A PC-based frequency spectrum analyzer

• Main Authors: Miranda, Mervin R., Ojeda, Varian Sherwin T., See, Ferdinand C., Yap, Douglas Anthony H.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 1997
• Subjects: Spectrum analyzers; Frequency spectra; Electronic digital computers; Analog-to-digital converters; Fourier analysis; Digital electronics; Engineering
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/8956
• Institution: De La Salle University

The PC-based Frequency Spectrum Analyzer is an electronic device that analyzes the frequency response of an input causal signal. It does the frequency analysis of the signal through the use of Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). An important feature of this device is its low cost as compared to the commercially available spectrum analyzers. The device works by first sampling the input signal and quantizing it into discrete values. The quantized value is then transformed into a specific format that is passed on to the CPU of the computer through an interfacing device. Since the function of the quantized values at this point is time-dependent, a software is needed to perform the FFT to transform the function to the frequency domain. The resulting function is the plotted on a coordinate system. A middle-level language software is needed since the software needed to perform the frequency analysis is a high-level language. What this language does is it links the low-level language used by the CPU and the high-level language used to perform the frequency analysis.