PiCAN3 CAN Bus HAT for Raspberry Pi 4 with SMPS and RTC

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The PiCAN3 board transforms your Raspberry Pi 4 into a fully-fledged CAN‑Bus node, delivering industrial-grade performance with unmatched convenience. At its heart lies the Microchip MCP2515 CAN controller paired with the MCP2551 transceiver, enabling CAN 2.0B communication at speeds up to 1 Mb/s via a high-speed 10 MHz SPI interface. With both a DB9 connector and a 3‑way screw terminal for flexible bus wiring, it supports standard and extended data frames as well as remote frame transmissions.

One of its standout features is the onboard 3 A switch‑mode power supply (SMPS), which accepts input voltages ranging from 6 V to 20 V. This powerful regulator not only powers the PiCAN3 board itself, but also delivers clean 5 V power to your Raspberry Pi 4 and connected peripherals—making it ideal for automotive or industrial environments. The design includes reverse‑polarity protection and high-efficiency power conversion to ensure robust and reliable operation.

Time-critical applications benefit from the built-in PCF8523 real-time clock (RTC) with battery-backed timekeeping. Whether in mission-critical systems or field-deployed devices, it keeps accurate time across power interruptions, and features alarm and timer capabilities with interrupt output support for wake-up events.

The PiCAN3 complies with the HAT standard using four mounting holes and provides a 120 Ω termination resistor already in place. An interrupt pin on GPIO25 enables responsive CAN message handling. Alongside power and connectivity features, the board includes LED indicators for status monitoring, a solder bridge for DB9 configuration options, and footprints for serial LCDs or user buttons — all aimed at simplifying hardware integration.

Software setup is seamless: enable SPI in Raspberry Pi OS, install Copperhill’s SocketCAN driver, and the interface appears as can0. From there, developers can write CAN applications using either C or Python, with full support and examples provided.

Whether you're working in automotive diagnostics, robotics, industrial control, or remote data acquisition, the PiCAN3 board offers a compact, rugged, and developer-friendly CAN platform. With its comprehensive power management, accurate timekeeping, and software-ready architecture, it stands as a complete solution for building resilient, real-world CAN-enabled systems.

Key Features:

✅ Seamless CAN-Bus Integration – Powered by the Microchip MCP2515 CAN controller and MCP2551 CAN transceiver, ensuring high-performance data communication.
✅ Flexible Power Input – The onboard SMPS supports 6V to 20V DC input, providing efficient power for both the Raspberry Pi and PiCAN3, making it ideal for automotive and industrial use.
✅ Multiple Connection Options – Connect effortlessly via DB9 or the 3-way screw terminal for ultimate flexibility.
✅ Real-Time Clock (RTC) with Backup – The PCF8523 RTC offers precise timekeeping, battery backup switch-over, and alarm/timer functions for enhanced system reliability.
✅ Easy Software Integration – Install the SocketCAN driver with ease and start programming in C or Python for seamless development.

Whether you're building an automotive diagnostic tool, industrial monitoring system, or a CAN-Bus network project, the PiCAN3 with SMPS delivers robust performance and reliability.

Upgrade your Raspberry Pi with professional-grade CAN-Bus capabilities today!

Features

CAN 2.0B at 1 Mb/s
High speed SPI Interface (10 MHz)
Standard and extended data and remote frames
CAN Bus connection via standard 9-way sub-D connector or screw terminal
Compatible with OBDII cable
Solder bridge to set different configuration for DB9 connector.
Onboard 120 Ohm termination resistor
Serial LCD ready
LED indicator
Four fixing holes, comply with Pi Hat standard.
SocketCAN driver, appears as can0 to application.
Interrupt RX on GPIO25
5VDC@3A SMPS to power Raspberry Pi and accessories from DB9 or screw terminal

Reverse polarity protection
High efficiency switch mode design
6 VDC to 20 VDC input range

RTC with battery backup (battery not included, requires CR1225 cell)

Documentation

Development Resources incl. Sample Code

Note: The programming samples, other than those for the RTC, are identical to those of the PICAN2:

Programming the Raspberry Pi - Getting Started with Python

The Raspberry Pi is a low-cost, credit-card-sized single-board-computer that connects to a computer monitor or TV and uses a standard keyboard and mouse. It is a small but capable device that empowers people of all ages to discover computing and to learn how to develop applications in programming languages such as Scratch and Python.

Learn to create innovative programs and fun games on your powerful Raspberry Pi computer with practically no programming expertise required. This useful book has been updated to fully cover the newest Raspberry Pi, including upgrades to the Raspbian operating system.

Explore how to configure hardware and software, write Python scripts, build user-friendly GUIs, and control external electronics. DIY projects include a hangman game, RGB LED controller, digital clock, and RasPiRobot complete with an ultrasonic rangefinder.

Set up your Raspberry Pi and explore its features
Navigate files, folders, and menus
Write Python programs using the IDLE editor
Use strings, lists, functions, and dictionaries
Work with modules, classes, and methods
Create user-friendly games using Pygame
Build intuitive user interfaces with Tkinter
Attach external electronics through the GPIO port
Add powerful Web features to your projects

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Product Videos

BMW E8x K-CAN BUS to GUI development using PiCan3 and Raspberry Pi. 00:44

Development of a GUI for BMW E8x Models CAN BUS interpretation. Taking CAN BUS data in via a PiCAN3 module on my raspberry pi. Then displaying that data on a web gui front end. Eventually I would like to make a CIC retrofit to my car. Still more work to be done but this is a preview. I run the PiCAN3 in loopback mode and then send CAN data into the bus which then is picked up by my python script and interpreted.