Overview
ISO 17987-4:2016 - Road vehicles - Local Interconnect Network (LIN) - Part 4: Electrical physical layer (EPL) specification 12 V/24 V - defines the electrical physical layer for LIN networks used in automotive applications. The standard specifies the single-wire, ground-referenced medium, electrical characteristics, timing and driver/receiver behaviour for 12 V and 24 V LIN systems designed for low-cost in-vehicle communication at bit rates up to 20 kbit/s. All parameters are defined for the automotive ambient temperature range from −40 °C to 125 °C.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Electrical physical layer (EPL): Defines the electrical interface fundamentals for LIN transceivers (single-wire, reference to ground).
- Voltage domains: Separate specification sets for 12 V LIN and 24 V LIN systems, covering supply voltage definitions and behaviour.
- Bit rate and timing: Support for LIN bit rates up to 20 kbit/s (also noting lower ranges such as 1 kbit/s). The standard addresses bit timing, sample windows, synchronization procedures and allowable bit-rate deviations.
- Line driver / receiver requirements: Documentation of basic driver functionality, signal specification, propagation delays, thresholds and line characteristics (bus capacitance, pull-up/pull-down behaviour).
- Robustness and fault handling: Performance in non-operational supply ranges, fault modes and requirements for ESD/EMI compliance (normative reference: IEC 61000-4-2).
- Environmental conditions: All electrical parameters referenced to automotive temperature extremes (−40 °C to 125 °C).
- Supplementary material: Informative Annex on LIN peripheral interface design considerations and references to test specification parts.
Practical applications
- Use in low-cost vehicle subsystems where deterministic, low-speed communication is sufficient - e.g., door modules, seat controls, climate control units, lighting and simple actuators.
- Provides the electrical baseline for designing LIN transceivers, ECU interfaces and wiring harness components.
- Enables interoperability between master and slave nodes in a LIN cluster and guides component selection for automotive-grade reliability.
Who should use this standard
- Automotive OEM system architects and vehicle electrical/electronic engineers
- ECU hardware designers and semiconductor companies developing LIN transceivers
- Tier-1 suppliers and wiring-harness integrators
- Test laboratories and compliance engineers performing electrical conformance and EMI/ESD testing
- Firmware teams who need to align timing and synchronization with the physical layer
Related standards
- ISO 17987 series: Part 1 (overview), Part 2 (transport protocol), Part 3 (logical protocol), Part 5 (API and node services), Part 6 (conformance tests), Part 7 (EPL test cases)
- IEC 61000-4-2 (ESD immunity testing)
Keywords: ISO 17987-4:2016, LIN electrical physical layer, LIN EPL, 12 V LIN, 24 V LIN, automotive LIN transceiver, LIN bus, in-vehicle communication, LIN standard.
Open preview (PDF)Road vehicles — Local Interconnect Network (LIN) — Part 4: Electrical physical layer (EPL) specification 12 V/24 V
