OBDee-Wan CANobi

Open-hardware automotive bus interface for CAN FD, classic CAN, LIN, and K-line exploration.

OBDee-Wan CANobi is a Teensy 4.1 based vehicle-network tool for hackers, makers, reverse engineers, EV converters, and curious learners who want hardware they can inspect and understand.

It is designed as a practical bridge between a laptop and a vehicle or bench module: powerful enough for real CAN FD/LIN/K-line experiments, but documented as a teaching project rather than a black box.

At a glance

Area	Current R11 target
Host	Teensy 4.1
CAN FD	2 external CAN FD controller paths
Transceivers	Dual CAN FD transceivers
Other buses	LIN / K-line support path
Vehicle connection	OBD pigtail-friendly wiring, not a direct-plug dongle
Configuration	DIP-switch selectable routing options
CAD	KiCad hardware source and generated fabrication packages
Readiness	Bare-PCB prototype candidate for bench bring-up

What you can use it for

• CAN FD experimentation and learning
• Classic CAN diagnostics and reverse engineering
• LIN and K-line bench experiments
• EV conversion support tooling
• Custom diagnostic interface development
• Teaching automotive networks with inspectable hardware
• Bench testing ECUs, modules, sensors, and harness fragments

Current status: R11 prototype manufacturing candidate

R11 may be ordered as a small bare-PCB prototype batch for bench bring-up.

It is not approved for direct vehicle testing yet.

Active release package

revisions/00_WORK_R11_TRUE_DUAL_CANFD/release/R11_PROTOTYPE_MANUFACTURING_CANDIDATE_20260630/

Manufacturer upload ZIP

revisions/00_WORK_R11_TRUE_DUAL_CANFD/release/R11_PROTOTYPE_MANUFACTURING_CANDIDATE_20260630/package/JLCPCB_PCBWAY_UPLOAD_R11_MINIMAL_GERBERS_ONLY_20260630.zip

SHA256:

434dedf475bb3443f1ffa6384541426fcef9cf96a792c1744b9c1bb7ff68faa8

Verification summary

Check	Result
KiCad CLI PCB DRC	0 violations
KiCad schematic catalog ERC	0 errors / 0 warnings
Footprint errors	0
Known residual	1 GND zone-to-zone report at 1.0000 mm / 1.0000 mm
Gerber/drill export	Successful
GND continuity	Visually confirmed in KiCad after refill/highlight
BOM/CPL	PCB-derived BOM, grouped BOM, JLCPCB draft BOM/CPL included
Vehicle-use approval	Not yet; bench validation required first

The remaining GND item is a reviewed KiCad zone-report artifact for prototype PCB ordering. It is not a blanket safety approval for vehicle connection.

Safety first

Vehicle electrical systems can damage tools, modules, or the car if connected incorrectly. Treat every first assembly as experimental hardware.

Before connecting to a vehicle:

1. Inspect the bare PCB.
2. Check for rail shorts with a multimeter.
3. Assemble and test the power section first.
4. Power up from a current-limited bench supply.
5. Verify OBD/pigtail pin mapping manually.
6. Confirm DIP-switch defaults and intended routing.
7. Test CAN/LIN/K behavior on bench modules first.
8. Use fusing and current limiting for any later vehicle test.

Repository map

Path	Purpose
README_START_HERE.txt	Short navigation and safety guide
CURRENT_STATUS.md	Current revision status, ordering notes, and verification summary
revisions/00_WORK_R11_TRUE_DUAL_CANFD/	Active R11 prototype candidate source and release package
revisions/00_WORK_R11_TRUE_DUAL_CANFD/docs/R11_BOM_FROM_PCB.md	PCB-derived R11 BOM and procurement-review starting point
revisions/00_WORK_R11_TRUE_DUAL_CANFD/docs/R11_PCB_DERIVED_NETLIST.md	Pad/net evidence exported from the active PCB
LOCAL_ARCHIVE_POINTERS.md	Local-only pointers to R2-R10 evolution archives on this machine
GitHub releases / tags	Previous R10 and R9 snapshots; not duplicated in the latest working tree
LICENSE	Main hardware license: CERN-OHL-P-2.0
LICENSES/	Full license texts and license split documentation

Recommended first order

For the first prototype batch, use conservative bare-board settings:

Option	Recommendation
Quantity	5 or smallest economical batch
Layers	2
Material	FR-4
Thickness	1.6 mm
Copper	1 oz
Surface finish	Standard low-cost prototype finish is acceptable
Electrical test	Yes
Assembly	No; hand-assemble and validate first

Naming note

The project name is a small joke:

OBDee-Wan CANobi: an OBD/CAN interface that helps you feel disturbances in the bus.

License

This project is open source and open hardware.

Content	License
Hardware design files, KiCad sources, PCB/manufacturing files	CERN-OHL-P-2.0
Firmware, scripts, and software	MIT
Documentation	CC-BY-4.0

You are free to study, modify, build, remix, and share this project. Attribution is required where applicable: please credit the original project and author when reusing or publishing derivative work.

See LICENSES/README.md for the full license split and SPDX identifiers.