Integration of 5G mmWave-Enabled V2I and V2V: Experimental Evaluation
Junhyeong Kim, Heesang Chung, Ilgyu Kim, Gosan Noh
Abstract
The use of mmWave for vehicular communications enables new bandwidth-demanding 5G vehicle-to-everything (V2X) services, while at the same time creating challenges, such as coverage holes due to, for example, blockages. The integrated operation of vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) can provide significant benefits for a vehicle user equipment (UE) to overcome the coverage problem and ensure service continuity and reliability. Hence, in this article, we investigate how much performance gain can be achieved by the integration of V2I and V2V in a mmWave-enabled vehicular network. Based on a brief system description of a V2I and V2V integrated vehicular network, we overview 5G standard-related key technical features, such as V2V beam management, sidelink unlicensed (SL-U) operation, and mobile relaying. The feasibility and usefulness of the integrated V2I and V2V operation are validated by experimental trial, using a real-world testbed comprising fully functioning gNodeBs and vehicle UEs. It was shown through experiments that around 1.7 Gb/s and 1.0 Gb/s average data rates are respectively achievable for V2I and V2V links on a real highway environment while maintaining service continuity through handover operations.