At CES 2017, AUDI, Ericsson, Qualcomm, SWARCO Traffic Systems and the University of Kaiserslautern, announced the formation of Connected Vehicle to Everything of Tomorrow (ConVeX) – a consortium set up to carry out the first announced Cellular-V2X (C-V2X) trial based upon the 3rd Generation Partnership Project's (3GPP) Release 14, which includes Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communication.
The trial efforts are expected to focus on Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V), Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) and Vehicle-to-Pedestrian (V2P) direct communication, as well as Vehicle-to-Network (V2N) wide area communications. According to the announcement, ConVeX will be executed by a cross-industry consortium that brings diverse expertise to the trial, and it will be co-funded by the participating organizations and the German Federal Ministry of Transportation and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI).
The stated goal of the trial is to demonstrate the benefits of using a unified C-V2X connectivity platform, as defined by 3GPP Release 14, for connected vehicles and to showcase C-V2X range, reliability and latency advantage for real-time V2X communications. In addition, the trial will help support traffic flow optimization, improve safety and pave the path to automated driving. ConVeX plans to use the results of the trial to inform regulators, provide important inputs to ongoing global standardization work and shape a path for further development and future evolution of V2X cellular technology, with a focus on 5G New Radio (NR), a new standard for 5G being defined in 3GPP.
“Digitization will redefine the properties of the car. Connectivity and autonomous driving are two megatrends to shape tomorrow's vehicles, but this transformation will go further. Data, cloud technology and new business models will be the major drivers of innovation and create an ecosystem around our core product,” said Alfons Pfaller, Head of Infotainment Development, AUDI AG. “Therefore the key to success is cross-industry collaboration – and so we are very happy to work together in the ConVeX consortium on new solutions for our customers.”
During the trial, ConVeX hopes to establish a field test environment and conduct field tests to determine compelling C-V2X benefits by utilizing V2V/V2I/V2P direct communications with 4G/5G LTE-based vehicle-to-network (V2N) technology, evaluating radio communications, performance and user experience under real traffic conditions while leveraging upper layer stacks developed by the automotive industry in ETSI-ITS. C-V2X Direct Communications operating on 5.9GHz ITS spectrum are then expected to be integrated into an Ericsson 5G test network covering highways, roads and cities in Germany.
“Connected vehicles require global connectivity solutions with scalable, flexible, secure and future-proof solutions. With the announcement of ConVeX consortia to carry out a Cellular-V2X trial in Germany together with our partners, we are taking the next step in creating an ecosystem for connected vehicles,” said Ulf Ewaldsson, SVP and CTO, Ericsson. “Achieving the full potential of connected vehicles becomes easier for vehicle manufacturers and fleet operators who partner with Ericsson to enable value-added services while providing robust global vehicle connectivity.”
Edited by
Alicia Young
