Design of TDMA-based In-Car Networks: Applying Multiprocessor Scheduling Strategies on Time-triggered Switched Ethernet Communication

Real-time Ethernet variants gain importance for communication infrastructure of various time-critical domains, such as in-car networks. Synchronous time- triggered traffic guarantees strict timing but requires a detailed schedule for all participants. Designing these schedules by hand is extensive work and with increasing network size almost impossible. In this paper, we contribute a mapping of the time-triggered network scheduling problem into the domain of multiprocessor scheduling. This set of transforma- tion rules allows us to apply established scheduling algo- rithms as well as new strategies to organise time-triggered switched networks. Experimental results from a prototype implementation of a scheduling framework based on this mapping show the feasibility of our concept. The framework demonstrates a multiple solver approach that uses algorithms with different optimality criteria in parallel.