1. Philippines
  2. 3M Safety
  3. Road Safety
  4. Resources
  5. Safety Center Blog
  6. What is Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) Communication and why do we need it?
Road Safety

  • What is Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) Communication and why do we need it?

    City overpass

    What is Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) communication?

    • Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) communication is the wireless exchange of data between vehicles and road infrastructure.

       

      Enabled by a system of hardware, software, and firmware, V2I communication is typically wireless and bi-directional: infrastructure components such as lane markings, road signs, and traffic lights can wirelessly provide information to the vehicle, and vice versa.

       

      With so much data being captured and shared, rich, timely information can be used to enable a wide range of safety, mobility, and environmental benefits.

    Why do we need V2I?

    • Roadways are soon to be the stage for a revolution. Self-driving vehicles, long dreamed of, are becoming a reality. The race to make a successful and safe autonomous car is on, with everyone from young tech companies to traditional auto manufacturers entering the competition.

      Public attention follows companies as their autonomous vehicles go from strength to mishap and back again, but the reality is that leading automotive manufacturers around the globe will be producing driverless cars sooner than most would guess—think 2021.

       

      Change is just around the corner. And it’s going to bring huge benefits.  The biggest—a possible end to nearly 90 percent of traffic fatalities, a public health triumph that could mean almost 30,000 lives saved a year in America alone, plus $190 billion dollars in health care costs saved.1

       

      In order for this revolution to take place, the environment surrounding the vehicle must evolve as well.

       

    "To get the full benefit of connected and automated vehicles, you need the infrastructure outfitted. Infrastructure can carry and share information about crashes, traffic jams, sharp curves, and with recommended speeds. You can also dynamically change recommended speed based on weather or other conditions."

    -James Sayer,
    University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute

    Road infrastructure will need to move from analog to digital

    • Digital Infrastructure for V2I communication

      As we leave behind the days when cruise control and assisted driving were the smartest operations the car could perform, we move into new levels of automation. Vehicle systems will take on more responsibility and the role of the driver will diminish.

      So how can we navigate the road ahead?

      First and foremost, infrastructure will need to support both human and machine vision.  The roadway infrastructure must move from analog messages designed for human eyes to digital messages designed so technology in automated cars can interpret the surrounding environment and quickly respond, creating redundancy which increases the confidence of the vehicle to make critical driving decisions.

    What could some V2I technologies look like?

    • V2I for snow-covered pavement markings

      Innovative, intelligent infrastructure is needed to support a digital ecosystem.  There is a need for increased redundancies that help drivers, cameras, and sensors more easily sense and decode rules of the road. 

      Here are just a few emerging technologies that can be used to improve roadways, mobility, and safety.

      • Advanced Road Markings:  We need pavement markings that are visible to humans and machines in any road condition.

      Pavement lane markings work with automated vehicle sensors to detect lines outside the vision-based spectrum, improving lane detection and traffic safety in even the most extreme weather conditions.

      • Smart Signs: We also need directional signage that is visible to humans and machines in any road condition.

      Retroreflective signs provide better readability, which results in more accurate navigation and faster decision-making for both drivers and automated vehicle systems. In addition, smart signs are compatible with traditional signage.

      • Wireless Communication: There is also a need for wireless communications that connect directly to vehicles, quickly helping identify construction zones and potential safety hazards so vehicle mobility and traffic flow can improve.

      A DSRC Multi-Channel Test Tool is an independent multi-channel listening device that provides vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications. The test tool is an unbiased 3rd party resource, used to decode standards and connected vehicle requirements; SAE J2735, IEEEE 802.11p and IEEE1609.

    Redundancy: increasing safety and enhancing mobility

    • No single system will guarantee safety. Safety will only increase if all vehicle systems are working together to improve the readability of pavement markings, traffic signs, and temporary traffic control signs and devices.

      Redundant systems take over when GPS isn’t able to work, such as in a tunnel, or when pavement markings aren’t visible to a vehicles’ camera.

      Think of systems working together to improve mobility and safety for everyone. If buildings are blocking a satellite and GPS isn’t working, or if snow has covered pavement markings, a LiDAR sensor or camera can provide the redundancies necessary to keep traffic moving efficiently, improve drive time and vehicle safety. Congestion is greatly reduced. People are more mobile. People get where they need to go faster—and more safely.

      State-of-the-art vehicles require state-of-the-art infrastructure.Improving infrastructure through redundancies is how we drive innovation, increase safety, enhance mobility, and create roadways of the future.

    ADAS redundant systems snippet

    References

Legal
|
Privacy Policy
|
Cookie Preferences
© 3M 2024. All Rights Reserved.
Follow Us
The brands listed above are trademarks of 3M.