Multi-Cluster Interleaving on Linear Arrays and Rings

Interleaving codewords is an important method not only for combatting burst-errors, but also for flexible data-retrieving. This paper defines the Multi-Cluster Interleaving (MCI) problem, an interleaving problem for parallel data-retrieving. The MCI problems on linear arrays and rings are studied. The following problem is solved: how to interleave integers on a linear array or ring such that any m (m ≥ 2) non-overlapping segments of length 2 in the array or ring have at least 3 distinct integers. We then present a scheme using a ‘hierarchical-chain structure’ to solve the following more general problem for linear arrays: how to interleave integers on a linear array such that any m (m ≥ 2) non-overlapping segments of length L (L ≥ 2) in the array have at least L + 1 distinct integers. It is shown that the scheme using the ‘hierarchical-chain structure’ solves the second interleaving problem for arrays that are asymptotically as long as the longest array on which an MCI exists, and clearly, for shorter arrays as well.