Unsigned binary

An unsigned binary number is simply a binary number that can only represent non-negative values (i.e., zero and positive integers).

We can say that all bits are used to represent the magnitude of the number.

Range of values

In an unsigned 3-bit binary number, for example, the possible values are:

• 000 (0 in decimal)
• 001 (1 in decimal)
• 010 (2 in decimal)
• 011 (3 in decimal)
• 100 (4 in decimal)
• 101 (5 in decimal)
• 110 (6 in decimal)
• 111 (7 in decimal)

We can see that an unsigned 3-bit binary number can represent values from 0 to 7. We can calculate the maximum value of an unsigned binary number with n bits using the formula:

\text{maximum value} = 2^n - 1

For example, for an unsigned 5-bit binary number, the maximum value is 2^5 - 1 = 31.