CAN in Automation

What CAN in Automation does

CAN in Automation (CiA) is a nonprofit international users' and manufacturers' group established in 1992 in Nuremberg, Germany, that develops and maintains technical specifications for the Controller Area Network (CAN) protocol family and the broader CANopen ecosystem. The organization owns 60+ specification documents spanning CAN CC, CAN FD, CAN FD Light, CAN XL, CANopen CC, CANopen FD, and dozens of application profiles covering lifts (CiA 417), drives and motion control (CiA 402), special-purpose vehicle add-on devices (CiA 447), subsea instrumentation (CiA 443), photovoltaic systems (CiA 437), energy management (CiA 454), and more. Several CiA specifications have been adopted into international standards, most notably CAN XL and CAN FD Light into ISO 11898-1:2024 and ISO 11898-2:2024, and CiA 304 (CANopen Safety) into EN 50325-5.

CiA operates as a member-funded association with 722 corporate members who pay annual dues (undisclosed) and gain access to all technical documents including work drafts, working group participation, and joint marketing activities. The organization has a three-person Board (Technical Director, Business Director, Managing Director) and operates a wholly-owned commercial subsidiary, CAN in Automation GmbH (CEO: Reiner Zitzmann), which handles commercial operations. Revenue streams include membership dues, technical document sales, event and conference fees (including the biennial International CAN Conference), trade show participation (Embedded World, SPS, Innotrans, iVT Expo, EuroTier, Bauma China), testing and plugfest services, and publications (CAN Newsletter magazine, CiA Product Guides). The Managing Director, Holger Zeltwanger, also chairs CiA's Technical Committee, overseeing the development, release, and maintenance of all CiA technical documents.

Name

CAN in Automation

Legal name

CAN in Automation e. V.

Website

https://can-cia.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CAN in Automation (CiA) is a Nuremberg-based nonprofit international users' and manufacturers' group, established in 1992, that develops and maintains CAN protocol and CANopen specifications and provides events, testing, and publications services to its 722 member companies worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Nürnberg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership dues: Companies and organizations pay membership fees to join CiA and gain access to technical documents, group participation rights, the CiA intranet, and member-only services. Currently 722 members.
2. Technical document sales: CiA sells technical specifications and documents. While members have free access to technical documents including work drafts, non-members can purchase CiA publications.
3. Events and conferences: Revenue from organizing the International CAN Conference (iCC), CiA Member Days, technology days, and webinars.
4. Trade show participation and marketing: CiA generates revenue through CiA stands at trade shows, joint stands for members, and marketing opportunities including table-top exhibitions and publications.
5. Testing and plugfest services: CiA organizes interoperability plugfests (CANopen Lift, CANopen, CANopen FD, CAN FD, CAN XL) and maintains a CiA test center for conformance testing.
6. Publications: Sales of the CAN Newsletter magazine, CAN Community News, information brochures, CiA Product Guides, and CAN-related books.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

CAN in Automation (CiA) develops, publishes, and maintains the technical specifications for the CAN (Controller Area Network) protocol family, including CAN CC, CAN FD, CAN XL, CANopen CC, and CANopen FD, together with over 50 device and application profiles covering drives and motion control, lift control, special-purpose vehicles, subsea instrumentation, energy management, photovoltaic systems, and other embedded networking verticals. It provides complementary services including membership administration, technical document distribution, conformance testing and plugfests, the international CAN Conference (iCC), technology days, webinars, and standards advocacy in ISO and IEC.

Product overview

CAN in Automation (CiA) is a nonprofit international users' and manufacturers' group established in 1992 with 722 member companies. Rather than a commercial product company, CiA develops and publishes CAN-related specifications and provides services to the CAN community. The core portfolio includes CANopen specifications (CiA 301, CiA 1301), CAN XL specifications (CiA 610 series), and CAN FD specifications with SIC transceivers. CiA maintains over 50 device and application profile specifications including CiA 402 (drives/motion control), CiA 417 (lift control), CiA 447 (special-purpose vehicle add-ons), CiA 443 (subsea instrumentation), CiA 454 (energy management), and CiA 437 (photovoltaic systems). Supporting services include the CAN Newsletter magazine, international CAN Conference (iCC), technology days, webinars, test center with plugfests, and technical documents including the CiA 710 bootloader specification. The organization actively participates in international standardization, with CAN XL now integrated into ISO 11898-1:2024 and ISO 11898-2:2025.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CANopen: CANopen community and ecosystem branding
• CANopen FD
• CAN XL
• CANsec

Products and services

• CANopen Specifications (CiA 301, CiA 1301) CAN-based communication protocol specifying the application layer and communication profile for CANopen classic (CiA 301) and CANopen FD (CiA 1301), serving as the foundation for device interoperability in industrial automation. Targeted at device manufacturers, OEMs, and system integrators.
• CAN XL Specifications (CiA 610 series) Third-generation CAN data link and physical layers allowing data fields from 1 byte to 2,048 bytes per frame. The CiA 610 series specifies data link layer and physical coding sub-layer requirements for next-generation automotive and industrial networks.
• CAN FD Specifications (including CAN SIC) CAN FD (Flexible Data Rate) provides higher bit rates and larger payloads up to 64 bytes per data frame. The CAN SIC (Signal Improvement Capability) transceiver specification in CiA 601-4 improves signal quality and enables higher bit rates in CAN FD networks.
• CiA 402 - Drives and Motion Control Profile CANopen device profile standardizing functional behavior of controllers for servo drives, frequency inverters, and stepper motors, enabling interoperable motion control across vendors.
• CiA 417 - Lift Control Systems Profile CANopen application profile specifying communication interfaces for lift units, car drive controllers, door controllers, and position/load measuring units. Includes virtual device definitions and bootloader specifications enabling plug-and-play interchangeability across vendors.
• CiA 447 - Special Purpose Car Add-on Devices Profile CANopen application profile standardizing electronic interfaces for taxi, police car, emergency vehicle, and handicapped-person vehicle add-on equipment such as taximeters, roof bars, and cameras, enabling plug-and-play integration across car manufacturers.
• CiA 443 - SIIS Level-2 Devices Profile CANopen profile specifying interfaces for SIIS Level-2 subsea instrumentation devices including sensors, multi-functional meters, valves, battery management units, and voltage converters used in offshore oil rig applications.
• CiA 454 - Energy Management Systems Profile CANopen application profile specifying communication for DC power line systems, enabling energy management across sources, sinks, batteries, and converters in light electric vehicles, robots, offshore parks, and isolated farms.
• CiA 437 - Photovoltaic Systems Profile CANopen application profile specifying CANopen CC interfaces for photovoltaic control systems including inverters, solar panel tracking, temperature sensors, radiation sensors, and energy sensors.
• CiA 710 - Generic CANopen Bootloader Generic bootloader specification for CANopen CC and CANopen FD devices, enabling harmonized firmware download procedures and interoperable firmware updates across manufacturers.
• International CAN Conference (iCC) Annual international conference held in Tutzing, Germany, providing a platform for CAN experts worldwide to exchange knowledge and present technical papers on CAN developments and applications.
• CiA Test Center and Plugfests Interoperability testing events (plugfests) for CANopen, CANopen Lift, CAN FD, and CAN XL devices, plus CiA Test Center conformance testing services, verifying that member implementations comply with CiA specifications.

Quantifiable outcome

• 722 member companies worldwide (as of the latest available data)
• +2 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ISO (International Organization for Standardization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCiA actively participates in international standardization, working with ISO to integrate CiA specifications into international standards. In 2024, CAN XL (CiA 610-1) and related specifications (CAN FD Light, CAN SIC, CAN SIC XL) were integrated into ISO 11898-1:2024 and ISO 11898-2:2024. CiA technical groups contribute specifications for ISO standardization.
• IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCiA specifications have been adopted into IEC standards. CiA 402-2 is published as IEC 61800-7-201 and CiA 402-3 as IEC 61800-7-301. CANopen Safety (CiA 304) is standardized as EN 50325-5. CiA contributes to ongoing IEC standardization efforts.
• ETG (EtherCAT Technology Group)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCiA 402-4 safety functionality is based on the ETG.6100.2 Generic Safety Drive Profile from EtherCAT Technology Group, mapping it to CANopen. This enables interoperability between EtherCAT and CANopen safety systems.
• ZVEI - Zentralverband Elektrotechnik- und Elektroindustrie e. V.minorOthersCiA's general conditions for deliveries and supplies are based on the General Conditions for the supply of products and services of the electrical and electronics industry recommended by ZVEI.
• SIIS (Subsea Instrumentation Interface Standardization) GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCiA 443 (CANopen profile for SIIS Level-2 devices) was developed and is maintained in cooperation with the SIIS group for subsea instrumentation in offshore oil and gas applications.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CC-Link Partner Association (CLPA): CLPA promotes CC-Link IE and CC-Link industrial networks globally. It is a direct peer to CiA in structure (member-driven standards body), activities (specification development, conformance testing, plugfests, trade show presence), and target market (industrial automation OEMs and end users).
• IO-Link Consortium: IO-Link Consortium promotes the IO-Link point-to-point communication standard (IEC 61131-9) and integrates with CANopen via CiA 463. It is a direct peer to CiA as a member-based standards organization with device profiles, conformance testing, and global trade show activity, though it targets sensor/actuator connectivity rather than higher-level networking.
• AS-Interface (ASi) organization: The AS-Interface community promotes the ASi fieldbus for binary sensors and actuators, and connects to CANopen via CiA 446 gateway profile. It is a direct peer to CiA in organizational model (international user group with members, specifications, and certification programs) though it operates at a lower level of the network stack.
• EtherCAT Technology Group (ETG): EtherCAT Technology Group is the international standards organization for EtherCAT, an Ethernet-based industrial communication protocol. It is a direct peer to CiA as both are protocol-promoting user/manufacturer groups with membership models, plugfests, and ISO/IEC standardization activity. CiA and ETG also explicitly partner via CiA 402-4 safety profile mapping.
• ODVA: ODVA is the global trade association promoting CIP (Common Industrial Protocol) networks including EtherNet/IP and DeviceNet. It is directly comparable to CiA as a member-driven standards organization that develops device profiles, organizes plugfests, and pursues international standardization for industrial communication protocols.
• OPC Foundation: OPC Foundation develops the OPC UA industrial interoperability standard including companion specifications for various protocols. It is a direct peer to CiA in mission (industrial communication standardization, member-driven governance, global plugfest-style events), and is increasingly relevant as OPC UA over TSN competes with fieldbus protocols like CAN.
• PROFIBUS & PROFINET International (PI): PI is the international organization promoting PROFIBUS and PROFINET industrial communication protocols. It is a direct peer to CiA as both organizations develop and maintain protocol specifications, certify devices through plugfests/testing centers, and operate member-based ecosystems with regional sub-organizations.
• FieldComm Group: FieldComm Group is the standards organization for HART and FOUNDATION Fieldbus industrial communication protocols. It is a direct peer to CiA in role (protocol standards development, device certification, member-driven governance) and target market (process and industrial automation end users).

Broad incumbents

• SAE International: SAE International develops J1939, the dominant CAN-based communication standard for heavy-duty commercial vehicles. SAE is a broad incumbent peer to CiA because both maintain CAN-derived specifications and standards, although SAE operates across a much broader mobility engineering portfolio rather than specializing in CAN.

Emerging players

• SERCOS International: SERCOS International promotes the SERCOS real-time communication interface for motion control applications. It is an emerging peer to CiA in the motion control segment, where CiA 402 (drives/motion) also operates. Both organizations develop device profiles for drives, run certification programs, and compete for industrial automation mindshare.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubecan-cia.org/s/youtube
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/can-cia
• Xx.com/canopen

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about CAN in Automation