HOW DO TELECOMMUNICATIONS WORK? - TECHNOLOGY - 2025

The telecommunications operating mainly through wired and wireless systems methods. In general, three components can be distinguished that allow information to be sent from one place to another: a transmitter, a medium and a receiver.

The transmitter is the one in charge of converting the information into radio or electromagnetic waves that can be effectively sent. The medium is the channel through which the waves travel.

Finally, the receiver is the one in charge of transforming the signals into a format that can be understood by users.

In most telecommunications systems, devices are included that fulfill the functions of both the transmitter and the receiver, so they are a kind of “transceiver”.

This is the case with telephones. For example, when you make a call, sound waves are transformed into electrical waves that are sent to other phones. When the other individual issues the answer, the phone becomes a receiver.

Definition

“Telecommunications” is understood to be the long-distance exchange of information through electronic devices.

Telecommunications systems allow the transmission of all types of messages: visual, auditory, audiovisual, encrypted data, among others.

The term "telecommunications" is quite broad, and includes various technologies, such as mobile and fixed telephony, radio, television, telegraphs, internet, satellite communication, among others.

Evolution of telecommunications

Electromagnetic waves

The first advances that were made in telecommunications are attributed to the English physicist James Maxwell.

This scientist studied electromagnetic waves, which resulted from the interaction between electricity and magnetism, and discovered that these could be emitted into space.

In the 19th century, electromagnetic waves were first used to transmit messages with the invention of the electromagnetic telegraph. In 1837, Charles Wheatstone and William Fothergill Cooke perfected this apparatus and created the electric telegraph.

Telephone

In 1849, Antonio Meucci developed a device that made it possible to transmit voices through a wiring system.

In 1876, Elisha Gray and Graham Bell (independently) developed the first telephone. Two years later, telephony services began to be marketed.

Radial waves

In 1894, the Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi began studying radio waves, and in 1901 he discovered that they could be transmitted wirelessly.

When the First World War broke out, great advances were made in radio communication, for military reasons.

After the war, radio acquired a creative sense and the AM station was commercialized. In 1930, the FM radio was developed, which over the years was to replace its predecessor.

TV

In 1925, John Lofie Baird proved that videos could be sent from a transmitter to a receiver. In 1929, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) followed Lofie Baird's example and succeeded in transmitting images.

With the arrival of the Second World War, advances in television stopped and then were resumed. A few years after the war ended, television became a fixture in most homes.

Internet

In 1961, the development of ARPANET began, a network that preceded the internet. In 1966, this network was implemented in the laboratories of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and in 1969 other institutes were added to the network.

By 1989, Tim Berners Lee was based on ARPANET and created a system that would allow access to a library of existing documents on the network. It accomplished this through the creation of hyperlinks and hypertext transfer protocols (HTTP).

In addition, Berners developed the World Wide Web (www) to connect computers that were not compatible with each other.

Telecommunications operation

Radio

Radio broadcasts are made from a central transmitter. Sound signals picked up by studio microphones are joined to radio waves and sent through an antenna.

Radio sets, such as those found in a house, receive signals from the central station and separate radio waves from sound waves.

The latter are sent to the radio's horn system and are the sound we hear when we turn on the device.

Telephone

The phone consists of a microphone and a headset. The microphone transforms sound into electrical signals that travel through fiber optic cables or in the form of microwaves (in case the phone is cordless).

For its part, the headset is responsible for transforming electrical signals or waves into sound.

Cellular

Cell phones transmit and receive signals through microwaves. These devices rely on turrets to function, which are the medium through which information is sent.

A cell phone connects to a single turret at the same time, but it can connect to another if we move, which is evident when we go on a bus or train.

Telephone turrets are globally connected. For this reason, cell phones can transmit information from one country to another. For example, you can make international calls or send messages through platforms such as WhatsApp, among others.

Analog television

The operation of analog television is a little more complex than the previous ones, since not only audio and video must be sent, but they must be synchronized.

The transmitter converts images and sounds into radio wave patterns that it sends out via cable or satellite. The televisions in our homes receive this information and decode it in a format that is understandable.

Digital television

Digital television has higher image and sound quality than analog television. This is accomplished because the transmitter converts the audio and video into sequences of binary numbers.

When transmitted and decoded, binary numbers generate better image definition and higher reception. Thanks to this last point, digital television has more channels.

satelite

Satellites allow communication between two distant points on Earth. There are even satellites that allow information to be sent to stations located in space (such as the International Space Station).

Satellites work with antennas and rectenas. The antennas are responsible for transmitting information, while the rectenas receive it. The two devices are capable of encoding and decoding messages.

References

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