Wavelet analysis [for signal processing]

Abstract

As every engineering student knows, any signal can be portrayed as an overlay of sinusoidal waveforms of assorted frequencies. But while classical analysis copes superbly with naturally occurring sinusoidal behavior-the kind seen in speech signals-it is ill-suited to representing signals with discontinuities, such as the edges of features in images. Latterly, another powerful concept has swept applied mathematics and engineering research: wavelet analysis. In contrast to a Fourier sinusoid, which oscillates forever, a wavelet is localized in time-it lasts for only a few cycles. Like Fourier analysis, however, wavelet analysis uses an algorithm to decompose a signal into simpler elements. Here, the authors describe how localized waveforms are powerful building blocks for signal analysis and rapid prototyping-and how they are now available in software toolkits.