CAN+: a new backward-compatible controller area network (CAN) protocol with up to 16x higher data rates

As the number of electronic components in automobiles steadily increases, the demand for higher communication bandwidth also rises dramatically. Instead of installing new wiring harnesses and new bus structures, it would be use-ful, if already available structures could be used, but driven at higher data rates. In this paper, we a) propose an ex-tension of the well-known Controller Area Network (CAN) called CAN+ with which the target rate of 1Mbit/s can be increased up to 16 times. Moreover, b) existing CAN hard-ware and devices not dedicated to these boosted data rates can still be used without interferences on communication. The major idea is a change of the protocol. In particular, we exploit the fact that data could be sent in time slots, where CAN-conform nodes don’t listen. Finally, c) an implemen-tation of this type of overclocking scheme on an FPGA is provided to prove the feasibility and the impressive through-put gains. 1.