CAN bus diagnostic software for Windows

A CAN bus monitor that names the problem

Trace is the frame list. It is the place to see identifiers, data, and timing when a signal graph is not enough. The PDO monitor is narrower: it shows process data, not every frame.

Network Diagnostics writes findings. Each finding names the node and a next step. That is the difference between a raw trace and a diagnostic screen. The software does not claim to repair the node. It tells you which node to look at and what to check.

Bus Health is the summary. Bus utilization splits the load into PDO, SDO, EMCY, and heartbeat. A bus that looks “busy” in one counter is easier to read when those four buckets are separate.

Heartbeat, scan, and EDS match

The heartbeat monitor watches node heartbeats. A missing heartbeat is visible there and can be produced on purpose with fault injection when you are testing the reaction of another device.

Network Explorer scans the bus. For each node it can show vendor, product, heartbeat, and whether the node matches a loaded EDS file. The vendor and product lines are whatever the node reports.

These screens are the CANopen network diagnostics path. They use the same project as the Object Dictionary. You do not export a log to a second application to see heartbeat and utilization.

Analyzer workflow on Virtual CAN or hardware

Connect to Virtual CAN to inspect a simulation with no adapter, or to a compatible USB-CAN adapter for a real bus. The current release is Classical CAN. CAN FD is not in this release.

Open Trace while the generators run if you need the frames. Open Live Graphs if you need values over time. Open bus utilization if you need the mix. Open Network Diagnostics if you want a finding instead of a raw list.

The Start page is not the monitor. It opens the project, the connection, the file import, and the other tools. Go to Trace, PDO monitor, graphs, or diagnostics for live data.

What this analyzer is, and is not

It is a Windows CAN bus analyzer and monitor for Classical CAN, with CANopen® services in the same application. Light is $800 once. Professional is $1,400 once. The trial is 28 days and needs internet for the session.

It is not a laboratory test bench. CiA has not assessed it. Findings are engineering hints tied to a node. They are not a certificate.

Pair this page with the simulator page if you are generating the traffic yourself, or with the feature list for the full checklist.

How to read a finding

Start with the node named in the finding, then the next step it gives. Open the heartbeat monitor when the next step is a missing heartbeat. Open Trace when the next step is a frame you have not identified. Open the SDO client when the next step is a single object. Open the PDO monitor when the next step is process data. The finding is a pointer. The other screens are where you look.

Bus utilization is the context. A high PDO share means process data dominates. A high SDO share means something is still doing parameter access. EMCY and heartbeat have their own shares, so a burst of emergencies is not hidden inside one bus-load number.

Fault injection belongs on Virtual CAN or on a bench you control. Use it to confirm that a missing heartbeat produces the finding you expect, then clear the fault and confirm the finding clears. That is a diagnostic check. This software does not issue a test certificate. After the check, leave fault injection off and confirm Bus Health no longer lists the fault you injected. Save the project so the next session opens on the same connection, the same EDS, and the same graphs. If a second person needs the same view, export the DCF and send the project, not a screenshot of Trace. The next reader can import the file, connect, and see the same object names. That handoff is the practical end of a diagnostic session.

Questions engineers ask