A customer recently asked me a seemingly simple question: “Can I use your JCOM1939 Monitor software with my existing IXXAT CAN-to-USB interface?” Although the question was specifically about SAE J1939, the underlying issue has nothing to do with J1939. It is a problem that has existed in the CAN Bus…
Posts tagged as “Copperhill Technologies”
In this post, I would like to address what is arguably the most important concept in the SAE J1939 standard: the Parameter Group Number (PGN). PGNs are the heart and soul of J1939. Every application you design, whether it transmits engine speed, requests a VIN, or reports diagnostic information, revolves…
If you are new to SAE J1939 development, you may believe that access to a truck, engine, generator, or agricultural machine is required before you can write any meaningful software. While eventually you will want to test your application on real equipment, the majority of J1939 software development can be…
If you have recently started working with SAE J1939, chances are your search history looks something like this: How do I monitor J1939 traffic? What hardware do I need for J1939 development? How do I simulate a J1939 ECU? How can I test my software without connecting to a real…
The PiCAN series from Copperhill Technologies is a line of CAN Bus interface boards (HATs) designed for the Raspberry Pi. These add-on boards are widely recognized as powerful and versatile, enabling seamless integration of the Raspberry Pi with Controller Area Network (CAN) bus systems. CAN bus is the robust vehicle…
Accessing CAN bus data has traditionally required either a diagnostic connector or a direct electrical connection to the CAN-H and CAN-L lines. This applies equally to classical CAN networks as well as higher-layer protocols such as SAE J1939, which is built on top of CAN. While effective, both approaches introduce…
A recent internal market study by Copperhill Technologies uncovered a surprising but critical shortcoming across all commercially available SAE J1939 baud rate converters: none of them explicitly address the issue of Silent or Listen-Only Mode. This omission, whether in marketing descriptions or technical documentation, can have significant implications for system…
