Performance of inhibited random-burst error correction decoders

This communication extends some earlier results [ibid., vol CS-10, pp. 425-435, December, 1962], on the performance of inhibited error-correction decoders. This extension was made necessary by the fact that an important new type of an inhibited error-control decoder has recently become available. The characteristic feature of these new error-control decoders is the correction of a class of errors which can be adjusted (in real time if desired) to include alternative specified patterns of either random, burst, or both random and burst errors together with detection of a corresponding class of uncorrectable errors, such that either the correction operation or the decoder output can be inhibited when doubtful. Because of this special characteristic, these decoders are called "detecting random-burst" (DRB) decoder