Burst erasure correcting generalized error-locating codes

In this paper, we show that generalized error locating (GEL) codes are well-suited for correcting burst erasures and, in addition, independent errors with high code rate and low decoding complexity. This type of errors together with these requirements occur for example in digital magnetic storage systems. We describe the structural properties of the introduced class of burst error correcting GEL codes. Then, it is shown how the decoding algorithm must be modified to incorporate burst erasure decoding. Simulation results as well as theoretically derived estimations for the bit error rate are used to compare GEL codes to Reed-Solomon codes over a Gilbert-Elliot type channel model.