A new simple algorithm which allows the design of a trellis diagram for array codes is introduced. Based on this algorithm, the trellis decoding of array codes with maximum likelihood decoding (MLD) performance and relatively low complexity is proposed. It is shown that the trellis structure of array codes allows the application of combined coding and modulation (CCM) with higher information digit per channel symbol rate than for conventional CCM methods, based on convolutional codes. The bounds on the transmission rates for different types of CCM signals, based on convolutional and array codes, have been obtained and presented in the paper