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Oxbotica and Cisco join forces on driverless data challenge

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UK autonomous vehicle software specialist Oxbotica has teamed up with IT giant Cisco to develop technology for tapping into the potential of the huge volumes of data generated by driverless vehicles.

Autonomous vehicles make 150 independent vehicle detections every second and generate up to 80GB of data per driven-hour from sensors such as LiDAR, cameras and RADAR as well as Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) logs. This constant activity means amassing 1.2TB of data in a 16-hour day, much of which is gathered when the vehicle returns to base.

driverless data

With 70 million new connected vehicles expected to enter the market every year by 2024, the volumes of data gathered will be too large to share efficiently and cost-effectively using existing 4G, or emerging 5G, networks.

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The two firms have partnered to demonstrate how OpenRoaming can unlock the potential of fully connected autonomous vehicle fleets, enabling the seamless and secure sharing of high-volume data while on the move.

OpenRoaming, which enables devices to automatically connect to trusted Wi-Fi hotspots and networks without the need to enter usernames and passwords but instead using embedded credentials issued by identity providers, is particularly suited for connected vehicles, with opportunities for Wi-Fi hotspots to be deployed in locations such as gas stations, EV charging locations, parking structures and vehicle service centres.

Commenting on the collaboration, Oxbotica CEO Ozgur Tohumcu said: “Our pioneering software already reduces the amount of data sharing that is required, allowing vehicles to operate wherever they are, with or without network connection….However, we fully recognise that in an autonomous world, fleets will need to upload and download vast amounts of data and the partnership with Cisco offers us the chance to solve one of the greatest data challenges of the future, already today.”

Matt MacPherson, Wireless CTO at Cisco, added: “Today's autonomous vehicles generate enormous amounts of data when they operate. The challenge is how to gather that information from the vehicle automatically and, perhaps more importantly, cost-effectively. Tomorrow’s connected cars will face the same issue. OpenRoaming opens up the possibility of a cost-effective alternative for transporting high-volume data to and from the vehicle, autonomously.”