Skip to main content

Error Correcting Output Codes

  • Reference work entry
  • 129 Accesses

Synonyms

ECOC

Definition

Error correcting output codes are an ensemble learning technique. It is applied to a problem with multiple classes, decomposing it into several binary problems. Each class is first encoded as a binary string of length T, assuming we have T models in the ensemble. Each model then tries to separate a subset of the original classes from all the others. For example, one model might learn to distinguish “class A” from “not class A.” After the predictions, with T models we have a binary string of length T. The class encoding that is closest to this binary string (using Hamming distance) is the final decision of the ensemble.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Recommended Reading

  • Kong, E. B., & Dietterich, T. G. (1995). Error-correcting output coding corrects bias and variance. In International conference on machine learning.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this entry

Cite this entry

(2011). Error Correcting Output Codes. In: Sammut, C., Webb, G.I. (eds) Encyclopedia of Machine Learning. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30164-8_260

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics