Huawei and DLR Collaboration Projects to Test 5G for Cooperative Automated Driving in Field
[Barcelona, Spain, February 25, 2017] Before the upcoming Mobile World Congress 2017, Huawei and DLR (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt) have tested 5G for cooperative automated driving in Munich. The results show the practical applicability of 5G V2X to achieve a reliable and ultra-low-latency connection between vehicles for collision avoidance. Currently, Huawei and DLR investigate the application of 5G V2X(Vehicle to Everything) for more complex cooperative maneuvers, starting with 5G-enhanced platooning.
Communication between vehicles and (road) infrastructure systems was extensively researched during the past years. State-of-the-art Vehicle-to-X (V2X) communication systems use a dedicated WLAN-based ad-hoc network called IEEE 802.11p for exchanging standardized messages. In spite of many advantages, such as short latency times, well-defined messages etc., there are additional technological solutions also supporting cooperative systems in the transportation domain based on mobile radio. This is why Huawei Technologies and Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR, German Aerospace Center) are investigating the upcoming 5th generation mobile radio system (5G) for vehicular applications.
Ensuring low-latency and highly reliable communication between vehicles is one of the intended goals of 5G. Today’s cars are equipped with a multitude of on-board sensors. However, all sensors on cars with automated driving functions today are line-of-sight sensors, which offer limited perception in blind non-line-of- sight conditions such as road intersections or sharp turns. V2X communication can offer increased environmental perception by enabling the exchange of sensor data between vehicles and infrastructure beyond line-of-sight. It can enhance the automated driving control function by enabling the cooperation among vehicles. Together with the perception and control subsystems, and other communication technologies, the 5G V2X Radio can form an integral part of the future intelligent driving system of automated vehicles.
Huawei and DLR have signed a collaboration agreement to define the requirements on the future 5G mobile radio standard for use cases and selected customer functions concerning highly automated driving (HAD) and explore the feasibility of 5G for automotive applications. The current project addresses the requirements of cooperative emergency maneuvers to increase the safety aspects of HAD. Huawei and DLR are also looking to more complex cooperative joint maneuver of vehicle platoons on highways and urban roads, for instance cooperative change in lanes and cooperative platooning with short distances to increase the efficiency of traffic and to save energy. V2X communication, independent from its technological implementation, is regarded to be an essential part of platooning functions. The use of V2X communication is not only limited to vehicle platooning scenario but also studied extensively in cooperative automated driving. DLR integrates the Huawei wireless testbed into the automated research vehicles and investigates the features of the 5G prototype beside the existing WLAN-based V2X solutions. DLR strives for a hybrid communication framework which integrates different technologies.
Several trials, where a critical traffic scenario was simulated has been performed in December 2016 on a test track in Munich (Germany). Both, cellular connection via a 5G base station (V2N) and direct communication (V2V) between cars have been tested extensively. It was shown that a reliable and ultra-low-latency connection based on 5G V2x between vehicles minimize collision probabilities.
MWC 2017 will be held between February 27 and March 2 in Barcelona, Spain. Huawei will showcase products and solutions at booth 1J50 in Fira Gran Via Hall 1, booth 3130 in Hall 3, and the Innovation City zone in Hall 4.
