Connected cars, regularly cited as a key application of emerging IoT and 5G technologies, were prevalent at Mobile World Congress (MWC) as companies look to drive the technology forward.
Huawei, Deutsche Telekom, China Mobile and Volkswagen unveiled a whitepaper that explored how technology could enable new business models for mobile networks.
Using the example of a connected car, the white paper showed that network slicing in 5G could allow different segments of a network to be provisioned for different use-cases, including entertainment, driving assistance and fully automated driving.
Huawei also undertook a trial with Vodafone and Audi to demonstrate cellular “V2X” technology at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya race track (pictured above).
According to Huawei, this was the first use of cellular technology in Europe to connect cars with other vehicles, people and roadside infrastructure.
The trial demonstrated four scenarios in which connected cars could be used: seeing through a car via a video feed on another vehicle, providing warnings when a traffic light is changing, when a pedestrian is crossing the road and when another vehicle breaks or changes lanes unexpectedly.
Previous trials the three companies undertook, such as the one on the A9 motorway in Germany in February, had only connected vehicles to each other.
Yesterday, Telefónica and Ericsson showcased what they described as the world’s first 5G-powered remote driving demo.
Elsewhere, Cisco Jasper announced that Honda would be using its technology to deliver the MyHonda Connected Car platform.
Set to be launched across Europe, MyHonda uses telematics solutions from Bright Box and capabilities provided by the Cisco Jasper Control Center, to provide services for safety and maintenance of connected vehicles.
Vehicle information and diagnostics, maintenance scheduling and GPS tracking for location-based services were cited as examples.
To provide these services, MyHonda will use Cisco Jasper Control Center’s automated rules and APIs for continuous monitoring alongside Bright Box’s optimised telematics.
Vodafone and Ford also announced a partnership that would bring 4G-enabled connectivity to vehicles in Europe, with the launch of the FordPass Connect modem.
The modem uses LTE to provide a Wi-Fi hotspot in a vehicle, using Vodafone’s global SIM and IoT platform.
Ericsson also announced the Connected Vehicle Marketplace. This white label solution for OEMs aims to reduce complexity for OEMs, partners and motorists in building digital service ecosystems for connected vehicles.
Scania became the first customer to use the solution, creating the customer platform Scania One.
This provides services to fleet owners and drivers and their customers to boost efficiency and productivity.