Autonomous vehicles get insurance boost in the UK

Autonomous vehicles are to be insured under normal policies in the UK.

This was one of the government proposals announced in the Queen’s Speech.

According to the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), this is an important step forward which will ultimately improve road safety and reduce congestion.

But the IET warned the Government that it needs to introduce legislation to improve cyber security in autonomous vehicles.

Hugh Boyes, the IET’s cyber security expert,  believes driverless vehicles have huge potential to transform the UK’s transport network and the UK has the research and development to do this.

But he warns that it is vital that cyber security is carefully considered.

“It is not just about the threat of a car being hacked, it also relates to the overall security and safety of the vehicle’s operation,” said Boyes. “For that reason it will be crucial that the Government introduces proper regulations for autonomous vehicles, which should include the need for a software MoT to be performed on a regular basis. This should help to assure the ongoing trustworthiness of the vehicle software and systems.”

Autonomous vehicle will rely on software embedded in the vehicle, which will interprete potential hazards, changes in vehicle direction and speed (both of the vehicle itself and of adjacent or approaching vehicles), and responding safely to vehicle faults or malfunctions.

“It will be vital to ensure that this software runs smoothly so, in the same way as we take our cars for annual MOTs at the local garage today, in the future we will need to include a check on the software to ensure defects and vulnerabilities are addressed. How these checks happen – and who is responsible for them – is something we should be thinking about now,” said Boyes.

“While we are used in our daily lives to putting up with software errors in non-safety critical situations, such as when our computers freeze and require a reboot, we cannot tolerate such behaviour in autonomous vehicles as this could put the safety of the vehicle’s passengers and those outside the vehicle at risk,” concluded Boyes.

10Gbit/s wireless link in London

Intended for 4G and LTE telecoms back-haul, the link can also bridge fibre-optic cables across rivers and sensitive areas like historic town centres, RF Com MD Ian Cains told Electronics Weekly. Corporate campus networks, IPTV, wireless ISP backbone and last-mile links are other potential applications.

Called PPC-10G, the system is thought to be the first commercially available 10Gbit/s point-to-point millimetre wave link available.

The end terminals work in E-Band at either 71-76GHz or 81-86GHz, or in Q-Band at 40.5-43.5GHz – according to RF Com, Ofcom only requires a low-cost ‘light’ license to operate at the E-Band frequencies.

Interface to the terminals is Ethernet at both ends, with the wireless link acting as a transparent Ethernet carrier.

Communication is full-duplex, with QAM 254 modulation putting 10Gbit/s though 2GHz bandwidth. Antennas are 300 or 600mm dishes, and predicted range is 4.4km over almost all of the UK for 99.99% availability with the larger antenna – dropping slightly in rainy areas of Northern Ireland and western Scotland.

Adaptive code and modulation allows the link to adjust to maximum available data rate in poor weather without losing the connection. “This gives a reliable link even in heavy rain fall or sand storms,” said RF Com.

Up to four PPC-10G parallel links can be installed in the same location to provide a 40Gbit/s channel with no mutual interference.

With development and production in St Petersburg, management in Sweden and marketing from Estonia, Elva-1 is known for providing microwave components to research establishments around the world – including to the Joint European Torus (JET) and the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, both in Oxfordshire.

Elva-1 has previously sold 100Mbit/s and 1Gbit/s wireless Ethernet links, and has been running 10Gbit/s links for several months including in environmental trails in Siberia, said Cains.

Edinburgh-based RF Com represents Elva-1 in the UK.

“We are incredibly excited about working with Elva-1 on embedding this technology into the UK market, we’ve already had a huge amount of interest from mobile operators, wireless internet providers and fibre optic providers,” said Cains.

The London demonstrations are on 03 August at the Tower Hotel, with a link to The Shard.

PPC-10G links are available through RF Com for for purchase, for monthly rental, or for trials lasting up to three months