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DIGITAL LOGIC DESIGN

Lecture 3
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BINARY CODES
• In the coding, when numbers, letters or words are represented by a specific
group of symbols, it is said that the number, letter or word is being encoded.
• The group of symbols is called as a code.
• The digital data is represented, stored and transmitted as group of binary bits.
• This group is also called as binary code.
• The binary code is represented by the number as well as alphanumeric letter
• Binary codes are suitable for the computer applications.
• Binary codes are suitable for the digital communications.
• Binary codes make the analysis and designing of digital circuits if we use the
binary codes.
• Since only 0 & 1 are being used, implementation becomes easy.
• .
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BINARY CODES
• The codes are broadly categorized into following four categories.
• Weighted Codes
• Non-Weighted Codes
• Binary Coded Decimal Code
• Alphanumeric Codes
• Error Detecting Codes
• Error Correcting Codes
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BINARY CODES
• Digital systems use signals that have two distinct values and circuit elements
that have two stable states.
• There is a direct analogy among binary signals, binary circuit elements, and
binary digits.
• A binary number of n digits, for example, may be represented by n binary
circuit elements, each having an output signal equivalent to 0 or 1.
• Digital systems represent and manipulate not only binary numbers, but also
many other discrete elements of information.
• Any discrete element of information that is distinct among a group of quantities
can be represented with a binary code (i.e., a pattern of 0’s and 1’s).
• The codes must be in binary because, in today’s technology, only circuits that
represent and manipulate patterns of 0’s and 1’s can be manufactured
economically for use in computers.
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BINARY CODES
• However, it must be realized that binary codes merely change the symbols,
not the meaning of the elements of information that they represent.
• If we inspect the bits of a computer at random, we will find that most of the
time they represent some type of coded information rather than binary
numbers.
• An n‐bit binary code is a group of n bits that assumes up to 2n distinct
combinations of 1’s and 0’s, with each combination representing one element
of the set that is being coded.
• A set of four elements can be coded with two bits, with each element assigned
one of the following bit combinations: 00, 01, 10, 11.
• A set of eight elements requires a three‐bit code and a set of 16 elements
requires a four‐bit code.
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BINARY CODES
• The bit combination of an n‐bit code is determined from the count in binary
from 0 to 2n - 1.
• Each element must be assigned a unique binary bit combination, and no two
elements can have the same value; otherwise, the code assignment will be
ambiguous.
• Although the minimum number of bits required to code 2n distinct quantities is
n, there is no maximum number of bits that may be used for a binary code.
• For example, the 10 decimal digits can be coded with 10 bits, and each
decimal digit can be assigned a bit combination of nine 0’s and a 1.
• In this particular binary code, the digit 6 is assigned the bit combination
0001000000.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code

• Although the binary number system is the most natural system for a computer
because it is readily represented in today’s electronic technology, most people
are more accustomed to the decimal system.
• One way to resolve this difference is to convert decimal numbers to binary,
perform all arithmetic calculations in binary, and then convert the binary results
back to decimal.
• This method requires that we store decimal numbers in the computer so that
they can be converted to binary.
• Since the computer can accept only binary values, we must represent the
decimal digits by means of a code that contains 1’s and 0’s.
• It is also possible to perform the arithmetic operations directly on decimal
numbers when they are stored in the computer in coded form.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code

• A binary code will have some unassigned bit combinations if the number of
elements in the set is not a multiple power of 2.
• The 10 decimal digits form such a set. A binary code that distinguishes among
10 elements must contain at least four bits, but 6 out of the 16 possible
combinations remain unassigned.
• Different binary codes can be obtained by arranging four bits into 10 distinct
combinations.
• The code most commonly used for the decimal digits is the straight binary
assignment listed in Table 1.4 .
• This scheme is called binary‐coded decimal and is commonly referred to as
BCD.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code

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Binary-Coded Decimal Code

• Table 1.4 gives the four‐bit code for one decimal digit. A number with k decimal
digits will require 4k bits in BCD.
• Decimal 396 is represented in BCD with 12 bits as 0011 1001 0110, with each
group of 4 bits representing one decimal digit.
• A decimal number in BCD is the same as its equivalent binary number only
when the number is between 0 and 9.
• A BCD number greater than 10 looks different from its equivalent binary
number, even though both contain 1’s and 0’s.
• Moreover, the binary combinations 1010 through 1111 are not used and
have no meaning in BCD. Consider decimal 185 and its corresponding value
in BCD and binary:
• (185)10 = (0001 1000 0101)BCD = (10111001)2
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code

• The BCD value has 12 bits to encode the characters of the decimal value, but
the equivalent binary number needs only 8 bits.
• It is obvious that the representation of a BCD number needs more bits than its
equivalent binary value.
• However, there is an advantage in the use of decimal numbers, because
computer input and output data are generated by people who use the decimal
system.
• It is important to realize that BCD numbers are decimal numbers and not
binary numbers, although they use bits in their representation.
• The only difference between a decimal number and BCD is that decimals are
written with the symbols 0, 1, 2, …, 9 and BCD numbers use the binary code
0000, 0001, 0010, c, 1001.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

• Consider the addition of two decimal digits in BCD, together with a possible
carry from a previous less significant pair of digits.
• Since each digit does not exceed 9, the sum cannot be greater than 9 + 9 + 1
= 19, with the 1 being a previous carry.
• Suppose we add the BCD digits as if they were binary numbers.
• Then the binary sum will produce a result in the range from 0 to 19.
• In binary, this range will be from 0000 to 10011, but in BCD, it is from 0000 to
1 1001, with the first (i.e., leftmost) 1 being a carry and the next four bits being
the BCD sum.
• When the binary sum is equal to or less than 1001 (without a carry), the
corresponding BCD digit is correct.
• However, when the binary sum is greater than or equal to 1010, the result is
an invalid BCD digit.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

• The addition of 6 = (0110)2 to the binary sum converts it to the correct digit
and also produces a carry as required.
• This is because a carry in the most significant bit position of the binary sum
and a decimal carry differ by 16 - 10 = 6.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

• In each case, the two BCD digits are added as if they were two binary
numbers.
• If the binary sum is greater than or equal to 1010, we add 0110 to obtain the
correct BCD sum and a carry.
• In the first example, the sum is equal to 9 and is the correct BCD sum.
• In the second example, the binary sum produces an invalid BCD digit.
• The addition of 0110 produces the correct BCD sum, 0010 (i.e., the number 2),
and a carry.
• In the third example, the binary sum produces a carry. This condition occurs
when the sum is greater than or equal to 16.
• Although the other four bits are less than 1001, the binary sum requires a
correction because of the carry. Adding 0110, we obtain the required BCD sum
0111 (i.e., the number 7) and a BCD carry.
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

• The addition of two n‐digit unsigned BCD numbers follows the same
procedure.
• Consider the addition of 184 + 576 = 760 in BCD:
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

EX:2

1 7
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Binary-Coded Decimal Code (BCD) Addition

EX:2

1 7
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Decimal Arithmetic
• The representation of signed decimal numbers in BCD is similar to the
representation of signed numbers in binary.
• We can use either the familiar signed‐magnitude system or the
signed‐complement system.
• The sign of a decimal number is usually represented with four bits to conform
to the four‐bit code of the decimal digits.
• It is customary to designate a plus with four 0’s and a minus with the BCD
equivalent of 9, which is 1001.
• The signed‐magnitude system is seldom used in computers.
• The signed‐complement system can be either the 9’s or the 10’s complement,
but the 10’s complement is the one most often used.
• To obtain the 10’s complement of a BCD number, we first take the 9’s
complement and then add 1 to the least significant digit.
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Decimal Arithmetic
• The 9’s complement is calculated from the subtraction of each digit from 9.
• The procedures developed for the signed‐2’s‐complement system in the
previous section also apply to the signed‐10’s‐complement system for decimal
numbers.
• Addition is done by summing all digits, including the sign digit, and discarding
the end carry.
• This operation assumes that all negative numbers are in 10’s‐complement
form.
• Consider the addition (+375) + (-240) = +135, done in the signed‐complement
system:
•
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Decimal Arithmetic
• The 9 in the leftmost position of the second number represents a minus, and
9760 is the 10’s complement of 0240.
• The two numbers are added and the end carry is discarded to obtain +135.
• Of course, the decimal numbers inside the computer, including the sign digits,
must be in BCD.
• The addition is done with BCD digits as described previously.
• The subtraction of decimal numbers, either unsigned or in the
signed‐10’s‐complement system, is the same as in the binary case:
• Take the 10’s complement of the subtrahend and add it to the minuend.
• Many computers have special hardware to perform arithmetic calculations
directly with decimal numbers in BCD.
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Other Decimal Codes

• Binary codes for decimal digits require a minimum of four bits per digit.
• Many different codes can be formulated by arranging four bits into 10 distinct
combinations.
• BCD and three other representative codes are shown in Table 1.5 .
• Each code uses only 10 out of a possible 16 bit combinations that can be
arranged with four bits.
• The other six unused combinations have no meaning and should be avoided.
• BCD and the 2421 code are examples of weighted codes.
• In a weighted code, each bit position is assigned a weighting factor in such a
way that each digit can be evaluated by adding the weights of all the 1’s in the
coded combination.
• The BCD code has weights of 8, 4, 2, and 1, which correspond to the
power‐of‐two values of each bit.
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Other Decimal Codes

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Other Decimal Codes

• The bit assignment 0110, for example, is interpreted by the weights to
represent decimal 6 because 8 * 0 + 4 * 1 + 2 * 1 + 1 * 0 = 6.
• The bit combination 1101, when weighted by the respective digits 2421, gives
the decimal equivalent of 2 * 1 + 4 * 1 + 2 * 0 + 1 * 1 = 7.
• Note that some digits can be coded in two possible ways in the 2421 code.
• For instance, decimal 4 can be assigned to bit combination 0100 or 1010,
since both combinations add up to a total weight of 4.
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Other Decimal Codes

• BCD adders add BCD values directly, digit by digit, without converting the
numbers to binary.
• However, it is necessary to add 6 to the result if it is greater than 9.
• BCD adders require significantly more hardware and no longer have a speed
advantage of conventional binary adders.
• The 2421 and the excess‐3 codes are examples of self‐complementing codes.
• Such codes have the property that the 9’s complement of a decimal number is
obtained directly by changing 1’s to 0’s and 0’s to 1’s.
• For example, decimal 395 is represented in the excess‐3 code as 0110 1100
1000.
• The 9’s complement of 604 is represented as 1001 0011 0111, which is
obtained simply by complementing each bit of the code.
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Other Decimal Codes

• The excess‐3 code has been used in some older computers because of its
self-complementing property.
• Excess‐3 is an unweighted code in which each coded combination is
obtained from the corresponding binary value plus 3.
• The Excess-3 code is also called as XS-3 code. It is non-weighted code used
to express decimal numbers. The Excess-3 code words are derived from the
8421 BCD code words adding (0011)2 or (3)10 to each code word in 8421.
• Note that the BCD code is not self‐complementing.
• The 8, 4, -2, -1 code is an example of assigning both positive and negative
weights to a decimal code.
• In this case, the bit combination 0110 is interpreted as decimal 2 and is
calculated from 8 * 0 + 4 * 1 + (-2) * 1 + (-1) * 0 = 2.