Outlines Motivation Mentordsp specifications

Outlines

• Motivation

• MentorDSP specifications

• Modulations

• ComPRO

• Validation

• Future & Conclusion

Motivation

• “Signal Processing has been the most boring course I ever had in my curricula” last year engineering student from X… institute

• “I could not make the link between signal theory and engineering case studies” 5th year engineering student from X… institute

• “Signal processing and modulation are a wonderful and an endless source of exam subjects”, teacher from X… institute

• “It seems I synthetized a digital filter using Matlab ® but I have no idea what I really did and what it can be used for” student from Y… university

• “Modulations? Yes I remember… O my god, so much theory” Engineer in mobile phone, two years after graduation

• “I teach modulations with the white chalk, that’s the only way. Illustration is made in practical training. See my colleagues, I do not know exactly what they do in the training, if any…”, teacher from Z… engineering college

Motivation

• Show signal processing at work

• Illustrate the fundaments of common signal processing objects

• Make the link with mobile phones

• Give a tool to teachers for interactive learning

• Focus the attention on concepts, steps, limitations

• Capture the interest of students

• Make signal processing attractive

• Rise the interest for theory and how to apply it to real-case

MentorDSP Specifications

• Two-years development in partnership with ni2designs, India

• Around 50 Lab practical's covering basic signal processing concepts

• Step-by-step description of concepts by problem-based approach

MentorDSP Specifications

• Correspondence between time and frequency – (Casablanca Airport 10 March 09)

MentorDSP Specifications

• Best-of: real-time spectrogram of the sound

• Students discover the spectral contents of vowels, random signals, formants…

MentorDSP specifications

• Signal generation: most basic signals, modulated signals, or signal based on analytical formulations

Modulations

Modulations

• 3G-4G mobile phones use

• Amplitude modulation
• Phase modulation
• Code Division Multiple Access
• Numerical demodulation using digital signal processing

• WiFi systems use OFDM modulations

• Modulation experiments “ready to go”

• Screen configured for optimum illustration
• Worth of interest : QPSK/GSMK, CDMA, OFDM

Modulations

• Specific screens created for signal generation

• Signals can also be described by analytical formulations

ComPro

• Time / Frequency link is mandatory for students

• Modulation/demodulation steps are confusing

• Need for a specific screen that pilots and summarizes communication

ComPro

• Illustration in QPSK Modulation

ComPro

Validation

• MentorDSP has been used in 2nd year of engineering studies for

• Illustration of fundamental signals
• Illustration of Fourier Transform
• Illustration of Convolution and correlation
• Illustration of image

• MentorDSP has been used in 3rd year of engineering studies for

• Illustration of random signals
• Illustration of voice
• Illustration of digital filtering

• MentorDSP has been used in 5th year of engineering studies for

• Illustration of basic signal operations (add, multiply) and time/frequency correspondance
• Illustration of AM, FM modulations
• Illustration of QPSK, GSMK modulation
• Illustration of CDMA, OFDM modulations

Validation

• 10 hours practical training in 5th year related to CDMA

• Students choose the programming language (C, Matlab, Java..)

• Goal : emulate a 3G communication at baseband level using CDMA, modulation to transfer data on the same channel

Validation

• “We have caugth the essence of QPSK and CDMA modulations, and put in practice what has been presented in courses”, 5th year student, INSA

• « We have highlight CDMA advantages. We have proven the impressive tolerance to noise and interference », 5th year student, INSA

• “By increasing the code size, for example 8 to 16 bits, possible codes are multiplied by 256, while the message size is only multiplied by 2. Towards an infinite data rate method... ?  » 5th year student, INSA

• « Starting from the problem and then going into theory and its limits is an outstanding approach. I wish I can teach like this in the future », Former student INSA, now in PhD program

Future & Conclusion

• A tool for illustrating the fundaments of signal processing has been presented

• MentorDSP is a companion tool which aims at rising the interest of students to signal processing and ease interaction with teachers

• Numerical Modulation/Demodulation require specific illustration tools

• The ComPRO module has been designed to illustrate the communication step by step

• The tool has proven efficient as a support of theoretical courses

• Licensing through ni2designs India, starting late 2009

• Lab practical manual (200 pp) available at Telecom09

• Support to LTE and UWB modulations

• Educational book related to MentorDSP to be written in the near future

Thank you for your attention

• www.etienne-sicard.fr/mentordsp

• www.mentordsp.com

• Free lab practical manual for teachers:

• [e-mail]