Connected cars can exchange safety critical information.
Discover how C-V2X can help drivers to react in time and reduce the risk of accidents.

5GAA has proudly partnered with ETSI for their first C-V2X Plugtests^TM. The testing, that took place from December 2^nd to 6^th at the Malaga premises of the 5GAA Member DEKRA, has been concluded with a success rate of more than 95% of the executed tests, showing an extremely positive level of multi-vendor interoperability.

The event

The event demonstrated a high-level of interoperability across all participating companies employing 320 C-ITS test-cases, where devices were successfully communicating with each other directly and without network connectivity based on ETSI TC ITS and 3GPP standards, in both lab and field environments. In addition to the existing ITS upper layer interoperability test specifications from ETSI, participating companies conducted also the recently adopted 5GAA cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) IoT test specification for mode 4 operation over the PC5 direct communication access layer interface.

The positive results showed the industry’s maturity to support the commercial deployment of C-V2X solutions throughout the world, with both infrastructure and onboard units.

“Testing European LTE-V2X radios with ETSI was an important milestone on our global strategy to accelerate C-V2X time-to-market and finally deploy C-V2X on the European roads” commented 5GAA CTO Maxime Flament.

Plugtests™ represent a fundamental tool to allow vendors to evaluate the interoperability of their systems, strengthening cross-industry cooperation and the entire C-V2X ecosystem. Moreover, this event was a further milestone in the cooperation between 5GAA and DEKRA, a leader in automotive safety testing, that already had the chance to collaborate during a previous Plugfest in April 2019.

The week was viewed as very successful by participants (65% of them were 5GAA members), as it brought together roughly 70 C-ITS experts for testing and to validate that C-V2X products are both mature and commercially available today for the cooperative, connected and automated mobility ecosystem.

At the end of the event, Bob Banks, 5GAA WG3 Chair (Vodafone Group), declared “The results clearly show the maturity of not only the C-V2X technology but also the products from different vendors as crucial and available enablers for connected and safer mobility”.

“I’m glad we could successfully demonstrate again that C-V2X is working as expected and that so many companies are ready for deployment in Europe” stated Ralf Weber, 5GAA WG3 Vice Chair (Qualcomm).

The Workshop

During the event, 5GAA also organised a joint workshop on December 4^th, on the latest developments related C-V2X Interoperability and Deployment. Standards experts from 3GPP and ETSI TC ITS offered thorough presentations on the ongoing developments related to standards that are already supporting the deployment of C-V2X. Subsequently, speakers from the European Commission, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Global Certification Forum (GCF) presented updates on ITS and how C-V2X can favour its deployment.

Discover more on Mobile Edge Computing and safety via ultrafast information exchange in the video below.

Discover more on Mobile Edge Computing and safety via ultrafast information exchange in the video below.

Turin, 14 November 2019 – Smart mobility technology is a reality today, with ‘Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything’ (C-V2X) allowing connected vehicles to communicate with the cloud, directly with each other and their surroundings. Deployment plans are primarily sustained by the global trend in the automotive industry to adopt 4G LTE cellular technology, followed by the emerging 5G high-speed low latency communications. Beyond infotainment, C-V2X will capitalize on vehicular and smartphone connectivity to contribute to better safety, less congestion and reduced emissions. 

During a live demo event in Turin, the 5G Automotive Association (5GAA) showcased ready to deploy use cases in the streets of the city and a sneak preview of what the future has in store on the renowned Lingotto rooftop test track.  

Prominent members and partners of the 5GAA including Audi, Continental, Ericsson, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Harman Samsung, Marelli, Pirelli, Qualcomm, TIM and Vodafone demonstrated the current state of C-V2X and the road to future, Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V), Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I), and Vehicle-to-Network (V2N) applications based on 4G LTE and 5G. 

“Connected mobility is a market reality.” says 5GAA Chief Technology Officer, Dr. Maxime Flament. “The use cases demonstrated in the streets of Turin are planned for deployment with a huge industry momentum based on the evolution path to 5G capabilities.”  

Using both direct short-range communications and mobile networks, the open-road demonstrations showcased the extensive capabilities of today’s C-V2X technology, ready for deployment. To name a few: 

• Protecting vulnerable road users, for instance, by alerting drivers about a pedestrian at a crossing using LTE-connected infrastructure. 
• Smoothing traffic by allowing public authorities and road operators to provide real-time warnings to drivers in urban environments concerning roadworks or speed limits, via the network. 
• Preventing incidents at dangerous intersections or in the event of unexpected braking, thanks to C-V2X direct-short range communications between vehicles. 

The track demonstrations at Lingotto underlined the enhanced safety benefits that can be expected thanks to the versatility of 5G and the wide range of services it enables. To name a few: 

• Vehicles will geo-tag dangerous areas for the following cars or provide ‘see-through’ functions to avoid dangerous overtaking. 
• Pedestrians will be detected directly via their smartphones and surrounding vehicles will be warned. 
• In case of accidents, emergency services will be able to visualize the situation live using on-board cameras of surrounding vehicles, improving response times and providing emergency responders situational awareness prior to arriving at the crash scene. 

Furthermore, Intel showcased an “In Vehicle Entertainment” demo at the Museum, in collaboration with Marelli, TerraNet and Equinix, showing how Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) can support immersive high-definition (HD) entertainment for all occupants of a moving vehicle, including video streaming, gaming, virtual reality (VR), office work, online education, advertisement. 

A short summary on each of the 5GAA C-V2X use cases, demonstrated today in Turin 

Demo 1 “Vulnerable Road Users”: open road demos on safety  

In this trial – which is part of Torino Smart Roads Initiative patronized by the Municipality of Turin – TIM, Links Foundation and Luxoft showed how the communication between the various actors moving along the roads can help in detecting potentially dangerous situations. The goal of the demos was to demonstrate how the 5G mobile network facilitates the protection of Vulnerable Road Users: pedestrians (“Presence of a pedestrian on a crosswalk”) and cyclists (“Presence of a connected bike on the road”). In the case of a pedestrian approaching a crosswalk, a Roadside Unit connected to the mobile network, equipped with a camera able to detect the event, sent a warning message to the nearby connected vehicles (I2V communication). In the case of a connected bike and a connected vehicle that are approaching each other, the two vehicles received a warning message about their presence when a risk of collision is detected.

Demo 2 “Urban Georeferenced Alerting” in open roads  

TIM, FCA, Links Foundation, City of Turin with 5T, and Politecnico di Torino showed how the Local Traffic Authority in Turin intends to notify drivers in real time of possible dangers and special situations on the road (traffic jam, road works warning, dynamic speed limit, etc.). A standard geo-referenced warning message was dispatched to a TIM AMQP broker” at the edge of the 5G mobile network and only the involved vehicles received the geo-localized message from the AMQP Broker using the TIM 5G Network. The warning was read and displayed in an FCA vehicle through the on-board HMI and can for instance notify the driver of upcoming speed reduction. The aim of the trial was to demonstrate how the TIM 5G Network is suitable for realizing smart roads services for connected cars. The solution is compliant with the standards so it can be applied in other locations covered with mobile networks. 

Demo 3 Intersection Movement Assist (IMA), Forward collision Warning (FCW)  

FCA and Harman Samsung showcased two Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) demos, by integrating C-V2X direct-short range communication into Maserati Levante and Quattroporte. The vehicles, through a direct radio link (network-less radio link), anonymously communicated basic information such as their position and related direction. 

The Forward Collision Warning (FCW), detected possible frontal collision and warned the driver accordingly. The Intersection Movement Assist (IMA), assisted the driver at the cross junctions to avoid a possible lateral collision with an oncoming vehicle. 

Demo 4 Emergency Electronic Brake Light (EEBL), Stationary Vehicle Warning (SVW)  

FCA, Continental, and Qualcomm demonstrated fast and reliable information exchange between vehicles in emergency situations. The two demos are based on C-V2X direct-short range technology, enabling Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communication between two Jeep Renegade. There were two portions to this demo: 

• “Stationary Vehicle Warning” (SVW): when the hazard lights are activated, the application broadcasted a message to all nearby vehicles so that approaching vehicles could be informed even if the hazard was not visible.  
• “Emergency Electronic Brake Light warning” (EEBL): in the event of a sudden braking, the application broadcasted a message to following vehicles, such that approaching vehicles were notified of the potentially dangerous situation. 

Demo 5 See-through 

Vodafone, FCA, Vodafone Automotive, Marelli and Altran revealed the ‘See Through’ that uses C-V2X long-range cellular network communication to exchange streamed video in real time between vehicles, extending the driver’s visual range under obstructed visibility scenarios and to prevent accidents, especially those that may occur in an overtaking phase. The two involved Jeep Renegades vehicles were equipped with a connectivity solution (Marelli) and high frame-rate cameras (Marelli Motorsport) to detect the road lanes.  

A real time tracking system and a space mapping algorithm of the vehicles, specifically developed by Vodafone Automotive, allowed Vodafone’s Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) to dynamically manage and route the video flows on the basis of the vehicles’ relative positions and to ensure minimal end-to-end latency in the interest of drivers’ safety. Vodafone 5G ultra-low latency and high reliability were paramount to ensure the flow and synchrony of the real-time video exchange between vehicles, also under high traffic and cell saturation conditions. 

Demo 6 World-first 5G-enhanced ADAS services 

Audi, Ericsson, Italdesign, KTH, Pirelli, Qualcomm, TIM and Tobii showed how smart cars, commercial 5G smartphones and 5G networks jointly improve comfort, safety and efficiency. This unique collaboration combined the power of eye-tracking glasses, intelligent tires, in-vehicle augmented reality and 5G phones to work together over a live 5G network. With its high capacity and low latency, cellular 5G connectivity is ready to enable instantaneous cooperation between vehicles, the IoT ecosystem and more advanced driver assistance services. The live demonstrations at the Turin Lingotto test track were based on TIM’s commercial 5G network delivered in Turin in partnership with Ericsson. Audi cars, equipped with Pirelli Cyber Tyre, and embedded 5G modems provided by Qualcomm and available 5G smartphones were utilized to enhance pedestrian’s safety. 

About 5GAA 

The 5G Automotive Association (5GAA) is a global, cross-industry organisation of over 130 members comprised of leading global automakers, Tier-1 suppliers, mobile operators, semiconductor companies and test equipment vendors. It works together to develop end-to-end solutions for future mobility and transport services. 5GAA is committed to helping define and develop the next generation of connected mobility, automated vehicle and intelligent transport solutions based on C-V2X. 

Learn more on the 5GAA website and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn. 

Media Contacts

5GAA Marketing & Communications
Email: marcom@5gaa.org 

PDF Document

Official pictures: Conference – Demonstrations

Autonomous driving is becoming a reality!
Discover more on remote-operated Driving in the video below.

Autonomous driving is becoming a reality!
Discover more on remote-operated Driving in the video below.

The 5G Automotive Association (5GAA) is proud to be a partner of the European Telecommunications Standard Institute (ETSI) in the first C-V2X-only Plugtests™ event, to take place in Malaga, Spain, from 02 to 06 December 2019. This interoperability test is being held with the support of the European Commission and hosted by DEKRA, member of 5GAA, in its Connected Vehicle Test Development Centre, where trials will be carried out both in lab and field environments.

Plugtests™ represent an important tool to allow vendors to evaluate the interoperability of their systems and provide precious feedback to independent experts in order to improve the standard-making process. Moreover, this event is a further milestone in the cooperation between 5GAA and DEKRA, a leader in automotive safety testing, that already had the chance to collaborate during a previous plugfest in April 2019.

On 04 December, an ETSI-5GAA Plugtests™ conference is scheduled, focused on nowadays achievements and challenges in the connected automotive sector, to offer the audience a complete update on the opportunities and implementation models of C-V2X technology.

Registrations are open until 15 November. For any further information, please consult the official event page.

Slowing down emerging vehicles can cost lives.
Discover how C-V2X can increase road safety by providing information on emergency vehicles approaching.