System and method for detecting character boundaries in a serial coded data stream

The present invention relates to a system for detecting a character boundary in a data stream encoded in a serial code comprising means (11) responsive to the transmitted data stream for coupling a number of character bits to a utilisation means, the coupling means being responsive to a skip bit signal for moving the character boundary by one bit, means (17, 21) coupled to the coupling means and responsive to the number of character bits for detecting if there is a zero character disparity and a code error, skip signal providing means (27) responsive to a code error for providing a skip signal to the coupling means in the presence of a detected code error, and means (23), coupled to the skip signal providing means, and responsive to detection of a zero disparity character for inhibiting said skip signal. The present invention also relates to a method for detecting a character boundary in a data stream encoded in a serial code comprising the steps of determining the absence of a zero disparity character, detecting code errors, and shifting the character boundary of the serial data stream by one bit when there is absence of a zero disparity character and presence of detected code errors.