Traders have long been interested in the application of 5G in the car segment. The most obvious proof is found in Telefónica, which at the beginning of 2020 opened an advanced R&D center for the development of connected and autonomous vehicles under 5G. But it is not the only one, Vodafone has already launched the OneNumber Car service in Germany to provide 5G to the BMW iX.

Now, the MásMóvil Group has joined this trend through the R3CAV project, a project in which other companies such as the Renault Group or Alsa are also involved. Its objective is to develop a new hardware and software architecture for the creation of future autonomous and connected vehicles.

Connectivity, communication, autonomous navigation and positioning

Companies participating in the R3CAV project

MásMóvil, Alsa, GMV, Indra, Masermic, Renault Group and Sigma AI have launched the R3CAV (Robust, Reliable and Resilient Connected and Automated Vehicle for people transport) project, focused on developing the necessary technologies to be applied in future autonomous and connected vehicles.

As explained by Grupo MásMóvil, this project includes the development of a new adaptable architecture -both hardware and software- aimed at the creation of future autonomous and connected vehicles, capable of operating with different levels of autonomy. At the moment, the two initiatives that are already being worked on are:

A prototype of autonomous vehicle for the industrial environment at the Renault Factory in Palencia.

A vehicle whose future functionality will be autonomous shuttle for the transport of people in Alcobendas. In this case, in addition to connectivity and communication systems, autonomous navigation and positioning systems are also being developed.

5G for vehicle and infrastructure

R3CAV project work meeting at the Renault Group R&D Center in Valladolid

The R3CAV project will have as its center of operations the Renault Group R&D Center in Valladolid and will have the collaboration of four Universities (UPM, UC3M, UMU and UMH) and three Technology Centers (TECNALIA, CTAG and TEKNIKER). Within the two use cases mentioned, three challenges will be addressed:

Development of a new prototype level L4that is, highly automated vehicles capable of operating in controlled environments and managing complex interactions with the environment.

Development of a new autonomous and connected electric vehicle platform for the future application as an adaptable and modular shuttle for the transport of people in urban circuits. In this case, the level of automation will grow progressively from L2 (advanced driving assistance systems) to L3 (with low supervision).

Development of 5G communications technology for connected vehiclessuch as an advanced driving assistance system that reports and recommends the most appropriate actions to the driver, taking control of the vehicle if necessary.

The MásMóvil Group will be in charge of the ‘5G connectivity and vehicle and infrastructure security’ working group, which, among other things, covers the design and development of a heterogeneous dynamic connectivity platform with integration of slicing systems, the optimization of 5G/G5 heterogeneous connectivity technologies and cybersecurity both in the vehicle and in the infrastructure.