Cisco and Verizon are working together on a proof-of-concept that might rethink autonomous driving by virtualizing expensive roadside infrastructure.
- Cisco and Verizon partner on proof-of-concept that could rearchitect autonomous driving by virtualizing costly roadside infrastructure
- The companies’ demo proves mobile edge compute (MEC) and Verizon LTE connectivity, with Cisco’s industrial IoT networking technology, can support the low latency requirements necessary for autonomous applications with the virtualized infrastructure
- Connected-vehicle applications that could benefit from this advancement include last-mile delivery bots, robotaxis, on and off-ramp safety, and others that could leverage cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) communication to negotiate intersections with traffic signals.
BASKING RIDGE, N.J 03.29.2022 –
In Las Vegas, Cisco and Verizon cooperated on successful proof of concept demonstration, demonstrating how cellular and mobile edge compute (MEC) technologies may enable autonomous driving solutions without the need for expensive physical Roadside Units to extend radio signals.
In locations like Las Vegas, where public MEC technologies exist, the result creates an easier and more efficient path to powering applications like autonomous/unmanned last-mile delivery bots and robotaxis. Additionally, C-V2X applications such as pedestrian protection, emergency, and transit vehicle pre-emption, on and off-ramp protection (for example, when a loaded truck requires autonomous guidance to merge or brake safely), and possibly others that involve vehicles approaching intersections with traffic signals could make roads safer.
Proof of concept:
Autonomous features in connected vehicles have traditionally relied on roadside radios to extend the signals vehicles employ for low-latency communication with each other and linked infrastructure in the surrounding area. The Cisco and Verizon test proved that, when combined with Cisco Catalyst IR1101 routers in connected infrastructure, Verizon’s LTE network and public 5G Edge with AWS Wavelength can meet the latency thresholds required for autonomous driving applications, replacing the costly roadside radios previously required to meet those needs.
By using LTE and edge compute to virtualize the role of the Roadside Units, C-V2X communications proved to be more streamlined – likely to result in improved efficiency and cost-effectiveness for municipalities, infrastructure providers, and application developers working with autonomous vehicles. (C-V2X refers to a vehicle’s ability to communicate with other vehicles and connected infrastructure surrounding it.)
The result demonstrates that connected and autonomous vehicle applications can be deployed today using LTE networks, mobile edge computing, and in-vehicle interfaces deployed by OEMs. These capabilities could lead to safer, less congested roads with current connected and autonomous vehicles, with scalability for future applications hosted at the edge and using LTE and 5G connectivity.
Connected transportation – powered by cellular.
Improving vehicle-to-infrastructure communication is critical for providing safer roads and enabling the autonomous future of driving. To allow edge apps to interact and inform split-second decision-making, intersections must be securely connected and supplied with computing.
“This test is a huge milestone in proving that the future of connectivity for IoT applications can be powered by cellular,” said Krishna Iyer, Director of Systems Architecture, Verizon. “We’re marking the strength of mobile edge compute platforms for connected transportation innovation with much more streamlined architecture. Together with Cisco technologies, we’re setting the foundation potentially to realize a ubiquitous IoT in the connected and autonomous future of driving.”
“The future of autonomous vehicles cannot progress without reliable communication between vehicles and their surrounding environments,” said Mark Knellinger, Lead Transportation Solutions Architect, Cisco. “This is huge for roadway operators in that it relieves them of the massive expense of deploying and operating a dedicated V2X environment.”