Overlapping Error Correction Codes on Two-Dimensional Structures

The growing demand for highly reliable communication systems drives the research and development of algorithms that identify and correct errors during data transmission and storage. This need becomes even more critical in hard-to-access or sensitive systems, such as those used in space applications, passenger transportation, and the financial sector. In this context, Error Correction Codes (ECCs) are essential tools for ensuring a certain level of reliability. This work proposes a technique to enhance ECC error correction capability by overlapping data regions. The approach consists of protecting the same data area with multiple ECCs organized in a two-dimensional structure, enabling logical inferences that correlate the codes and improve their error detection and correction capabilities. More specifically, the overlapping is characterized by the organization of multiple ECCs, whose intersection exclusively covers the entire data region. Different configurations of overlapping ECCs were analyzed to evaluate the proposal regarding error detection and correction capability, scalability, and reliability. Experimental results confirm the technique's effectiveness and demonstrate its high scalability potential, reducing the need for redundancy bits relative to the number of data bits. Furthermore, comparisons with state-of-the-art ECC approaches indicate the technique's applicability in critical systems that require high reliability.