Applied Information, Inc., a leading provider of intelligent transportation infrastructure solutions, announced the availability of full Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C-V2X) Connected Vehicle Roadside Units (RSU) and Onboard Units (OBU) with an automatic upgrade to 5G NR when the technology becomes available.

The company also announced it would buy installed Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) RSUs from roadway operators, which were made obsolete by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), as part of any upgrade to C-V2X.

The new units provide both C-V2X Direct and Network (4G LTE) connectivity enabling short-range and long-range communications that support a range of applications such as emergency vehicle preemption, transit bus priority, red-light running alarms and school zone speed warnings, among others.

The units are configured to be upgradable to new cellular technologies such as 5G and 6G which will be supplied as part of ongoing communications plans. The buyback of installed DSRC units is to help offset the costs of converting to C-V2X.

On 18 November 2020, the FCC adopted new rules for radio communications bandwidth that had been allocated for DSRC connected vehicle safety applications approximately 20 years ago. (Earlier post.) Under the new rules, most of the bandwidth (lower 45 megahertz) is allocated for uses such as Wi-Fi. The remaining bandwidth (upper 30 megahertz) is allocated for C-V2X technology. Under the new rules, DSRC is to be phased out over the next 12 months.

We were hoping, as were many others in our industry, that the FCC would preserve the full 75 megahertz for roadway safety. But now that the FCC has made its ruling on technology and spectrum allocation, we want to do our part to accelerate deployment of connected vehicle technology and its life-saving applications by providing roadway operators with a future-proof solution that can accommodate many types of communications technologies over the coming years. Our buy-back program also enables DOTs to continue their DSRC connected vehicle programs with C-V2X seamlessly while helping to defray costs.

—Bryan Mulligan, President of Applied Information