GPS World

Tag: mRO-50

  • Orolia partners with Meta to improve timing network

    Orolia partners with Meta to improve timing network

    The open-source collaboration features Orolia Atomic Reference Time Cards powered by its Spectratime micro-atomic clock

    Logo: OroliaOrolia is providing Atomic Reference Time (ART) Cards to support Meta’s implementation of high-precision timing protocols within its distributed timing infrastructure. The architecture of Orolia ART Cards is powered by the company’s Spectratime mRO-50 mini rubidium atomic-clock technology.

    The Spectratime mRO-50. (Photo: Orolia)
    The Spectratime mRO-50. (Photo: Orolia)

    “We are honored to have this opportunity to collaborate with Meta’s incredibly talented team of engineers to develop a unique open-source solution using our mRO-50 technology,” said Jean-Yves Courtois, Orolia CEO. “We look forward to a continuing partnership with Meta and other global network leaders working to advance solutions to ensure ongoing timing accuracy and resilience.”

    Orolia developed the ART Card solution in collaboration with the Meta engineering team to fulfill a new specification that Meta published for the Time Appliances Project Initiative of the Open Compute Project. This new collaborative community is focused on designing from scratch new hardware and software to efficiently support the critical timing accuracy and resilience demands on computer network infrastructure. This project is fully open-sourced and available on Orolia’s GitHub.

    Meta logoIn 2020, Meta began converting its data-center servers to a new time-distribution service based on network time protocol (NTP) and precision time protocol (PTP). The new service, built in-house and later open-sourced, was more scalable and improved the accuracy of timekeeping within the Meta infrastructure from 10 milliseconds to 100 microseconds. Orolia ART Cards will further increase the accuracy, resiliency and adoption of Meta’s new timing platform.

    Developed with long-term support in mind, Orolia’s ART Cards deliver management, disciplining and monitoring functions that can be integrated into any computer with a PCIe port and bring accurate and resilient timing for the most demanding applications such as NTP/PTP time reference, time stamping and latency calculation.

  • Orolia delivers its first low SWaP-C miniaturized rubidium oscillator

    Orolia delivers its first low SWaP-C miniaturized rubidium oscillator

    Photo: Orolia
    Photo: Orolia

    Orolia has introduced a low SWaP-C miniaturized rubidium oscillator, the Spectratime mRO-50, designed to meet the latest commercial, military and aerospace requirements where time stability and power consumption are critical. The oscillator is low SWaP-C — size, weight, power and cost.

    The Spectratime mRO-50 provides a one-day holdover below 1 µs and a retrace below 1 x 10-10 in a form factor sized 50.8 x 50.8 x 19.5 millimeters. It takes up only 51 cc of volume — about one-third of volume compared to standard rubidiums — and consumes only 0.45 W of power.

    he Spectratime mRO-50 miniaturized rubidium oscillator provides accurate frequency and precise time synchronization to mobile applications, such as military radio-pack systems in GNSS-denied environments. Its operating temperature of -10°C to 60°C (military version extends to -40°C to 75°C) is also suitable for UAVs and underwater applications.

    Orolia is a leader in space-based atomic clocks and high-end crystal, rubidium, hydrogen maser and integrated GPS/GNSS clocks. The company also provides testing instruments for space missions that rely on high precision atomic clock technology.

    Orolia’s Atomic Clocks team received the 2019 PTTI Distinguished Service Award in January for advancing the state of the art in high-stability atomic clocks and producing the only space-based passive H-maser in the world, operating on all Galileo satellites. Spectratime mRO-50 is the latest technology solution from this award-winning team.

    “Through Orolia’s continuous commitment to innovation, we are proud to offer our customers more precise PNT data in a cutting-edge, lightweight form factor for mobile missions,” said Orolia’s Atomic Clocks Product Line Director, Jean-Charles Chen.