Deutsche Telekom and German vehicle inspection company DEKRA are expanding the facilities at the Lausitzring test and race track in east Germany to create Europe’s largest connected cars 5G testbed.
Car manufacturers, vendors and operators will use the racetrack to test connectivity in real-life circumstances, with DT opco Telekom Deutschland providing LTE and 5G infrastructure.
The operator said it was planning to introduce the likes of edge computing, precise positioning, where drivers can receive accurate information about their locale to the centimetre, and cellular vehicle standard C-V2X.
Hagen Rickmann, Director for Business Customers at Telekom Deutschland, said: “Mobility is playing an ever greater role in our society. By equipping the Lausitzring with our 5G infrastructure, we and our partner DEKRA are offering industry the perfect testing environment for developing new, future-oriented services. This applies to the requirements on the part of the automotive industry in moving toward autonomous driving, and also to intelligent traffic control as part of smart city projects. Together, we are paving the way toward safe and efficient mobility in the future.”
In addition to the racetrack, DEKRA’s Technology Centre offers a range of approval tests for car makers. It covers the equivalent of more than 700 football pitches and recreates conditions for urban, rural and highway driving, as well autonomous parking scenarios.
Earlier this year Deutsche Telekom launched a SIM-based solution that could bring connectivity services to existing vehicles.
The operator is already part of a telco consortium that has built a 30 kilometre test track for 5G services in Bavaria.