A novel notation method for the representation of quantized sampled data in measurement systems

This paper presents a novel floating significant bits notation method for the quantized sampled binary data. The quantized output of a high precision A/D converter is mapped into another datum of lower precision, with a float counter field to code the number of leading zeros in the original datum and the remaining bits to record the sign and significant bits. The notation ignores the less significant bits which take up a lot of space in the sampled data of a large signal and highlights the most significant bits in the case of weak signals. This method will ensure that each sample has well defined significant bits in spite of its variable amplitude, with also invariable word length. The results have demonstrated that the notation can effectively balance the conflicting requirements of measuring range, precision and transmission bandwidth at a very low cost, and it can also help to retain signal characteristics.