Bidirectional has two directions.
The adjective bidirectional allows you to describe something that has two directions . This concept ( direction ) refers to a tendency, a direction, an orientation or a direction.
For example: “The municipal authorities decided that the Camino del Sur be bidirectional to speed up traffic,” “Discrimination is often bidirectional: people discriminate against those who tend to discriminate against them,” “The integration process has to be bidirectional.”
Two-way communication
Two-way communication is established when the protagonists can send and receive messages simultaneously. Take the case of two friends named Carlos and Juan who are talking on the phone. Both can talk when they want, and at the same time listen to what the other says. This communication is bidirectional since the messages circulate in two directions (from Carlos to Juan and from Juan to Carlos ).
It is important to keep in mind that communication does not always develop this way. A newspaper printed on paper generates unidirectional communication because it broadcasts its message (the news printed on its pages) without feedback being possible.
A telephone communication is bidirectional: it is possible to send and receive messages simultaneously.
The duplex system
In the field of telecommunications, duplex is a system that can give rise to bidirectional communication, that is, it is capable of accepting the sending and receiving of messages simultaneously. There are certain levels that condition this transmission capacity:
* a physical medium that can perform said task in two opposite directions;
* a transmission system that can send and receive at the same time;
* a communication standard or protocol used by terminal equipment, that is, each of those found at the ends of the system.
A possible classification of these two-way communication systems consists of evaluating their transmission capacity, depending on whether it is partial or complete, and this gives rise to the following three terms: simplex , half-duplex and duplex , the last two being "partial" and "complete." , respectively.
Currently, a large part of communications networks are based on this model to allow a sending and a receiving channel to exist simultaneously. To make a system work in this way, it is necessary to use different frequencies (what is called frequency multiplexing ) or separate cables.
Of bidirectional paths and processes
A bidirectional road , on the other hand, allows simultaneous circulation in two directions . The streets that have one direction and the other are bidirectional; For example: it is possible to go towards the north or, on the opposite hand, towards the south.
Bidirectional processes also contemplate this duality. Suppose two countries establish a free trade agreement. Country R , in this way, can export its products to country S without paying taxes or tariffs. In turn, country S can export to country R without having to pay taxes. The export and import of duty-free merchandise between both nations is bidirectional.
A kind of alarm
In large cities, it is common for people to hire alarm systems to protect their homes and offices. Unlike the basic protection that existed in the past, which simply sounded a siren when a door was opened, for example, modern technology allows the installation of different motion detectors that cover large areas inside and outside the property. In this context we can talk about unidirectional and bidirectional systems.
While the former are only capable of sending information to the central when the detector detects movement in the client's home, the bidirectional ones allow operators to make various queries from the central, to ensure that the equipment works properly and that it is not manipulated or altered by their owners. This reduces the number of scams and maximizes protection for those who wish to take advantage of the service legitimately.