A fast signal averager based on a sampling oscilloscope interfaced to a minicomputer

Abstract

An analogue signal averager capable of subnanosecond time resolution is described. The circuit combines the time resolution of a sampling oscilloscope, the signal-averaging capabilities of a multichannel analyser and the processing power of a minicomputer into a single unit. The circuitry and computer program necessary to accumulate data in the computer memory and output the averaged data on an analogue display or plotting device are described. Although the circuitry described refers specifically to an interface to a PDP-11 computer, the design principles are readily adaptable to any minicomputer or microprocessor with at least 4k words of memory.