Connected and autonomous. These words can describe the state of the 5G connected car, a category of vehicle that is rising exponentially. Industry leaders like Tesla, Toyota, and Ford are all using their vast resources to research, develop, and manufacture a new era of vehicles – Most of which will need to rely on a 5G network to enable their most advanced features.
Let’s look into how 5G is fueling the new breed of consumer vehicles, but first, let’s define the types of vehicles we’ll be discussing today.
Connected
Can receive information from a source outside the vehicle or connect to an individual’s smartphone. Think features like virtual roadside assistance, Android Auto, and Apply Car Play.
Autonomous
Vehicles capable of driving from point A to point B without any assistance from humans. These vehicles can steer, brake, use turn signals, sense oncoming traffic, detect pedestrians, etc.
Safety
It may come as a surprise that only 2% of reported accidents are caused by mechanical failure and that 1 in 4 driving-related deaths are caused by speeding. Preventable deaths are just what the introduction of 5G into the automotive space can help the most. Autonomous vehicles will require a high-speed connection to a 5G tower to work as intended, and if that can be achieved, will be able to dramatically lower the rate of deaths and accidents altogether.
How Does it Work?
Connected vehicles have features that can be seen in many modern cars on the road today, including things like roadside assistance services, Android Auto, Apple Car Play, and other Bluetooth or Wi-Fi functionality. Features like these are not only an added luxury for consumers but can drastically increase the chance for survival in crashes where the driver is knocked unconscious or wrecks in an area with poor cellular reception. Many popular in-vehicle roadside assistance services use GPS location tracking as well as cellular to be able to locate an individual no matter where they are. In locations with a cellular connection, having 5G connected vehicles can assist even more. With near-zero latency and ultra-high speeds, 5G can enable more precise location tracking, crystal clear voice calling to help EMS understand the driver after an accident or even higher bandwidth that will enable communications to be sent from the vehicle even in high-density areas, whereas previously emergency calls and messages could have failed due to an overloaded network.
Self-Driving Capabilities
One of the most highly sought after features, self-driving promises consumers a way to get to their destination without ever having to look at the road. Of course, we’re not at that point yet, but manufacturers like Tesla are pushing the boundaries of what many thought was possible. Right now Tesla owners can have their car drive for them, but they still have to maintain eye contact with the road and have their hands on the wheel. Once high-band 5G becomes more widely available, more self-driving capabilities will more than likely follow. But for now, how do the features currently available work with 5G?
The 5G Connected Car
Connecting via 5G allows autonomous vehicles to communicate with one another, sharing important data such as the status of an upcoming stop light, the locations of pedestrians in a crosswalk, road closures, and more. For a more direct correlation, this means passing cars will talk to each other enabling all cars on the road to know how fast to go, when to stop for stop signs and red lights, and automatically avoid traffic which will lessen the prevalence of bottlenecking. With high-band 5G, the need for red lights, stop signs, and even turn signals could be eliminated as autonomous cars will communicate with each other in real-time with no delay.
Timeline
While there are no set dates for when we can expect high-band 5G to become mainstream, wireless carriers have been steadily working behind the scenes to expand their 5G services, including building new towers and access points on tall buildings in central locations. Most of the latest rollouts have included boosts to the low and mid-band spectrum, but many experts are suggesting that 25% of the globe could be covered by high-band 5G by 2030. You may look at that as a failure based on the rapid deployment rates of mid and low-band 5G spectrum, but the technology that comes with rapid high-band deployment, such as 5G connected cars will be well worth the wait.
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