OpenRQ provides a way to encode and decode data according to the fountain erasure code RaptorQ. More specifically, it is an implementation of a Forward Error Correction Scheme for Object Delivery, as specified in RFC 6330.

OpenRQ offers a rich open source Java API to developers who wish to incorporate erasure codes in their Content Delivery Protocols.

Detailed information about concepts used throughout the project can be found in the Wiki page Concepts.

OpenRQ is intended as an erasure corrector for unreliable or noisy communication channels. Typically, the following steps are performed:

1. Data is encoded using encoder objects, resulting in encoded packets;
2. The encoded packets are transmitted to one or more receivers using any communication protocol;
3. Encoded packets are collected by decoder objects at the receivers until a certain number is reached;
4. Data is decoded from the encoding packets, resulting in the original data.

Note: The use of OpenRQ is also recommended in situations where retransmissions are costly, such as when broadcasting data to multiple destinations, or when communication links are one-way.