Originally developed for use as an in-vehicle network in passenger cars, nowadays Controller Area Network (CAN) is used in many other industries. This includes applications in any kind of transportation system (rail vehicle, aircraft, marine, etc.), in industrial machine control systems, in home and building automation (e.g. HVAC, elevators), in mobile machines (construction and agriculture equipment), in medical devices and laboratory automation, as well as in many other embedded and deeply embedded applications.
CAN communication protocols are based on a distributed scheme, there is no central unit, allowing a direct data transfer between any two or more CAN devices. In an automated industrial installation, CANbus is most commonly used as part of a control system connecting vital systems that may be spread throughout a facility.
A Maple Systems HMI with CANbus support, allows the operator to interact with the system. From there programmable logic controllers (PLCs) relay those commands through the CANbus interface to the sensors, actuators, motors or other mechanical systems that carry out the desired action.
Read More What is CANbus?
