TSN Ethernet has emerged as the preferred new bus for automotive and similarly challenging industrial applications. The new  TSN_CTRL Ethernet Subsystemenables system designers to manage the ultra-low-latency communication and quality of service (QoS) attributes required for today’s increasingly sophisticated vehicles. It can, for example, ensure that a signal from obstacle avoidance sensors is given immediate processing with higher priority over competing signals from tire pressure sensors or the infotainment system, all without disturbing the critical network traffic related to engine or braking control.

The new TSN_CTRL Subsystem combines three essential IP cores to enable the high-precision timing synchronization and flexible yet accurate traffic scheduling needed to implement TSN Ethernet endpoints, bridges and switches:

• a Time Synchronizer implements IEEE 802.1AS, automatically synchronizing the local time to the system’s (Grandmaster’s) time and generating timestamps and alerts needed for the development of time-aware nodes and applications; 

• a Traffic Shaper implements IEEE 802.1Qav and 802.1Qbv, providing bandwidth allocation and time multiplexing for up to eight traffic classes to ensure sufficiently low latency (delay) and minimum jitter as required; and 

• a specially-designed Ethernet MAC with ultra-low latency (delay) provides standards-based Ethernet functionality that works well with the Time Sensitive Networking.

The configurable TSN_CTRL IP implements a hardware subsystem that operates without software assistance once programmed. It communicates timing information to the system, and allows the system to define and tune in real time the traffic shaping parameters according to an application’s requirements.

The TSN_CTRL Subsystem uses standard AMBA^®or Avalon^®interfaces for straightforward system integration. Its configuration and status registers are accessible via a 32-bit-wide AXI4-Lite or Avalon-MM bus, and packet data are input and output via AXI-Streaming or Avalon ST interfaces with 8-bit data buses.

A complete TSN Reference Design is available for evaluation or to jumpstart system design. It implements a network bridge receiving three types of traffic: 

• video stream captured from an HDMI port, compressed with the CAST H.264 low-latency encoder core and streamed over RTP and UDP,

• “sensor” signaling every 100msec, and

• programmable “other traffic” generator emulating other types of traffic on the backbone.