We study the probability of having an undetected error when a linear block code is used to correct up toterrors on a symmetric channel, and the remaining power of the code is used for error detection.
A recent paper [1] discussed the2^{-p}bound (wherep = n- k) for the probability of undetected errorP(\epsilon)for an(n,k)block code used for error detection on a binary symmetric channel. This investigation is continued and extended and dual codes are studied. The dual and extension of a perfect code obey the2^{-p}bound, but this is not necessarily true for arbitrary codes that obey the bound. Double-error-correcting BCH codes are shown to obey the bound. Finally the problem of constructing uniformly good codes is examined.
The problem of computing the probability of undetected error is considered for linear block codes used for error detection. The recent literature is first reviewed and several results are extended. It is pointed out that an exact calculation can be based on either the weight distribution of a code or its dual. Using the dual code formulation, the probability of undetected error for the ensemble of all nonbinary linear block codes is derived as well as a theorem that shows why the probability of undetected error may not be a monotonic function of channel error rate for some poor codes. Several bounds on the undetected error probability are then presented. We conclude with detailed examples of binary and nonbinary codes for which exact results can be obtained. An efficient technique for measuring an unknown weight distribution is suggested and exact results are compared with experimental results.