MCHPMCP2517FD Stand-Alone CAN FD Controller

Overview

The MCP2517FD is a stand-alone CAN FD controller from Microchip that connects to a host MCU over SPI. It handles CAN FD protocol support in external hardware, making it useful when the main processor does not include a native CAN FD controller. It is commonly paired with an external CAN transceiver to build a complete CAN or CAN FD node.

Why Choose This Part

This part offloads CAN FD framing and protocol handling from the host MCU, which can simplify firmware and reduce CPU load. Its SPI host interface makes it easy to add CAN FD to designs that do not have a built-in CAN controller. For many designs, pairing it with the right transceiver gives a flexible way to choose the MCU, bus speed, and physical layer independently.

Applications

Getting Started

Typical bring-up uses a host MCU with SPI support plus a separate CAN or CAN FD transceiver. Start with a Microchip evaluation board or a custom MCU development board that has SPI and interrupt-capable GPIO, then use the Microchip CAN FD stack or your preferred embedded CAN driver. Verify oscillator, transceiver, termination, and bus timing early in hardware bring-up, since those details strongly affect CAN FD reliability.

MCP2517 Family

Also Consider

MCP2562FD MCHPMicrochip Technology - A CAN FD transceiver that pairs well with a stand-alone controller when you need the physical layer component.

TJA1051T/3 NXP Semiconductors - A common high-speed CAN transceiver alternative for designs using an external CAN controller.

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