Contrast Coding for Multi-Level FEC BER Matching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing communication systems face challenges in managing bit error rates (BER) across different bits due to varying channel qualities, leading to inefficiencies in error correction and increased overhead in Forward Error Correction (FEC) schemes, which can result in higher costs, larger system sizes, and increased heat generation.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of contrast coding, which adjusts bit error rates (BER) through contrast encoding at the transmitter and contrast decoding at the receiver, allowing for better matching of FEC schemes and modulation formats, thereby achieving higher noise tolerance, greater data capacity, or smaller system sizes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If stronger FEC schemes are used to provide better error protection, then reliability is improved, but information rate decreases and device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the information bits into multiple subsets, each protected by a different FEC scheme with appropriate strength. This allows different parts of the data to receive differentiated protection levels, avoiding the need to apply strong FEC to all bits and thereby maintaining higher overall information rate while ensuring critical bits are well-protected.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different FEC schemes (with different strengths and overheads) to different subsets of bits based on their importance and channel conditions. This local differentiation optimizes the balance between reliability and information rate by concentrating strong protection only where necessary rather than uniformly across all data.
2Reliability
If stronger FEC schemes are used to provide better error protection, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting bits into subsets with different protection requirements, the patent avoids implementing a single complex strong FEC scheme for all bits. Instead, multiple simpler FEC schemes can be applied to different subsets, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining equivalent or better reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies FEC schemes locally to different bit subsets based on their specific needs, allowing the use of simpler coding schemes for less critical bits and reserving complex schemes only for critical bits, thereby optimizing the complexity-reliability tradeoff.
3Reliability
If stronger FEC schemes are used to provide better error protection, then reliability is improved, but heat generation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the data stream and applies FEC processing only to the necessary subsets, reducing the total computational load and heat generation compared to applying strong FEC to all bits. This selective approach maintains reliability for critical bits while minimizing overall energy consumption and heat.
Solution Approach 2:
By applying different FEC strengths locally to different bit subsets, the patent minimizes the use of computationally intensive strong FEC schemes to only where necessary, thereby reducing overall heat generation while maintaining adequate error protection for all transmitted data.
4Adaptability or versatility
If contrast coding is applied to adjust BERs of different bit classes, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments bits into classes based on their BER characteristics and applies appropriate FEC schemes to each class. This segmentation enables adaptability to different channel conditions while managing complexity by processing each segment independently with tailored coding rather than requiring complex universal processing.
Data Source
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AI summary
In data communications, a suitably designed contrast coding scheme, comprising a process of contrast encoding (108) at a transmitter end (101) and a process of contrast decoding (120) at a receiver end (103), may be used to create contrast between the bit error rates 'BERs' experienced by different classes of bits. Contrast coding may be used to tune the BERs experienced by different subsets of bits, relative to each other, to better match a plurality of forward error correction 'FEC' schemes (104, 124) used for transmission of information bits (102), which may ultimately provide a communications system (100) having a higher noise tolerance, or greater data capacity, or smaller size, or lower heat.