Hi everyone! Welcome back to Project 3 where we talk about combinational circuits. This week we’ll be discussing decoders and encoders.
What are encoders?
Encoders work like a translator which means that it takes information in one form and converts it into another form that's easier for computers to understand and work with.
For example, let's say you have a bunch words you want the computer to process. Instead of dealing with words directly, which can be tricky for computers, you can use an encoder to turn each word into a numerical code. This code represents the word in a way that the computer can handle more easily.
An example of an encoder is the octal-to-binary encoder. It has eight inputs (one for each of the octal digits) and three outputs that generate the corresponding binary number. It is assumed that only one input has a value of 1 at any given time.
With that being said, we create the truth table:
Given this information, we can now build the circuit:
Since the input Y0 does not affect any of the output functions, we will ignore it while building and assume when A2, A1, and A0 are 0, that means Y0 is 1.
If you’d like to see how I built this circuit, please watch the video at the end of this article.
What are decoders?
Decoders are the opposite of encoders in many systems, especially in areas like data compression, signal processing, and communication systems. They take encoded data and convert it back into its original format or a format that's understandable by humans or other systems.
For example, in data compression, an encoder might compress a large file into a smaller one for storage or sending off somewhere. The decoder then takes this compressed file and decompresses it back into its original form when it's needed.
An example of a decoder is a 2-to-4 line decoder. These are useful in determining which memory location to access in a computer out of 4 possible options and 2 possible inputs. Now that we know there are 2 inputs and 4 outputs, we can construct the truth table:
Given this information, we can build the circuit:
Notice how only 1 output LED light can be on for each unique combination of inputs. If you’d like to see this circuit in action, please watch the video below.
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