Method for operating a network participant in an automation communication network

A network subscriber, which is provided for exchanging data with further network subscribers in an automation communication network with a predetermined clock frequency,

• wherein the network subscriber comprises an internal clock for synchronizing the data exchange with at least one further network subscriber, wherein the internal clock is configured to provide a time as an integer count value,
• wherein the clock frequency is determined such that a period duration per clock pulse cannot be represented as the integer count value by the internal clock,
• wherein the network subscriber comprises an internal control device, wherein the internal control device is configured to increment the internal clock with a predetermined sequence of integer increments, and
• wherein the sequence of integer increments is determined in such a way that a sum of the integer increments corresponds to an integer multiple of the period duration.

An automation communication network comprising at least two network subscribers provided for exchanging data with further network subscribers in said automation communication network with a predetermined clock frequency,

• wherein the at least two network subscribers each comprise an internal clock for synchronizing the data exchange with at least one further network subscriber, wherein the internal clock is configured to provide a time as an integer count value,
• wherein the clock frequency is determined such that a period duration per clock pulse cannot be represented as the integer count value by the internal clock,
• wherein the at least two network subscribers each comprise an internal control device, wherein the internal control device is configured to increment the internal clock with a predetermined sequence of integer increments, and
• wherein the sequence of integer increments is determined in such a way that a sum of the integer increments corresponds to an integer multiple of the period duration;
• wherein the network subscribers are connected to one another via a field bus for exchanging the data, and
• wherein the network subscribers are connected to a control device of the automation communication network.