Multi-domain time-sensitive networks—control plane mechanisms for dynamic inter-domain stream configuration

Abstract

Inter-domain communication in time-sensitive networks (TSN) has been identified as a requirement for various use cases. The TSN Toolbox provides standards for dynamic stream reservations, which is needed for, e.g., batch size 1 production, but these standards do not support the interaction on the control plane between multiple TSN domains. This paper presents control plane mechanisms for multi-domain time sensitive networks (MDTSNs) integrating an east–westbound protocol in the existing TSN control plane, in order to achieve multi-domain on-demand end-to-end bounded-latency TSN streams. Solutions for issues resulting from MDTSN, particularly the inter-domain forwarding offset, are presented. A proof of concept has been implemented and evaluated in a physical MDTSN test environment in order to prove the viability of the mechanisms developed.