Fieldbus Solutions

More Information about Fieldbus Solutions

Controller Area Network (CAN) is a fast serial bus that is designed to provide a reliable and efficient link between actuators and sensors. CAN uses a twisted pair cable to communicate with up to 40 devices. It provides standardized communication objects for service data, process data, network management, emergency messages and synchronization. The CAN bus is primarily used in embedded systems because it provides fast, real-time communication between microcontrollers. 

Serial Communication Basics

Serial communication sends data sequentially over a computer bus or communication cable one bit at a time. Parallel communication sends data simultaneously over multiple communication lines in a single bus or cable multiple bits at a time. While it may seem that parallel communication would be the preferred method, this is not always the case. Because of the increased complexity of data transmission in parallel communication, serial communication can provide faster speeds. The speed of serial communication can be altered by adjusting the BOD rate, which increases the number of the bits transmitted per second. 

Two of the most common standards that have been created to take advantage of serial based communication in the industrial space are RS 232 and RS 485. RS 232 standard used to be very common, however it had lower transmission speeds, short maximum cable lengths and large voltage swings, making it useful only in certain situations. RS 485 is an improved standard that is still found in many applications today. It fixed many of the issues the RS 232 standard had by providing higher transmission speeds, longer cable lengths and other improvements that increased its usability and performance.