University of Warwick researchers hit new 5G speed record for autonomous vehicles

They hit 2.867Gbps in over-the-air transmissions – nearly 40 times faster than current fixed line broadband speeds and equivalent to sending a detailed satellite navigation map of the UK within a single second, or the full contents of a high definition movie in less than 10 seconds.

In addition to enabling the future delivery of HD content to in-car entertainment systems, the researchers say that this technology will allow autonomous vehicles to rapidly share large quantities of data with each other and with traffic management systems. This will include precise 3D road maps created by LiDAR (like radar but it uses laser light instead of radio waves), high definition video images of the vehicles surroundings, and traffic information.

WMG’s research team of Dr Matthew Higgins, associate professor, and Dr Erik Kampert, senior research fellow, used their new 5G mmWave test facility to set the new 5G mmWave band communications speed record. Working with an autonomous Pod built by RDM, a Coventry-based manufacturer of Level 4 low speed autonomous vehicles, the team optimised antenna placement both inside the pod, and on roadside infrastructure, such as a traffic light.