ESP32 Forum

By the way, the original patents of the Classical CAN protocol ran out in May 2016. This means that everyone can now implement the Classical CAN protocol royalty free, but implementation patents might still exist. The CAN FD protocol is still patent-protected.

snahmad75 wrote: ↑

Fri May 31, 2019 1:55 pm

Can some one answer from Espressif. we need to ship our product.

Hi,

Can you confirm Is CAN driver is free to use in commercial products. But If we need to buy license.
How and where we can buy license. Our number of devices will be about 2500

Thanks,
Naeem

electrobabble wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 12, 2018 8:45 pm

Latest release of IDF contains this License notice:
Warning

Please note that the ESP32 includes a CAN peripheral. The CAN Protocol is protected by the intellectual property rights of Robert Bosch GmbH. Therefore a license is required for any implementation of the CAN Protocol (see CAN Protocol License Conditions). Since the selling price of the ESP32 includes no such royalty fee, Espressif hereby disclaims any liability or obligation regarding the CAN Protocol license. Users of the CAN Protocol via the ESP32's CAN peripheral should contact Robert Bosch GmbH directly for the necessary license.

Has anyone implemented CAN interface on a commercial design and if so, how have you dealt with the licensing issue?

snahmad75 wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 05, 2019 12:44 pm

I got reply from Espressif Systems sales team.

No license need for CAN driver. It is free.

The CAN FD Protocol is developed by Robert Bosch GmbH and is patented. In addition to the CAN IP modules offered by Bosch, a CAN FD Protocol License is required. The CAN FD Protocol License is also required for self-developed CAN modules or for CAN modules purchased from other vendors.