■ What is ITS, C-ITS? The importance of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) that improve the efficiency and safety of transportation and the need for C-ITS, a next-generation technology aimed at supporting road infrastructure to overcome the limitations of autonomous vehicles, are emerging.
Fortune Business Insights, a market research firm, forecasted that the ITS market size would grow from approximately $22.91 billion in 2021 to $35.8 billion in 2026.
ITS aims to scientifically and automatically operate and manage the transportation system by developing and utilizing cutting-edge transportation technologies such as electronics, control, and communication, as well as transportation information for transportation means and transportation facilities, and ultimately to improve transportation efficiency and safety.
Park Shin-hyung, a professor of transportation engineering at Seoul City University, said, “The field of ITS is a canvas, paint, and brush for drawing future transportation systems.” He added, “Future transportation has no final destination. “As long as humanity exists, new technologies will continue to be developed, and as a result, new transportation methods and systems will continue to emerge, so the role of ITS will also continue,” he said.
On the other hand, C-ITS provides real-time information on surrounding traffic conditions and dangerous situations such as sudden stops and falling objects, and is a traffic system that focuses on user safety rather than road management. The biggest difference from ITS is the presence or absence of information sharing.
C-ITS uses V2X communication to exchange information in real time between vehicles, vehicles and roads, and vehicles and facilities, allowing for advance sharing and response to traffic hazard information.
C-ITS is also attracting attention as a technology to overcome the limitations of autonomous driving, such as reduced vehicle sensor function in bad weather, long-distance detection, and blind spots, and is expected to lead to a paradigm shift and an expansion of the market size.
■ Domestic and international trends Last October, Seoul City developed the first open API in Korea so that any citizen can receive and utilize Seoul C-ITS traffic data, and is providing it on the 'Public Data' and 'Seoul Traffic Big Data' portals.
Seoul C-ITS, in cooperation with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, is currently operating V2X-based cutting-edge facilities in downtown areas such as Sangam and Gangnam and on roads with dedicated central bus lanes to proactively respond to autonomous driving and traffic changes.
At the city/county ITS best practice presentation held by Gyeonggi Province last year, Anyang City's 'Public Service Role Expansion and Development Plan for Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS)' was selected as the best practice.
In addition to the purpose of traffic conditions, it is necessary to cooperate with each other beyond the operating entity in various emergency situations such as disasters and crime prevention. The content was about maximizing the use of intelligent transportation systems (ITS).
Among the excellence awards, Hwaseong City, Gwacheon City, Suwon City, and Goyang City also won the encouragement award, and it was an opportunity to see that many cities are already actively introducing and utilizing ITS.
Suwon City is expected to attract the world's attention as it will host the 2025 ITS Asia-Pacific General Assembly and Gangneung City will host the 2026 ITS World General Assembly.
Countries such as the US and China are promoting C-V2X as the next-generation autonomous vehicle data communication standard, and much of the weight of the technology is being focused on it.
Europe is set to enact 5G-based ITS guidelines this month, allowing European countries to actively pursue infrastructure investments.
In smart cities, discussions are intensifying not only about data that supports the driving of autonomous vehicles, such as C-ITS, but also about data for remotely controlling and operating vehicles.
Accordingly, data standards for transmitting data collected from autonomous vehicles and in-vehicle data to the control center have also emerged as issues.
The 5G Automobile Association, which visited Korea last May, said in an interview with our newspaper that they consider Korea an important market and are working to improve safety and transportation efficiency, as well as resolve issues such as information reliability and security.
However, there are still mountains to overcome.
The August issue of Mobility Insight published by the Korea Automobile Research Institute contained information that the V2X communication method and service levels including C-ITS autonomous driving have not been determined.
It appears that a decision will soon be made as to whether V2X communication method will be WAVE or cellular.
Additionally, concerns about security continue.
Eoseongyul Casein Executive Director said, "C-ITS is a key national infrastructure that must fully consider security and safety as it contains element technologies for huge industrial fields such as networks, mobile, and transportation,” the company said in a press release. “In particular, as security threats increase in the autonomous driving field, which is a core service of 5G, it is urgent to establish an intelligent response system to this.”
■ Notable domestic and international organizations and companies In our country, active discussions on ITS and C-ITS are taking place at the Intelligent Transport Systems Association, ITS KOREA, and the Korean ITS Society.
ITSK is carrying out various tasks such as standardization and technical conformity verification, and has many cities as its members along with companies such as Hyundai Motor Company and Hanwha Systems.
Korea Expressway Corporation is expanding V2X communication infrastructure to highways built across the country with the goal of realizing a safe and comfortable autonomous driving road environment by 2030.
Starting in April 2022, we plan to begin operating a digital pilot branch, acquire all terrain and location and visual information on the road and surrounding areas, and create a high-precision road map that implements this in three dimensions, thereby laying the foundation for providing accident-free and congestion-free road services during autonomous driving.
Looking at domestic player trends, there are Korea Expressway Corporation, Bitsensing, and Etiforce.
Bitsensing has developed an infrastructure radar that enables vehicles without sensors to drive more safely based on data, and is taking steps toward becoming a truly smart city by utilizing this in a smart crosswalk project in Daegu Metropolitan City.
Last month, Etiforce shipped a 5G-V2X platform that will enable real-time data sharing between autonomous vehicles, infrastructure, and other vehicles.We are moving closer to our goal of providing improved safety and efficiency that supports fuel efficiency and contributes to improved road safety.
Notable foreign companies include Qualcomm, 3M, and Nvidia.
Qualcomm has been supporting the V2X ecosystem with safety-centric connected automotive solutions for many years and maintains an exclusive position with respect to C-V2X.
In addition, the application of edge systems such as the C-V2X modem mounted on vehicles and the RSU (Road Side Unit) that constitutes the road system also provides the same solution.
3M is installing smart codes on traffic signs that can be read by autonomous vehicles, thereby transmitting information related to vehicle safety, such as GPS coordinates, lane information, and the presence of traffic lights, which can cause errors.
In this way, ITS plays an important role in transportation efficiency, and the development and introduction of C-ITS, a next-generation technology, is also actively taking place.
In addition, there is a lot of interest in security technologies to prepare for hacking that may occur during communication and in the infrastructure that forms the basis of ITS.
■ 2023 e4ds Automotive Conference The journal will host
the 2023 e4ds Automotive Conference on November 1st to discuss ITS and C-ITS in more detail.
It consisted of presentations on the history and future of ITS, standardization trends, C-ITS and 5G V2X technology trends, radar, security technology, and insights on autonomous driving technology trends.
For more information, see '2You can check it out on the '023 e4ds Automotive Conference' page, and if you participate in the e4ds news homepage renewal event, you will also be given the opportunity to participate for free.