On the Maximum True Burst-Correcting Capability of Fire Codes

Fire codes are cyclic codes generated by the product of two polynomials: a binomial that characterizes the code's guaranteed burst-correcting capability and an irreducible polynomial that characterizes the code length. However, the true burst-correcting capability of a Fire code may exceed its guaranteed burst-correcting capability, which can be thought of as the designed burst-correcting capability of the Fire code. The true burst-correcting capability of a Fire code depends on the irreducible polynomial used in code construction. In this paper, the maximum true burst-correcting capabilities of Fire codes are considered. Fire codes are classified based on three parameters: their designed burst-correcting capabilities, the least common multiple of the periods of the binomials, and the irreducible polynomials used in their constructions, and the ratios of the periods of primitive polynomials of the same degrees as the irreducible polynomials to the periods of the irreducible polynomials. It is shown that the maximum true burst-correcting capability of each class, which pertains to an infinite number of codes, can be determined by checking whether or not a finite number of incongruences have a solution. It is also shown that in each class, there is an infinite number of Fire codes, with increasing code lengths, that attain this maximum. The maximum true burst-correcting capabilities of several classes of Fire codes are determined. It is also shown that there are infinite sequences of irreducible polynomials that generate cyclic codes of rates approaching one and with burst-correcting capabilities that exceed any given number.