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2016-01-0060
Published 04/05/2016
Copyright © 2016 SAE International
doi:10.4271/2016-01-0060
saepcelec.saejournals.org

CAN FD Network Design Hints and Recommendations

Holger Zeltwanger
CAN in Automation

ABSTRACT
The CAN FD protocol internationally standardized in ISO 11898-1:2015 just describes how to implement it into silicon. The ISO
11898-2:2016 standard specifies the physical media attachment (PMA) sub-layer of the CAN (FD) physical layer. The design of CAN
FD networks is not in the scope of these standards. In general, the physical layer design of CAN FD networks requires more attention
compared with Classical CAN networks. First recommendations have been developed. Different standardization bodies have already
specified or are in the process of specifying higher-layer protocols, for example ISO for on-board diagnostic, ASAM for calibration, etc.

CITATION: Zeltwanger, H., "CAN FD Network Design Hints and Recommendations," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars – Electron. Electr. Syst.
9(1):2016, doi:10.4271/2016-01-0060.

INTRODUCTION And, there are some other additional transceiver values to be

considered. The bit-width variations, caused by the network topology
The CAN FD protocol is an extension of the well-known (Classical)
and the transceiver features are relevant. The bit-width variation is
CAN data link layer. The main benefits are a higher throughput and
determined by the interface between the CAN controller (often
longer data frames with up to 64 byte. One part of the CAN data
integrated in the micro-controller) and the CAN transceiver, the CAN
frame is transmitted optionally with higher bit-rate exceeding the
transceiver itself (asymmetry of transmitting and receiving), and the
former limitation of 1 Mbit/s. Designing CAN FD networks has some
reflections depending on the chosen network topology and the
impacts on the physical layer design as well as the software
impedance of the selected components (e.g. cable and connectors, etc.).
architecture as known from the Classical CAN approach.

Edition 2016 of the ISO 11898-2 standard (merging the legacy ISO
THE CAN FD PROTOCOL AND ITS IMPACTS 11898-2, -5, and -6 standards) specifies the transceiver characteristics.
ON THE PHYSICAL LAYER There are three new parameters of interest: the loop-delay from TxD
to RxD, the Tx delay, and the Rx delay. The transceiver loop-delay is
The CAN FD protocol introduces a second bit-rate to be used in the
the time between receiving the bit at TxD and transmitting it at RxD
data phase, when just one node is transmitting bits. All other nodes in
from the viewpoint of the transceiver. The recessive-to-dominant
the network are receivers. This means, it is not necessary to be
edge is measured at 30 percent and the dominant-to-recessive edge at
synchronized. In this phase there is no in-bit time sampling required
70 percent. The symmetry for both delays is important for the
as in the arbitration phase, when several nodes are transmitting
transmitting node. The most critical situation is the recessive bit after
identifier bits or the ACK (acknowledge) bit. This means, the bit-rate
five dominants. If the transceiver is very asymmetric, the recessive
is not dependent on the network length. The network and transceiver
bit-time is shortened or expanded in relation to the nominal bit-time.
propagation delays are not more relevant. The bit-time setting for the
Therefore the ISO 11898-2:2016 standard specifies the minimum and
data-phase is similar to the arbitration phase. The user needs to
maximum values for recessive bits as shown in Table 1. The values
configure the time-quantum, the SYNC segment and the sample-
are given for a network load on the bus-lines (CAN_H and CAN_L)
point. ISO 11898-1:2015 provides just a framework for the bit-time
of 60 Ω and 100 pF.
settings, e.g. to use the same oscillator frequency in all nodes. In
order to keep the quantization error as small as possible, it is Table 1. Loop-delay symmetry (source: ISO 11898-2:2016)
recommended to use an equal time-quantum length for both bit-rates.
ISO 11898-1 contains some formulas to calculate the maximum
allowed oscillator frequency tolerance at a given data-phase bit-rate.
When the ratio of data-phase bit-rate and arbitration bit-rate is low
(e.g. 6:1) the Classical CAN oscillator tolerance is sufficient. For
higher ratios, the tolerance needs to be calculated using the
referenced formulas.

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The allowed transmitter supply voltage tolerance, the network load,
and temperature effects cause this asymmetry. In order to reduce the
emission the transmitter controls the slew-rate of the falling and rising
edge to the lowest value possible at a given bit-rate. Table 2 shows the
specified values as given in ISO 11898-2:2016 for a network load on
the bus-lines (CAN_H and CAN_L) of 60 Ω and 100 pF.
Table 2. Transceiver Tx delay symmetry (source ISO 11898-2:2016)
The transceiver Rx delay depends on production dispersion,
temperature variation, receiver thresholds, supply voltage variation,
and the slew rate. The delay is a calculated value as given in Table 3.
The ΔtRec(min) value shortens the recessive bit-length and ΔtRec(max)
lengthens the recessive bit-length.
Table 3. Transceiver Rx delay symmetry
Figure 1 shows the impacts between the TxD signal of the
transmitting node, the Vdiff differential bus voltage, and the possible
recessive bit-time duration at the RxD pin of the receiving node. The
rising edges can jitter, and the falling edges are stable.
Figure 1. Jitter of the rising edge at a receiving node’s RxD pin (source: CiA
601-1)
The range marked in green is the variation of the transmitter and the
range marked in yellow is the variation of the receiver. To calculate
the worst-case scenario, both parameters are added [2].
CAN FD nodes with configured data-phase bit-rate of 1 or 2 Mbit/s
should use transceiver chips compliant to ISO 11898-2:2016 qualified
for 2 Mbit/s. Nodes using a data-phase bit-rate of 5 Mbit/s should
implement transceivers qualified for 5 Mbit/s as specified in ISO
11898-2:2016 or for higher bit-rates (not yet standardized in ISO
11898-2:2016).
CAN FD NODE DESIGN
RECOMMENDATIONS
Besides using CAN transceivers compliant with ISO 11898-2:2016,
the CiA 601-1 specification gives further hints and recommentations
on the design of CAN FD connectable electronic control units (ECU).
Figure 2 shows a typical communication network with a transmitting
node, a receiving node and the wire in between. The symmetry of the
RxD signal on the receiving node is defined by the symmetry
performance of the transmitting and receiving node. To guarantee a
robust communication between two or more nodes in a network, the
transceiver Tx delay symmetry of the transmitting node and the
transceiver Rx delay symmetry of the receiving node shall be very
accurate. The loop-delay symmetry cannot cover this in total. It could
be that one ECU in the network has a transceiver with a very
symmetric transmitter part and an asymmetric receiver part. The
behavior of a transceiver from another supplier may behave vice
versa. Therefore, in CiA 601-1 additional parameters are defined for
the transmitter and receiver symmetry.
Figure 2. Important delays in a CAN FD network (source: CiA 601-1)
Table 4 provides the resulting min and max values for the recessive
bit length seen by a receiving node. They are valid for a 60- Ω and
100-pF busload. The following effects are not considered in this part
of the document, but in the CiA 601-4 specification (not yet released):
the behavior of the network itself such as ringing or additional
propagation delay of the dominant to recessive transition, and clock
tolerances.
Table 4. Recessive bit-time at the receiving node’s RxD pin (source: CiA
601-1)
The sample-point of the data-phase bit-rate is independent of the
arbitration point-rate sample-point. The setting depends on the
transmitting node delay (TD). The TD is the delay from the CAN
controller’s transmit flip-flop (FF) to its receive flip-flop. This means,
when the CAN controller sends a bit, this bit appears at the CAN
controller’s input after TD. This TD is the sum of the following delays:
• Propagation delay from CAN controller Tx-FF output to TxD
micro-controller port,
• Propagation delay from TxD micro-controller port to TxD
transceiver port,
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• Transceiver loop delay TxD to RxD,
• Propagation delay from RxD transceiver port to RxD micro-
controller port,
• Propagation delay from RxD micro-controller port to CAN
controller Rx-FF output,
• Propagation delay of the galvanic isolation devices (if
available).
If there are any additional components in the interface between
transceiver and micro-controller, the delay increases. At higher
bit-rates the transmitting node shall compensate the TD to be able to
compare its transmitted bits to the current bit on the CAN network.
The feature in the transmitting node that allows compensating the TD
is called transmitting node delay compensation (TDC). TD does not
affect receiving nodes.
The recessive-to-dominant edge observed at the RxD pin of a
transceiver is rather stable but the dominant-to-recessive edge can
shift. The components between CAN transceiver and CAN controller
have a low impact on the stability of the edge. Consequently, the
measurement of the TD is performed at a recessive-to-dominant edge.
In case TDC function is enabled, a CAN controller acting as
transmitter measures the TD based on the recessive-to-dominant edge
from FDF-bit to res-bit. It performs the measurement once within
each FD frame that uses bit-rate switching. The CAN controller
compares its transmitted bit to the received bit at the secondary
sample point (SSP).
Figure 3. Sampling of a recessive bit at the transmitting node (only operational
with TDC)
Figure 3 shows the sampling of a recessive bit an example with and
without TDC. In case the TD is not compensated, the transmitting
CAN node evaluates a bit error, as it detects a dominant bit level
instead of a recessive. In case the TDC is enabled, it detects the
correct bit level (recessive). The phase margin (colored part of the
bit) is caused by several effects: quantization error, shift due to
oscillator tolerance, bit asymmetry due to the above mentioned
physical layer components, and instability of the RX signal due to
ringing on the bus lines caused by impedance mis-matches [4]. The
first two effects are bit-rate dependent and the other two effects do
not depend on the bit-rate.
The bit asymmetry is not just caused by the transceiver, but also by
all other physical layer components. This includes also the signals
exchanged between the state machine in the CAN FD controller and
the transceiver. They are affected by asmmetry resulting from the
input/output switching pads of the controller chip and the PCB
91
(printed circuit board) capacitance. Te typical value for this is 10 ns
for the transmitting and receiving node. Also the chosen topology
may cause bit asymmetry, which is not included in the transceiver
asymmetry values. Some relalistic values are given in [6]. They and
other research results will be summarized in the CiA 601-3 CAN FD
system design recommendation, which is under development.
If the sample-point is within the phase margin, it is necessary to use
the secondary sample-point (SSP) as defined in ISO 11898-1:2015. It
is recommended to configure the SSP, so that it is somewhere in the
middle of the remaining bit (this is the time after phase-margin A and
before phase-margin B).
Another critical point is the ringing on the bus-line. It can be reduced
by using a bus-line topology with very short stub-lines (daisy-chain).
But even, when there is ringing, dedicated circuitry may reduce the
ringing. One option is the ringing suppression circuitry (RSC) as
proposed in CiA 601-4 [3]. The RSC adjusts dynamically the network
overall impedance. It reduces the impedance for configured time. The
most critical nodes needs to be equipped with such circuitry. The
RSC may be integrated in CAN transceiver chips.
Unfortunately, there is not sufficient experience available to give
general guidelines for all topologies. Additional research is necessary.
It seems that star topologies with ferrties are possible for data-phase
bit-rates up to 2 Mbit/s [5].
The SAE develops currently recommended practices for the design of
high-speed CAN (HSC) for vehicle applications at 500 kbit/s with
CAN FD data-phase bit-rates of 2 Mbit/s respecively 5 Mbit/s
(J2284-4 and J2284-5). The 2-Mbit/s approach is indented for
bus-line topology, while the 5-Mbit/s solution is intended for
point-topoint communication.
IMPACTS OF CAN FD ON HIGHER-LAYER
PROTOCOLS
The CAN FD protocol has just a few impacts on high-layer protocols.
Most obvious is the longer data field of up to 64 byte. Another change
is that CAN remote frames are not more supported. But this is not
critical, because most of the automotive applications do not use them.
One of the general trends in in-vehicle network software designs is
the introduction of Autosar. This middleware supports since version
4.2.1 already CAN FD with frames length of up to 64 byte. The
concept of multi PDU (protocol data unit) mapping allows dynamic
mapping, because the content of the PDU is identified by the PDU
header. This requires more protocol overhead, but it requires less
CAN identifiers. The multi PDU approach simplifis low-level
software driver designs [1]. In the CiA 602-2 application layer (J1939
on CAN FD) several i-PDUs containing legacy J1939 parameter
groups can be mapped into a single CAN FD frame [6]. The CAN-ID
contains the Source Address (SA), the remaining elements of the
PDU identification are in the 24-bit i-PDU header. There is also an
optional safety/security trailer specified. This approach is an example
how to migrate from Classical CAN to CAN FD. First simulation
results have shown that in 500 kbit/s / 2 Mbit/s networks, the busload
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can be reduced by the factor of 3 compared with legacy J1939
network running at 500 kbit/s. Another impact is the reduced number
of interrupt requests. The CiA 602 series is intented to be submitted
to SAE to be released as a joint CiA/SAE specification.
Figure 4. Structure of the J1939 i-PDUs; multiple of them can be mapped into
a CAN FD data frame, which provides in the CAN-ID the Source Address
(SA)
In passenger cars, there are implemented mainly proprietary
CAN-based HLPs. How they make use of CAN FD is OEM-specific.
But there are some exceptions:
• ISO 16845-2 CAN transport protocol (TP) for diagnostic
purposes and downloading of software
• Asam’s MCD-1 XCP extended calibration protocol for
calibrating ECUs
For these two HLPs, the CAN FD adaptation is already finished. The
ISO TP will be released as soon as the referenced ISO 11898-1 data
link layer is published. The XCP version 1.2 introduces in the CAN
TLAML for the ASAP2 file the necessary entries to support CAN FD
(e.g. additional DLCs, second bit-rate, and SSP).
Another standardized CAN network is the CiA 447 CANopen
application profile for special-purpose car (ambulances, police cars,
taxi, etc.) add-on devices. It is listed as ISO 20935 project. The CiA
301 CANopen application layer is currently under review and will be
published as version 5.0, which will support CAN FD. This may lead
to an update of CiA 447 respectively ISO 20935.
SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK
The impacts of CAN FD on the software design is not so challenging
as on the physical layer design. Any violation of the above mentioned
physical layer design recommendations may cause malfunction of the
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Positions and opinions advanced in this paper are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of SAE International. The author is solely responsible for the content of the paper.
network. Therefore, it is necessary to design the network with more
care as Classical CAN networks. It could be already critical to use
cables with temperature-dependent isolation material. SAE’s and
CiA’s recommendations (J2284 series and CiA 601 series) will give
also not so experienced users a chance to design CAN FD networks
properly. In general, you need to optimize network topology, in order
to reduce the ringing. Additionally, the bit-timing should be
optimized, in order to minimize the bit-rate dependent part of the
phase margin. Of course, a careful selection of physical layer
components (e.g. cable, connectors, PCB layout, transceiver,
micro-controller ports) is necessary, to avoid bit asysmmetry.
To improve the software design, a standardized time-stamping of
CAN FD messages would be helpful. This is currently under
development and will be introduced in the CiA 603 specification
intented to be submitted for ISO standardization.
REFERENCES
1. Decker Peter: CAN FD with dynamic multi-PDU-to-frame mapping. In:
iCC proceedings 2015, Vienna. CAN in Automation (CiA), Nuremberg,
Germany.
2. Hell Magnus-Maria: The physical layer in the CAN FD. In: iCC
proceedings 2015, Vienna. CAN in Automation (CiA), Nuremberg,
Germany.
3. Horii Yuki, Mori Yasuhiro: Ringing suppression technology to achieve
higher data rate using CAN FD. In: iCC proceedings 2015, Vienna. CAN
in Automation (CiA), Nuremberg, Germany.
4. Dr. Mutter Arthur: Robustness of a CAN FD bus system - About
oscillator tolerance and edge deviations designs. In: iCC proceedings
2013, Hambach Castle. CAN in Automation (CiA), Nuremberg,
Germany.
5. Dr. Schreiner Marc: CAN FD from an OEM’s point of view. In: CAN
Newsletter 2/2014, page 26 ff. CAN in Automation (CiA), Nuremberg,
Germany.
6. Dr. Schreiner Marc: CAN FD system design. In: iCC proceedings 2015,
Vienna. CAN in Automation (CiA), Nuremberg, Germany.
7. Zeltwanger Holger: CAN FD for commercial vehicles - Chances and
challenges. In: iCC proceedings 2015, Vienna. CAN in Automation
(CiA), Nuremberg, Germany.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Holger Zeltwanger
CAN in Automation (CiA)
Kontumazgarten 3
90429 Nuremberg (Germany)
headquarters@can-cia.org
www.can-cia.org
Phone +49-911-9288190