Peak PCAN-miniPCIe User manual

PCAN-miniPCIe
CAN Interface for PCI Express Mini
User Manual
Document version 1.4.3 (2017-07-31)

PCAN-miniPCIe – User Manual
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Relevant products
Product name Model Part number
PCAN-miniPCIe Single
Channel
One CAN channel, galvanic
isolation for CAN connection
IPEH-003048
PCAN-miniPCIe Dual Channel Two CAN channels, galvanic
isolation for CAN connections
IPEH-003049
The cover picture shows the product PCAN-miniPCIe Dual Channel. The Single
Channel model has an identical form factor but varies in equipment.
PCAN® is a registered trademark of PEAK-System Technik GmbH. CANopen® and
CiA® are registered community trade marks of CAN in Automation e.V.
All other product names mentioned in this document may be the trademarks or
registered trademarks of their respective companies. They are not explicitly marked
by “™” or “®”.
Copyright © 2017 PEAK-System Technik GmbH
Duplication (copying, printing, or other forms) and the electronic distribution of this
document is only allowed with explicit permission of PEAK-System Technik GmbH.
PEAK-System Technik GmbH reserves the right to change technical data without
prior announcement. The general business conditions and the regulations of the
license agreement apply. All rights are reserved.
PEAK-System Technik GmbH
Otto-Roehm-Strasse 69
64293 Darmstadt
Germany
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
www.peak-system.com
[e-mail]
Document version 1.4.3 (2017-07-31)

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Contents
1 Introduction 4
1.1 Properties at a Glance 4
1.2 System Requirements 5
1.3 Scope of Supply 5
2 Installing the Software and the Card 6
3 Connecting the CAN Bus 8
3.1 Connection over D-Sub Connector 8
3.2 Cabling 10
3.2.1 Termination 10
3.2.2 Example of a Connection 10
3.2.3 Maximum Bus Length 11
4 Software and API 12
4.1 Monitor Software PCAN-View 12
4.1.1 Receive/Transmit Tab 14
4.1.2 Trace Tab 16
4.1.3 PCAN-miniPCIe Tab 17
4.1.4 Status Bar 17
4.2 Linking Own Programs with PCAN-Basic 18
4.2.1 Features of PCAN-Basic 19
4.2.2 Principle Description of the API 20
4.2.3 Notes about the License 21
5 Technical Specifications 22
Appendix A CE Certificate 24
Appendix B Dimension Drawing 25
Appendix C Quick Reference 26

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1 Introduction
The PCAN-miniPCIe card enables the connection of embedded PCs
and laptops with PCI Express Mini slots to CAN networks. There is
galvanic isolation of up to 300 Volts between the computer and CAN
sides. The card is available as a single or dual channel version.
The package is also supplied with the CAN monitor PCAN-View for
Windows and the programming interface PCAN-Basic.
Device drivers exist for different operating systems, so programs
can easily access a connected CAN bus.
Tip: At the end of this manual (Appendix C) you can find a
Quick Reference with brief information about the installation
and operation of the PCAN-miniPCIe card.
1.1 Properties at a Glance
CAN interface for the PCI Express Mini slot (uses PCIe lane)
1 or 2 High-speed CAN channels (ISO 11989-2)
CAN bus connection via connection cable and D-Sub, 9-pin
(in accordance with CiA® 303-1)
Bit rates from 5 kbit/s up to 1 Mbit/s
Compliant with CAN specifications 2.0A (11-bit ID)
and 2.0B (29-bit ID)
FPGA implementation of the CAN controller
(SJA1000 compatible)
NXP PCA82C251 CAN transceiver

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Galvanic isolation on the CAN connection up to 300 V, separate
for each CAN channel
Space-saving dimensions thanks to SMD technology
Extended operating temperature range of -40 to 85 °C
(-40 to 185 °F)
Note: This manual describes the use of the PCAN-miniPCIe card
with Windows. You can find device drivers for Linux and the
corresponding application information on the provided DVD in
the Develop directory branch and on our website under
www.peak-system.com/linux.
1.2 System Requirements
A vacant PCI Express Mini slot in the computer (specification 1.x)
Operating system Windows 10, 8.1, 7 (32/64-bit)
or Linux (32/64-bit)
1.3 Scope of Supply
Plug-in card PCAN-miniPCIe
Connection cable including D-Sub plug for each channel
Device drivers for Windows 10, 8.1, 7 and Linux (32/64-bit)
CAN monitor PCAN-View for Windows
Programming interface PCAN-Basic for developing applications
with CAN connection
Programming interfaces for standardized protocols from the
automotive sector
Manual in PDF format

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2 Installing the Software and
the Card
This chapter covers the software setup for the PCAN-miniPCIe card
in Windows and the installation of the card in the computer.
Setup the driver before installing the PCAN-miniPCIe card.
Do the following to install the driver:
1. Start Intro.exe from the supplied DVD.
The navigation program starts.
2. In the main menu, select Drivers and click on Install now.
3. Confirm the message of the User Account Control related to
"Installer database of PEAK Drivers".
The driver setup starts.
4. Follow the program instructions.
Do the following to install the card:
Attention! Electrostatic discharge (ESD) can damage or destroy
components on the card. Take precautions to avoid ESD.
1. Shut down the computer.
2. Disconnect the computer’s power supply.
3. Open the computer case.
4. Insert the PCAN-miniPCIe card into an empty PCI Express
Mini slot.
5. For each CAN channel, mount a D-Sub connector with
connection circuit board into a respective hole of the
computer casing.

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6. For each CAN channel interconnect a D-Sub connector and
the corresponding port on the PCAN-miniPCIe card.
7. Close the computer case.
8. Reconnect the power supply of the computer.
9. Turn on the computer and start Windows.
Windows detects the new hardware and completes the driver
installation.
Do the following to check the operational readiness:
1. Open the Windows Start menu.
2. Type peakcpl and press Enter .
The information window for PEAK hardware appears. The plug-in
card must be displayed in the table on the CAN Hardware tab.

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3 Connecting the CAN Bus
3.1 Connection over D-Sub Connector
A High-speed CAN bus (ISO 11898-2) is connected to the 9-pin
D-Sub connector. The pin assignment for CAN corresponds to the
specification CiA® 303-1.
Figure 1: Positions of the CAN ports on the PCAN-miniPCIe card
Figure 2: Pin assignment High-speed CAN
(view onto a D-Sub connector)
CAN 1
CAN 2

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Figure 3: PCAN-miniPCIe card with connection cables
To connect a CAN bus to the PCAN-miniPCIe card, use the supplied
special connection cables. After you've plugged in the cable on the
card, you can connect a CAN bus to the D-sub socket.
The pin assignment between the D-Sub port and the 4-pin
connector1on the PCAN-miniPCIe card is as follows:
Figure 4: Front view of a CAN connector (SUR)
on the PCAN-miniPCIe card (CAN 1, CAN 2)
Pin SUR Function Pin D-Sub
1 Not used 1
2 GND 3, 6
3 CAN_H 7
4 CAN_L 2
1Connector type SUR from JST (www.jst-mfg.com),
name of the matching plug: 04SUR-32S

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3.2 Cabling
3.2.1 Termination
A High-speed CAN bus (ISO 11898-2) must be terminated at both
ends with 120 Ohms. Otherwise, there are interfering signal reflec-
tions and the transceivers of the connected CAN nodes (CAN
interface, control unit) do not work.
The PCAN-miniPCIe card does not have an internal termination. Use
the adapter on a terminated CAN bus.
3.2.2 Example of a Connection
Figure 5: Simple CAN connection
This example shows a connection between the PCAN-miniPCIe card
and a control unit. The connection cable is terminated with 120
ohms at both ends.

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3.2.3 Maximum Bus Length
High-speed CAN networks have bit rates up to 1 Mbit/s. The
maximum bus length primarily depends on the bit rate.
The following table shows different maximum possible CAN bus
length with different bit rates:
Bit rate Bus length
1 Mbit/s 40 m
500 kbit/s 110 m
250 kbit/s 240 m
125 kbit/s 500 m
50 kbit/s 1.3 km
20 kbit/s 3.3 km
10 kbit/s 6.6 km
5 kbit/s 13.0 km
The listed values have been calculated on the basis of an idealized
system and can differ from reality.

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4 Software and API
This chapter covers the provided software PCAN-View and the
programming interface PCAN-Basic.
4.1 Monitor Software PCAN-View
PCAN-View is simple Windows software for viewing, transmitting,
and logging CAN and CAN FD messages.
Note: This chapter describes the use of PCAN-View with a CAN
adapter.
Figure 6: PCAN-View for Windows
Do the following to start and initialize PCAN-View:

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1. Open the Windows Start menu and select PCAN-View.
The Connect dialog box appears.
Figure 7: Selection of the specific hardware and parameters
2. Select an interface from the list.
3. From the drop-down list, select the Bit rate that is used by
all nodes on the CAN bus.
Tip: Create custom bit rates by using the arrow button ().
4. Under Filter settings you can limit the range of CAN IDs to
be received, either for standard frames (11-bit IDs) or for
extended frames (29-bit IDs).
5. Activate the Listen-only mode if you do not actively
participate in the CAN traffic and just want to observe. This
also avoids an unintended disruption of an unknown CAN
environment (e.g. due to different bit rates).
6. Confirm the settings in the dialog box with OK. The main
window of PCAN-View appears (see Figure 8).

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4.1.1 Receive/Transmit Tab
Figure 8: Receive/Transmit tab
The Receive/Transmit tab is the main element of PCAN-View. It
contains two lists, one for received messages and one for the
transmit messages. The CAN data format is hexadecimal by default.
Do the following to transmit a CAN message with PCAN-View:
1. Select the menu command Transmit > New Message
(alternatively or Ins ).
The New Transmit Message dialog box appears.
Figure 9: Dialog box New transmit message

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2. Enter the ID, the data Length, and the CAN message Data.
Note: With the program version 4 of PCAN-View, the DLC field
was renamed to Length. Latter reflects the actual data length.
3. Enter a value into the Cycle Time field to choose manually
or periodically message transmission. Enter a value greater
than 0 to transmit periodically. Enter the value 0 to transmit
only manually.
4. Confirm the entries with OK.
The created transmit message appears on the
Receive/Transmit tab.
5. Trigger selected transmit messages manually with the menu
command Transmit > Send (alternatively Space bar). The
manual transmission for CAN messages being transmitted
periodically is carried out additionally.
Tip: Under the menu command File > Save, you can save the
current transmit messages into a transmit list. Saved transmit
lists are available for reuse.

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4.1.2 Trace Tab
Figure 10: Trace tab
On the Trace tab, the data tracer (data logger) of PCAN-View is used
for logging the communication on a CAN bus. During this process
the messages are cached in the working memory of the PC.
Afterwards they can be saved to a file.
The Tracer runs either in linear or in ring buffer mode. The linear
buffer mode stops the Tracer as soon as the buffer is full. The ring
buffer mode overwrites the oldest messages by new ones as soon
as the buffer is full.

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4.1.3 PCAN-miniPCIe Tab
Figure 11: PCAN-PCI tab (example)
The PCAN-miniPCIe tab contains some detailed information about
the hardware and driver.
4.1.4 Status Bar
Figure 12: Example of the status bar
The status bar shows information about the current CAN
connection, about error counters (Overruns, QXmtFull) and shows
error messages.
You can find further information about the use of PCAN-View in the
help which you can invoke in the program via the Help menu or
with the F1 key.

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4.2 Linking Own Programs with PCAN-Basic
Figure 13: PCAN-Basic
On the provided DVD, you can find files of the PCAN-Basic
programming interface in the directory branch Develop. This API
provides basic functions for linking own programs to CAN and CAN
FD interfaces by PEAK-System and can be used for the following
operating systems:
Windows 10, 8.1, 7 (32/64-bit)
Windows CE 6.x (x86/ARMv4)
Linux (32/64-bit)

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The API is designed for cross-platform use. Therefore, software
projects can easily ported between platforms with low efforts. For
all common programming languages examples are available.
Beginning with version 4, PCAN-Basic supports the new CAN FD
standard (CAN with Flexible Data Rate) which is primarily
characterized by higher bandwidth for data transfer.
4.2.1 Features of PCAN-Basic
API for developing applications with CAN and CAN FD
connection
Access to the CAN channels of a PCAN-Gateway via the new
PCAN-LAN device type
Supports the operating systems Windows 10, 8.1, 7 (32/64-bit),
Windows CE 6.x, and Linux (32/64-bit)
Multiple PEAK-System applications and your own can be
operated on a physical channel at the same time
Use of a single DLL for all supported hardware types
Use of up to 16 channels for each hardware unit (depending on
the PEAK CAN interface used)
Simple switching between channels of a PEAK CAN interface
Driver-internal buffer for 32,768 messages per CAN channel
Precision of time stamps on received messages up to 1 μs
(depending on the PEAK CAN interface used)
Supports PEAK-System‘s trace formats version 1.1 and 2.0 (for
CAN FD applications)
Access to specific hardware parameters, such as listen-only
mode
Notification of the application through Windows events when a
message is received

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Extended system for debugging operations
Multilingual debugging output
Output language depends on operating system
Debugging information can be defined individually
Thread-safe AP
Tip: An overview of the API functions is located in the header
files. You can find detailed information about the PCAN-Basic
API on the provided DVD in the text and help files (file name
extensions .txt and .chm).
4.2.2 Principle Description of the API
The PCAN-Basic API is the interface between the user application
and device driver. In Windows operating systems this is a DLL
(Dynamic Link Library).
The sequence of accessing the CAN interface is divided into three
phases:
1. Initialization
2. Interaction
3. Completion
Initialization
A channel must be initialized before using it. This is done by the
simple call of the function CAN_Initialize for CAN and
CAN_InitializeFD for CAN FD. After a successful initialization the
CAN channel is ready. No further configuration steps are required.
Interaction
For receiving and transmitting messages the functions CAN_Read and
CAN_Write as well as CAN_ReadFD and CAN_WriteFD are available.