Error Correction Performance of Block Codes in Binary, Burst Communication Systems

Burst communication systems, such as packet-radio systems, require error-free message reception for their success. Moreover, they must be capable of operating in high error-generating environments of message collisions, jamming, and system mobility. To facilitate error-free message reception, some combination of error correction, error detection, and repeat message transmission is required. This paper compares performance, as related to error-free message reception, of the best error-correcting block codes known. Analyses are given for binary transmission systems with unencoded message lengths between 48 and 960 bits, affected by both bit-independent and burst noise. Effects of code rate, code alphabet order, and codeword length are shown for binary symmetric channel (i.e., hard decision) decoding. Benefits of erasure channel decoding for an interference channel are also shown.