Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband network now live at University of Michigan’s test bed for driverless cars
10 September 2019 - 9:00PM
Verizon is working with Mcity at the University of Michigan to
advance transportation safety and shape the future of autonomous
vehicles and smart cities using 5G. The Verizon 5G Ultra
Wideband network is now live at the Mcity Test Facility where we
are testing various 5G solutions designed to boost pedestrian
safety and avoid car accidents. This includes installing
5G-connected cameras at every intersection inside the Mcity test
track to help identify traffic and pedestrian patterns to prevent
collisions. While connected cars have sensors that can “talk” to
each other to help avoid accidents, cameras connecting to traffic
light signals can help protect people walking or biking.
Safer Intersections with 5G
“We’ve installed signal controllers at the
intersections within Mcity that provide signal phase and timing
data to the 5G network,” said Eric Raamot, chief technology officer
at Econolite. “With 5G, we can help drivers see things before the
human eye can register, and prevent collisions by changing the
traffic signals when a safety risk is imminent.”This is all made
possible through several key components of 5G service – high
bandwidth, low latency and the ability to connect hundreds of
devices in a relatively small area. If each vehicle passing through
an intersection is able to relay and receive information from other
vehicles and streetlight cameras, that information can be used to
notify cars when lights turn red or vehicles ahead come to a sudden
stop. Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network is able to transmit all
that data faster than the blink of an eye, enabling autonomous
vehicles to react faster than humans when it comes to braking to
avoid a collision.When you consider that roughly 4.5 million
people were seriously injured in car accidents last year
and 94 percent of accidents are caused by human error, using
5G to help remove humans from the driving process with self-driving
vehicles has the potential to reduce the number of fatalities a
year. The massive bandwidth, super-fast speeds and ultra-low
latency of Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network can provide the
backbone for autonomous vehicles, helping them communicate better
with other cars, traffic lights, pedestrians and emergency vehicles
to avoid accidents. “5G can change all of our lives by making our
commutes a lot easier and safer,” said Tami Erwin, executive vice
president and CEO of Verizon Business Group. “Cars can communicate
with each other in near real-time and with sensors installed in
streets and traffic lights. They’ll be able to almost instantly
share information on roadway and weather conditions and alert you
to dangerous situations ahead.”
Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband service and
Mcity
Verizon is part of Mcity’s ‘leadership circle’ of
11 companies, including General Motors, State Farm and LG, which
are all working to help fuel research, development and innovation
in vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications.
We’ve been part of the Mcity public-private partnership since July
21, 2015 when U-M opened the Mcity Test Facility, the world’s first
controlled test center focusing specifically on intelligent
transportation and autonomous vehicles. “Testing new technologies
in a safe, controlled environment is essential before deploying
automated vehicles on public streets and highways,” said Greg
McGuire, associate director at Mcity. “Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband
can have a profound impact on smart vehicle technology. By giving
the companies who are testing here access to Verizon’s 5G network,
we’re hoping they can improve on their existing technology and
potentially create applications that don’t even exist yet to make
our roads and intersections safer.”The Mcity Test Facility sits on
a 32-acre site on U-M’s North Campus Research Complex, with more
than 16 acres of roads and traffic infrastructure. The full-scale
outdoor laboratory simulates the broad range of complexities
vehicles encounter in urban and suburban environments.
Learn more about Verizon 5G technology and
other initiatives like the Verizon Built on 5G Challenge.
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ),
headquartered in New York City, generated revenues of $130.9
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Media contacts:Christina Moon
Ashraf (Verizon 5G
Network)christina.moon.ashraf@verizon.com908.381.2384Twitter:
@ChrisMoonPR
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