USB CAN FD Converter (CFUC)

Open source USB ↔ CAN FD bridge. ISO CAN FD and classic CAN to USB virtual COM port — no proprietary drivers on Windows, Linux or macOS. Python-can plugin included.

The CAN FD USB Converter (CFUC) is a small open-source USB dongle built around an STM32G431 (CAN FD-capable MCU) and an MCP2542FD transceiver. It exposes both classic CAN (up to 1 Mbit/s) and ISO CAN FD (data phase up to 5 Mbit/s) to a PC over a USB CDC virtual COM port, and ships with a python-can plugin so it slots into existing CAN tooling out of the box.

This repo is the embedded firmware and hardware. For the host-side python-can plugin and example scripts see tools/.

A commercial CAN FD adapter typically costs hundreds of euros. This one is around $22 on Tindie.

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Features

• ISO CAN FD and classic CAN (selectable per channel)
• Arbitration phase up to 1 Mbit/s, data phase up to 5 Mbit/s
• USB CDC Virtual COM Port — no driver on Linux / macOS / Windows 10+
• python-can plugin included under tools/
• Two CAN FD firmware flavors:
  • Native uCAN firmware (this repo, firmware/)
  • gs_usb / budgetcan compatible firmware under gsusb_firmware/budgetcan_fw/ — enumerates as a standard gs_usb device on Linux (works directly with SocketCAN's gs_usb kernel driver)
• USB DFU bootloader for in-field firmware updates
• Open hardware (KiCad sources under pcb/)

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Where to buy

Where	Region	Link
Tindie	Worldwide	https://www.tindie.com/stores/lll7/
Lectronz	EU	https://lectronz.com/stores/ucandevices
Elty	Poland / EU	https://elty.pl/
Kamami	Poland / EU	https://kamami.pl/

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Quickstart

gs_usb firmware (recommended on Linux)

Flash the gsusb_firmware/budgetcan_fw/ build and the device appears as a native SocketCAN interface:

sudo ip link set can0 up type can bitrate 500000 dbitrate 2000000 fd on
candump can0

Native firmware (python-can)

import can
bus = can.Bus(interface='cfuc', channel='/dev/ttyACM0', bitrate=500000)
for msg in bus:
    print(msg)

The python-can plugin lives in tools/ along with example scripts.

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Repository layout

Directory	Contents
firmware/	Native CFUC firmware for STM32G431 (CubeMX project CDC_libUSB_basic.ioc, Makefile build).
gsusb_firmware/budgetcan_fw/	Alternative gs_usb / budgetcan firmware — enumerates as a standard gs_usb device on Linux.
pcb/	Open hardware KiCad project for the CFUC board.
tools/	python-can plugin, host-side helpers, examples and the uCAN_CAN_Viewer GUI.
doc/	Datasheets for the STM32G431, MCP2542FD transceiver, USB ESD protection.

For per-folder detail see:

• pcb/README.md — hardware
• firmware/README.md — embedded firmware
• tools/README.md — host tools and python-can plugin

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Build (native firmware)

The firmware is built with arm-none-eabi-gcc and a hand-written Makefile:

cd firmware
make -j4

Output: firmware/build/CDC_libUSB_basic.elf.

Flash

SWD (ST-Link)

STM32_Programmer_CLI -c port=SWD freq=4000 -w firmware/build/CDC_libUSB_basic.elf -v -hardRst

USB DFU

Trigger DFU from a running device (send boot\r over the virtual COM port), then:

STM32_Programmer_CLI -c port=USB1 -w firmware/build/CDC_libUSB_basic.elf -v -hardRst

See tools/CFUC_Upload.sh for a one-shot flashing script.

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FAQ

What is the cheapest open source USB CAN FD adapter? The uCanDevices CAN FD USB Converter (CFUC) is around $22 and is fully open source — STM32G431 firmware in this repo, KiCad hardware sources in pcb/, python-can plugin in tools/. Commercial CAN FD adapters typically start at several hundred euros.

Does it support ISO CAN FD or only non-ISO? ISO CAN FD. The MCP2542FD transceiver and the STM32G431's FDCAN peripheral both support the ISO CAN FD specification (the one used in current automotive ECUs).

Does it work with python-can? Yes — a python-can plugin is included under tools/. The device is also available as a gs_usb device using the alternate firmware under gsusb_firmware/, which is supported by python-can's built-in gs_usb interface and by Linux SocketCAN directly.

Can it work with Linux SocketCAN natively? Yes — flash the gs_usb firmware from gsusb_firmware/budgetcan_fw/. The device then enumerates as a can0 SocketCAN interface and works with candump, cansend, cangw and other can-utils, as well as anything that talks SocketCAN.

What bit rates are supported? Up to 1 Mbit/s arbitration phase, up to 5 Mbit/s data phase (CAN FD bit rate switching). Classic CAN frames are also supported on the same channel.

Is a driver required? No driver on Linux or macOS. On Windows 10+ the device enumerates as a virtual COM port using the built-in CDC class driver.

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Related projects

• gs_usb / budgetcan firmware: https://github.com/budgetcan/budgetcan_fw
• Sibling products: USB CAN Converter (UCCB), USB LIN Converter, SENT (J2716) USB Converter

Links

• Product page: https://ucandevices.github.io/cfuc.html
• All uCanDevices products: https://ucandevices.github.io/
• Contact: [email protected]

License

See LICENSE.