CANopen and the Internet of Things

This is the aim: accessing objects via the Internet. This could mean accessing information to see an object’s status or giving commands to change the status.

But if you want to access devices in a CANopen network system it is necessary to know the address of the network and the device. To clear this hurdle, the CANopen SIG (Special Interest Group) “Internet of Things” is specifying a method for functional addressing. The working group, which was founded in June, wants to establish a CANopen framework, which will enable CANopen devices to access any function available in a network. The user doesn’t need to know the network or device address. “With a CANopen device that offers a WLAN or Bluetooth interface, it is for example possible to open or close the kitchen blinds with a smartphone or a tablet,” explained Holger Zeltwanger from CAN in Automation. “This is of course also possible via the Internet.”