Oppenheim, Alan V.; Schafer, Ronald  W.

Digital signal processing. (English) Zbl 0369.94002

Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc. xiv, 585 p. £19.15; $ 30.40 (1975).

Complex and sophisticated signal processing algorithms have been made economical and practical due to
the recent availability of high-speed digital computers. Nowadays digital algorithms do not represent only
simulation facilities, but are able to perform on-line processing and they are rapidly surmounting analog
processing. This book contains a unified and pretty thorough presentation of the diverse and rapidly
evolving field of digital signal processing and as such it can be of great use for teaching purposes and
also for engineering practice. Rather than on the hardware aspects, emphasis is placed on software and
computational aspects, and its scope ranges from the presentation of standard topics on discrete-time
signals and systems to the sometimes introductory but always well-motivated treatment of more advanced
subjects.
Chapter 1 is a review of discrete-time signals and systems including their frequency-domain representation.
The basic properties of the z-transform and its inverse and the concept of system function for non-periodic
signals are illustrated in Chapter 2, whereas Chapter 3, deals with periodic signals, the discrete Fourier
transform and its relations to the z-transform. This Chapter is particularly nicely written. Directly
connected with Chapter 3 is Chapter 6, which is devoted to the illustration of the fast Fourier transform,
i.e. those algorithms which permit enormous computational savings in computing the DFT. Decimation-
in-time and decimation-in-frequency procedures are described to some extent, as well as the chirp z-
transform algorithm, originally developed by one of the authors.
The symmetry properties of the DFT which permit the implementation of the FFT algorithms are best
illustrated by means of the flow-graphs developed in Chapter 4, which is devoted to the basic problem of
the structure implementation of digital filters. A number of fundamental structures both for IIR and FIR
filters are described. Tellegen’s theorem (of basic importance in circuit theory) is also briefly illustrated.
A hint to the effects of finite-word-length coefficients on the performance of realized filters is given (this
subject is treated more deeply in Chapter 9).
A variety of design techniques for IIR and FIR digital filters is presented in Chapter 5. A general picture of
the wide range of design possibilities is sketched and some particular techniques are treated in detail, such
as the methods of impulse invariance and bilinear transformations for designing Butterworth, Chebyshev
and elliptic IIR filters. A less complete description of the algorithmic design methods is given, as these
are less used in practice. Also, a useful comparison between IIR and FIR filters is made on the basis of
the respective advantages and disadvantages.
The fundamental relations between the real and imaginary parts of Fourier transform (the so-called
Hilbert transform relationships) are covered in Chapter 7, where emphasis is particularly placed on the
design and analysis of minimum-phase systems (when the corresponding time-sequence is causal and both
the poles and the zeroes of the z-transform lie inside the unit circle).
Chapter 8 is rather tutorial, as it offers a concise treatment of those properties of random processes
which are relevant for the discussions of Chapter 9 and 11. No attempt to maintain a rigorous and
mathematically detailed level is made, but the review can certainly prove useful and convenient for the
average reader.
Chapter 9 is one of the most interesting. An analysis is performed of some of the problems connected
with the use finite-precision arithmetic in the implementation of digital filters and of FFT algorithms.
The conflicting goals of fine quantization and wide dynamic range while holding the register length fixed
are discussed and it is shown how problems depend on the type of number representation adopted.
Quantization errors, truncation or roundoff, lead to instability and zero limit-cycle phenomena in IIR
filters. The relevance of the structure used for implementing a particular signal-processing algorithm is
exhibited for both fixed- and floating-point arithmetic. Statistical methods are shown to be useful in
dealing with processes which are too complex for a deterministic analysis.
A discussion of the techniques for estimating averages of discrete-time random processes, e.g. autocovari-
ance and power-spectrum, is presented in Chapter 11. In particular, periodograms as estimates of the

Edited by FIZ Karlsruhe, the European Mathematical Society and the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities
© 2023 FIZ Karlsruhe GmbH Page 1
power-spectrum are dealt with according to the methods of Bartlett and Welch. The intention is not to
offer a complete treatment, but only an introduction to this vast area.
A particular class of nonlinear signal processing techniques is dealt with in Chapter 10, where the well-
known concept of homomorphism between two algebraic structures is exploited for getting to a generalized
principle of superposition. Two classes of “homomorphic” (i.e. generalized linear) systems are discussed
in detail, particularly suited for multiplication and convolution, respectively. It is also shown how the
problem can be reduced to the design of a linear system. A detailed treatment of the log-power spectrum
(the “cepstrum”) is given and applications of these ideas to several areas are briefly presented, including
speech processing, the analysis of seismic signals, and restoration of old records.
Although the reader can benefit from some background on Fourier and Laplace transform for analog
signals, the book is self-contained and highly readable. Its usefulness is increased by 242 problems, which
also give complements, extensions and applications of the material presented. Studying this book is
recommended for all persons seriously interested in taking up digital signal processing. It is also suited
for self-instruction, as it proceeds from easy to more difficult topics with a rather smooth progression.
Reviewer: Giuseppe Longo

For a scan of this review see the web version.

MSC:
94-01 Introductory exposition (textbooks, tutorial papers, etc.) pertaining Cited in 6 Reviews
to information and communication theory Cited in 162 Documents
94-02 Research exposition (monographs, survey articles) pertaining to in-
formation and communication theory
94A12 Signal theory (characterization, reconstruction, filtering, etc.)
94C10 Switching theory, application of Boolean algebra; Boolean functions
(MSC2010)
68W99 Algorithms in computer science
68Q25 Analysis of algorithms and problem complexity
93E10 Estimation and detection in stochastic control theory

Edited by FIZ Karlsruhe, the European Mathematical Society and the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities
© 2023 FIZ Karlsruhe GmbH Page 2