Transmission duration report and transmission target time allocation for controller area network synchronization

A controller area network (CAN) synchronization comprising:

• a plurality of nodes, each node including a processor;
• at least one of the processors in a respective node in signal communication with at least another processor among the plurality of nodes, the at least one processor configured to:
• identify via the processor, a node as a sync master node from the plurality of nodes, and to designate each of the remaining nodes as a sync slave node;
• designate a first message included in a periodic message burst from the sync master node as a sync message;
• assign a lowest number, among a plurality of message IDs in the CAN network, to a message ID of the sync message;
• subscribe to the sync message on each sync slave node;
• assign a unique node ID to each sync slave node;
• assign a unique message ID to each of a plurality of transmission duration report messages;
• subscribe to the plurality of transmission duration report messages on the sync master node;
• assign a unique transmission target time allocation message ID to a transmission target time allocation message from the sync master node;
• subscribe to the transmission target time allocation message on each sync slave node;
• wherein the system performs a handshake operation between the sync slave nodes and the sync master node to exchange message burst transmission durations (Tsst), transmission target times (TTXtarget), and a common time reference point;
• and
• performs a time adjustment on each sync slave node based on a slave node message burst transmission time (TTX), the transmission target times (TTXtarget), and a sync message receiving time (TsyncMsgRx) used as the common time reference point from which (TTX) and (TTXtarget) are measured.

An aircraft having a system for synchronizing nodes on a controller area network (CAN), the system configured to:

• identify, via a processor, a sync master node from the plurality of nodes, and to designate, via the processor, each of remaining nodes as a sync slave node;
• designate, via the processor, a first message in a periodic message burst from the sync master node as a sync message;
• assign, via the processor, a lowest number, among a plurality of message IDs in the CAN network, to the message ID of the sync message;
• subscribe to the sync message on each sync slave node;
• assign, via the processor, a unique node ID to each sync slave node;
• assign, via the processor, a unique message ID to each of a plurality of transmission duration report messages;
• subscribe to the plurality of transmission duration report messages on the sync master node;
• assign, via the processor, a unique transmission target time allocation message ID to a transmission target time allocation message from the sync master node;
• and
• subscribe to the transmission target time message on each sync slave node;
• wherein the system performs a handshake operation between the sync slave nodes and the sync master node to exchange message burst transmission durations (Tsst), transmission target times (TTXtarget), and a common time reference point, and
• wherein the system performs a time adjustment on a sync slave node based on a slave node message burst transmission time (TTX), the transmission target times (TTXtarget), and a sync message receiving time (TsyncMsgRx) used as the common time reference point from which (TTX) and (TTXtarget) are measured.