A class of single error correcting constant weight codes

When unidirectional errors and symmetric errors occur in the channel, it is well known that codes capable of correcting up to t symmetric errors and detecting all t + 1 and greater unidirectional errors, i.e., t-error correcting/all unidirectional error detecting (t-EC/AUED) codes, are effective. Furthermore, constant weight codes with t-error correcting capability are known as t-EC/AUED codes with high coding rate. Recently, Bose and Rao have proposed a single error correcting constant weight code with high coding rate that is realizable with relatively simple encoding and decoding operations. In this paper, a new construction method for single error correcting constant weight codes is proposed. The encoding and decoding operations are not too complex, and it is possible to achieve coding rates even higher than those of the Bose-Rao codes. Furthermore, with the construction method proposed in this paper, not only in comparisons restricted to constant weight codes, but also in comparisons to previous codes that are known as high rate codes, it is possible to construct codes with the same error correcting capability that have even higher coding rates. (C) 1997 Scripta Technica, Inc.