH freq

BH

Multiplexing is a technique which allows k

users to occupy the
channel for the duration in time that the
channel is available.

BL
Frequency

Time t

Now consider a signal vs (t ) Amp cos(t ) . The signal is characterised by amplitude,

frequency, phase and time.

Various multiplexing methods are possible in terms of the channel bandwidth and time, and
the signal, in particular the frequency, phase or time. The two basic methods are:

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Frequency Division Multiplexing FDM

FDM is derived from AM techniques in which the signals occupy the same physical line but
in different frequency bands. Each signal occupies its own specific band of frequencies all the
time, i.e. the messages share the channel bandwidth.
Time Division Multiplexing TDM

TDM is derived from sampling techniques in which messages occupy all the channel
bandwidth but for short time intervals of time, i.e. the messages share the channel time.

FDM messages occupy narrow bandwidth all the time.

TDM messages occupy wide bandwidth for short intervals of time.
These two basic methods are illustrated below.

time

time
M1
M2 BL
BL M3 M5
M4 M3 M4
B M5 M1 M2

BH t
BH
freq freq

t
BH
BL
M1

M2

B M3 M1 M2 M3 M4 M5

M4

M5
BH BL
t t
FDM TDM

As TDM is the digital multiplexing technique. In TDM, the channel/link is not divided on the
basis of frequency but on the basis of time. Total time available in the channel is divided
between several users. Each user is allotted a particular a time interval called time slot or time
slice during which the data is transmitted by that user. Thus, each sending device takes
control of entire bandwidth of the channel for fixed amount of time. In TDM the data rate
capacity of the transmission medium should be greater than the data rate required by sending
or receiving devices. In TDM all the signals to be transmitted are not transmitted
simultaneously. Instead, they are transmitted one-by-one. Thus, each signal will be
transmitted for a very short time. One cycle or frame is said to be complete when all the
signals are transmitted once on the transmission channel. The TDM system can be used to
multiplex analog or digital signals, however it is more suitable for the digital signal
multiplexing. The TDM signal in the form of frames is transmitted on the common
communication medium.

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TDM is widely used in digital communications, for example in the form of pulse code
modulation in digital telephony (TDM/PCM). In TDM, each message signal occupies the
channel (e.g. a transmission line) for a short period of time. The principle is illustrated below:
1
m1(t) 1
m1(t)
2 2
m2(t)
m2(t)
3
m3(t) 3
Tx Rx m3(t)
4 SW1 SW2 4
m4(t) m4(t)
5 Transmission
m5(t) 5
Line m5(t)

Switches SW1 and SW2 rotate in synchronism, and in effect sample each message input in a
sequence m1(t), m2(t), m3(t), m4(t), m5(t), m1(t), m2(t),
The sampled value (usually in digital form) is transmitted and recovered at the far end to
produce output m1(t)m5(t). For ease of illustration consider such a system with 3
messages, m1(t), m2(t) and m3(t), each a different DC level as shown below.

m1(t) V1

0 t

m2(t) V2

0 t
m3(t) V3

0 t

SW1
Sample

t
Position 1 2 3 1 2 3

V3
V2
V1
t
m1(t) m2(t) m3(t) m1(t) m2(t) m3(t) m1(t)

Channel
Time
Slots

1 2 3 1 2 3 1

Time slot

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In this illustration the samples are shown as levels, i.e. V1, V2 or V3. Normally, these
voltages would be converted to a binary code before transmission as discussed below.

Note that the channel is divided into time slots and in this example, 3 messages are time-
division multiplexed on to the channel. The sampling process requires that the message
signals are a sampled at a rate fs 2B, where fs is the sample rate, samples per second, and B
is the maximum frequency in the message signal, m(t) (i.e. Sampling Theorem applies). This
sampling process effectively produces a pulse train, which requires a bandwidth much greater
than B.
Thus, in TDM, the message signals occupy a wide bandwidth for short intervals of time. In
the illustration above, the signals are shown as PAM (Pulse Amplitude Modulation) signals.
In practice these are normally converted to digital signals before time division multiplexing.

Types of TDM

1. Synchronous TDM

2. Asynchronous TDM

Synchronous TDM (STDM)

synchronous TDM, each device is given same time slot to transmit the data over the link,
irrespective of the fact that the device has any data to transmit or not. Hence the name
Synchronous TDM. Synchronous TDM requires that the total speed of various input lines
should not exceed the capacity of path. Each device places its data onto the link when its time
slot arrives i.e. each device is given the possession of line turn by turn. If any device does not
have data to send then its time slot remains empty. The various time slots are organized into
frames and each frame consists of one or more-time slots dedicated to each sending device. If
there are n sending devices, there will be n slots in frame i.e. one slot for each device.

As show in fig, there are 3 input devices, so there are 3 slots in each frame.

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Multiplexing Process in STDM
In STDM every device is given the opportunity to transmit a specific amount of data onto the
link. Each device gets its turn in fixed order and for fixed amount of time. This process is
known as interleaving. We can say that the operation of STDM is similar to that of a fast-
interleaved switch. The switch opens in front of a device; the device gets a chance to place
the data onto the link. Such an interleaving may be done on the basis of a hit, a byte or by any
other data unit. the interleaved units are of same size i.e. if one device sends a byte, other will
also send a byte and so on. As shown in the fig. interleaving is done by a character (one byte).
Each frame consists of four slots as there are four input devices. The slots of some devices go
empty if they do not have any data to send. At the receiver, demultiplexed decomposes each
frame by extracting each character in turn. As a character is removed from frame, it is passed
to the appropriate receiving device. The channel capacity cannot be fully utilized. Some of
the slots go empty in certain frames. As shown in fig only first two frames are completely
filled. The last three frames have 6 empty slots. It means out of 20 slots in all, 6 slots are
empty. This wastes the l/4th capacity of links.
Asynchronous TDM
It is also known as statistical time division multiplexing. Asynchronous TDM is called so
because is this type of multiplexing, time slots are not fixed i.e. the slots are flexible. Here,
the total speed of input lines can be greater than the capacity of the path. In synchronous
TDM, if we have n input lines then there are n slots in one frame. But in asynchronous it is
not so. In asynchronous TDM, if we have n input lines then the frame contains not more than
m slots, with m less than n (m < n). In asynchronous TDM, the number of time slots in a
frame is based on a statistical analysis of number of input lines.

In this system slots are not predefined; the slots are allocated to any of the device that has
data to send. The multiplexer scans the various input lines, accepts the data from the lines that
have data to send, fills the frame and then sends the frame across the link. If there are not
enough data to fill all the slots in a frame, then the frames are transmitted partially filled.

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Asynchronous Time Division Multiplexing is depicted in fig. Here we have five input lines
and three slots per frame. In Case 1, only three out of five input lines place data onto the link
i.e. number of input lines and number of slots per frame are same. In Case 2, four out of five
input lines are active. Here number of input line is one more than the number of slots per
frame. In Case 3, all five input lines are active. In all these cases, multiplexer scans the
various lines in order and fills the frames and transmits them across the channel. The
distribution of various slots in the frames is not symmetrical. In case 2, device 1 occupies first
slot in first frame, second slot in second frame and third slot in third frame. Full available
channel bandwidth can be utilized for each channel. intermodulation distortion is absent.
TDM circuitry is not very complex. The problem of crosstalk is not severe.

Frequency Division Multiplexing FDM

FDM is widely used in radio and television systems (e.g. broadcast radio and TV) and was
widely used in multichannel telephony (now being superseded by digital techniques and
TDM).
In frequency division multiplexing, the available bandwidth of a single physical medium is
subdivided into several independent frequency channels. Independent message signals are
translated into different frequency bands using modulation techniques, which are combined
by a linear summing circuit in the multiplexer, to a composite signal. The resulting signal is
then transmitted along the single channel by electromagnetic. Basic approach is to divide the
available bandwidth of a single physical medium into a number of smaller, independent
frequency channels. Using modulation, independent message signals are translated into
different frequency bands. All the modulated signals are combined in a linear summing
circuit to form a composite signal for transmission. The carriers used to modulate the
individual message signals are called sub-carriers
At the receiving end the signal is applied to a bank of band-pass filters, which separates
individual frequency channels. The band pass filter outputs are then demodulated and
distributed to different output channels.
If the channels are very close to one other, it leads to inter-channel cross talk. Channels must
be separated by strips of unused bandwidth to prevent inter-channel cross talk. These unused
channels between each successive channel are known as guard band

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FDM are commonly used in radio broadcasts and TV networks. Since, the frequency band
used for voice transmission in a telephone network is 4000 Hz, for a particular cable of 48
KHz bandwidth, in the 70 to 108 KHz range, twelve separate 4 KHz sub channels could be
used for transmitting
twelve different messages simultaneously. Each radio and TV station, in a certain broadcast
area, is allotted a specific broadcast frequency, so that independent channels can be sent
simultaneously in different broadcast area. For example, the AM radio uses 540 to 1600 KHz
frequency bands while the FM radio uses 88 to 108 MHz frequency bands.
What is AM?
Amplitude Modulation, commonly abbreviated as AM, is a common method of broadcasting
radio signals. This method dates back to the 1870s, i.e. the time when we first discovered that
information in the form of audio production can be broadcast over long distances through
radio waves.
In AM, the amplitude of the carrier wave is modified in order to transmit the input signal (the
one that carries information).
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In AM, the amplitude of the carrier wave is modified proportionally according to the
amplitude of the input signal
The amplitude of the carrier wave varies proportionally according to the input signal, so
when the input signal has a low amplitude, the amplitude of the carrier wave is decreased and
vice-versa.
What is FM?
Frequency Modulation, often referred to as FM, is another, relatively newer method of
modulation where the carrier wave is modified proportionally according to the input signal.
In FM, the instantaneous frequency of the carrier wave is altered according to the amplitude
of the input signal.

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In FM, the amplitude of the carrier wave is modified proportionally according to the
amplitude of the input signal
Due to the much better transmission quality, most music radio stations prefer FM over AM to
transmit information (mostly, songs) to their listeners.
AM versus FM
Mode of modulation
As mentioned earlier, AM involves the alteration of the amplitude of the carrier wave,
whereas FM involves changes in the frequency of the carrier wave.
Frequency range
The typical frequency range in which AM works is 535 to 1705 Kilohertz, whereas the
frequency range is around 88-108 Megahertz for FM.
Area of reception
Have you ever wondered why you cant listen to some of your favorite music stations after
you leave the citys boundaries?