Patent ID: 7533326

Claim:
A data decoder for decoding an asynchronous incoming data stream, the data decoder comprising: an incoming data processing block for receiving the incoming data stream and analyzing the incoming data stream to generate information describing the incoming data stream; a bit engine receiving the information describing the incoming data stream and generating a decoded data stream, the bit engine comprising: a best-fit bit analysis block performing a pattern match operation for each data bit of the incoming data stream using the information describing the incoming data stream, the best-fit bit analysis block operative to find a pattern of data bits that best matches the data bits in the incoming data stream; and a missing bit insertion block to insert a dummy bit for each data bit where the best-fit bit analysis block cannot find a pattern match; and an error correction block receiving the decoded data stream and performing forward error correction on the decoded data stream, the error correction block generating a corrected outgoing data stream having corrected data values.