The IEEE has formed two new working groups, one hoping to advance the role of Wi-Fi in the automotive sector, the other focused on Wi-Fi broadcast technology.
The first objective for each group is to encourage stakeholders to help define amendments to the 802.11 Wi-Fi standard that will help them to meet their respective goals.
For the IEEE 802.11 Next Generation V2X (NGV) Study Group, that means exploring ways that the latest Wi-Fi technology could be evolved to address demand from automakers for high throughput, reliable, and efficient connectivity, potentially at extended range.
“To support advancements in driverless car technology, car-to-car and car-to infrastructure connectivity, as well as to enable more robust vehicular infotainment offerings, a higher, more reliable and efficient throughput as compared to IEEE 802.11p is foreseeable,” said Bo Sun, Chair of the study group. “Stakeholders involved in vehicular applications are encouraged to lend their voice in helping advance IEEE 802.11 so that the standard meets all anticipated future requirements in order to increase its adoption in this rapidly expanding market.”
Meanwhile, the IEEE Broadcast Services Group (BCS) Study Group is exploring new use cases, such as simultaneously broadcasting local information over Wi-Fi to recipients who don’t necessarily need to actively connect to an access point. Such applications could include local information at events, shopping malls, tourist attractions, train stations, and airports.
“The ever-increasing data and information demands driven by a broadly-connected and mobile public, as well as IoT devices, offers unique opportunities for new local broadcast applications using IEEE 802.11,” said Marc Emmelmann, Chair, IEEE BCS Study Group. “While we have seen a good initial response from stakeholders, and an interesting exploration of new use cases, we encourage broader participation so that we can work towards defining a project that addresses all relevant aspects for achieving the most beneficial results for expanding broadcast services utilising IEEE 802.11.”