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Know OBD2 Before You Start That Development Project

Posted by Wilfried Voss on

Teensy 4.0 OBDII CAN-Bus ECU Simulator Includes Teensy 4.0

We at Copperhill Technologies offer a variety of CAN (Controller Area Network) devices for developing automotive and industrial embedded systems. In that capacity, we receive frequent inquiries regarding OBD2 (Onboard Diagnostics). 

OBD2, or Onboard Diagnostics Second Generation, is a vehicle diagnosis system found in modern cars and trucks. The OBD2 system collects data from sensors and other monitoring devices, which are then examined by the vehicle's engine control unit (ECU) to determine whether any issues need to be addressed. Problems with the engine, gearbox, emissions system, and others, are among the most common faults that OBD2 can discover.
Source: https://www.autopi.io/blog/what-is-obd-2/

The inquiries we receive, unfortunately, also reflect some misunderstanding of OBD's purpose and functionality. To make it a point, OBD2 is a mere diagnostics system that allows you to monitor the vehicle's performance. It does not allow you to control the car stereo, windows, steering wheel, or brakes (there were multiple inquiries in that direction, ignoring the more than serious liability aspects). 

Of course, there are valid approaches to ODB2 development. Besides some unique ideas, most are about vehicle maintenance and fleet management, including telematics, vehicle performance, and predictive failure analysis. 

Furthermore, some entrepreneurs with great ideas miss the stringent hardware requirements to meet harsh environmental conditions, such as temperature and vibration. Your solution should work in Death Valley as well as Antarctica. Many of our customers use the Raspberry Pi with the PiCAN series of CAN Bus HATs for their OBD2 projects. This approach is a great starting point to prove the concept, but in the majority of cases, not recommended for mass production. Alternatively, if you deem your OBD2 project a fun hobby, you are on the right track. 

To make it a point, regardless if your OBD2 project is a mere hobby or a great business idea, you need to know OBD2. For example, OBD2 is not a mere protocol based on the CAN Bus. There are five different OBD2 protocols. They are: 

  • ISO 15765 (CAN bus): Mandatory in US cars since 2008 and is today used in the vast majority of cars 
  • ISO14230-4 (KWP2000): The Keyword Protocol 2000 was a common protocol for 2003+ cars in, e.g., Asia 
  • ISO9141-2: Used in EU, Chrysler & Asian cars in 2000-04 
  • SAE J1850 (VPW): Used mostly in older GM cars 
  • SAE J1850 (PWM): Used mostly in older Ford cars 

Source: https://www.csselectronics.com/pages/obd2-explained-simple-intro

However, since ISO 15765 (CAN Bus) has been mandatory for US cars since 2008, one can assume that OBD2 in the majority of cars in the US uses Controller Area Network. 

For more information on OBD2, see:


Teensy 4.0 OBDII CAN-Bus ECU Simulator Includes Teensy 4.0Teensy 4.0 OBDII CAN-Bus ECU Simulator Includes Teensy 4.0

This is a CAN-Bus OBDII ECU simulator using the Teensy 4.0 module (included). Useful for testing OBDII interface and writing diagnostic software. ECU PIDs parameters are adjustable via potentiometers.

This board requires a 12 VDC power supply. A 12 VDC adapter is included.

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4G Telematics Unit With OBD-II (CAN Bus) Port For Fleet Management

The TMU Pi3 telematics unit by Autopi (Denmark) utilizes the Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ SBC, and it connects to in-vehicle CAN Bus networks via the OBD2 port.The device uses the 1,4-GHz Broadcom BCM2837B0 SOC with Cortex-A53 64-bit quad-core processor, including 512-MiB SDRAM and a 32-GiB micro SD card with installed Raspbian Jessie operating system and Autopi [...]

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Multi-Functional Telematics Gateway Processes SAE J1939, ISOBUS Parameters For Predictive Maintenance

The  CANUp telematics gateway by Technoton represents a multi-functional telematics unit for use in advanced machinery telematics systems. Advanced machinery includes mobile and stationary objects, which have many operation monitoring parameters for engines, power generators, boilers, various additional equipment, and other assemblies. The core features of the CANUp telematics gateway include: Reading over 10,000 machine operation parameters, thus the [...]

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Telematics Gateway For Automatic SAE J1939 and ISOBUS Scanning and Parsing

The CANUp telematics gateway by Technoton couples the functionality of two vehicle data interfaces, a digital-to-analog converter and an online GPS tracking device. The gateway scans and automatically parses 10 000 SAE J1939/71 and ISOBUS parameters and transmits selected data to a web-based telematics server or by email/SMS to a user. It applies edge computing algorithms for onboard [...]

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Telematics Gateway Connects to Multiple SAE J1939 / ISOBUS Sensors

The CANUp telematics gateway by Technoton represents a multi-functional tool for advanced telematics systems combining data interface features, digital-to-analog converter, and online GPS/GLONASS tracker. The telematics gateway allows the easy and error-free implementation of a complex telematics system that uses many onboard smart-sensors and devices necessary for monitoring multiple control points: fuel tanks, engines, upper equipment, trailed/attached [...]

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