Simple questions about R/C channels

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linuxgeek

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This is a little out of the teensy arena (well not really), but I'm trying to understand why R/C stuff (ie helicoptors) need so many RF channels.

If I understand it correctly, each channel is a sliver of frequency range for communicating. And each channel is used to control one particular component (ie motor, servo, etc).

Why would things be designed like this? Isn't there plenty of bandwidth in a single channel to send all the commands for all the components. Maybe I completely misunderstand the issue. Trying to read up, but still not very clear to me.

And, can these RF chips being discussed on here (RF22, RM69, etc) do a single channel, or can they do multiple channels simultaneously?

Thanks.
 
Simplification
Traditional R/C uses pulse width modulation (PWM) to depict an analog value. E.g., 1.5mSec is 50%. Multiple sequential PWMs are sent on one RF frequency.
Servos are all PWM controlled.
Some may call these PWM time slots "channels", not to be confused with transmitter frequency channels.
Today, transmissions occur in other than traditional 27/49MHz unlicensed bands, e.g., 2.4GHz spread spectrum, or some frequencies hopping scheme. But the final product is PWM for the sake of servo compatibility.
 
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