Paris demo spotlights satellite connectivity advances

Connected vehicle technology has come a long way on cellular networks over the years, but it’s never been perfect. In remote areas outside of cellular coverage, calls are dropped, fleet tracking grinds to a halt, and the link to emergency services may be lost. This can also happen in the wake of natural disasters: massive flooding in Germany in 2021 temporarily wiped out cellular services. In these instances, satellite communication technology could prove a game-changer. Drawing on satellite signals in the L- and S-bands of radio frequencies, vehicle-mounted antennas and specialised telematics control units, it ensures connectivity even without a cellular network.

Kevin Cohen, Vice President of Direct-to-Device (D2D) strategy at satellite services company Viasat, describes it as a sort of insurance. “Today, people worry about what happens if they get flat tyres or drive off the road in a remote area,” he tells Automotive World. “This will give peace of mind to a lot of drivers.”

Viasat provided the L-band satellite network for a public demonstration in Paris on 15 May. The event brought together vehicles and technology from members of the 5G Automotive Association (5GAA), including BMW, Stellantis, Qualcomm, Harman and others, to show how non-terrestrial networks (NTN) can support ubiquitous connectivity for a range of automotive use cases.