SYS TEC's CANopen protocol stack is an optional middleware package for the eCosPro RTOS that provides standards based CAN communications and control for industrial automation applications.

The CANopen standard was developed by the manufacturer and users association CiA (CAN in Automation) and has been standardized since late 2002 as CENELEC EN 50325-4. It is now well established in a various industrial communication areas including manufacturing, transport systems, maritime electronics, medical devices, and building automation. CANopen enables communications between devices from different manufacturers and ensures compatibility between and interchangeability of these devices.

The CANopen protocol stack implements the complete functionality pursuant to the latest CiA 301 V4.x draft standard. A comprehensive library of CANopen master and slave services supports the design of fully-featured CANopen master or slave devices. This includes NMT master (Network Management), LSS master (Layer Setting Services), and SDO clients. A range of add-on packages are available that extend the runtime functionality, including CANopen manager extensions, safety protocol, and SDO gateways.

The protocol stack's implementation emphasises scalability, performance and portability. The stack is organized in a modular fashion; individual modules can be incorporated into or removed from a project, depending on the required functionality and available memory budget. Multi-instance support enables different logical CANopen devices on a single physical hardware platform. Memory management has been optimized with a zero-copy implementation that avoids unnecessary copying of CAN data. Written in ANSI C, with a cleanly defined device layer, the stack is portable to a wide range of systems.

The well-defined API allows for straightforward use of the CANopen services without having to dive into the details of its implementation. The package includes many example programs, demo projects, and comprehensive documentation that provides step-by-step assistance. In addition a complete set of configuration and analysis tools are available that simplify the overall development, testing and integration of CANopen applications. The included GUI-based CANopen configuration tool supports the creation of the object dictionary and corresponding EDS files, and assists in the management of various configuration settings of the protocol stack. The CANopen object directory is exported as C source code, which can be incorporated directly into the application.

Optional add-on packages

• CANopen Safety Protocol Extension compliant with CiA 304
• Device Profile for Motion Control and Drives compliant with CiA 402
• Multiplexed PDO for CiA 417 compliant devices (CANopen Lift)
• SDO Gateway for CANopen sub-networking
• Dynamic object dictionary as specified in CiA 302.
• CANopen Manager extension that provides mangement functions compliant with CiA 302 and CiA 405.

The CANopen protocol stack includes full source code, a years maintenance and support, and is royalty free. It is compatible with the eCosPro-CAN device drivers and API which are used to provide low level access to, and portability between, different CAN device hardware implementations under eCos. Bundled versions of the CANopen protocol stack are available that include a complete set of CANopen configuration and monitoring tools, and a USB/CAN interface.

For all enquiries regarding the CANopen protocol stack for eCos, including pricing and commercial issues, please contact us for a detailed discussion.