McLaren Applied Technologies has been named as part of a consortium, led by Airspan Networks, the LTE small cells and backhaul technologies vendor, to develop 5G New Radio (NR) for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs).
The project, named AutoAir, will aim to make 5G NR technologies available for the validation and development of CAVs at the UK’s premier vehicle proving ground, Millbrook.
Fast travel speeds complicate cell-tower handoff and autonomous vehicles will require more network bandwidth than is currently available. AutoAir will also investigate how these 5G connectivity solutions could be transferable to both rail and subway transportation.
The project is based on the accelerated development of 5G small cells operating in both licensed sub-6 GHz and mmWave bands on a shared ‘neutral host’ platform, which allows multiple public and private 5G operators to simultaneously use the same infrastructure via network slicing.
McLaren Applied Technologies will supply and integrate its state of the art data acquisition and decision support platform, ATLAS 10, with high frequency KPIs from all the 5G NR network sub-systems. By correlating these KPIs with location and simulation, the engineering teams will gain a deep understanding of how well the network is working to develop a first class 5G NR system.
Used by Formula 1 teams since 1993, ATLAS enables vast amounts of data to be captured from high-speed vehicles in harsh environments using multiple sources.
Dick Glover, Chief Executive, McLaren Applied Technologies said:
“At McLaren Applied Technologies we harness our experience in telemetry, software, simulation and predictive analytics to deliver advantage across the transport industry. Being part of the AutoAir 5G NR Consortium reinforces our commitment to accelerating the UK’s mobility challenge of the future, as well as pushing performance, improving reliability and providing progress beyond today’s expectations.”
The development of 5G connectivity is an important milestone in McLaren Applied Technologies’ pursuit for advantage in motorsport, automotive, public transport and health. A faster and higher quality connection will pave the way for a more immersive experience for motorsport fans through new digital experiences. In automotive, vehicle data rates are predicted to climb significantly as entertainment, more sensors and self-driving cars come into wider use. High bandwidth connectivity will support our condition monitoring projects with train operators and improve passenger WiFi. And the emergence of digital therapeutics will rely on strong connectivity to monitor the health of patients in real-time.