What Is a DSP (Digital Signal Processor)?
A DSP (Digital Signal Processor) is a processor specially designed to process signal data such as audio, images and sensors in real time.
Why a Special Processor?
Signal processing needs a great many repeated multiply-add (MAC) operations. A DSP is optimized to do this operation in a single cycle; a general-purpose processor does the same job much more slowly.
The MAC Operation
The basis of algorithms like filtering and transforms (e.g. FFT) is the "multiply and accumulate" (Multiply-Accumulate) operation. Because a DSP's hardware is built around this operation, it's very fast at signal processing.
| Property | DSP | General Processor |
|---|---|---|
| MAC speed | Very high | Medium |
| Real time | Strong | Variable |
| Purpose | Signal processing | General tasks |
Relationship to the MCU
Some modern microcontrollers also include DSP instructions (DSP-capable MCUs). So both control and light signal processing can be done on a single chip.
Where Is It Used?
Audio processing (noise cancellation, echo), telecommunications, image processing, motor control, radar and digital filtering after the ADC.
Common Mistakes
- Unnecessary use: for simple control jobs a DSP is overly complex.
- Fixed/floating point: the right DSP type should be chosen for the application.
- Data flow: at high sampling rates memory/bandwidth can be the bottleneck.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between a DSP and an MCU?+
What is FFT?+
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