In a joint project, the city of Wolfsburg, Volkswagen and Siemens are currently setting up a test section on a main road in Wolfsburg in which ten traffic signal systems will transmit the traffic light phases in the vicinity via the V2X technology WLANp (ITS-G5). In February, the Volkswagen Group had announced that from 2019 onwards, its brands will use the WLANp standard for communications among vehicles and between vehicles and their environment (V2X). (Earlier post.)

Future Car2X vehicles will be able to process that traffic light information and inform the driver, for example, when all traffic lights in succession are on green. That way, drivers can avoid braking or accelerating unnecessarily. In the near future, assistant functions will be able to do this without driver intervention.

The forward-looking traffic light functions in the vehicle improve the flow of traffic in built-up areas. It is hoped that this project will also contribute to road safety in general. To do this, two crossroads in Wolfsburg are being equipped with modern sensor technology to detect pedestrians and cyclists.

Crossroads equipped with radar sensor technology are able to significantly increase accuracy in the detection of pedestrians and cyclists. Information that vehicles are not able to detect themselves is provided at complex intersections and accident black spots in particular.

—Manfred Fuhg, Head of Siemens Mobility Germany

To distribute the sensor object data from the traffic infrastructure to the vehicle, the Car2X technology WLANp, to be introduced by Volkswagen next year, will be supplemented with additional messages. The addition enables cooperative security functions to be implemented.

These functions intervene in situations in which the driver or vehicle cannot recognize the surrounding road users with their own senses/sensors or can only do so at a very late stage. In particular, road users such as pedestrians and cyclists, who are often involved in accidents, should be better protected by this.

Based on systems with artificial intelligence in traffic signal systems, intelligent control methods can provide vehicles with much more precise information on red and green phases than was previously possible.

—Manfred Fuhg

From today’s perspective, the use of transport infrastructure, particularly in towns and cities, offers crucial advantages over other Car2X approaches, explains Gunnar Koether, Head of Vehicle Safety at Volkswagen.

Unlike the relatively inaccurate position data of a smartphone, the use of sensors analogous to the vehicle offers highly accurate data for a critical area. An essential condition for avoiding false warnings. In addition to the technical hurdles, privacy is another aspect which could put people off using their personal smartphones.

—Gunnar Koether

A number of partners are currently working to expand the existing WLANp standards. With the pilot project in a real traffic environment, this should be completed even faster. Volkswagen and Siemens are supporting the European Union’s objective of establishing a binding framework for networked driving across Europe in the near future.