CANtact Pro

CANtact Pro is part of the Microchip Get Launched design program!

CANtact Pro is an open-source USB to Controller Area Network (CAN) device. This allows you to connect a computer to anything that talks CAN. CAN is used in a wide range of embedded systems including vehicles, robots, industrial control systems, and avionics.

The CANtact Pro improves on the original CANtact hardware by adding an extra CAN bus, support for CAN-FD and single-wire CAN, high speed USB, and electrical isolation.

The CANtact Pro also introduces new software that supports Windows, macOS, and Linux. On all platforms, a command line interface is available for basic interaction with CAN buses. The cross-platform driver support allows developers to build CAN tools that run on all platforms. On Linux, users can take advantage of SocketCAN to use the device with many existing programs. On Windows, ETAS BUSMASTER is supported.

Features & Specifications

• 2x CAN Interfaces
  • 1x CAN/CAN-FD/SWCAN
  • 1x CAN/CAN-FD
• High Speed USB interface (480 Mbit/s)
• Isolation between CAN and USB
• Industry standard DB9 connectors
• Software support for Windows, macOS, and Linux
  • Cross-platform USB driver, command line interface, and APIs:
    • Python (via python-can)
    • C / C++
    • Rust
  • ETAS BUSMASTER support on Windows
  • SocketCAN support on Linux

Left: The original CANtact; Right: the CANtact Pro.

Comparisons:

* Campaign price is \$129 USD. Future retail price will be \$149 USD.

Support & Documentation:

CANtact CLI and Driver

Original CANtact Documentation

Manufacturing Plan

The CANtact Pro hardware is being manufactured by the same contract manufacturer used for the original CANtact. We have been using this CM for the past five years without any issues and they have already assembled and delivered the first order of PCBAs. The enclosure is manufactured in the United States. Final assembly of the devices will take place locally in Canada.

Fulfillment & Logistics

Canadian orders will be shipped directly. All other fulfillment and logistics will be handled by Crowd Supply.

Risks & Challenges

Since the product design is complete, working prototypes are being tested, and an initial batch of devices is already assembled, many of the risks of hardware development have already been mitigated.

Supply chain and lead times can always be an issue in manufacturing and are of greater concern due to COVID-19. We continue to contact our manufacturers on a regular basis and monitor the availability of parts.