目前，英國 Millbrook 試驗場已經(jīng)正式啟動了 AutoAir 自動駕駛汽車聯(lián)盟的 5G 蜂窩測試基礎設施，用于自動駕駛車輛的開發(fā)與測試。這套新設施可以為自動駕駛汽車開發(fā)商提供一套低延時的廣域無線設備，據(jù)稱可無縫覆蓋位于倫敦以北 50 英里（80 公里）的整個場區(qū)。
Millbrook 試驗場表示，“5G通信能力對 SAE L3 級到 L5 級自動駕駛汽車測試至關重要，只有具備這種高速實時連接，自動駕駛汽車才能將現(xiàn)實世界與模擬決策的結果進行比較。”
開發(fā)人員將能夠模擬弱信號和強信號，并借助試驗場中的丘陵等地貌理解各類地形對信號的影響，而且還能同時訪問測試期間生成的所有數(shù)據(jù)。AutoAir 自動駕駛汽車聯(lián)盟由 Airspan Networks 公司啟倡，允許自動駕駛汽車開發(fā)人員使用增強和虛擬現(xiàn)實技術，為車輛創(chuàng)建虛擬事件，從而在安全環(huán)境下完成多種測試，甚至包括一些危險的邊緣場景。
Millbrook 試驗場 AutoAir項目所采用的技術基于運行于“中性宿主（neutral host）”的 4G和5G 小型蜂窩網(wǎng)絡單元。Airspan Networks 公司首席戰(zhàn)略官 Paul Senior 表示，“AutoAir 項目是世界上最雄心勃勃的 5G 測試平臺和站點之一，現(xiàn)已完成超密集小型蜂窩網(wǎng)絡的部署，可以提供超高網(wǎng)絡容量，幫助開發(fā)人員輕松探索豐富的 CAV 使用場景。”
Millbrook 試驗場圍繞園區(qū)高速公路共建設了 77 個小基站（使用 2.3 GHz 和 3.7 GHz 頻段）和 22 個毫米波接入點（即 30 GHz 到 300 GHz 頻段），安裝了 59 根天線桿（38 根用于小基站、11根用于毫米波接入點、10 根用于沿山公路的毫米波網(wǎng)狀回程網(wǎng)），共使用電纜 19 公里（11.8 英里）。
支持時速 160 mph 所需的蜂窩網(wǎng)絡覆蓋
Millbrook 試驗場的全新通信系統(tǒng)可以提供：高達 1 Gbps的實時連接；“碗型”道路周圍在車速 256 km/h (160 mph) 時仍可保證高速網(wǎng)絡連接；使用 4G 長期評估訪問（一旦商用設備到位，該網(wǎng)絡還可支持 5G NR 通信）；及多接入邊緣計算能力（MEC），并確保所有數(shù)據(jù)均不會流出試驗場。
Millbrook 試驗場還可以為開發(fā)人員提供開源參考車輛。這些參考車輛經(jīng)過編程可模擬多種車輛以協(xié)助自動駕駛軟件的開發(fā)，還可以模擬一系列“軟目標”從而更好地反映自動駕駛汽車的真實工作環(huán)境。此外，試驗場還可以為園區(qū)內的測試車道提供精度高達 1 mm 的精密數(shù)字模型，以及同時適用于真實環(huán)境和虛擬環(huán)境開發(fā)的模擬器。
網(wǎng)絡安全一直是自動駕駛汽車研發(fā)的重點問題，5G 測試平臺可模擬移動網(wǎng)絡中斷的情況，以測試軟件、車輛和基礎設施的抗干擾能力。此外，這種開放接入網(wǎng)絡還可以通過“切片”允許用戶在單個網(wǎng)絡基礎設施上工作，幫助測試各種網(wǎng)絡中斷和連接問題。
除了 Airspan Networks 公司，AutoAir 聯(lián)盟的其他成員還包括邁凱倫應用技術公司（McLaren AppliedTechnologies）、Blu Wireless Technology、薩里大學 5G 創(chuàng)新中心、Dense Air、Quortus及 Celestia Technologies Group。
歐洲另一試驗場瑞典 AstaZero 中心已成為歐洲 NCAP 認證的主動安全和自動駕駛系統(tǒng)測試場地，目前由瑞典研究所（RISE）和查爾莫斯理工大學共同所有。
Millbrook Proving Ground in the U.K. has officially launched the AutoAir consortium’s 5G cellular testing infrastructure for autonomous vehicle (AV) development. The new facility at Millbrook provides AV developers access to a low-latency, wide-area wireless infrastructure billed to work seamlessly across the entire sprawling test facility 50 miles (80 km) north of London.
Millbrook said, “This capability is crucial for the validation and testing of SAE Level 3 to Level 5 autonomous vehicles, which require high-speed real-time connectivity to compare real-world outcomes with decision-making simulation.”
Developers will be able to simulate weak and strong cell signals and understand the impact of hills and other terrain—all within Millbrook’s grounds—while having access to all data generated during testing. The AutoAir consortium is led by Airspan Networks and enables AV developers to create virtual events using augmented and virtual reality for vehicles on track, to test in safety scenarios right up to edge cases.
The technology used at Millbrook is based on 4G and 5G small cells that operate on a “neutral host” basis. “AutoAir at Millbrook is one of the most ambitious 5G testbeds and trials sites in the world. The project has now completed the deployment of a hyper-dense small cell network that delivers ultra-high capacities which enables a range of new CAV use cases to be explored,” said Paul Senior, chief strategy officer at Airspan Networks.
The Millbrook mobile network facility comprises 77 small-cell base stations (using 2.3 GHz and 3.7 GHz spectrum) and 22 millimeter-wave access points (millimeter-wave is the spectrum from 30 GHz to 300 GHz) around Millbrook’s banked, high-speed road circuit. There are 59 masts, 38 for the small cell base stations and 11 for the millimeter-wave access points, plus 10 for the millimeter-wave mesh backhaul along a hill route. Some 19 km (11.8 miles) of fiber-optic cable is installed.
Cellular coverage at 160 mph
The site’s new communications systems provide up to 1 Gbps real-time connectivity; up to 256 km/h (160 mph) continuous coverage capability around the high-speed bowl; access using 4g long-term evaluation—the network capable of supporting 5G New Radio (NR) when commercial devices become available—and secure Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) with the assurance that data does not leave Millbrook’s environs.
The Millbrook facility offers access to open-source reference vehicles that can be programmed to emulate a range of vehicles for AV software development, and “soft targets” for real-world AV requirements. It also can provide a digital model of the facility’s test tracks with 1 mm surface accuracy for vehicle simulation, as well as a simulator suite for both physical and virtual development.
With cybersecurity a continuing concern for AVs, the 5G testbed can be used to simulate mobile-network disruption and connectivity to test software, vehicle and infrastructure resilience to interference. And an open-access network, with slicing to enable users to work on a single network infrastructure, facilitates testing involving various network disruption and connectivity situations.
Together with Airspan Networks, the AutoAir consortium includes McLaren Applied Technologies; Blu Wireless Technology; The 5G Innovation Center, University of Surrey; Dense Air; Quortus and Celestia Technologies Group.
Another proving grounds in Europe, the Swedish test facility AstaZero, now is accredited by Euro NCAP to perform tests of active safety systems and automated driving. It is owned by Research Institutes of Sweden, (RISE) and Chalmers University of Technology.
Author: Stuart Birch
Source: Autonomous Vehicle Engineering
英國 Millbrook 試驗場的“碗”型高速道路是 5G 技術開發(fā)的重要特征。（圖片來源：Millbrook 試驗場）
英國 Millbrook 試驗場的AutoAir 項目將為 5G 通信技術登陸自動駕駛汽車做出重大貢獻。(圖片來源：Millbrook 試驗場)
