  An anytime decoding algorithm for tree codes using Monte-Carlo tree search is
proposed. The meaning of anytime decoding here is twofold: 1) the decoding
algorithm is an anytime algorithm, whose decoding performance improves as more
computational resource, measured by decoding time, is allowed, and 2) the
proposed decoding algorithm can approximate the maximum-likelihood sequence
decoding of tree codes, which has the anytime reliability when the code is
properly designed. The above anytime properties are demonstrated through
experiments. The proposed method may be extended to the decoding of
convolutional codes and block codes by Monte-Carlo trellis search, to enable
smooth complexity-performance trade-offs in these decoding tasks. Some other
extensions and possible improvements are also discussed.
