Continental has won a serial order from a leading European commercial vehicle manufacturer to equip its vehicles with the 5G V2X telematics platform (V2X: Vehicle to Everything). It enables data exchange for classic telematics usage scenarios, plus super-fast connectivity for real time based applications.
In the passenger car sector, the company has already won several orders from major European manufacturers for 5G telematics units in recent years.
“Connectivity plays a decisive role as an efficiency driver, particularly in the commercial vehicle industry, and V2X and 5G further expand the spectrum of possible services and applications in areas such as automated driving. Equipping such platforms forms an important foundation for the future expansion of these products and services,” says Gilles Mabire, head of the commercial vehicles and services business unit at Continental.
For the new production order, Continental is integrating V2X technology into the vehicle’s existing telematics unit. The NAD (Network Access Device) mobile radio module developed by Continental is at the heart of the technology. It is used for telematics and fleet management applications in 4G and 5G networks. For the direct transmission of signals to other road users or to the traffic infrastructure, Continental is using Wi-Fi-based dedicated short range communication technology (DSRC) for the current order.
In principle, however, Continental’s platform can also map the mobile radio-based Cellular V2X standard, so the platform combines both of the main V2X standards in one device and can be used in all global markets without the need for major adaptations. This significantly reduces the number of versions and consequently the costs per vehicle.
V2X communication and 5G open up new opportunities for greater safety and efficiency in the road transport industry. For example, the connectivity of vehicles and traffic systems via V2X creates new opportunities for automated driving, since road users can exchange real-time information on speed, position, traffic light phases and traffic density. V2X communication can also be used to synchronize the acceleration, braking and steering maneuvers of vehicles. This means that traffic flows can be better controlled and congestion & accidents can be reduced. Efficiency-enhancing applications are also conceivable, such as harvesting applications in agriculture. 5G is used if connectivity with a backend is required when using high-resolution maps for automated driving, for example, and for the camera-based remote control of vehicles on construction sites.
“5G and V2X will continue to gain importance for our growth strategy. There are many conceivable applications for commercial vehicles and also in agriculture and construction. In the future, we want to grow in these fields with our connectivity solutions, but also with our corresponding services and applications for automation,” says Gilles Mabire.
