5G and Autonomous Vehicles

This chapter will focus on the use of 5G technologies for Autonomous Vehicles (AVs). We will cover general concepts of Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs), as well as the 5G Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technology. We will look at the high-level architecture for it. We will look at the underlying concepts and network procedures that enable AVs to communicate with other vehicles and the infrastructure.

The introduction of V2X will improve road safety, traffic efficiency, and the conservation of energy. The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has estimated that Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) systems will help to eliminate about 13% of traffic accidents. This will prevent about 439,000 auto crashes and save up to 1,000 lives in the US each year (see https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/v2v_pria_12-12-16_clean.pdf).

The maximum benefit will be seen when almost all vehicles can communicate with each other, and the system...

A background on CAVs and their concepts

Let us begin with the concept of CAVs. Technology allows vehicles to talk to each other, as well as the infrastructure surrounding them. A connected car can enhance the driver’s experience. The connectivity can be through 5G or prior generations. General Motors (GM) and AT&T are working together to provide 5G-equipped automobiles by 2024 (see https://www.fiercewireless.com/5g/at-t-marks-first-5g-connected-car-deal-gm).

There were an estimated 236 million connected cars on the road as of 2021 (source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1155517/global-connected-car-fleet-by-market/). A CAV can enhance safety, reliability, and security, as well as offering improved infotainment options. In a CAV, the driver has ultimate control over the vehicle. The 5G network provides much-needed low-latency connectivity to CAVs. 5G will facilitate the use of network slices to this end. 5G will also allow the deployment of appropriate private mobile...

The high-level architecture of AVs

In the following sections, we will look at the high-level architecture that enables V2X. The automotive industry is getting ready for the deployment of Cellular V2X (C-V2X) technologies. C-V2X is a 3GPP standard. It describes how to meet the V2X requirements. C-V2X is an alternative to IEEE 802.11p, which is a specified standard for V2V and other forms of V2X communications. C-V2X includes LTE-V2X and NR-V2X technologies. 5G NR-V2X adds certain advanced capabilities on top of the 5G NR air interface. This adds stringent requirements to support CAV use cases.

C-V2X will use the 5.9 GHz band for direct communications using the PC5 interface. According to the PC5 standard, the User Equipment (UE) directly communicates with other UE over a direct channel, without the need for communication with the base station. The UE can be a mobile handset or a vehicle, in this case (see Figure 14.7):

Figure 14.7 – PC5 interface...

AV intercommunication

The ability of a vehicle to communicate using technology such as 5G is the key enabler for AVs. Let us look at different types of vehicle intercommunication.

Figure 14.11 shows the different types of V2X communications:

• V2V
• Vehicle-to-Pedestrian (V2P)
• Vehicle-to-Network (V2N)
• Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I)

Figure 14.11 – Vehicle communications

An AV can generate as much as 4 terabytes of data per day. The 5G network comes in handy to move such large volumes of data and use it to make timely decisions. Apart from the ability to act as a huge data pipe, 5G acts as the vital glue between the vehicle, the driver, the Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS), other vehicles – both autonomous and others – cyclists, pedestrians, law enforcement, and other infrastructure fixtures such as traffic lights or toll machines.

Let us look at how ADAS works.

ADAS

Next, we will look at the...

5G V2X

As we learned in the preceding sections, V2X refers to highly reliable communication between the major components of intelligent transportation and traffic systems and their sensors. V2X requires low-latency and high-bandwidth capabilities such as those provided by 5G.

Let us explore V2X further.

V2X technology

V2X is often used as the umbrella term for connected vehicles and the communications around them. Figure 14.14 shows V2X communications (see https://www.autoweek.com/news/technology/a36190311/v2x-technology/ for more details):

Figure 14.14 – V2X communications

In Figure 14.14, we can see the interplay of V2X with V2V, V2P, V2I, and V2N. In order to foster interoperability, there are multiple standards around V2X. 5G communications allow fast-moving vehicles to act like a smart cluster rather than individual cars (https://www.ericsson.com/en/news/2019/9/5g-and-v2x).

Let us look at the V2X standards next.

The V2X standards...

Summary

In this chapter, we learned about the convergence of 5G and AVs. We looked at the different levels of AVs. We then looked at how V2X communication is key for AVs. We looked at C-V2X and how 5G is an integral part of it. We looked at intelligent applications such as the platooning of trucks, which utilizes C-V2X.

Overall, this chapter covered the foundations of AVs and their detailed architecture. We looked at the intercommunications of AVs. Finally, we looked at the emerging applications built on top of V2V capabilities.

In Chapter 15, we will cover 5G fixed-mobile convergence. This capability allows for the seamless use of 5G communication wirelessly or over wire.