Skip to main content

Cohda adds 500 OBUs to Australian CV trial 

ICVP will explore safety benefits of emerging tech and help reduce road facilities 
By Ben Spencer October 6, 2020 Read time: 2 mins
ICVP includes DSRC V2X tech and RTK vehicle positioning (© Nils Ackermann | Dreamstime.com)

Cohda Wireless has installed its on-board units (OBUs) in 500 vehicles operating in Australia's Ipswich Connected Vehicle Pilot (ICVP).

ICVP is testing connected vehicles (CVs) and infrastructure on public roads as part of a collaboration delivered by the Department of Transport and Main Roads and the Queensland University of Technology.

Cohda says its MK5H OBUs will allow the vehicles to communicate with each other and roadside infrastructure. 

Cohda's CEO Paul Gray says: “Large trials such as the ICVP make other road transport authorities sit up and take notice and we certainly encourage decision-makers across Australia and the world to consider their progress so that they don’t get left behind.”

Gray reveals the technology involved in the trial encompasses dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) Vehicle to Everything (V2X) technology as well as real-time kinematic (RTK) vehicle positioning.
 
“The trial is also fully compliant from a cybersecurity perspective with data managed in the cloud in accordance with the relevant safety standards,” Gray adds. 

ICVP is also expected to showcase the interoperability of technologies that will contribute to the development of cooperative intelligent transport systems.

“In summary, ICVP is a model C-ITS deployment delivering on safety applications which encompasses Vehicle to Vehicle and Vehicle to Infrastructure interoperability,” Gray continues.

“The trial is very comprehensive from a technical perspective, reflecting the most contemporary approach possible, including cellular, HMI, cyber security, RTK location enhancement with data management in the cloud.”

Queensland transport and main roads minister Mark Bailey says the study would put emerging CV technologies to the test. 

"In Queensland between 1 January and 15 September 2020, there were 183 fatalities as a result of crashes, which is 30 greater than for the same period in 2019 and fifteen greater than the previous five-year average,” he continues.

“Pilot programmes like the ICVP are crucial to explore the safety benefits of emerging vehicle technologies and work to help reduce lives lost on our roads.”

The pilot will test whether connecting the vehicle to real-time information will help the driver make better decisions such as stopping in time for an upcoming red light. 

“For example, a driver could be given early advice of upcoming roadworks, or that they are approaching the back of a motorway queue,” Bailey concludes. 

Other participants involved in ICVP include iMove Australia, Ipswich City Council and the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications.
 

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Now is the time for V2X in tolling
    July 9, 2025
    FTE, Indra, Audi & Qualcomm Technologies demonstrate C-V2X tolling in Florida
  • Joining the dots: four ways to help cities make the connection
    May 18, 2018
    Smoothing the path to connected transportation systems in urban areas all round the world takes a lot of planning: Cisco’s Kyle Connor lays out the four key areas on which he thinks cities should focus. Forward-thinking cities around the world are exploring innovative, new ways to leverage the Internet of Things (IoT) and related technologies to create more connected and efficient transportation systems. Through greater digitisation and connectivity, cities can optimise public transit routes, reduce
  • The rise of V2X: it’s time for ITS to put up the shields in cyberspace
    May 14, 2018
    Traffic management has largely been shielded from the sort of malicious hacking that is commonplace in other industries – but with billions of connected devices in the world it won’t stay that way, warn internet experts Keith Golden and Brandon Johnson. Traditionally isolated from networks and the internet over most of its history, the traffic management industry has largely been shielded from malicious hacking and system intrusion that have become commonplace in other industries. However, as the rate of
  • Lidar lets planners see big picture in Chattanooga
    April 14, 2025
    The city of Chattanooga, Tennessee, is attempting to make its streets safer by using the largest deployment of Lidar-based traffic detection in the US. Adam Hill reports…