Ericsson’s software innovation accelerates Volvo self-driving in-car experience

Ericsson announced more details around its plans to power the ultimate connectivity experience for self-driving cars. As autonomous driving becomes a reality with more cars hitting the road this year, attention is turning to spotty network coverage along highways that stand in the way of great media and productivity experiences.

At CES 2016 in Las Vegas, Ericsson and Volvo Cars announced their joint research program to develop intelligent, high bandwidth, streaming capabilities that will ensure drivers and passengers get the most out of their time travelling in an autonomous Volvo. New technologies from the research program are planned to be integrated in autonomous driving Volvo cars.

The autonomous car connectivity capabilities announced by Ericsson utilize creative techniques to ensure a premium media experience for self-driving cars, especially on high-speed highways. This environment is particularly challenging because bandwidth and data management were not intended to support high volumes of data in high-speed mobile situations. While network coverage is strong in static locations, it is largely inconsistent on highways and only limited bandwidth can be stored in a car.

Ericsson’s and Volvo Cars’ research program will be shown, together with Volvo’s latest autonomous car demonstration, at Mobile World Congress 2016, held February 22 to February 25, 2016 in Barcelona.