Targeting Robotics, TI Claims First Commercial CAN XL Transceiver

Texas Instruments has introduced the TCAN6062, which the company says is the first commercially available CAN XL transceiver. Designed for industrial robots, humanoid robots, HMI systems and other data-heavy applications, the device supports signaling rates up to 20 Mbps and CAN XL payloads as large as 2,048 bytes.

The new TCAN6062 CAN XL transceiver is well suited for industrial and robotic network designs.

The TCAN6062 gives engineers a way to increase CAN network bandwidth without giving up the priority-based communication and compatibility that have made CAN common in industrial systems. The transceiver meets ISO 11898-2:2024 Annex A requirements and supports CAN, CAN FD, CAN FD SIC, and CAN XL operation, providing a migration path for systems that need more bandwidth but do not necessarily require a move to Ethernet.

More Bandwidth Without Leaving CAN

CAN XL has been standardized for several years, but the arrival of commercially available transceiver hardware makes it practical for engineers to begin implementing the protocol in production designs. Compared with the 64-byte maximum payload of CAN FD, CAN XL supports up to 2,048 bytes per frame, allowing up to 32 times more data to be carried in a single frame.

The protocol maintains a CAN-style arbitration phase at speeds up to 1 Mbps before switching to a FAST data phase that can operate at up to 20 Mbps. This allows higher-priority messages to continue winning bus access while larger blocks of sensor, diagnostic, and control data can move across the network at much higher speeds.

Shown here is where future humanoid architectures can benefit from CAN XL, as it provides a higher-bandwidth communication option for sensor, actuator, and control links.

That combination is useful in equipment such as humanoid and industrial robots, where the same system may need to move motion-control commands, sensor information and diagnostic data while maintaining predictable timing. CAN XL can also support TCP/IP tunneling, giving designers another option for moving Ethernet-based data across mixed network architectures.

TCAN6062 Adds SIC and FAST Modes

The TCAN6062 supports signaling rates up to 8 Mbps in SIC mode and 20 Mbps in FAST mode. In SIC operation, the transceiver actively reduces ringing at the dominant-to-recessive transition, which improves signal quality in multidrop networks with more complicated wiring. TI says its signal improvement capability can reduce ringing by as much as 80%.

For CAN XL traffic, FAST TX uses an H-bridge architecture to actively drive the bus, while FAST RX uses a high-speed comparator to detect traffic at up to 20 Mbps. CAN XL combines the SIC-based arbitration phase with the FAST TX and FAST RX architecture during the higher-speed data phase.

The TCAN6062 connects a CAN XL or CAN FD controller to the CAN bus while supporting multiple controller logic voltages.

The faster interface does not remove the need to consider EMC and signal integrity. TI's CAN XL architecture is designed to reduce reflections and improve signal symmetry, helping control ringing and radiated emissions as network speeds increase. TI reports that its CAN SIC XL implementation produced conducted-emissions performance similar to legacy CAN and CAN FD during testing to IEC TS 62228-3. More information can be found in the TCAN6062 data sheet.

Designed for an Easier CAN XL Transition

The TCAN6062 is able to support mixed networks with CAN FD and CAN SIC (Signal Improvement Capable), while CAN XL keeps the familiar CAN arbitration approach. The transceiver is also pin-compatible with existing CAN FD and CAN SIC devices, which can reduce the amount of board-level redesign needed when moving to CAN XL. For more information check out TI’s application note Extending CAN Performance: CAN FD, CAN SIC, and CAN XL.

CAN XL combines SIC operation with FAST transmit and receive modes to support data rates up to 20 Mbps.

The VIO supply supports logic levels from 1.71 V to 5.5 V, so the device can connect to a wide range of controllers. It also includes low-power standby with remote wake-up, ±58 V bus-fault protection, IEC ESD protection, undervoltage detection, thermal shutdown, and transmit-dominant timeout protection. Package options include an eight-pin SOIC and a 3 × 3 mm VSON, with wettable flanks on the VSON version to help with automated optical inspection during manufacturing.

Bringing CAN XL Into Production

The TCAN6062 brings CAN XL into commercially available hardware, giving engineers a way to increase network bandwidth without moving away from the CAN architecture already used in many industrial systems. The TCAN6063 supports data rates of up to 20 Mbps and payloads up to 2,048 bytes while maintaining priority-based arbitration and compatibility with CAN FD and CAN SIC networks.

For industrial and robotic systems that have outgrown CAN FD but do not require Ethernet throughout the machine, the TCAN6062 provides a practical middle ground. Its CAN FD and CAN-SIC compatibility, signal improvement capability, broad logic-level support, and integrated protection also give engineers a way to increase network performance without completely rebuilding the existing CAN architecture.

All images used courtesy of Texas Instruments.