CAN Protocol
The Controller Area Network (CAN) protocol is a communication protocol that was developed for use
in the automotive industry, but has also been used in other industries such as industrial automation
and medical equipment. It is a serial communication protocol that uses a multi-master, distributed
control system. This means that any device on the network, called a node, can initiate communication
and all other nodes on the network can participate in the communication. The protocol provides a way
for devices to share information and synchronize their actions without the need for a central controller.
The protocol uses a collision detection and arbitration method to prevent multiple nodes from
transmitting at the same time and ensure that only one node can transmit at a time.
CAN stands for Controller Area Network. It is an Asynchronous serial communication protocol
introduced in 1986 by Robert Bosch. CAN protocol is a message-based protocol, not address-based
means transmitted data is available for all nodes, and it is the receiver’s choice to receive data or not.
CAN nodes are connected on a two-wire (CAN_H and CAN_L) twisted pair cable (termed as CAN bus)
terminated with 120Ω resistance to prevent the reflection.
CAN nodes connected on the CAN bus in line BUS Topology
CAN is basically designed to replace the conventional wiring used in old days in the automobile for
communication between ECUs.
In modern Automobile system, there are many ECUs for various subsystems like engine control unit,
steering, suspension, ADAS etc. interconnection between each other is essential which would be very
costly and complex through conventional wiring while CAN provide an economic and appropriate
solution.
Why CAN?
The CAN protocol was developed for use in the automotive industry to address several challenges that
arose as cars became more complex and incorporated more electronic systems. Some of the key
reasons for why the CAN protocol was developed include?
• High reliability? The CAN protocol is designed to be robust and fault-tolerant, making it
suitable for use in critical systems such as the engine control and braking systems in a car.
• Low cost? The CAN protocol uses a simple and efficient signalling method that allows for low-
cost implementation, which is particularly important in the automotive industry, where costs
are a major concern.
• Low weight and minimal wiring? The CAN protocol uses a two-wire bus, which reduces the
amount of wiring needed in a car and makes the vehicle lighter, which can lead to improved
fuel efficiency.
• Scalability? The CAN protocol is designed to support a large number of devices on a network,
making it easy to add new devices or remove existing ones as needed.
• Multi-master capability? The ability of any device (node) to initiate communication in the
network this allows different systems to communicate and act upon their requirement, and
also enables distributed control, which is a major feature of this protocol.
Applications of CAN protocol
The Controller Area Network (CAN) protocol is widely used in a variety of applications, including?
• Automotive? The CAN protocol was originally developed for use in the automotive industry
and is used in a wide variety of systems in modern cars, including engine control, transmission
control, anti-lock brakes, and body electronics.
• Industrial automation? The CAN protocol is used in industrial automation systems to allow
devices to communicate and coordinate their actions, such as controlling motors, sensors, and
other equipment.
• Medical equipment? The CAN protocol is used in medical equipment to control various
functions and to transmit data between devices. For example, patient monitoring systems use
the protocol to transmit patient vital signs data between devices
• Avionics? The protocol is used in avionics to control and monitor various systems such as
engine, navigation, and flight control systems.
• Building automation? The protocol is used in building automation systems to control and
monitor various systems such as heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC), lighting, and
security systems.
• Robotics? The protocol is used in Robotics to control and monitor various systems such as
motors, sensors, and other equipment, thus allowing the robots to communicate and
coordinate their actions.
• Apart from these, day by day CAN protocol is used any many embedded applications.
CAN Framing
In the Controller Area Network (CAN) protocol, a message is transmitted using a specific format called
a frame. The frame consists of several fields that contain information about the message, such as the
source address, destination address, and data payload.
The basic format of a CAN frame includes?
• Start of Frame (SOF) ? Identifies the start of a frame.
• Identifier (ID) ? A unique 11 or 29-bit number that identifies the message.
• Remote Transmission Request (RTR) ? Indicates whether the frame is a data frame (0) or a
remote frame (1) requesting data.
• Identifier Extension (IDE) ? Indicates whether the ID field is 11-bit (0) or 29-bit (1)
• Data Length Code (DLC) ? Indicates the length of the data payload in bytes.
• Data ? The payload of the message, which can be up to 8 bytes.
• Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) ? A checksum used to detect errors in the frame.
• Acknowledge Slot (ACK) ? Acknowledge of the message transmission by the receiver node.
• End of Frame (EOF) ? Identifies the end of the frame.
A message is transmitted as a series of bits on the bus, with the most significant bit (MSB) transmitted
first. Once a message has been transmitted, all nodes on the network will receive the message, but
only the node with the matching identifier will process it.
