PCAN-Chip USB

Add CAN/CAN FD to an embedded PC via USB port they already have - in the smallest, SMT-ready form factor, with full freedom to choose transceiver and connector, backed by the proven PCAN driver + tool + API stack.

With PCAN-Chip USB, you get design freedom without compromise: you can choose the CAN transceiver and connector that best fit your device, so you can tailor the physical layer, your EMC/ESD concept, and the mechanical integration exactly to your requirements. At the same time, it is series-production ready - the module is designed for automated placement and can be delivered on reel, making it ideal for scalable manufacturing. To speed up your path from prototype to integration, an evaluation kit is available, providing a fast bring-up with a pre-soldered module, USB cable, and reference design/schematics. And on the software side, friction stays low: one module includes licenses for Windows and Linux drivers, PCAN-View, and PCAN-Basic, reducing integration effort and getting you to “first frames” faster.

Smallest footprint for true embedded integration

• 25 x 20 mm stamp module for direct PCB integration (not a dongle).
• Industrial temperature range -40..+85 °C.

You control the “hard parts” of the interface

• External transceiver concept = customer can optimize bus type, robustness/EMC/ESD, and connector/mechanics to the product context.

Full driver, toools and API stack

• PCAN-View + PCAN-Basic + Windows/Linux driver licensing included per module scope-of-supply statement.
• Engineering-grade stack (API + programming examples).

Faster implementation support path

• PEAK provides a dedicated technical support team with published contact channels (email/phone) - useful to reduce project risk during integration.

Technical advantages

• 1 µs timestamp resolution (useful for correlation, logging, time-critical analysis).
• Busload measurement incl. error frames on the physical bus (better visibility than “just received frames”).
• Induced error generation / frame corruption (inbound + outbound) for test and robustness validation (error generator, corrupt single or repeated frames).
• 5 digital I/Os + 1 analog input available (accessible via PCAN-Basic API - e.g., triggers, status lines, simple sensing).
• CAN FD with ISO / Non-ISO switchable (avoid interoperability surprises in mixed networks).
• Bitrate range up to 12 Mbit/s (transceiver-dependent) + USB 2.0 High-Speed (USB 1.1/3.0 compatible).
• Time sync connector for multi-module setups (synchronize timestamps across multiple modules in one system).

If you want to accelerate your first prototype, the PCAN-Chip USB Evaluation Kit gives you a fast, low-risk starting point: it comes with the module already mounted on an eval board, plus USB connection and reference design material - so you can validate functionality quickly and move to your own PCB with confidence.

Find out more on our Homepage: PCAN-Chip USB & Eval: PEAK-System