Smart communities require 5G, says Samsung Electronics America

A community has to have 5G in order to be a smart community, which means having a regulatory environment which is conducive to investment. This was among the key messages at 5G and Self-Driving Vehicles: A Policy Roadmap at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show 2019 in las Vegas, US. John Godfrey, senior vice president, public policy, at Samsung Electronics America, said communities have a role to play in partnering with the private sector in using 5G. “A way to improve to improve the safety of s
January 11, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

A community has to have 5G in order to be a smart community, which means having a regulatory environment which is conducive to investment.

This was among the key messages at 5G and Self-Driving Vehicles: A Policy Roadmap at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show 2019 in las Vegas, US.

John Godfrey, senior vice president, public policy, at 1809 Samsung Electronics America, said communities have a role to play in partnering with the private sector in using 5G.

“A way to improve to improve the safety of streets in a smart community is to allow 5G enabled sensors along the roadways for traffic management, and connected vehicles which are sharing information with each other and with the road system through cellular spectrum,” Godfrey added.

Takedra Mawakana, chief external officer at 8621 Waymo, said a 5G network will enable users to hail a Waymo car and communicate with the company’s rider support team.

However, she explained that cities are worried about how to plan for the next ten years if we have self-driving cars.

“Will this technology be deployed on buses and railway and if so how does the city think about the urban environment and rural areas, because all of a sudden you don’t have to have those cars full in order for it to be economically viable,” Mawakana added.

Going forward, Godfrey recommended that Congress could help by passing infrastructure legislation to improve roads in the US.

“While you’re at it, why not make sure that those roadways have fibre or wireless in the roads and sensors associated with them and roadside units for connected vehicles,” Godfrey suggested.

Melissa Tye, vice president, public policy at Verizon, emphasised that the US’ national approach to privacy is not working.

“We’re hopeful that Congress will pass federal privacy legislation in 2019 that gives consumers assurance and a better understanding of how their data is being used in ways that they’re aware of and that companies are being transparent,” Tye added.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Waymo announces early rider program
    April 26, 2017
    Former Google self-driving car company Waymo has launched the first public trial of its cars, in the Phoenix area of Arizona, where residents can apply to join the early rider program. The company will provide access to its fleet to people with diverse backgrounds and transportation needs who want to ride in and give feedback about its self-driving cars. Early riders will play an important role in shaping the way Waymo introduces its self-driving technology, via personal cars, public transportation, ride-ha
    Read More
  • Getting to the point
    September 4, 2018
    Cars are starting to learn to understand the language of pointing – something that our closest relative, the chimpanzee, cannot do. And such image recognition technology has profound mobility implications, says Nils Lenke Pointing at objects – be it with language, using gaze, gestures or eyes only – is a very human ability. However, recent advances in technology have enabled smart, multimodal assistants - including those found in cars - to action similar pointing capabilities and replicate these human qual
    Read More
  • Rapidly-changing mobility environment is challenging policymakers, says UK DfT
    January 25, 2019
    Policy makers are working hard to make sense of a rapidly-changing mobility environment, according to a senior official from the UK’s Department for Transport (DfT). Ella Taylor, DfT’s head, future of mobility, Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (C/AV), says the pace of development in transportation modes, such as e-scooters (not currently allowed in the UK) and e-bikes (which are), presents difficulties for governments trying to create standards and laws. “Across the globe, different modes
    Read More
  • What's next for traffic management and data collection?
    January 26, 2012
    As the technologies and stakeholders in traffic management evolve, what can we expect to see happening in the coming years? For many, the conversation of the moment is just how, and how far, the newer technologies and services provided principally by the private sector should be allowed to intrude into the realms of traffic management.
    Read More

Highlighted Content