IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

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COM-14, NO. 2

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REFERENCES
[I] E. N. Gilbert, Capacity of a burstrnoise channel, Bell Sys. Tech. J., vol. 39, pp. 1253-1265, September 1960. [2] J. J. Metznerand K. C. Morgan, Coded feedback communicationsystems, Proc. Natl. Electronics Conf., vol. 16, pp. 250-257, 1960. [3] B. Reiffen, W. G. Schmidt, and H. L. Yudkin, The design of an error-free data transmission system for telephone circuits, Trans. AIEE (Communication and Electronics), 80, pt. 1, pp. vol. 224-231, July 1961. [4] R. J. Benice and A. H. Frey, Jr.; An analysis of retransmission systems, IEEE Trans. Communication on Technology, vol. COM-12, pp. 135-145, December 1964. [5] R. J. Benice and A. H. Frey, Jr., Comparisons of error control techniques, IEEE Trans. on Communication Technology,

vol. COM-12, pp. 146-154, December 1964. [6] R. C. Bose and D. K. Ray-Chaudhuri, On a class of error correcting binary group codes, Information and Control, vol. 3, pp. 68-79, March 1960. G. [7] A. B. Fontaine and R. Gallager, Error statistics and coding forbinary transmission over telephone circuits, Proc. I R E , vol. 49, pp., 1059-1065, June 1961. [8] M. Horsteln, Efficient communication through burst-error channels by means of error detection, Hughes Aircraft Company SSD Rept.4286R, May 1964. [9] F. E. Froehlich and R. R. Anderson, Data transmission over a self-contained error detection and retransmission channel, Bell Sys. Tech. J., vol. 43, pp. 375-398, January 1964. [lo] A. B. Fontaine, Queuing characteristics of a telephone data transmission system with feedback, Trans. IEEE (CommunicationandElectronics), vol. 82, pp. 449455, Sept. 1963.

An Analysis of the Duobinary Technique

Abstract-The spectral shaping characteristics of Lenders duobinary transformation are examined and illustrated by several examples. It is found that the duobinarytransformation does not n compress bandwidth i a sense that would be directly applicable to the Sampling Theorem, but rather shapes the spectrum such that it becomes possible for samples sent at Nyquist rate through a nonflat filter to convey one bit of information each, even though they are statistically dependent and restricted to three levels. Thus the duobinary technique might be quite efficient for certain nonflat, band-limited channels which have a poor signal-to-noise ratio.

some of the questions that occur to manywhen first meeting it; i.e., 1) Does the duobinary transformation always result in a 2-to-1 bandwidth compression? 2) Is there a contradiction between known optimum the (exponential) exchange rate betweenbandwidthand number of transmission levels, and that claimed for the duobinary? 3) Does the duobinary signal utilize channel capacity more efficiently than the straight binary? A similaranalysis is then applied to the polybinary scheme [4], which can be regarded as the extension of the duobinary.

INTRODUCTION
MONGST T H E numerous data transmission methods published in the last few years, one of considerable interest is the duobinary technique, described in publications of A. Lender [l],[2] and F. B. Bramhall [3]. This technique is claimed to double switching speed while retaining the binaryform of the originalsignal, and in addition, to possess a built-in no-redundancy error detection method. These are remarkable properties, since conventional systems can reduce bandwidth only at the expense of increasing the number of transmission levels (assuming that the input, data stream is nonredundant), and can detect errors only by transmitting redundant check digits in addition to the information digits. Thetheoreticalfoundations of the duobinarysystem are not laid down very clearly in available publications. the The object of this paper is thus to examine the principles underlying the duobinary technique, and to try to answer
Manuscript received February 4,1965; revised December 27, 1965. The author is with Bell Telephone Labs., Inc., Holmdel, N. J. He was formerly with Rank Xerox Ltd., Uxbridge, Middlesex, England, where this work was performed.

PRELIMINARIES
I n a data transmissionsystem the input and output consist of a sequence of numbers, while the transmitted intelligence takes the form of a continuous wave. A connection between the two is given by the Sampling Theorem, concisely stated by Shannon [ 5 ] :If a function f(t) containsno frequencies higher than W c/s, it iscompletely determined by giving its ordinates at a series of points spaced l/2W seconds apart. Note that this is essentially an interpolation rule, i.e., an instruction for regenerating a continuous wave from discrete samples. In data transmission one is usually more interested in the converse, i.e., in extracting data (samples) from a continuous wave. I n accordance with the Theorem, if the waveform contains no frequency components higher than W c/s, not more than 2W functionally independent samples can be extracted from it. (Two sets of samples are function-

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ally dependent if the knowledge of one set is sufficient for computing the values of the other set.) Thisgives then the upper limit of the number of data (each represented by a sample) that can be transmitted through a band-limited channel. The requirements of data transmission go beyond functional independence, however. It is not enough that one sample does not precisely determine the next-it should not even influence it probabilistically. I n other words, if at the input the sample values fluctuate entirely at random, there should be nothing in the channel that prevents the output samplesfrom being equallyrandom.Thus, for example, if the input consists of a train of equally probable positive and negative unit impulses, samples of the output taken at the same rate should be statistically independent. A necessary condition for this is that they are uncorrelated. It can be shown, by using Bennetts [6] results, that theonly network with bandwidth W that yields uncorrelated output samples at the rate2W per second is the rectangular ideal filter. Generally, samples may be uncorrelated yet statistically dependent. However, since the impulse response of this network is the (sin ./ func)x tion with zeros a t multiples of 1/2W, samples taken a t this rate will also be statistically independent. It follows, then, that any other network, limited to W c/s but not flat within the band, yields functionally independent, but statisticallydependent,output samples at the rate 2W samples per second. Such channels are thus not suitable for transmitting 2W independent data per second, unless thedata are first recoded intocorrelated a sequence. (Alternatively,differential a decoding process may be used, but this requires a memory in the decoder leading to an accumulation of errors.) What has been said above must be somewhat modified when the transmitted datarequire only a few (i.e., 2 or 3) levels, and the channel noise is low in comparison withthe spacing betweenthe levels. I n these circumstances one can afford to have some distortion in the waveform or, what amounts to the samething, some interferencebetween consecutivesamples, since the receiver canstill decide easily which datum was transmitted. The question of how much interference can be tolerated, or how many signal levels can be usefully employed, cannot be answered in general, but a few special cases have been examined by Hill [7]. THE DUOBINARY TRANSFORMATION

+1, 0, - 1) is generated by the following rules :

I a, f If a,
-1, b, = 0. +1, the polarity of b, depends on the polarity of b,-k corresponding to the lastan-k = 1. If a, and anPkare separated by an even number zeros, of b, = +b,-,; otherwise b, = - b,+
= =

An equivalent method is to convert the a, sequence first into another differential sequenced,, using the rule

d, d,

= =

d,-l if a, = +1 -dn-l if a, = -1,

the possible values of d, being 1/2 and - l/2. The duobinary sequence b, can then be obtained by adding algebraically the last two members of the d, sequence, i.e., b, = d, d,-I. These sequences are merely numbers representing the message values. To obtain a waveform suitable for transmission, such numbers may be regarded as the intensities of impulse trains, appliedto a realizable network. The output can then be-written as

where g ( t ) is the impulse response of the network, c, an arbitrary random time series of integral numbers, and T the spacing of the train of impulses. Let ~ ( t denote a wave generatedfromabinary ) sequence, and y(t) one generated from the duobinary transform of the same sequence:

and let GV) be the Fourier-transform of g(t). The power spectra of x ( t ) and y ( t ) are then obtained from Bennetts [6] formula:

On combining these one obtains

The departure from Lenders use of the values 1 and 0 in the a , sequence is intentional. Bennett [6] shows that unless the mean value of the a sequence is zero, its spectrum contains, in addition to the continuous part, also several Dirac impulses, and these give rise to unnecessary complications.

I n other words, the power spectrum of the duobinary Let us now investigate the properties of the duobinary transformation. Following Lender [ l ] we take as the start- wave is the product of the spectrum of the two-level wave ing point a binary sequencea,, in which the values a, = 1 and the weighting function cos2nTf. The significance of this operation is best illustrated by and a, = - 1 are assumed with equal probabilities p(1) = p ( - 1) = l/2. From this, a duobinary sequence (values some typical examples. b, I) The sinc puke. Let the individual pulsesbe shaped in accordance with the sinc x interpolating function:

gl(t)

sinat/T -= A sinc t/T. at/ T

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Gl(f)

= =

AT, 5 1/2T 0 elsewhere

If I

W,(')(f)

A2T, 5 1/2T 0 elsewhere

If I

W,")(f) = A2T cos2aTF

If I 5 1/2T
elsewhere
Fig. 1. The sinc pulse g l ( t ) and its spectrum.

=o
These functions are shown in Fig. 1.
2) The raised cosine spectrum.
g2(t) =

sin 2at/T A T 2 d [ 1 - (2t/T)2] Gz(f) = +AT(l +'COSaTf)

=o
W z ( 2 ) ( = A2T c0s4afT/2 f)

ATcos2$aTf for 5 1/T elsewhere

If I

ZT

2T

Fig. 2 . The raised cosine spectrum Gz(f).

If1
I

6 1/T

=o
=o
3) The Gaussian pulse.
. .

elsewhere

W v ( 2 ) ( j ) A2T (~0s~aTf/2)(cos?rTf)~ =

If 6 1/T elsewhere.
Fig. 3. The Gaussian pulse g3(t) and its spectrum.

g3(t)

A exp( - at2/T2);

G3@)= A T exp(- apT2) W , ( 3 ) ( f= A2T exp(- 2af2T2); ) W,U) = A2T exp(-2af2T2) cos2aTf.

4) The rectangular pulse.

Fig. 4.
=

The rectangular pulse g4(t) and its spectrum.

0 elsewhere

[ = Wz'4'(2f)].

The effect of the duobinary conversion on signal bandwidths can now be assessed for the above examples. Thespectrum of the sincfunction, GI@), is strictly limited to bandwidth 1/2T. duobinary The spectrum W,(l)(f) has the same bandwidth, but some of the energy is shifted towards the low-frequency region. Gz(f) is band-limited to 1/T, and so is W,@)(f), but the latter has a further zero a t 1/2T, and most of its energy lies below this value. The Gaussian response g3(t) is not band-limited at all, nor is W , ( 3 ) ( f ) , although it has zeros a t f = (2k 1)/2T, k = 0, 1, 2, . . . . The duobinary spectrum thuslooks quite different from the original. The originalspectrum of the rectangularpulse g4(t) has zeros at themultiples of 1/T, and is not band-limited. Bya remarkable coincidence, however, theduobinary transformation causes the spectrum to be compressed to half its widthon the frequency axis, since W,(4)cf) =

W,(4)(2f). Naturally, these both spectra extend to infinity. Consider now the question of bandwidth compression. It is clear that if the binary wave has frequency components above f = 1/2T, the duobinary train, too, will have finite components there, except a t discrete points where cos2aTf = 0. Thus the bandwidth as defined in the Sampling Theorem is not compressed at all. On the other hand, it is noted that in the special case of the rectangular pulse g4(t), the spectrum is compressed by 2-to-1 along the frequency axis. This means that certain parameters of the spectrum, which are sometimes used to define ((bandwidth" in a loose sense, are also halved. These are, e.g., 1) the frequency a t which the spectrumfirst falls to zero, 2 ) the frequency below which lies a specified proportion (e.g., 90 percent) of the spectral energy, and 3) the frequencyabove which allenergymay be removed while keeping the ensuing waveform distortion within specified limits, etc. The last of these serves as the basis for Lender's practical scheme, especially as described in [ 2 ] .The rectangular

)ft":W
2T

The spectral expressions are as follows:

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duobinary train is band-limited by a low-pass filter which cuts off at 1/2T C / S . ~ T h eresultingwave is no longer rectangular, retains but enough amplitude discrimination at the sampling points to enable the receiver to recover the individual digits. An alternativetechniqueforobtainingthiswave is described in [ l ]and [3], and it is instructive to examine this. Herethe rectangular duobinary waveis not generated at all. Instead, the differential binary pulse train d, is applied directly to a transmission filter which represents, to aroughapproximation, the conversion characteristic cos2 aTf combined with band-limiting. For a digit spacing T the filter hasa cutoff frequency(bandwidth) W = 1/2T and ahalf-amplitudefrequency f1 = 1/4T. From the preceding discussion there is clearly no objection, in theory, to recovering functionally independent samples at the rate 2W = 1/T per second, but these cannot be statistically independent. (In fact, themaximum rate for this mode is W = 2fi samples per second.) Thus if the bandwidthcriterion is to be satisfied for this nonflatfilter, some correlation must be permitted to exist between the samples. This is exactly what the duobinary transformation produces: for example, whenever 6 +1 is received, it is certain that the next sample will be +1 or 0, but not - 1. Similarly, the pattern - 1, 0, can be followed only by 0 or 1, not by - 1, and even a 0 can be followed only by either another 0 or one of +1 and -1, depending on the number of 0s since the last 1. (Note, however, that each sample still represents one bit of information, since there are two equally probable alternatives.) The answers to the first two questions posed in the Introduction are now clear: the duobinary transformation is essentially a means for making possible for samples sent it at the Nyquist rate through a nonflat filter to convey one bit of information each, even though they are statistically dependent. This is achieved by shaping the spectrum of the wave train to suit the filter, and not by compressing the bandwidth, and thus the question of optimal exchange betweenbandwidthand the number of signaling levels does not arise.

to-noise ratio in the channel is high enough to allow transmission with, say, a lop6 error probability, it may be regarded as a noise-free three-level discrete channel. Such a channel has a log23 = 1.58bits/sample capacity, provided the samples are statistically independent. Compared to this, the duobinary with itsbit/sample information rate shows 1 an efficiency of only 0.62. This is not a fair comparison, however, for the duobinary does not require a flat pass band, whereas the general ternary code does. I n ordertoarrive a t a more appropriate figure, one would have tofind the information rate of the best ternary code that still satisfies the same spectral constraint asthe duobinary. (Such codes will be based on either statistical dependence of the transmitted samples or on differential decoding of originally independent samplesthat have been subjected to intersymbol interferenceowing to the spectral shaping.) This is not easy, for the spectral shape specifies only the autocorrelation function of the signal, but not the transition probabilities of its samples, which are also required for calculating the information rate. Thus, given a channel used in a duobinary system, one cannot directly derive a superior code, though one maybefound empirically. The last introductory question is thus seen to be misdirected. If the channel allows ternary transmission with acceptable error rate, this will be preferable to a binary code. For higher noise levels only the binary will do, unless an error-correcting ternary code is developed. (The duobinary scheme has onlya rudimentary error detecting feature.) As an alternative, the systemknownassuppressed singles in long distancedctelegraphy may be used, whose performance is broadly equivalent to that of the duobinary. THE POLYBINARY SYSTEM The polybinary transformation converts a two-level sequence to a K-level sequence, where K > 3. The spectrum of the wave y ( t ) generated from the multilevel sequence is the product of the spectrum of z(t), the original wave, and a weighting factor:

UT~LIZATIONCHANNEL OF CAPACITY The efficiency of an encoding technique can be objectively measured with reference to theultimate capacity of the communication channelemployed. Figures of efficiency so computed can, however, be rather meaningless, in view of the difficulty of realizing coding systems which even approach capacity. More useful comparisons can be made between different encoding methods utilizing essentially similar techniques. Thus the efficiency of the duobinary systemmightbe assessed inrelation toits generalized form, the ternary code,3 on the grounds that if the signal-

For the special case of rectangular pulses, the spectrum of the transformed signal is again compressed by a factor of ( K - 1). The transformation can be carried out by a passive filter or, in a very similar scheme [8], by a digital technique involving delay lines and an algebraic adder. Lender [4] claims that such a signal is capable of transmitting ( K - 1) binary channels over a bandwidth which normallyaccommodatesonlya single binarychannel. This is not a veryprecise statement, butfrom the examples given, the system seems to work as follows. Rectangular 2(K - l)fi fed into are * Readers should not confrlse this with the figure f~ = 1/4T, binary pulses occurring at the rate a passive L-C filter H&) with nominal half-ampliquoted in the paper as the half-amplikrde point. 3 Readers should not bemisled by Lenders statement that the tude point at f1 c/s. The output is a K-level wave from duobinary technique preserves the binary form of the original signal, which certainly does not apply to thecommunication channel. which the original data stream may be reconstructed by

IEEE TRANSACTIONSONCOMMUNICATIONTECHNOLOGY

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sampling at the pulse rate. Each sample yields one binary datum quite independently of the adjacent samples. I n the examplegiven by Lender, fi = 600 c/s, andwith K = 5, the input data rateis quoted as 4800 bps. One night initially assume that the system has been designed to work into a band-limited channel, and that H&) cuts off completely at, say, 2fI c/s. If so, it is difficult to see how the system could possibly operate, since sampl-estaken at the rate 4f1c/s (2400 c/s) will, by virtue of the Sampling Theorem, completely determine the output wave and hence the other 2400 samples per second. Since each sample represents one datum, the knowledge of only half the data wouldseem to be enough for reconstructing the entire set. This is possible only if in the original set half the data are functionally dependent on the other half, but then they should not have been transmitted in the first place. Thus one is led to conclude that the polybinary scheme can work. only in an open band channel, and its sole advantage lies in concentrating the spectral energy inthe low-frequency ___ regions. --- --_-_._

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The author is very grateful to b. Bingham of the Post Office Research Station, London, England, for his penetrating criticism of the original version of this paper. REFERENCES
[l] A. Lender, The duobinary technique for high-speed data transmission, IEEE Trans. on Communication and Electronics, vol. 82,pp. 214-218, May 1963. [ 2 ] -, Faster digital communication duobinary with techniques, Electronics, vol. 36, pp. 61-65, March 22, 1963. [3] F. B. Bramhall, Duohinary coding equipment permits doubled transmission speeds, Autom. Elec. Tech. J . , vol. 8, pp. 252-256, July 1963. [4] A. Lender, Correlative digital communication techniques, IEEE Internatl Conv. Rec., vol. 12, pt. 5, pp. 45-53, March 1964. [5] C . E. Shannon,Communicationin the presence of noise, Proc. IRE, vol. 37, pp. 10-21, January 1949. [GI W. R.Bennett, Statistics of regenerative digital transmission, Bell Sys. Tech. J., vol. 37, pp. 1501-1543, November 1958. [7] L. W. Hill, Transmlsslon of multi-level digital signals through noise-free distorting channels, Proc. ZEE (London), vol. 109, pt. B, pp. 165-173; March 1962. [8] J. K. Wolf, On the application of somedigital sequences to communication, ZEEE Trans. on Communications Systems, vol. 11, pp. 422-427, December 1963.

The Maximum Capacity of Tandem Link Multichannel Troposcatter Systems

INTRODUCTION
Abstract-This analysis expresses the maximum performance of a multichannel system, as represented by the maximum channel capacity for a specified noise level, in terms of all k n o w n significant design variables. Such factors a s channel loading, propagation loss, multipath, cosmic noise, and feeder echo are included. More than 60 independent variables associated with system design are taken into account. It is believed that the results are unique, since this is the first known approach in which all significant noise components are brought into a single embracing expression. Maximum performance is found to be associated both with an optimum deviation and with an optimum carrier frequency. Contrary to previous opinion, the latter is found to increasewith distance. The analysis indicates that bandwidths suitable for carrying TV signals are feasib1e;under suitable conditions. However, in order to develop general design procedures, which will achieve the maximum possible performance, considerably more knowledge is required concerning certain basic aspects of behavior, particularly with respect to medium aperture loss, multipath, feeder echo, and antenna beamwidth. Manuscript received September 17, 1965. This paperwas presented at the 1965 I E E E MIL-E-CON Symposium, Washington, D. C. The authoris with Litton Systems, Inc., Westrex Communications Div., New Rochelle, N. Y.

HE PRESENT demand for high-quality circuits has brought with it the need to design circuits for optimum performance-usually defined as the conditions providing maximum channel capacity for specified per chana nel noise level. To a considerableextent, the design of troposcatter systems, thus far, has predicated onsolubeen tion of the thermal noise problem alone. However, examination of the matter indicates that the system design or analysis engineer must manipulate some thirty significant independent variables, and deal witht least twentymore, a to achieve a compromise design, which takes into account all significant noise sources. Theoptimum solution is an extremely complex matter the suitable and most choice of parameters is not necessarily clear cut. I n most cases, a solution by normalprocesses is almost impossible. It is the purpose of this paper toexamine this problem, and indicate a means for arriving a t a single and all embracing result. Of necessity, because of space limitations as well as certain accepted facets the art, the of derivation of these results will be reduced to a minimum.

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