A Novel Ethernet Network Layer Protocol for Automotive Network Communications

Abstract

This project investigates the possibility of replacing CAN bus with an Ethernet connection by sending CAN messages in Ethernet frames. A new protocol for Ethernet, called CANEthernet, was developed for this purpose and a corresponding Ether- Type is proposed. CANEthernet packs several CAN messages within an Ethernet frame and different design options for the protocol are discussed and compared. The new protocol can carry all types of CAN messages and does not change the contents of them. CANEthernet is evaluated by comparing it to using a regular CAN bus in regards to throughput, latency and energy efficiency. The evaluation shows that CANEthernet outperforms regular CAN in all evaluated aspects. For throughput CANEthernet can reach 9Gbps over 10Gbps Ethernet, while the fastest CAN throughput is 8Mbps. In latency, CANEthernet can transport a CAN message in 11.2 us while CAN requires 108 us for sending the same CAN message. Finally, CANEthernet uses 10.8 nJ per bit while CAN uses 153 nJ per bit.