Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE)

Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Dhaka

EEE 310: Communication System I Laboratory

Experiment No:04
Experiment Name: PWM and PPM Generation and Demodulation

Objectives

 To learn about modulation and demodulation technique of PWM Signal

 To learn about modulation and demodulation technique of PPM Signal

Introduction
Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) and Pulse Position Modulation (PPM) are two common
techniques used in digital communication and control systems. Together, they are referred to as
Pulse Time Modulation (PTM). In PTM, the timing of the pulse is the variable, not the amplitude
as in PAM.
 Pulse Width Modulation (PWM): In PWM, the width (or duration) of each pulse is varied
in proportion to the amplitude of the modulating signal, while the frequency remains
constant. This technique is widely used in motor control, power regulation, and digital
signal transmission due to its efficiency in power conversion and noise resistance. PWM
is sampling the message at regular intervals with a sample/hold (SH) signal and producing
pulse widths proportional to the message signal's amplitude at the time of sampling.
 Pulse Position Modulation (PPM): In PPM, the position of each pulse is varied relative
to a reference time, based on the modulating signal, while the width and amplitude of the
pulses remain constant. PPM is commonly used in optical and wireless communication
systems, as it offers improved noise immunity and efficient bandwidth utilization. PPM
signals are generated from PWM signals. More specifically, PPM signals are narrow, fixed
amplitude pulses with a varying position proportional to the message signal's amplitude at
the time of sampling. The position of the PPM pulse is relative to the SH signal, and the
distance between PPM pulses varies with the message signal's amplitude.

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 Figure 1: Example of PWM and PPM signals

In this lab, you will be able to describe how to convert a message signal into a PTM signal and
how to demodulate a PTM signal by using the PTM circuit block on the DIGITAL
COMMUNICATIONS 1 circuit board.

Basics of the PTM Module of the DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS 1 Trainer

Board
On the circuit board, the SAMPLE/HOLD, RAMP GEN (ramp generator), ADDER, and
COMPARATOR circuits generate the PWM signals.

The PULSE LENGTH circuit converts an inverted PWM signal to a PPM signal. M1, the message
signal, is a sine wave of about 5 V peak-to-peak at 1 kHz. The SH signal samples the message
signal – it has a pulse width (PW) of 9𝜇𝑠, as compared to the 15.6 𝑝𝑠 pulse width on the PAM
circuit block. We will use a 16 kHz SH signal to generate a PWM signal. The width of the PWM
pulse is proportional to the amplitude of the message signal at the lime of sampling, and the
negative edge of the PWM pulse and the negative edge of the SH pulse occur at the same time. On
the other hand, the position of the PWM's positive edge varies with the amplitude of the message
signal. When the message signal's amplitude is maximum, the PWM's positive edge is the greatest
distance away from the SH pulse, and vice versa.

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Equipment
 FACET® base unit
 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS 1 circuit board
 Oscilloscope, dual trace
 Signal generator, sine wave
 Two-post connectors
 Terminal posts

Procedure
Follow the following workflow and observe the waveform in each step using the Oscilloscope.
When making oscilloscope measurements or observations, be sure that you connect the
probe's ground clip to a ground terminal on the circuit board

PTM (PWM and PPM) Signal Generation

1 On the PTM circuit

block, insert a two-
post connector
between the message
signal terminal M1
and the
SAMPLE/HOLD's
input.

2 Set oscilloscope CH 1
to 2 V/DIV, and set
the sweep to 0.2
ms/DIV. Trigger on
CH 1.
Connect the CH 1
probe to
SAMPLE/HOLD's
M1 input.

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 Observe the message
signal on the
oscilloscope.

3 Set oscilloscope CH 2
to 2 V/DIV, and set
the oscilloscope
vertical mode to ALT
or DUAL. Connect
the CH 2 probe to the
SH input of the
SAMPLE/HOLD
circuit.

4 Set the oscilloscope sweep to 10 µs/DIV, the vertical mode to CH 2, and trigger on CH 2.
Measure the time period (𝑇) of the signal in CH 2.
𝑇 = ______________ 𝜇𝑠

5 From the time period 𝑇, calculate the frequency of the SH signal.

𝑓𝑠 = ______________ kHz

6 Set the vertical mode to DUAL or ALT, set the sweep to 0.2 ms/DIV, and trigger on CH
1. The Nyquist rate is ___________ kHz.

7 Set the sweep to 0.1

ms/DIV Connect the
CH 2 probe to PWM
at the
COMPARATOR's
output.

8 Adjust the POSITIVE

SUPPLY
potentiometer on the
base unit so that the
signal on CH 2
appears as shown in
the image on the right.

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9 Connect the external
trigger probe to the
SAMPLE/HOLD's
M1 input. Trigger on
external. Connect the
CH 1 probe to SH. Set
the sweep to 50
µs/DIV. Adjust the
oscilloscope for clear
signals with the
LEVEL control knob.

Compare the
relationship of the SH
signal on CH 1 and the
PWM signal on CH 2.

10 Connect the CH 1
probe to PPM at the
output of the PULSE
LENGTH circuit.

11 Connect the CH 2
probe to the SH signal.

Compare the position

of the PPM signal
with the SH signal.

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PTM Signal Demodulation
i) PWM Signal Demodulation
We will observe and measure the reconstructed signal from a PWM signal formed by sampling a
1 kHz message signal with a 16 kHz SH sampling signal.

1 Use the PTM and PAM circuit

blocks to connect the PTM
modulation and demodulation
circuits. Insert the 3 two-post
connectors as shown to connect
the PREFILTER to the
FILTER, M1 to
SAMPLE/HOLD, and
COMPARATOR to the
LIMITER.

2 Connect the oscilloscope's

external trigger probe to the
SAMPLE/ HOLD's M1 input.
Trigger on external.

Set oscilloscope CH 1 and 2 to

2 V/DIV, and set the sweep to
0.1 ms/DIV. Connect the CH 1
probe to the SAMPLE/HOLD's
M1 input. Connect the CH 2
probe to PWM at the
COMPARATOR's output.
Adjust the oscilloscope's
LEVEL control knob for a clear
message signal on CH 1.

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 3 Adjust the POSITIVE
SUPPLY potentiometer knob
on the base unit so that the
PWM signal on CH 2 appears
as shown on the right.

4 Connect the CH 2 probe to the

output of the FILTER in the
PAM circuit block to observe
the reconstructed message
signal. Set the sweep to 0.2
ms/DIV.

5 Measure the peak-to-peak amplitude of the recovered message signal (CH 2) from the
PWM signal.

𝑉 = ________________ V (peak-to-peak)

6 Connect the CH 1 probe to the

output of the PREFILTER in
the PTM circuit block. Set the
sweep to 0.1 ms/DIV.

ii) PPM Signal Demodulation

We will observe and measure the reconstructed signal from a PPM signal formed by sampling a 1
kHz message signal witl1 a 16 kHz SH sampling signal.

1 Configure the PAM-TDM

circuit block as shown.
Three two-post
connectors should
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 connect the PREFILTER
to the FILTER, M1 to the
SAMPLE/HOLD, and the
PULSE LENGTH to the
LIMITER.

2 Connect the CH 1 probe to

the SAMPLE/HOLD's
M1 input.

3 Connect the CH 2 probe to

PPM at the PULSE
LENGTHs' output

4 Set CH 2 to 200 mV/DIV,

and set the sweep to 0.2
ms/DIV.
Connect the CH 2 probe to
the output of the FILTER
in the PAM circuit block
to observe the
reconstructed message
signal.

The reconstructed
message signal should
appear as shown on the
right.

Measure the peak-to-peak

voltage of the recovered
message signal from the
PPM signal.

𝑉 = ____________ mV
(peak-to-peak)

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5 Connect the CH 1 probe to
the output of the
PREFILTER in the PTM
circuit block. Set CH 1 to
200 mV/DIV and set the
sweep to 0.1 ms/DIV.
You may need to use ac
coupling on CH 1.

6 Remove the two-post

connector between the
PREFILTER and the
FILTER. With a patch
lead, connect the
LIMITER's output to the
input of the FILTER. The
demodulation circuit now
bypasses the
PREFILTER.

7 Connect the CH 1 probe to

the SAMPLE/HOLD
circuit's input. Set CH 1 to
2 V/DIV, set CH 2 to 100
mV/DIV, and set the
sweep to 0.2 ms/DIV.

Conclusion
 The width of a PWM signal varies directly with the amplitude of the message signal.
 The position of a PPM signal varies directly with the amplitude of the message signal.
 PWM signals are generated with sample/hold, ramp, adder, and comparator circuits.
 PPM signals are generated from PWM signals using a pulse length (integrator) circuit.
 PWM and PPM are demodulated by low pass filtering.
 The first replica in a PTM signal may contain the sampling frequency (fs) and several
sidebands separated by a frequency equal to the message signal's frequency (fm).
 A PPM demodulation circuit requires a prefilter in addition to a filter; the prefilter
attenuates frequencies higher than the sampling frequency and amplifies the message
signal frequency.

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  To reconstruct a clear message signal from a PTM signal with a practical low pass filter,
the sampling frequency must be several times greater than the message signal frequency.

Prepared by:
Dr. Hafiz Imtiaz, Professor, Department of EEE, BUET.

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