The language in which future connected cars will communicate is still largely open. A manufacturer alliance has now been formed in Japan, which should be part of the decision-making process in the future.
The Japanese automakers want to develop common standards for the connected car. Daihatsu, Mazda, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota have now announced a corresponding cooperation. The aim is to simplify communication between networked vehicles and with cloud systems and traffic infrastructure. The basic technologies should come from Toyota, the other manufacturers integrate their systems.
The networking of cars is also being promoted by other manufacturers and is intended to improve comfort and road safety. The vehicles could warn each other of dangers such as traffic jams, but also exchange information about free parking spaces.
The joint communication does not specify which communication standards and transmission media the Japanese companies want to use. So far, Toyota, like Volkswagen and Renault-Nissan, has relied on the WLAN standard for information transfer in so-called Car2X systems. Competitors such as Daimler, BMW and Deutsche Telekom, on the other hand, rely on 5G mobile communications. Which technology will prevail or whether both approaches can coexist is still largely open. However, a solution to these questions would be desirable in order for as many vehicles as possible to communicate with one another.