Concurrent Coding: A Reason to Think Differently About Encoding Against Noise, Burst Errors and Jamming

Abstract: Concurrent coding is an unconventional encoding technique that simultaneously provides protection against noise, burst errors and interference. This simple-to-understand concept is investigated by distinguishing 2 types of code, open and closed, with the majority of the investigation concentrating on closed codes. Concurrent coding is shown to possess an inherent method of synchronisation thus requiring no additional synchronisation signals to be added. This enables an isolated codeword transmission to be synchronised and decoded in the presence of noise and burst errors. Comparisons are made with the spread spectrum technique CDMA. With a like-for-like comparison concurrent coding performs comparably against random noise effects, performs better against burst errors and is far superior in terms of transmitted energy efficiency