ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Carson bandwidth rule

Okay kiddo, so the Carson Bandwidth Rule is all about the amount of space or the width that a radio signal takes up in the airwaves. Remember how when we talk on a walkie-talkie or use a cell phone, we can hear and talk to the person on the other end even though they're not right next to us? Well, that's because our voices are converted into radio signals that travel through the airwaves to reach the other person.

Now, different types of radio signals take up different amounts of space or width in the airwaves. The Carson Bandwidth Rule helps us figure out how much space or width a radio signal takes up, which is important because we can only fit so many radio signals in the airwaves without them getting all jumbled up and making it hard to hear the people we're talking to.

So, the Carson Bandwidth Rule says that the width of a radio signal is equal to the sum of its highest frequenty, and its upper and lower sideband frequencies. Uh oh, did that last part confuse you? Let me break it down a little further.

Frequencies are like notes on the radio signal, and the highest frequency is like the highest note that the signal can play. The upper and lower sideband frequencies are like notes that are played alongside the main frequency or note in order to make the signal sound clearer.

So, the Carson Bandwidth Rule tells us that to figure out how much space or width a radio signal takes up, we need to add up the highest frequency, and the upper and lower sideband frequencies. Once we know how much space or width a signal takes up, we can make sure that we're not trying to fit too many signals in the same space and causing them to get all jumbled up and hard to hear.

There you have it, kiddo, the Carson Bandwidth Rule explained like you're five!