Hybrid V2X |
sensors to replace what humans do
and drive efficiently,” continues
Armstrong. “An AV is like one fish,
navigating its surroundings as a
single entity, but CV technology
expands its perspective beyond itself
with system-level guidance and
awareness. If every AV were
connected, they would
move through the sea
together like a school of fish.
DOTs and cities need to
prepare now, not just by
building data platforms but
also through workforce
development in software
and cyber security.”
Real-world use cases
Day-one applications like emergency
vehicle priority at intersections
provide ample incentive for
authorities to follow Colorado, Utah
and North Fulton in deploying
C-V2X. “Progressive cities can justify
the cost just by reducing the
response-times of getting paramedics
to their citizens,” says Mulligan. “The
infrastructure needs to be ready for
Ford in 2022 and can be done now,
risk-free, using both technologies.”
At first, CV will be limited in
number and interact primarily with
infrastructure. In time, older vehicles
may participate in digital safety
through aftermarket radio units,
smart phone bridging or, with 49
million internet-connected vehicles
already on US roads, online
messages. Once C-V2X is installed,
over-the-air software updates will
mean applications can be continually
refined and expanded. “We need to
deal with all the scooters that have
appeared on streets and figure out
how to give them a special light at
intersections,’ says Mulligan. ‘That’s
an example of a future application we
haven’t thought of yet, but could
deliver by an over-the-air update.”
044 Traffic Technology International November/December 2019
www.TrafficTechnologyToday.com
Communicating intent
Vulnerable road users
Vehicles could soon be interacting with vulnerable road
users, using blockchain-based systems
participating in C-V2X via
bridged devices could reduce
the need for autonomous vehicles
(AVs) to detect them with sensors and
interpret their behavior. “Our desire is
for pedestrians to declare their intent,
for instance by double-tapping a
smart watch when ready to cross,”
says Ford’s Jovan Zagajac. “We are
also pursuing two-way
communication, so vehicles can
acknowledge their intent.”
Ford’s new roadside unit bridges
multiple networks, including Bluetooth.
One demo shows a connected vehicle
stopping when a scooter heedlessly
crosses its path. “The scooter’s
Bluetooth device transmits its speed
and heading at regular intervals,”
Zagajac explains. “The bridge intercepts,
translates and retransmits that as a
basic safety message over C-V2X and
an intersection movement assist app
warns the driver. That software sees
no difference between DSRC, C-V2X or
Bluetooth. The key is the message, not
the medium of transmission.”
In future, non-geofenced AVs must
negotiate priority at intersections
where a human vernacular of eye
contact and hand signals currently
prevails. Blockchain-based
intersection controls developed by
Ford could address this challenge.
A ‘discussion’ between CVs takes
place over C-V2X and the system
issues electronic prompts to wait
or go to the driver. “Negotiating an
intersection is essentially a contract
between participants,” says Zagajac.
“Blockchain’s role is to record the
agreements in a distributed ledger
system. Every participant keeps
a copy, including the roadside
infrastructure. This immutable record
provides the certainty transportation
participants need to execute
maneuvers in good faith. If every car
is autonomous, it could also be the
witness in post-accident analysis.”
But such a system would require
humans learning to drive like their
robot counterparts in a mixed
ecosystem. Instead of politely
giving way or jockeying for position
according to personal style and
inclination, human drivers would
merely respond to the same electronic
prompts as AVs. “For the driver, the
decision is simple,” says Zagajac. “Just
drive when you’re told. But of course,
there will always be people who don’t
like to follow instructions.”
Interacting with an
uncommunicative vehicle is like
playing poker against a stone-faced player.
But C-V2X gives the vehicle means to
hear and speak, allowing us to rethink
communication paradigms
Jovan Zagajac, CV technology manager, Ford
Below: The triple
left turn on this
intersection in
north Fulton County,
Georgia, creates
a challenge for
connected vehicle
technologies being
tested there
49 million
internet-connected
vehicles already
on US roads
/www.TrafficTechnologyToday.com