Generalized small Schröder numbers (Q2517660)

Summary: We study generalized small Schröder paths in the sense of arbitrary sizes of steps. A generalized small Schröder path is a generalized lattice path from \((0,0)\) to \((2n,0)\) with the step set of~ \(\{(k,k), (l,-l), (2r,0)\mid k,l,r \in \mathbf P\}\), where \(\mathbf P\) is the set of positive integers, which never goes below the \(x\)-axis, and with no horizontal steps at level 0. We find a bijection between 5-colored Dyck paths and generalized small Schröder paths, proving that the number of generalized small Schröder paths is equal to \(\sum_{k=1}^{n} N(n,k)5^{n-k}\) for \(n\geq 1\).