Savitri Telecom Services introduces Microsemi’s New Time Provider 4100 Gateway Clock

Mobile operators are facing tough requirements to drastically increase mobile bandwidth while efficiently leveraging the available spectrum. Cellular networks using only frequency synchronization waste significant spectrum, whereas newer deployments require phase synchronization for efficient spectrum usage and interference mitigation in increasingly densified networks.

The TimeProvider 4100 is a highly flexible IEEE1588 Precision Time Protocol (PTP) grandmaster clock designed to scale from the edge to the aggregation layers of both mobile infrastructure and access networks.

The TimeProvider 4100 is a gateway clock, a new class of synchronization product which accepts multiple inputs from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), Synchronous Ethernet (SyncE), 1588 PTP and E1/T1 digital transmission links, and distributes timing flows to multiple endpoints such as base stations.

Microsemi's TimeProvider 4100 is engineered to provide phase to today's 4G, LTE and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) deployments, as well as tomorrow's cRAN evolutions and 5G networks. Some of the design principles include:

• Standard rich feature set: A key aspect of TimeProvider 4100 is its rich base platform with support for PTP, NTP, and legacy frequency timing applications. The clock features 4 BITS ports (E1/T1), 2 1PPS/ToD ports, 2 1PPS/10 MHz ports, 1 GNSS port, and 1 craft port.

• Flexibility: The TP4100 has 8 x ETH ports (2xRJ-45 + 6xSFP) resulting in extreme flexibility to design considerations.

• Scalability: The TP4100 also has an option to have 16 additional E1/T1 ports that brings the total number of E1/T1 ports in the unit to 20. The device is also designed to enable cascading of multiple units for higher density applications.

• Resiliency: The TP4100 features a layered protection and accepts PTP input with Microsemi’s patented asymmetry compensation to provide best-in-class assisted partial timing support (APTS) to back up the GNSS signal. This accounts for high packet timing delay and timing jitter variation and asymmetry challenges. The TP4100 comes with an option of an oscillator upgrade for enhanced holdover performance.

• Evolution: In an uncertain world of GPS jamming, spoofing and geo-political unrest the ability to track multiple GNSS constellations that use different technologies can provide one more bit of operational peace-of-mind. The TP4100 supports GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, and SBAS in its standard version. The hardware is also enabled to support QZSS.

• Easy Management: Monitoring PTP with time error is a primary focus; when deployed with TimePictra, the TP4100 features full FCAPS capabilities, internal logging, SNMP and security capabilities using SSH and Firewall features.

The TimeProvider 4100 is based on the Microsemi’s newest platform as well as its latest packet engine generation. The TP4100 also provides the utmost flexibility to support multiple packet services in the box, to specify the service on each port. TimeProvider 4100 also meets stringent precise time standards and complies with primary reference time clock (PRTC), as well as the latest time and phase standards.

Savitri Telecom collaborated with Microsemi USA (formerly Symmetricom) industry leader in the deployment of next-generation synchronization networks. Together we ensure that the synchronization plan is successful.