TSN Border Relay Mapping for Legacy Industrial Traffic Classes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing industrial communication protocols, such as PROFINET, are unaware of Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) mechanisms, limiting their ability to utilize the benefits of TSN networks, which are designed for isochronous, hard and soft real-time traffic, audio and video, and best effort traffic, leading to inefficient packet transmission.
Innovation Solution
A network node that extracts traffic class information from non-TSN aware packets at OSI layer 2, maps it to TSN traffic classes or priorities, and associates it with indicators like VLAN tags for transmission over a TSN aware network, enabling seamless integration of non-TSN aware devices into TSN networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If existing industrial communication protocols (e.g., PROFINET) are used without TSN awareness, then compatibility with legacy devices is maintained, but the ability to utilize TSN benefits (isochronous traffic, hard real-time, bounded latency) is limited
Solution Approach 1:
A TSN border relay device is introduced as an intermediary between non-TSN aware industrial communication devices and the TSN network. The relay device performs protocol conversion by mapping upper-layer traffic classes (e.g., cyclic, acyclic, event-driven) to TSN traffic classes (isochronous, hard real-time, soft real-time, best effort), enabling legacy devices to access TSN benefits without requiring protocol modifications
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of protocol awareness from binary (TSN-aware or not) to a convertible state where traffic characteristics are dynamically mapped between different protocol frameworks. The relay device extracts traffic class information from non-TSN packets and transforms it into TSN-compatible parameters (VLAN tags, priority queues, traffic classes)
2Adaptability or versatility
If TSN protocol mapping and translation functions are added to network nodes, then non-TSN aware devices can be integrated into TSN networks, but device complexity and reconfiguration requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The TSN protocol mapping and translation functions are extracted from individual network nodes and centralized in dedicated TSN border relay devices. This allows non-TSN aware devices to integrate into TSN networks through simple plug-and-play connectivity to the relay, while the complex protocol translation logic resides in the relay device that can be configured independently
Solution Approach 2:
The TSN border relay acts as a mediator that shields non-TSN devices from TSN network complexity. The relay handles all protocol translation, traffic class mapping, and TSN parameter configuration, allowing legacy devices to integrate without reconfiguration while the TSN network benefits from standardized traffic handling
3Reliability
If traffic class mapping is performed at OSI layer 2, then TSN traffic class indicators can be associated with packets, but protocols above layer 2 cannot effectively utilize TSN traffic class information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent operates at multiple OSI layers simultaneously: Layer 2 for packet forwarding and basic TSN indicator association, and Layer 7 (application layer) for extracting meaningful traffic class information from protocol-specific fields. This multi-dimensional approach preserves traffic class information by capturing it at the application layer where protocol semantics are visible, while maintaining Layer 2 TSN compatibility through VLAN tags and priority queues
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided mechanisms for transmission of packets over a TSN aware network. A method is performed by a network node. The method includes obtaining a traffic flow of packets from a non-TSN aware network interface. The method includes extracting, from the packets and at above OSI protocol layer 2, information indicative of which traffic class the traffic flow belongs to. The method includes mapping the traffic class to a TSN traffic class or priority. The method includes associating the packets with an indicator of the TSN traffic class or priority. The method includes providing the traffic flow of packets, including the indicator, to a TSN aware network interface for transmission of the packets over the TSN aware network.