CAN Expander

User Manual

Embention
27/11/2018
Content
Content.......................................................................................................................................... 2
Changes Record ............................................................................................................................. 2
1 General description ............................................................................................................... 3
1.1 Wiring Optimization ...................................................................................................... 3
1.2 Enhanced I/O ................................................................................................................. 3
1.3 Applications ................................................................................................................... 3
2 Assembly ............................................................................................................................... 4
3 Pinout .................................................................................................................................... 5
3.1 Board CAN Expander ..................................................................................................... 5
I. I/O Specifications .......................................................................................................... 5
3.2 CAN Expander MC ......................................................................................................... 7
4 Configuration......................................................................................................................... 7

Changes Record
Issue Date Author Page Change Desctiption
0000 27/11/2018 Embention - Manual release

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EMBENTION owns the copyright of this document which is supplied in confidence, and which
shall not be used for any purpose other than which it is supplied for and shall not be in whole or
in part reproduced, copied or communicated to any person without permission from
EMBENTION.
Any person other than authorized holder obtaining possession of this document by finding or
otherwise, should send it, together with its name, and address, in sealed envelope to:
Embention Sistemas Inteligentes, S.L. - VAT ID: ESB54249602 - www.embention.com

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1 General description
Veronte CAN Expander stands as a powerful peripheral to ease the reduction of wire in
autonomous vehicles at the time it permits to increase the number of devices in the system. It
makes possible to relocate and to group sensors, actuators, payloads, motor controllers...
enhancing the I/O connectivity in the Veronte Autopilot. With its easy integration, Veronte CAN
Expander becomes a quick solution for increasing connectivity capacity and allowing wiring
optimization, especially in large systems.

1.1 Wiring Optimization

It is especially in large vehicles, where wire optimization plays a critical role permitting a
significant weight reduction. This upgrade is achieved thanks to the reduction of cable length
and because of the added flexibility so the right device can be installed in the right location.
Another advantage of the use of Veronte CAN Expander is the robustness of the CAN Bus, being
resistant to electromagnetic interferences and permitting the installation of long cables with no
signal loss. Furthermore, it includes redundancy with CAN bus isolation, making it fail
operational even in case of a CAN bus line break.

1.2 Enhanced I/O

With the use of Veronte CAN Expander, the data capacity for input and output in Veronte
Autopilots is increased in a great manner. The advanced design makes possible to control several
peripherals (PWM, UART, Digital Output, I2C, Analog Inputs...) through the CAN Bus. It can be
used for both, expanding the I/O capacity in Veronte Autopilot, or for controlling peripherals
with a robust communications protocol. In case it is needed, several CAN Expander boards can
be installed in the same network for increasing the number of I/O ports or because of system
architecture needs.

1.3 Applications
In aviation, a field where weight means such an important agent in design, struggling with wiring
is one of the most common issues faced during the vehicle design. With the use of Veronte CAN
Expander, not only this issue would be reduced, but a bunch of opportunities for different
sensors and payload could arise:
 By adding more I/O interfaces, a more complex payload control can be achieved, adding
enhanced connectivity.
 Advanced control of actuators and peripherals becomes feasible, being possible to
condensate the connection of control, feedback, sensors... in a single board.
 Devices can be installed at long distances from the autopilot with no signal degradation
thanks to the robustness of the CAN Bus.

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 2 Assembly
Black Connector

Color Connector

CAN Expander does not integrate a Termination resistance in order to allow for multiple CAN
Expander connected to the same line. Considering Veronte Auotpilot includes one entrance
resistance of 120 Ω, a second resistance needs to be placed at the end of the line (again 120 Ω).

Termination
Veronte resistance
Autopilot 120 Ω
120 Ω

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3 Pinout
3.1 Board CAN Expander

Warning! Consider the color code for the 2 different connectors. A miss use
could mean the product would stop working.

Connector A (Colored) Connector B (Black)

PIN Nº I/O PIN Nº I/O

1 Power supply 1 1 PWM 1
2 Power supply 2 2 PWM 2
3 GND 3 PWM 3
4 CAN A (H) 4 PWM 4
5 CAN A (L) 5 PWM 5
6 CAN B (L) 6 PWM 6
7 CAN B (H) 7 PWM 7
8 PWM 8
8 UART A (TX)
9 ECAP 1
9 UART A (RX)
10 ECAP 2
10 GND
11 ECAP 3
11 UART B (TX) 12 ECAP 4
12 UART B (RX) 13 ANALOG 1 (3.3V)
13 GND 14 ANALOG 2 (3.3V)
14 I2C SCL 15 ANALOG 3 (5V)
15 I2C SDA 16 ANALOG 4 (5V)
16 GND 17 ANALOG 5 (12V)
17 3.3V
18 ANALOG 6 (12V)
18 GND
19 5V 19 ANALOG 7 (36V)
20 GND 20 ANALOG 8 (36V)

I. I/O Specifications
 All inputs are ESD protected
 Double Power Supply, to provide power redundancy to the CAN Expander.
 Input voltage/current
o Vmax = 60V
o IMax: 1.5A, Inom: 0.3A
 CAN
o Complies with standards.
o Isolated (4kV)
o Speed up to 1 Mbps
 UART
o TTL 3.3V signals up to 115200 baud.

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 I2C
o 3.3V Signals up to 400 KHz.
 3.3V Output
o 100 mA fuse protected.
 5V Output
o 100 mA fuse protected.
 PWM Output
o Voltage is 5V.
o Current I (oh) = 16 mA and I (ol) = -16 mA
o Micro Edge Positioning (MEP) step size = 150 ps.
 Digital Inputs (ECAP)
o Maximum voltage = 5V.
o Maximum input current = 2.5 mA
o Sampling rate: up to 1 μs
 Analog signals
o Input impedance: 10 GOhm
o Resolution:
 0-3.3V pins: 0.00080 V
 0-5V pins: 0.0012 V
 0-12V pins: 0.0029 V
 0-36V pins: 0.0087 V

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3.2 CAN Expander MC

PIN Nº I/O PIN Nº I/O

1 PWM 1 23 GND
2 PWM 2 24 Power supply 1
3 PWM 3 25 Power supply 2
4 PWM 4 26 GND
5 PWM 5 27 CAN A (H)
6 PWM 6 28 CAN A (L)
7 PWM 7 29 CAN B (L)
8 PWM 8 30 CAN B (H)
9 GND
31 232_TX
10 ECAP 1
32 232_RX
11 ECAP 2
33 GND
12 ECAP 3
34 RX+
13 ECAP 4
14 GND 35 RX-
15 ANALOG 1 (3.3V) 36 TX+
16 ANALOG 2 (3.3V) 37 TX-
17 ANALOG 3 (5V) 38 GND
18 ANALOG 4 (5V) 39 I2C SCL
40 I2C SDA
19 ANALOG 5 (12V)
41 3.3V
20 ANALOG 6 (12V)
42 GND
21 ANALOG 7 (36V) 43 5V
22 ANALOG 8 (36V) 44 GND

4 Configuration
Configuration and CAN addresses are set depending on the user’s needs.
If the user is willing to change the configuration of its own CAN Expander(s), a programming tool
is available at Embention.

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