What is an Error Correcting Output Code (ECOC) classifier?

An Error Correcting Output Code classifier is a multiclass classifier that can use binary classifiers to solve a multiclass classification problem. We know that in a binary classification problem, the target variable can take two different values. And in a multiclass classification problem, the target variable can take more than two different values.

Classifiers like logistic regression or Support Vector Machine classifiers do not support multiclass classification problems natively. So, we can use an Error Correcting Output Code (ECOC) classifier with a logistic regression or Support Vector Machine Classifier (SVC) to solve a multiclass classification problem.

How does an Error Correcting Output Code (ECOC) classifier work?

In an Error Correcting Output Code (ECOC) classifier, every class in the multiclass classification problem is assigned a unique binary code. No two classes are assigned the same binary code. Let’s say the length of the binary code is n. Now, n binary classifiers will be assigned for each bit in the binary code as shown in the following figure:

So, if the code length is three, then three classifiers will be assigned. Now, let’s say we want to predict the outcome of the …