What CAN you do?

Alexey Pinchuk

sales manager (Asia, Australia and New Zealand) , JV Technoton Department – EUROINS ROMANIA

When you decide to monitor parameters such as vehicle speed and fuel level, a reliable and proven soluƟ on is to install a GPS tracker and a fuel sensor. If you need access to informaƟ on such as engine speed, mileage, coolant temperature and other data from the onboard computer - this task becomes very creaƟ ve.

If a vehicle already has all the necessary sensors, then you don’t need to install new ones, right? Almost all modern cars (especially when it comes to personal business class and expensive special machinery) are properly equipped with sensors, informaƟ on from which is transmiƩ ed to the on-board computer. The quesƟ on is only how to access this informaƟ on. The problem remained unsolved for a long Ɵ me. But there are more and more eff ecƟ ve soluƟ ons now that solve a problem correctly obtaining such data as: engine speed and temperature, fuel level and consumpƟ on, informaƟ on from tachograph and more. The soluƟ on, which we talk about in this

arƟ cle, will help to read data from CAN bus of a vehicle.

What is CAN bus?

CAN (Controller Area Network) is a popular standard of the industrial network, focused on the integraƟ on into a single network of various actuators and sensors, widely used in automoƟ ve equipment. Almost all modern vehicles nowadays are equipped with so-called digital wiring - CAN bus.

Where did the task of reading data from CAN bus appear?

The task of reading data from CAN bus appeared as a consequence of the task of opƟ mizing vehicles operaƟ on costs. In accordance with the typical requests of customers, vehicles and machinery are equipped with GPS monitoring and fuel monitoring systems (based on capaciƟ ve or ultrasonic fuel level sensors). But pracƟ ce has shown that customers are increasingly interested in more economical ways of obtaining data, as well as those that do not require serious interference into design, as well as in electric cars. That’s how appeared such a decision to obtain informaƟ on from CAN bus. It has a number of advantages aŌ er all: 1. Save money. Do not need to bear signifi cant costs for acquisiƟ on and installaƟ on of various sensors and devices. 2. Do not break warranty. DetecƟ on by the manufacturer of third-party interference in the construcƟ on or wiring scheme of the car leads to warranty losing. This is clearly not in the sphere of interests of vehicle owners. 3. Access to informaƟ on from standard installed electronic devices and sensors. A certain set of funcƟ ons can be implemented in a vehicle, depending on the electronic system. TheoreƟ cally, we can access all these funcƟ ons via CAN-bus. This can be mileage, fuel level, door open / close sensors, temperature overboard and inside, RPM, speed, etc.

What advantages and disadvantages does reading data from CAN bus lead to? Pluses: • Ability to work in hard real-Ɵ me mode. • Easy to implement and lower costs of use. • High stability to interference. • Reliable control of transmission and recepƟ on errors. • Wide speed range. • Widespread technology, availability of

If a vehicle already has all the necessary sensors, then you don’t need to install new ones, right? Almost all modern cars (especially when it comes to personal business class and expensive special machinery) are properly equipped with sensors, informaƟ on from which is transmiƩ ed to the onboard computer.

a wide range of products from various suppliers.

Disadvantages:

• The maximum network length is counter proporƟ onal to the transmission rate. • Large amount of service data in the package (relaƟ ve to useful data). • Lack of a single generally accepted standard for a high-level protocol. The network standard provides ample opportuniƟ es for almost error-free transfer of data between nodes, leaving to a developer an opportunity to put into this standard everything that can fi t there. CAN bus is similar to a simple electrical wire. You can put any informaƟ on fl ow that can withstand the bandwidth of the bus. There are examples of sound and image transmission on CAN bus. There is a known case of creaƟ ng an emergency communicaƟ on system along a road several dozen kilometers long. They needed a high transmission speed in the fi rst case and a short line length in the second case. Manufacturers, as a rule, do not adverƟ se how they apply useful bytes in the package. Therefore, FMS device can not always decrypt data that CAN bus gives away. In addiƟ on, not all vehicle brands have CAN bus. And not even all vehicles of the same brand and model can give the same informaƟ on. There is a soluƟ on that is used to extract data from CAN bus. It is a contactless data reader CAN Crocodile.

Advantages of CAN Crocodile technology:

• CAN Crocodile allows you to obtain data about vehicle operaƟ on from CAN bus without interfering with the integrity of bus itself.

• Reading of data occurs without mechanical and electrical contact with wires.

• CAN Crocodile is used for connecƟ ng CAN bus to GPS / GLONASS monitoring systems, which receive informaƟ on on engine operaƟ ng modes, status of sensors, malfuncƟ ons, etc.

• CAN Crocodile does not break CAN wire insulaƟ on and “listens” to the bus exchange using a special wireless receiver. Using of CAN Crocodile is absolutely safe for a vehicle, unnoƟ ced by an on-board computer, diagnosƟ c scanner and other electronic systems. Especially relevant is to use CAN Crocodile for warranty vehicles in which the connecƟ on of any electronic devices to CAN bus oŌ en serves as an excuse for cancelling the warranty.

FMS and telemaƟ cs messages contain important operaƟ on parameters of a vehicle: instant and trip fuel consumpƟ on, total fuel consumpƟ on, RPM, fuel level in a tank, engine operaƟ on hours, engine temperature

FMS and telemaƟ cs messages contain important operaƟ on parameters of a vehicle: instant and trip fuel consumpƟ on, total fuel consumpƟ on, RPM, fuel level in a tank, engine operaƟ on hours, engine temperature, oil level, oil pressure and much more. It can be more than 100 parameters in total. CAN Crocodile extracts all available informaƟ on through J1939 protocol.

If we speak about fuel monitoring, the fact is that the main purpose of standard fuel level sensors is to give an esƟ mate with the degree of accuracy that seems to be correct for the vehicle manufacturer. This accuracy can not be shuƩ ered with the accuracy of special sensors.

We recommend not fully rely on the readings of standard fuel level sensors, but consider each situaƟ on individually. As a rule, a suitable soluƟ on can only be found together with technical specialists. Diff erent manufacturers have diff erent accuracy of indicaƟ ons. Each customer also has diff erent tasks. It makes sense to select a proper soluƟ on only for a specifi c task. Someone is quite fi t to receive data from CAN bus, since it is several Ɵ mes cheaper and does not require any changes.