Error correcting system for binary erasure channel transmission

Claim 1

IN A BINARY ERASURE TRANSMISSION CHANNEL FOR TRANSMITTING CHARACTERS OF N BINARY DATA BITS INCLUDING K BINARY CHECK BITS WHERE 2K PERMUTATIONS OF CHECK BITS ARE PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF DEFINING EACH OF THE K CHECK BITS AS THE PARITY OF A UNIQUE COMBINATION OF DATA BITS WHEREIN N>-2K, SUCH THAT AT LEAST ONE OF 2K-1 POSSIBLE GROUPS OF RELATED BITS IS PRODUCED SO THAT AN ERROR IN ANY ONE OF TWO OR MORE BITS OF A RELATED GROUP WILL PRODUCE THE SAME PERMUTATION OF CHECK BITS, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING: MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE PRESENCE OF COMPLEMENTARY ELECTRICAL SIGNALS REPRESENTING SAID BINARY DATA AND CHECK BITS FOR RECEIVING EACH CHARACTER TRANSMITTED; MEANS OPERATIVE TO INDICATE AN ERASURE OF THE COMPLEMENTARY ELECTRICAL SIGNALS REPRESENTING A PARTICULAR DATA OR CHECK BIT; MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID BIT ERASURE INDICATING MEANS FOR INDICATING THE RELATED BIT GROUP TO WHICH THE ERASED BIT BELONGS; PARITY CHECKING MEANS RESPONSIVE TO EACH UNIQUE COMBINATION OF DATA BITS IN SAID RECEIVING MEANS; AND LOGIC MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID PARITY CHECKING MEANS, TO SAID RELATED GROUP INDICATING MEANS, AND SAID BIT ERASURE INDICATING MEANS, OPERATIVE IN RESPONSE TO A PARITY ERROR TO CORRECT THE BIT WHICH WAS ERASED.