Timely Survey of Time-Sensitive Networking: Past and Future Directions

Abstract

Time-sensitive networking (TSN) is a next generation local area network technology for the coexistence of information and operation technology, targeted to industrial automation, in-vehicle networks, and avionic networks in the industrial Internet of Things. This paper presents an up-to-date survey of the research efforts in TSN over the past few years, including the latest efforts in standardization by the IEEE. We review more than 170 TSN-related academic research papers published by major academic publishers and categorize these studies according to the topic, purpose, and methodology, analyzing research trends in TSN. The <italic>TSN core function</italic> deals with the functional and internal perspective to achieve ultra-low latency/jitter and ultra-reliability. <italic>Network management</italic> includes work with macroscopic and external views, such as configuration, management, and maintenance of TSN-enabled networks. In particular, we analyze the characteristics of existing studies that have evaluated the TSN network and propose future directions to advance the limits of TSN for real-world deployment. We aim this study to be a cornerstone for fellow and new researchers.