We calculate the Shannon entropy rate of a binary Hidden Markov Process (HMP), of given transition rate and noise ϵ (emission), as a series expansion in ϵ. The first two orders are calculated exactly. We then evaluate, for finite histories, simple upper-bounds of Cover and Thomas. Surprisingly, we find that for a fixed order k and history of n steps, the bounds become independent of n for large enough n. This observation is the basis of a conjecture, that the upper-bound obtained for n ≥ (k+3)/2 gives the exact entropy rate for any desired order k of ϵ.
Citation:
Or Zuk, Ido Kanter, Eytan Domany, "Asymptotics of the Entropy Rate for a Hidden Markov Process," dcc, pp.173-182, Data Compression Conference (DCC'05), 2005