Welcome to the Part-1 introductory course on the basics of controller area network (CAN) technology. This course provides technical details that will help you design reliable, cost- effective distributed systems that link together a network of microcontrollers (MCUs). To get the most out of the material presented, you should be familiar with the data communication networks in general and understand the fundamentals of designing and developing embedded control systems. In this course, we will present an overview of CAN technology- what it is, why it is important, and where it is used and can be applied to good advantage. Then, we will highlight various key CAN design aspects, including the physical interface, data flow, timing issues, Physical layer, OSI model, and higher-level protocols used in CAN-based systems. At the end, we include a helpful glossary of key terms. The CAN Basics Part-2 course discusses Message Frames, bus errors and network implementation strategies. Other online CAN courses at Renesas Interactive cover the application strategies. Other online CAN peripheral built into the microcontrollers in the Renesas R8C and M16C product groups. These courses also provide additional design information for implementing CAN-based multiprocessor systems.