As well as to have some fun with ICs, I wanted to implement a part of the 188-110 modem to definitively understand the relationship between the periodicity of its bit stream and the lengths of the scrambler/interleaver (as indeed already discussed in other blog posts). The "core" is the data sequence randomizing generator: a 12-bit LFSR (Linear Feed Shift Register) with the functional "one-to-many" configuration and described by the polynomyal x^12+x^6+x^4+x+1. I implemented that LFSR by using twelve D-type flip-flop and three XOR gates, plus three 8-bit serial-to-parallel shift registers to manage the LFSR initial state; its operation, and other 188-110A modem functions such as clock, symbols formation and scrambler, are controlled by an Arduino board. The part more strictly related to the circuit (logic and electronics) is illustrated in the second part of the post.
That set of wires & ICs works great and my tests mainly concerned the data rate of 2400 bps: at that speed the framing has a duration of 48-symbols: 32 symbols in the UnKnown data position followed by a 16 symbols in the Known data (probes) position. As expected, the period of the bit stream is 480-symbol/1440-bit length (ie 10 frames) and matches exactly 3 runs of the sequence randomizing generator (reset'd every 160 symbol): regardless of the interleaver block length (figure 1).
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| Fig. 1 - 1440-bit/480-symbol period of the Arduino bit stream |
However, there is still an uncertainty about the length of one interleaver block (short or long), or, better, about how it is indicated.
According to MIL 188-110 Standard, when the two Known symbol patterns preceding the transmission of each new interleaver block are transmitted, the symbols of these two Known patterns shall be set to Dl and D2 values, respectively, as defined in table XV of the standard. These two particular symbol patterns are indicated in figures 2,3 respectively for a real-world signal and the Arduino signal (both are 2400bps/Short).
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| Fig. 2 - D1 D2 patterns in a real-world bit stream |
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| Fig. 3 - D1 D2 patterns in the Arduino bit stream |
As you may check, each three rows the patterns of the last two probes exhibit the discontinuity due to the D1 and D2 values: therefore, since that three rows of the 480-symbols period contain 3×10 = 30 frames, the block length consists of 30×32 = 960 tribit symbols for the short interleave setting. The measured value is in constrast with what indicated in the standard; indeed, quoting MIL 188-110B #5.3.2.3.7.1.2, "[...] The block length shall be 1440 tribit channel symbols for short interleave setting and 11520 tribit channels symbols for the long interleave setting".
You will get 1440 symbols if you consider also the probe symbols, ie if you compute 30×48 instead of 30×32... but the probe symbols are not interleaved, ie they are not fetched from the interleaver matrix! On the other hand, the short interleaver matrix for 2400 bps consists of 40 rows and 72 columns, ie 2880 bit that just will form 960 tribit symbols: this way, one interleaver block coincides with the dimensions of the correspondent intereleaver matrix. A similar calculation can be verified for the long interleave settings.
So, in my opinion, it seems that when 188-110 Sandard talks about the length of one interleaver block, it refers to all(!) the bit that compose UnKnown and Kown data symbols (indeed it talk generically of "channel" symbols) and not to the bit which are actually fetched from the interleaver matrix and that consequently will be used to form the UnKnown data symbols only (as it would seem more logical to me).
Notice that if the sequence randomizing generator is reset to 0xBAD after 80 transmit symbols, the resulting bit stream is 240-symbol/720-bit length (5 frames), ie just the half of the normal operations (as expected!).
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| Fig. 4 - 720-bit period (LFSR reset'd after 80 transmit symbols) |
Arduino part
As said above, the sequence randomizing generator is a 12-bit LFSR that I implemented by using 12 D-type flip-flops (6 x 74HC74) and 3 XOR gates (74HC86) used for the feedback path. Since the LFSR shall be preload to the initial seed 0xBAD (101110101101), we need to control the async set/reset inputs of the 12 flip-flops, therefore we need to manage 24 pins from the Arduino board and probably we do not have such number of ports available on the board. The idea is to use a serial-in parallel-out shift register (74HC595) to control 8 lines at a time, so link three registers together will give us the chance to get 24 parallel lines by sending 3 bytes on a serial pin of the Arduino board; that way, each 8-bit shift register will drive the set/reset inputs of four flip-flops (figure 5).
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| Fig. 5 - three 8-bit shift register used to manage twelve D-type flip-flop |
The connections for wiring the preload part are shown in figure 6
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| Fig. 6 |
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| Fig. 7 |
74HC74 is a dual positive edge triggered D-type flip-flop with individual data (nD), clock (nCP) inputs and asynchronous set (nSD) and reset (nRD) inputs.
74HC86 is a quad 2-input EXCLUSIVE-OR gate.
74HC595 is an 8-bit serial-in/serial or parallel-out shift register with a storage register and 3-state outputs. Both the shift and storage register have separate clocks. The device features a serial input (DS) and a serial output (Q7S) to enable cascading.
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| pinning of the used ICs |
Hardware (Arduino + breadboard) and software implement the red-circled parts of the 188-110A modem:
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