TSN Controller Mapping Traffic Classes to Time Slots
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Solution Overview
Problem
In Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) environments, the convergence of Operations Technology (OT) and Information Technology (IT) networks often results in critical traffic interruptions due to differences in traffic management, where OT networks rely on class-based scheduling while IT networks do not, leading to suboptimal performance in converged systems.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a CNC server, TSN switches, and a controller that maps traffic classes to time slots and frame types, determining routing paths and Gate Control Lists (GCLs) to ensure class-based scheduling with guaranteed end-to-end latency, allowing critical traffic to be transmitted without interruption by deploying GCLs to each TSN switch in the routing path.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If IT network converges with OT network, then network scalability and integration are improved, but critical traffic transmission reliability deteriorates due to interruptions by IT traffic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments traffic into different classes (OT critical traffic and IT traffic) and assigns them to different time slots within a structured time cycle. This segmentation allows critical OT traffic to be transmitted in dedicated time slots without interruption from IT traffic, while still allowing both networks to converge and share the same physical infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements periodic time-based scheduling where the network operates in repeating time cycles with specific time slots allocated to different traffic classes. This periodic structure ensures that critical traffic receives guaranteed transmission opportunities in its designated time slots, maintaining reliability while enabling network convergence.
2Loss of time
If class-based scheduling is implemented in TSN network, then critical traffic latency is reduced, but device complexity increases due to GCL configuration and mapping management
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary controller that automatically generates and configures Gate Control Lists (GCLs) based on high-level scheduling parameters. This intermediary absorbs the complexity of time slot mapping and gate configuration, presenting a simplified interface to operators while ensuring proper class-based scheduling implementation across TSN switches.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses mapping tables that copy and translate high-level traffic class definitions into detailed gate control configurations. Instead of manually configuring each gate and time slot, the system creates copies of scheduling rules and automatically instantiates them across multiple switches, reducing configuration complexity while maintaining precise time-based control.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus connected to a Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) switch in a TSN network is provided. The apparatus includes a transceiver, a storage medium, and a controller. The storage medium stores a first mapping of a traffic class to a time slot, and a second mapping of a frame type of a TSN stream to the traffic class. The controller is coupled to the transceiver and the storage medium, and is configured to determine a routing path and a Gate Control List (GCL) corresponding to the TSN stream based on a network topology of the TSN network, the first mapping, and the second mapping, and deploy the GCL to each TSN switch in the routing path via the transceiver.