TÜV certifies CANopen safety chip

TÜV Rhineland has certified a CANopen safety chip for applications up to SIL (safety integrity level) 3, according to IEC 61508, and SK4, according to EN 954-1.

The chip, developed by a consortium, is based on a 16-bit microcontroller with two independent CAN modules that are used to achieve redundancy.

"The CANopen Safety Chip is a true single-processor solution," says Holger Zeltwanger, chief executive of CAN in Automation (CiA). "It is ideally suited for simple sensors and actuators, but can also be used for security-relevant communications processors in complex devices."

CiA is distributing the chip, as well as a starter kit that includes safety-relevant sensor and actuator boards, both containing the chip.