Rohde & Schwarz FSWP Series - I;Q Data File Format (Iq-Tar)

Annex: Reference
R&S
®
FSWP
154User Manual 1177.5856.02 ─ 07
A.3 I/Q Data File Format (iq-tar)
I/Q data is packed in a file with the extension .iq.tar. An iq-tar file contains I/Q data
in binary format together with meta information that describes the nature and the
source of data, e.g. the sample rate. The objective of the iq-tar file format is to separate
I/Q data from the meta information while still having both inside one file. In addition, the
file format allows you to preview the I/Q data in a web browser, and allows you to
include user-specific data.
The iq-tar container packs several files into a single .tar archive file. Files in .tar
format can be unpacked using standard archive tools (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Comparison_of_file_archivers) available for most operating systems. The advantage
of .tar files is that the archived files inside the .tar file are not changed (not com-
pressed) and thus it is possible to read the I/Q data directly within the archive without
the need to unpack (untar) the .tar file first.
An application note on converting Rohde & Schwarz I/Q data files is available from the
Rohde & Schwarz website:
1EF85: Converting R&S I/Q data files
Contained files
An iq-tar file must contain the following files:
●
I/Q parameter XML file, e.g. xyz.xml
Contains meta information about the I/Q data (e.g. sample rate). The filename can
be defined freely, but there must be only one single I/Q parameter XML file inside
an iq-tar file.
●
I/Q data binary file, e.g. xyz.complex.float32
Contains the binary I/Q data of all channels. There must be only one single I/Q
data binary file inside an iq-tar file.
Optionally, an iq-tar file can contain the following file:
●
I/Q preview XSLT file, e.g. open_IqTar_xml_file_in_web_browser.xslt
Contains a stylesheet to display the I/Q parameter XML file and a preview of the
I/Q data in a web browser.
A sample stylesheet is available at http://www.rohde-schwarz.com/file/
open_IqTar_xml_file_in_web_browser.xslt.
I/Q Data File Format (iq-tar)