5.

Reference-Broadcast
Synchronization
Outline
Introduction
Concept of Traditional Time Synchronization
Concept of Reference Broadcast
Synchronization
Kind of latency in TTS and RBS
RBS algorithm for:
Single Broadcast Network
Multi-Hop Network
Analysis of RBS algorithms
Advantages and Limitations of RBS
Introduction

Time synchronization is highly critical in

sensor networks for purposes such as:
Data Diffusion
Coordinated Actuation
Object Tracking
Purpose
To Synchronize all the nodes in the sensor
network using a method that:
Eliminates error efficiently
Energy conservative
Provides tight synchronization
Applications of Time
Synchronization
Secure cryptographic schemes
Coordination of future action
Ordering logged events during system

debugging
Concept of TTS-
Traditional Time Synchronization
The sender periodically sends a message with
its current clock as a timestamp to the receiver
Receiver then synchronizes with the sender by
changing its clock to the timestamp of the
message it has received from the sender (if the
latency is small compared to the desired
accuracy)
Sender calculates the phase error by measuring
the total round trip-time by sending and
receiving the respective response from the
receiver (if the latency is large compared to the
desired accuracy)
Illustration of TTS

S R

(a) latency is small compared to desired accuracy

S R

(b) latency is large compared to desired accuracy

Concept of RBS
Reference-Broadcast Synchronization
Reference broadcasts do not have an explicit
timestamp
Receivers use reference broadcasts arrival

time as a point of reference for comparing

nodes clocks
Receivers synchronizes with one another

using the messages timestamp (which is

different from one receiver to another)
Illustration of RBS

1 2

3 4
RBS vs. TTS
RBS - Synchronizes a set of receivers with one
another
Traditional - Senders synchronizes with
receivers

RBS Supports both single hop and multi hop

networks
Traditional mostly supports only single hop
networks
RBS vs. TTS

TTS RBS
Example: NTP
(Network Time Protocol)
Types of errors that TTS should
detect and eliminate

Send Time Latency

- time spent at the sender to construct the message
Access Time Latency
- time spent at the sender to wait for access to
transmit the message
Prorogation Time Latency
- time spent by the message in traveling from the
sender to the receiver
Receive Time Latency
- time spent at the receiver to receive the message
from the channel and to notify the host
Types of errors that RBS should
detect and eliminate
Phase error
due to nodes clock that contains different times
Clock skew
due to nodes clock that run at different rate

Therefore, We go for RBS!!!

RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (assuming no clock skew)
Basic idea to estimate phase offset:

- Transmitter broadcasts a reference packet to two

receivers
- Each receiver records the time that the reference
was received, according to its local clock
- The receivers exchange their observations
RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (assuming no clock skew)
Basic idea to estimate phase offset for non-
deterministic receivers:

- Transmitter broadcasts m reference packets

- Each of the n receivers records the time that the
reference was received, according to its local clock
- The receivers exchange their observation
- Each Receiver i can compute its phase offset to any
other receiver j
RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (assuming no clock skew)
Formula for calculating the phase offset of receiver
i with other receiver j:

n : number of receivers
m : number of reference broadcasts
Tr,b : rs clock when it received broadcast b {r n, b m}
m

in, jn : Offset[i,j] = 1/m k=1 (Tj,k Ti,k)

Then the receiver changes its clock by the calculated phase

offset
Analysis of RBS algorithm for single
broadcast domain (no clock skew)

2-D view:

Mean group dispersion from the average of

1000 simulated trials for:
- 20-receiver group (top)
- 2-receiver group (bottom)
Analysis of RBS algorithm for single
broadcast domain (no clock skew)

3-D view:

Mean group dispersion from the average of 1000

simulated trials for the same data set, from 2 to 20
receivers (inclusive)
RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (with clock skew)

AMATHEMATICAL APPROACH

The phase offset with the clock skew is

estimated by:
- Least-squares linear regression graph
- From the best-fit line of the graph, following
can be inferred:
Slope of the line : Clock skew of the nodes clock
Intercept of the line : Phase of the nodes clock
RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (with clock skew)
Basic idea to estimate phase offset and clock
skew for non-deterministic receivers:

- Transmitter broadcasts m reference packets

- Each of the n receivers records the time that the
reference was received, according to its local clock
- The receivers exchange their observation
- Each Receiver i can compute its phase offset to any
other receiver j
RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (with clock skew)

Formula for calculating the phase offset and

clock skew of receiver r1 with other receiver r2:

Tr,b : rs clock when it received broadcast b,

for each pulse k that was received by receivers r 1 and r2 ,

we plot a graph :
x = Tr1, k
y = Tr2,k Tr1,k

Diagonal line drawn through the points represents

the best linear fit to the data
RBS algorithm for single broadcast
domain (with clock skew)

Diagonal line minimizes the residual error

(RMS).
Therefore, we go for calculating the slope and

intercept of the diagonal line

Time value of r is converted to time value of
1
r2 by combining the slope and intercept data
obtained
Analysis of RBS algorithm for single
broadcast domain (with clock skew)

Phase offset (usec)

Fit error (usec)

Time (sec)

Synchronization of the Motes internal clock

Vertical impulses show the distance of each point from the best-fit line RMS error
Analysis of RBS algorithm for single
broadcast domain (with clock skew)
Phase offset (usec)

Time (sec)

Synchronization of clocks on PC104-compatible single board computers

using Mote as NIC
Why RBS is the best?
Comparison of RBS with NTP and NTP-
Offset:

Hardware implementation
RBS as a UNIX daemon
UDP datagrams as Motes
Testbed:
StrongARM-based Compaq IPAQs
Lucent Technologies 11 Mbit 802.11 wireless Ethernet
adapters
All Ethernet adapters connected to a wireless 802.11
base station
Why RBS is the best?

Test implemented in two different

scenarios:

Light network load

Minimal load generated by synchronization scheme
Heavy network load
Two additional IPAQs configured as traffic
generators
Each IPAQ sent randomly sized UDP datagrams of
500 to 15,000 bytes
Inter-packet delay: 10 msec
Test Results
Light traffic scenario:

- RBS performed more than 8 times better than NTP

and NTP-Offset

- RBS : average of 6.29 6.45 sec error

NTP : average of 51.18 53.30 sec error

- RBS : 95% of trails : 20.53 sec error

NTP : 95% of trails : 131.20 sec error
Test Results

For Light traffic:

Test Results

Heavy traffic scenario:

- RBS almost completely unaffected

NTP suffered a 30 fold degradation

- RBS : 95% of trails : 28.53 sec error

NTP : 95% of trails : 3,889 sec error
Test Results

For Heavy traffic:

Working of RBS in multi hop
network
Obtained by mathematical conversion of
output obtained in available single hop
networks in the multi-hop network.
Least square linear regression graph used

to synchronize all the single hop networks in

the multi-hop network
The values are then formulated and converted

accordingly for all the nodes in the multi-hop

network
Illustration of Multi-Hop
Synchronization

Mathematical conversion obtained through the

common node 4
Algorithm for Calculating Phase
Offset in Multi-Hop Network

Events E1 and E7 observed by R1 and R7 respectively

Best-fit line calculated by R4 using As broadcast
E1(R4) => E1(R1) : R1 synchronized with R4 by A
Best-fit line calculated by R4 using Bs broadcast
E1(R4) => E1(R7) : R4 synchronized with R7 by B
R1 synchronizes with R7 using R4
All nodes in Multi-hop are synchronized similarly
Analysis of Multi-Hop RBS

Same test applied to Multi-Hop as the

Single-Hop
Test Results:
If average per-hop error = s
Hop path = n

Advantages of RBS
Can be used without external timescales
Energy conservative
Does not require tight coupling between
sender and its network interface
Covers much wider area
Applicable in both wired and wireless
networks
Largest resources of latency (that exists in
TTS) is removed from critical path
Allows tighter synchronization
How RBS is energy conservative?
Nodes stay in sleep mode until an event of
interest occurs post-facto sync
Limitations of RBS
Works only with broadband communication
Does not support point to point

communication
(as time synchronization is done among a set
of receivers. In point-to-point only one
receiver exists)
Applications
Acoustic Motes: Acoustic Ranging
implemented in Berkeley Motes
Collaborative Signal Detection
References
Fine-Grained Network Time Synchronization using Reference
Broadcasts. Jeremy Elson, Lewis Girod and Deborah Estrin,
UCLA
Power point presentation on Fine-Grained Network Time
Synchronization using Reference Broadcasts. Jeremy Elson,
Lewis Girod and Deborah Estrin, UCLA.
Available at :
http://lecs.cs.ucla.edu/~jelson/talks/timesync/RBS-OSDI-2
002-Dec9.ppt
Wireless Sensor Networks: A New Regime for Time
Synchronization. Jeremy Elson and Kay Romer, UCLA
Time Synchronization for Wireless Sensor Networks. Jeremy
Elson and Deborah Estrin, UCLA