[time-nuts] Small time server for mobile use.

[Mark Spencer]

Thanks for this.   This (and the other responses) were the type of answers I was hoping for.

The budget is probably up to several thousand for a robust COTS product that won't add significant operational hassles.   (Kludging a laptop to run as an NTP server would be an example of a solution that would add operational hassles.)  Equipment designed for rack mounting is a bit less than ideal (the equipment bay in the vehicle is not really set up for rack mounted gear) but we could probably work out a way to mount a one u device, and mounting a laptop adds it's own set of challenges, although a laptop can be mounted outside of the equipment bay.   The ideal form factor would be something the size of a small paper back book (or smaller) that could be surface mounted or secured via clamps to a piece of tubing that is already in the equipment bay.



Sent from my iPad

On 2015-05-12, at 3:03 PM, Bob Darlington <rdarlington at gmail.com> wrote:

> What's your budget?  I've done this with 1U sized NTP servers from
> Symmetricom (S300 and S350 systems) for mobile military use.  These are a
> few thousand bucks a pop.  They're rugged, and held up just fine in places
> the military goes.Compared to the rest of the system I was working on, this
> was quite small in comparison and we used more than one at each location.
> My personal one died recently so I'm working on developing a cape for the
> BeagleBone Black.  The prototype is working just fine so far so I'm moving
> forward with a board layout and eventual sale to the list members if there
> is any interest (I'm not asking for interest yet).
> 
> -Bob
> 
> On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 11:11 AM, Mark Spencer <mark at alignedsolutions.com>
> wrote:
> 
>> Hi sorry for a possibly OT post.
>> Has anyone had practical experience with small commercially available time
>> servers / ntp servers suitable for mobile  use in a vehicle.
>> 
>> The use case is I am in need of an accurate (ie.  within 100 ms) time
>> source for several pc's in moving vehicle.    Being able to run directly
>> off a 13.8 or 28 VDC  source would be a major plus but AC power is also
>> available.
>> 
>> Hold over if there are gaps in GPS coverage is also a major plus.
>> 
>> We already have a GPS with a 1 pps output, but an integrated box with it's
>> own GPS would be best.
>> 
>> Yes I am aware I could feed a 1 pps signal into a laptop and use that as a
>> time server and I may end up going that route.
>> 
>> There is a small Ethernet LAN in the vehicle.  The pc's currently get
>> their time via a wireless connection to various NTP servers.   I need to be
>> able to ensure accurate time on the PC's if there is no wireless coverage.
>> 
>> 
>> This is for a one off project so piecing together various parts is an
>> option but a single box COTS solution would be nice.  I've found a few
>> candidates via web searches but would welcome any feed back.
>> 
>> Thanks in advance
>> 
>> Mark Spencer
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