Geely's Volvo Cars and telecom provider China Unicom said they would collaborate on using 5G mobile network technology for communication between cars and infrastructure in China.
The two companies have agreed to work together researching, developing and testing automotive applications of 5G and emerging vehicle to everything (V2X) technology.
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As the fifth generation of mobile network connectivity, 5G is many times faster, has a higher data capacity and lower response times than its 4G predecessor. As more data can be transferred to and from cars more quickly and with less latency, more applications for cars become possible.
Volvo Cars and China Unicom are investigating a range of different applications of 5G in the communication between cars and infrastructure in China, identifying potential improvements in areas such as safety, sustainability, customer convenience and autonomous driving.
For example, when a car is aware of upcoming traffic issues such as road works, congestion or accidents, it can take preemptive action such as slowing down or suggesting a different route. This can help boost traffic safety for people inside the car, while avoiding start and stop traffic improves efficient energy use.
Other examples include the possibility for cars to find open parking spots easier with the help of traffic cameras. Cars may also communicate with traffic lights in order to establish an optimal speed and create a so-called green wave, and with each other to optimise safe exits and entries from and onto highways.
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By GlobalData"Volvo has been a leader in realising the potential of connecting our cars to enable new features and services such as detecting and sharing locations of slippery roads between vehicles," said chief technology officer Henrik Green.
"With 5G, the network performance is improving to allow for many more real time critical services that can help the driver be safer and get a smoother and more enjoyable ride."
Liang Baojun, vice president of China Unicom Group, said: "5G will fully enable the development of automatic driving, improve the safety of driving and bring a new experience by building a collaborative service system of 'people, vehicles, roadway, network and cloud'."
China is currently rolling out 5G across major cities and is also widely expected to implement its own regional standards for V2X.
Volvo Cars' collaboration with China Unicom helps it to be suitably prepared for local requirements and create a strong presence in V2X in its biggest market.
The automaker plans to introduce 5G connectivity as part of the next generation of Volvos, based on the next-generation SPA2 modular vehicle architecture.
