Quantization

 A continuous signal, such as voice, has a continuous range of

amplitudes and therefore its samples have a continuous amplitude
range.

 In other words, within the finite amplitude range of the signal, we find
an infinite number of amplitude levels.

 In actual fact, however,it is not necessary to transmit the exact

amplitudes of the samples.

 We say so because any human sense (the ear or the eye) as the
ultimate receiver can detect only finite intensity differences.

 This means that the original continuous signal may be approximated

by a signal constructed of discrete amplitudes selected on a
minimum-error basis from an available set.
 The existence of a finite number of discrete amplitude levels is a
basic condition of digital pulse modulation.
 Clearly, if we assign the discrete amplitude levels with sufficiently
close spacing, we can make the approximated signal
indistinguishable from the original continuous signal for all practical
purposes. Note also that quantization is non-reversible.
 Amplitude quantization is defined as the process of transforming the
sample amplitude m(nTs) of a baseband signal m(t) at time t= nT s into
a discrete amplitude v(nTs)taken from a finite set of possible levels.
 We confine attention to a quantization process that is memory less
and instantaneous, which means that the transformation at time is not
affected by earlier or later samples of the message signal. This form
of quantization,though not optimal, is commonly used in practice
because of its simplicity.
 When dealing with a memory less quantizer, we may simplify the
notation by dropping
the time index. That is, we use the symbol m in place of the sample
m(nTs) as indicated
Then, as shown in Fig.

the signal amplitude m is specified by the index k if it lies inside the interval

 where L is the total number of amplitude levels used in the quantizer,

which refers to the subsystem that performs the quantization process.
The amplitudes,mk,k=1,2,3,4..L are called decision levels or decision
thresholds.
 At the quantizer output, the index k is transformed into an amplitude
vk that represents all amplitudes that lie inside the interval Ik. The
amplitudes are called representation levels or reconstruction levels,
 and the spacing between two adjacent representation levels is called
a quantum or step-size.
 Thus, the quantizer output equals if the input signal sample m
belongs to the interval
 The mapping
 (5.22)
 is the quantizer characteristic. This characteristic is described by a
staircase function.
 Quantizers can be of a uniform or nonuniform type. In a uniform
quantizer, the representation
 levels are uniformly spaced; otherwise, the quantizer is nonuniform.
The quantizers
 considered in this section are of the uniform variety; nonuniform
quantizers are
 v g1m2