Gray

Gray Code (Reflected Binary Code) is a unit-distance binary encoding system: successive values differ by only one bit, drastically minimizing transition errors in digital and electromechanical hardware.

Gray Code is a critical digital encoding scheme, patented by Frank Gray in 1953, where the transition between any two sequential values involves only a single bit change (the unit distance property). This characteristic is essential for mitigating hardware data hazards and spurious outputs (glitches) in systems like rotary encoders and digital-to-analog converters (DACs). For example, transitioning from decimal 3 to 4 in 4-bit natural binary changes all four bits (0011 to 0100), while Gray Code requires only one bit change (0010 to 0110). Its application ensures reliable, error-minimized data acquisition and is fundamental to simplifying logic in Karnaugh maps for Boolean circuit minimization.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_code