# A Fuzzy-PI Clock Servo with Window Filter for Compensating Queue-Induced Delay Asymmetry in IEEE 1588 Networks

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a cost-effective clock synchronization method for networks that compensates for delays caused by packet queuing without needing expensive hardware.

## Contribution

A novel PTP clock servo using a fuzzy-PI controller and window filter to address queue-induced delay asymmetry in IEEE 1588 networks.

## Key findings

- The proposed clock servo achieves a max |TE| of 0.35 μs in a 100 Mbps network with 70 Mbps background traffic.
- The convergence time is approximately half a minute, with accuracy improved hundreds of times over existing methods.
- The hardware platform costs less than USD 10 per node, making it a low-cost solution for industrial applications.

## Abstract

Clock synchronization is one of the popular research topics in Distributed Measurement and Control Systems (DMCSs). In most industrial fields, such as Smart Grid and Flight Test, the highest requirement for synchronization accuracy is 1 μs. IEEE 1588 Precision Time Protocol-2008 (PTPv2) can theoretically achieve sub-microsecond accuracy, but it relies on the assumption that the forward and backward delays of PTP packets are symmetrical. In practice, PTP packets will experience random queue delays in switches, making the above assumption challenging to satisfy and causing poor synchronization accuracy. Although using switches supporting the Transparent Clock (TC) can improve synchronization accuracy, these dedicated switches are generally expensive. This paper designs a PTP clock servo for compensating Queue-Induced Delay Asymmetry (QIDA), which can be implemented based on ordinary switches. Its main algorithm comprises a minimum window filter with drift compensation and a fuzzy proportional–integral (PI) controller. We construct a low-cost hardware platform (the cost of each node is within USD 10) to test the performance of the clock servo. In a 100 Mbps network with background (BG) traffic of less than 70 Mbps, the maximum absolute time error (max |TE|) does not exceed 0.35 μs, and the convergence time is about half a minute. The accuracy is improved hundreds of times compared with other existing clock servos.