Volvo is partnering with telecom provider China Unicom to connect cars and infrastructure using 5G mobile network technology.
The companies will work together to research, develop and test automotive applications of 5G and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology.
Volvo and China Unicom are investigating a range of applications for 5G technology in the communication between cars and infrastructure in China, identifying potential improvements in areas such as safety, sustainability, customer convenience and autonomous driving.
Examples of its use include slowing down the car or suggesting a different route when there are traffic issues such as road works or congestion, boosting safety for the car’s occupants and avoiding stop-start traffic. Other uses could be finding empty parking spaces with the help of traffic cameras.
Cars could communicate with traffic lights to establish an optimal speed and create a ‘green wave’ to optimize safe exits and entries on highways.
Henrik Green, chief technology officer at Volvo Cars, said, “With 5G, the network performance is improving to allow for many more real-time critical services that can help the driver be safer and get a smoother and more enjoyable ride. We look forward to collaborating with China Unicom on developing those services for the Chinese market.”
Liang Baojun, vice president of China Unicom Group , added, “5G will fully enable the development of automatic driving, improve the safety of driving and bring a new experience by building a collaborative service system of ‘people, vehicles, roadway, network and cloud’. It is believed that China Unicom and Volvo Cars will sincerely cooperate with each other, jointly develop a business deployment route under China’s national conditions, which is believed to become an industry model in China.”