So you've never heard of CAN (Control Area Networks) and don't think you'll ever need to. Well, you might be surprised to know that CAN is being used as the network for automobile building automation, industrial automation, and even some home automation. CAN is not as glamorous as its cousin the Internet, but it provides a low cost, simple, and reliable networking scheme for monitoring and control. CAN doesn't natively have access to Web services found on TCP/IP networks, but device manufacturers, such as Appliance-Lab, are providing Communication Gateways to connect the two networks and to leverage Web services onto CAN. Cybernode-CAN fills this niche by coupling integrated Web services with its CAN interface.

Cybernode-CAN links CAN and TCP/IP networks and allows remote monitoring and control of CAN devices through Web services. Cybernode-CAN is based on the Intel i386EX embedded processor and includes ruggedized and reliable hardware features, such as a battery backed real-time clock, watchdog timer, flash based storage, low power usage, and PC/104 interfaces. It comes standard with 4 MB of DRAM memory and 5 MB of flash storage. PC/104 and PCMCIA interfaces allow additional add-on peripherals, such as wireless PC cards and digital and analog data acquisition cards. The CAN connection is based on the Philips SJA1000 controller, which complies with CAN 2.0a/2.0b network standards. The CAN interface includes opto-isolation circuitry and supports baud rates up to 1 MB per second. 2 DB9 serial ports are also included.

Web services are the bread and butter of Cybernode-CAN. Cybernode-CAN contains a Web server that provides a Web-based user interface to view real-time display of data. Web page display shows device status on CAN, and a CAN terminal emulator allows access to issue commands across CAN. An Eventlog Web page displays activity across the gateway. Appliance-Lab also provides an XML interface that can schedule data transfer of CAN data to other servers or systems that need this information.

The Cybernode-CAN uses an XML-based software application framework technology for setup and configuration that automates the process of setting up services. Additionally, it preconfigures each Cybernode-CAN with the range of CAN ID's it will monitor and determines the baud rate of the CAN interface. CAN ID's are polled for data at intervals specified by the user through the XML framework. The information can be exported using XML, FTP file transfers, email alarm notification, or remote SQL to central databases, controllers, and data historians.

Cybernode-CAN management is through software called Flasher, which is included with Cybernode-CAN. Flasher provides a secure management tool to upgrade the Cybernode-CAN software and handle configuration and setup. Flasher works remotely through TCP/IP networks and locally through a console serial port.

Pricing and Availability

Cybernode-CAN is scalable, from an off the shelf version that has standard interfaces for CAN, Ethernet, and serial connections to customized modules that can be tailored to meet manufacturer specifications and cost points. Cybernode-CAN comes standard with Ethernet connectivity and has optional analog modem and wireless connections. Pricing starts at $698 for single unit purchases.

(For access to more than 4,500 other hands-on product reviews on all variety of wired and wireless appliance and consumer devices, go to the iAppliance Web Portal Page. )