Joint efforts for roadside safety and automated driving

As a part of CES 2019, Audi and Ford vehicles, as well as Ducati Multistrada 1260 motorcycles, demonstrate driving situations utilising C-V2X direct communications. All vehicles were equipped with C-V2X technology utilising the Qualcomm 9150 C-V2X chipset to demonstrate a cooperative intersection use case, exhibiting how C-V2X can be used between vehicles to negotiate the right of way in entering a four-way, non-signalised intersection where intention sharing and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) conditions make the use of a wireless sensor such as C-V2X ideal.

The companies also exhibited additional Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V), Vehicle-to-Pedestrian (V2P) and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) safety scenarios, demonstrating the maturity and potential of C-V2X technology. The V2V use case featured the Intersection MovementAssist (IMA) scenario, which is a key countermeasure to address angle collisions at intersections, while the V2P scenario exhibited how C-V2X can be used to protect vulnerable road users, including pedestrians and bicyclists. The V2I use case featured the Work Zone Warning scenario, which is designed to provide drivers advanced warning of road construction ahead allowing them to manoeuvre in a safe manner.

This week’s Las Vegas demonstrations follow the successful showings of C-V2X trial validations and interoperability conducted throughout 2018 in Europe, Japan, Australia, China and the United States, as well as the first live C-V2X interoperability demonstration between a motorcycle, vehicles and roadside infrastructure, which was hosted by several leading automotive and technology companies, including Ducati and Qualcomm Technologies.

Audi, Ducati and Ford are amongst several global automakers who have closely evaluated C-V2X technology for its reliability, high-performance capabilities and readiness through rigorous testing. Currently, C-V2X is the only V2X alternative that provides a clear evolution path to 5G, in a backward compatible manner, and is designed to deliver reliable and consistent performance in realistic driving scenarios.

While complementing other Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) sensors, such as radar, lidar, and camera systems, C-V2X direct communications supports an ever-expanding set of safety use cases, as well as enhanced situational awareness by detecting and directly exchanging vital information.

Additionally, C-V2X is designed with a focus on security, benefiting from established security transport layers and application protocols defined by the automotive standards communities, including ISO, ETSI and IEEE 1609. Because C-V2X can be easily integrated into all wireless modems to offer direct and network communications, its implementation is cost-effective, which is especially important as the automotive industry continues to move towards adding wireless connectivity in all vehicles.

Anupam Malhotra, Director, Connected Vehicles & Data at Audi of America, stated: “Audi has demonstrated a novel C-V2X use case together with Ford, Ducati and Qualcomm Technologies. The four-way stop use case provides a glimpse of how cooperative driving will be possible with C-V2X in the future. Besides additional safety, C-V2X is designed to also improve comfort and efficiency, which can be applied to both current and future autonomous driving. Audi has demonstrated commercial viability of cellular-based V2X services through the Audi Traffic Light Information service and plays a leading role within the 5GAA to develop this technology further.”

“This demonstration is showing use cases in which advanced technologies can significantly improve the safety of motorcycle users,” said Pierluigi Zampieri, Vehicle Innovation Manager at Ducati Motor Holding. “C-V2X communication is one of the key projects of the Ducati 2025 safety road map. There’s no better place than CES to talk about our roadmap towards the future.”

Don Butler, Executive Director, Ford Connected Vehicle Platform and Product, added: “Imagine a person suddenly steps into the street from out of view and your vehicle stops because it was alerted by that person’s smartphone. This is just one example of how C-V2X can connect smart vehicles to a smart world. We invite other automakers, governments and tech companies to join the significant momentum building for a C-V2X ecosystem.”

Nakul Duggal, Senior Vice President of Product Management, Qualcomm Technologies, explained: “As part of Qualcomm Technologies’ ongoing work with Ford, Audi and Ducati, we are excited to continue strengthening our mutual efforts towards accelerating C-V2X’s commercial deployment.

“This new chapter in our longstanding relationships outlines our collective goal to realise the full potential of C-V2X as a global solution for next-generation vehicle connectivity, safety and autonomy. We look forward to showcasing the latest results of this relationship as several Ford, Audi and Ducati vehicles demonstrate C-V2X interoperability in real-world driving situations.”

The demonstration by Audi, Ford, Ducati and Qualcomm Technologies will be conducted live in Las Vegas by appointment and will also be livestreamed at Qualcomm Technologies’ automotive booth in the North Hall (booth #5609), and in the Central Hall (booth #TBD) throughout the show. The demonstration will also be shown in the Audi and Ford booths.