Study and implementation of IEEE 1588 Precise Time Protocol

摘要

The synchronization among Base Stations (BSs) in mobile communication systems is such a vital technique that many services rely on it. IEEE 1588, also known as Precise Time Protocol (PTP), is defined to enable precise synchronization of clocks in measurement and control systems. As one of its targeted applications, the synchronization of base stations by PTP has become an important and popular researching topic. This thesis investigates the feasibility of BS synchronization with the PTP method. It includes simulation based studies, implementation of PTP on practical BS cards, and tests with practical network devices in a laboratory environment. The results indicate that both frequency and time offsets are within the targeted range. The thesis starts with a background discussion on BSs synchronization where reasons and requirements are introduced. Then the thesis explains the implementation related techniques. At last, the test results are presented and observations are analyzed.