NI CAN Product Compatibility and Feature Table
Overview
This document compares the hardware features, software support, and toolkit compatibility for NI controller area network (CAN) PCI, PXI, USB, PCMCIA, and CompactRIO interfaces.
| Feature Support | NI-XNET PCI, PXI, and C Series CAN | NI USB-847x CAN | PXI and PCI Series 2 CAN | PCMCIA Series 2 CAN | NI 985x C Series CAN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  | |
| Hardware Features | |||||
| Electrical Isolation (500 V) | 60 | 500 | 60 | 60 | 60 |
| Hardware Timestamping (1 µs) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hardware Clock Sync | ✓ [1] | Optional (USB-8473s, USB-8472s) | ✓ | Optional (Extra Cable) | ✓ [1] |
| Device-Driven DMA | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| Front-Panel LEDs | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| External Trigger Lines | ✓ (8513, 8517) | Optional (USB-8473s, USB-8472s) | – | Optional (Extra Cable) | – |
| Hardware-Accelerated Periodic CAN Frames | 192/port | – | 49/module | 49/module | Varies |
| Firmware Field Updates | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | n/a |
| Transceivers | TJA1041, TJA1054A, AU5790 | TJA1041, TJA1054A | TJA1041, TJA1054A, AU5790 | TJA1041, TJA1054A | TJA1041, TJA1054A |
| CAN Controller | D_CAN | SJA1000 | SJA1000 | SJA1000 | SJA1000 |
| Primary Driver | |||||
| NI-XNET | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| NI-CAN | – | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| LabVIEW FPGA | – | – | – | – | ✓ |
| Driver Feature Support | |||||
| NI-CAN Bus Monitor Utility | – | ✓ | ✓ | – | – |
| NI-CAN Test Panels | ✓[2] | – | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| NI-XNET Database Editor | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| NI-XNET Bus Monitor | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| LabVIEW Project Integration | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| API Support | |||||
| NI-XNET API (Frame/Signal) | ✓ | – | – | – | – |
| NI-CAN Frame API | ✓[2] | Partial (KB kA00Z000000kIMHSA2) | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| NI-CAN Channel API | ✓[2] | Add-On (KB kA00Z0000004AgKSAU) | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| FPGA Elemental I/O | – | – | – | – | ✓ |
| OS Support | |||||
| Windows Vista/XP/2000 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| Windows 7 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| Windows 8 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | – |
| LabVIEW Real-Time (PharLap: PXI, cRIO-900x, cRIO-908x) | ✓ | – | ✓ | – | ✓ |
| LabVIEW Real-Time (VxWorks: cRIO-901x, cRIO-907x) | ✓ (NI 986x supported in cRIO-901x and cRIO-902x) | – | – | – | ✓ |
| LabVIEW Real-Time (Linux RT: cRIO-9068) | ✓ | – | – | – | ✓ |
| Toolkits and Libraries | |||||
| CANopen Library | ✓[2] | Limited (Example) | ✓ | ✓ | Limited |
| ECU Measurement and Calibration Toolkit | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Limited |
| Automotive Diagnostic Command Set | ✓[2] | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | – |
[1]NI 985x C Series CAN modules automatically sync to all NI CompactRIO modules on the backplane with a shared timebase. The NI 986x C Series CAN modules automatically sync to NI CompactRIO and NI CompactDAQ modules with a shared timebase from the backplane. External sync requires a digital module.
[2]NI-XNET devices are backward compatible with existing NI-CAN Channel and Frame API code and NI toolkits with the NI-XNET Compatibility Library. Learn more about the compatibility library.
Additional Resources
Product Documentation: Preventing Software Compatibility Issues for CompactRIO Systems