In the reception or processing of digital data, the use of overhead bits and appropriate algorithms to detect, and within certain constraints, restore a corrupted data stream or block with a high degree of confidence. Note 1: In addition to applications having to do with conventional data processing and storage, error correction can be used in specialized applications such as the real-time correction of corrupted incoming digital television signals. Note 2: The addition of overhead bits (a) increases the bit rate required to transmit a given amount of digital payload, and (b) everything else being equal (i.e., in the absence of subsequent data compression measures) increases the storage space (e. G. , disk space) required to store a given amount of digital payload.