Research Trends and Results

Next-generation cooperative services linking ITS
Spots with cell phone networks
KANAZAWA Fumihiko, HeadSAWA Junbei, Senior Researcher
WATANABE Daisuke, Researcher
SANO Hisaya, Guest Research Engineer
Intelligent Transport System Division, Research Center for Advanced Information Technology(Key words) Cooperative ITS, road – vehicle communication, vehicle – vehicle communication, smartphone
1. Introduction
The NILIM has been conducting “Joint Research on
Development of Next Generation Cooperative ITS”,
which is joint public-private research on
next-generation cooperative ITS with 15 private sector
manufacturers since 2012.
Through the joint research, a system architecture
consisting of a theoretical model and a material model
has been created in order to define service contents andmodel the system functions and information flow, inorder to clarify the overall image of cooperative ITS
services. Specifically, it classifies 7 major
matters—support for safe driving, smoothing traffic
flow, improving the environment, improving comfort,
emergency response, support for administrative
activities, and support for economic activities—and lists
196 proposed services.
It also studies a road map to the development ofcooperative ITS and its spread inside and outside ofJapan.
This paper reports on the contents of the joint
research concerning services linking ITS Spots with cellphone networks using cooperative ITS technology.
2. Outline of services linking ITS Spots with cellphone networks“Services linking cell phone networks with ITS
Spots” were jointly developed with 14 private sector
companies including the expressway operators. At ITS
World Congress Tokyo 2013, the showcase,“Cooperative Services of Mobile Communications andITS Spots (12V)” was carried out, and the effectivenessof the services was surveyed.
As the showcase, participants drove from Odaiba toUmihotaru on the expressway while using smart phones
to experience various services established by linking
cell phone networks to ITS Spots. The following five
services were newly studied.
[1] Technologies to link and complement ITS Spots orother existing infrastructure with cell phone networks
were applied to continuously supply sign information,
landmark information etc. for display on smartphone
screens along with road traffic information from ITS
Spots.

Figure. Image of Services Linking ITS Spots with CellPhone Networks
Route guidanceinformation

Warninginformation

Stamp rally
Cell phone network

Emergency information

Sign information

Wide area road traffic
information

Cell phone network

Cell phone network[2] In the Aqua Tunnel where GPS is blocked, using
information from ITS Spots installed in the tunnel inaddition to sensor information, obtainable by smart
phones and base station information about cell phone
networks, clarified position information about travelinglocation more accurately.
[3] Real-time information provision in four languages(Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean) using afunction which supplies information to smartphones
from the cell phone network was demonstrated.
[4] When starting to drive, the driver’s smartphone andthe smartphones of the passengers were grouped so thatwhile driving, information the driver received from thecell phone network and from ITS Spots was also
displayed on the passengers’ smartphones to share thestate of traffic surrounding the automobile.
[5] Recording the automobile passing each ITS Spot
installed on the way to the destination to confirm theautomobile is traveling on the predetermined route wasdemonstrated.
The results of a survey of the effectiveness of theservices show that concerning the early practical
introduction of the services, 30% of the respondentsanswered “strongly desirable” and 60% answered“desirable if possible”. And concerning their intention
to use the services, about 90% of them answered, “Iwant to use them”, so it can be concluded that desire touse the services is strong.

Research Trends and Results
3. Conclusions
In the future, we will continue studies based on
knowledge obtained from the results of the showcase, toeffectively operate services to begin their actualoperation.
[Sources]
Twentieth ITS World Congress Tokyo 2013, Showcase
GS: Mobile Communications – ITS Spots Cooperative
Services (12V) Pamphlet