For industrial networks, accurate timekeeping offers similar advantages. This is especially true of power distribution networks, which need accurate timekeeping and network synchronization in order to coordinate the activities of widely distributed equipment and regulate power transmissions. Higher levels of precision allow power grids to unlock their own revolutionary advantages: a “Smart Grid” that can achieve new levels of efficiency, security, and reliability by autonomously and intelligently distributing power to end users in response to changes in demand.
This white paper explores some of the limitations that current industrial systems, especially power substations, face in synchronizing their networks. It also provides an overview of today’s commonly used timekeeping technologies, such as NTP and GPS, and identifies how IEEE 1588 v2 precision time protocol (PTP) can transform how your current industrial network is run.