Efficient MRB-Reprocess Decoding of Reed-Solomon Codes

Most-reliable-basis (MRB) reprocessing type algorithms generate lists of candidates using simple encoding. The reprocessing is restricted to K most reliable independent positions of the received sequence. The most likely transmitted codeword is chosen from the list using a soft metric. In this paper, a sub-optimum soft-decision decoding algorithm based on MRB reprocessing is proposed for Reed-Solomon codes. The performance of this algorithm is investigated by simulation. The results show large gains over hard-decision decoding and the uncoded system. An investigation of the complexity of this algorithm shows the proposed algorithm to be computationally more efficient than the Order-i reprocessing and the Chase type-II algorithms