Clock Synchronization in Telecommunications via PTP (IEEE 1588)

The transfer of time and frequency over packet switched networks is a difficult task because packet networks introduce large and highly variable packet delays. This papers looks into performance aspects of a new time transfer protocol called precise time protocol version 2, also known under the name of the corresponding standard IEEE 1588 v2. The study makes use of discrete event simulations which track the forwarding and queuing processes of individual packets in a simple network. The simulation results show that it is indeed possible to transfer time and frequency over limited size packet networks with accuracy levels commonly required by telecommunication equipment and applications. The simulation results support that PTP is suitable for a range of packet network types such as metro area networks, base-station backhaul networks and access aggregation networks.