Signalformat

Signalformat is a specification for encoding digital time-series signals, used to transport and store measurements from sensors, instrumentation, or audio sources. It defines a frame-based representation that isolates samples in discrete packets with consistent metadata and optional compression to support interoperability across systems and languages.

A signalformat frame consists of a header and a payload. The header contains magic bytes, version, encoding, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, frame_size or samples_per_frame, and a timestamp. It may also include device_id, units, and calibration data. The payload carries the actual samples, which can be raw PCM, floating-point, or compressed data via a defined subset of codecs. Endianness and alignment requirements are specified to ensure deterministic parsing.

The standard supports both fixed-point and floating-point representations, multiple channel configurations, and optional metadata blocks that precede or follow the payload. It defines streaming-friendly markers for frame boundaries and resilience features such as simple frame checksums and sequence counters to detect loss or reordering.

Implementations of signalformat exist in data acquisition suites, embedded systems, and telemetry pipelines. Reference decoders and encoders aim to be lightweight and language-agnostic, with bindings for C, C++, Python, and Java. The format emphasizes forward- and backward-compatibility, enabling schema evolution without breaking older data.

Significance and status: signalformat is used to promote interoperability in environments requiring precise timing and metadata alongside samples. It is an open concept with ongoing community discussion and optional extensions, with several competing formats in the ecosystem. See also PCM, WAV, and time-series transport.