What is the purpose of channel coding in wireless communication?

Channel coding plays a crucial role in wireless communication by adding redundancy to the data stream, which is essential for error correction. This process involves encoding the original data in such a way that, even when some parts of the data are lost or corrupted due to noise or interference in the communication channel, the receiver can still accurately recover the original information.

Redundancy allows the system to detect and potentially correct errors without needing to request the data to be sent again, thereby enhancing the reliability of data transmission. Common techniques used in channel coding include convolutional codes and block codes, which are designed to introduce patterns within the transmitted data that can help the receiver distinguish between the original data and any errors that might have been introduced during transmission.

In contrast, while data compression can help speed up transmission by reducing the size of the data, it does not provide any mechanism for error correction. Improving audio or video quality involves different techniques and does not directly relate to the objectives of channel coding. Therefore, the purpose of channel coding is best described by the addition of error correction capabilities to ensure completed data integrity despite the inherent challenges within wireless communication environments.