A simple and efficient burst error correcting code based on an array code

Abstract

We show that a widely used array code, known as the even-odd code, which is targeted at phased burst errors, may also be useful for non-phased burst errors. A new decoder is proposed for this code which effectively converts it into a more general burst error correcting code. The proposed scheme is shown to be capable of correcting almost all bursts up to a certain length, such that its performance is attractive for many communication applications. Since the failure rate is sufficiently low, the code can be practically classified as a burst error correcting code. The redundancy in this code is equal to twice the maximal burst length, which is the same redundancy as the lower bound of conventional burst error correcting codes (the Reiger bound). Both the encoder and the decoder have very low complexity, both in terms of number of operations and in terms: of computer code size. We analyze the probability of failure, provide tight upper and lower bounds, and show that asymptotically this probability approaches zero for large blocks.