Author: Ryan Hall

OmniAir Consortium®, the leading industry association promoting interoperability and certification for ITS, tolling, and connected vehicles, announces that TÜV Rheinland has joined OmniAir Consortium as an Associate Level Member.

Founded almost 150 years ago, TÜV Rheinland is one of the world’s leading testing service providers with more than 20,000 employees and annual revenues of 2 billion euros.  TÜV Rheinland’s highly qualified experts test technical systems and products worldwide,  support innovations in technology and business, train people in numerous professions, and certify management systems according to international standards.

Headquartered in Cologne, Germany, the company has accredited test laboratories and offices in 60 locations around the world.

“We are excited to have a recognized global leader in testing and certification like TÜV Rheinland as the newest OmniAir Member,” said Jason Conley, Executive Director of OmniAir Consortium. “The company’s deep experience and expertise in testing for smart mobility, cybersecurity, and wireless technologies will help OmniAir to advance its testing and certification programs for connected vehicles.”

In April, TÜV Rheinland became one of the first technical services designated by the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) for UN-R 155, UN-R 156, and UN-R 157 for cybersecurity in vehicles.

OmniAir offers independent, third-party testing and certification for tolling and connected vehicles, including both DSRC and C-V2X (LTE-V2X PC5) radios. For information about our certification programs and readiness, testing events, visit our website at www.omniair.org.

About OmniAir Consortium

OmniAir Consortium is the leading industry association promoting interoperability and certification for ITS, tolling, and connected vehicles. OmniAir’s membership includes public agencies, private companies, research institutions, and independent test laboratories.

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The OmniAir Michigan Plugfest, hosted by Danlaw, is coming up fast! We have fewer than 30 days before we kick off the premier testing event for connected vehicle technologies.

Laboratory bench testing will take place at the Danlaw corporate headquarters in Novi, MI, June 14,15, and 16, and field testing will take place at the University of Michigan’s Mcity Test Facility in nearby Ann Arbor, June 17 and 18.

All OmniAir and 5GAA members are welcome to join. Applied Information, Autotalks, Cohda Wireless, Commsignia, Continental, Danlaw, Harman, Hitachi, Kapsch, Siemens, and Qualcomm have already registered for this cellular-based Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) only testing event.

These 11 companies have registered 20 separate C-V2X On-Board Units (OBU) and Roadside Units (RSU) ready for security, conformance, and interoperability testing.

“The number of C-V2X devices and test systems participating in the OmniAir Plugfest has surpassed all expectations,“ said Jason Conley, Executive Director of OmniAir. “With 20 C-V2X devices under test, shows there is a strong market demand for secure and interoperable C-V2X technology.”

As space is limited we are only able to accommodate a few more C-V2X device makers. Registration ends at the close of business, Friday, May 21.

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OmniAir Consortium®, the leading industry association promoting interoperability and certification for ITS, tolling, and connected vehicles, announces that global automotive supplier, Ficosa International, has earned OmniAir Certification for its TCU-FITAX-3.5, On-Board-Unit (OBU).

OmniAir® certified the DSRC radio configuration and the TCU-FITAX-3.5 conforms to OmniAir Release 1 test cases generated from IEEE 802.11:2012 and 2016’s IEEE 1609, SAE J2735, and SAE J2945.1 standards applied in the Connected Vehicle transportation environment.

“Congratulations to Ficosa International for earning its first OmniAir Certification for a V2X radio,” said Jason Conley, Executive Director for OmniAir. “OmniAir only awards certification to trusted communications devices that conform to industry standards and meet minimum interoperability and security requirements.”

Based in Barcelona, Spain, Ficosa is the leading global provider dedicated to research, development, production, and marketing of vision, safety, communication, and efficiency systems for the automotive and mobility sectors.

Ficosa has developed Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) On-Board Units (OBU) for both DSRC (802.11p) and cellular technology (C-V2X). Ficosa’s CarCom platform allows integrating the two connectivity options as a dual-mode variant.  The company has established customer relationships with some of the world’s most recognized automotive brands: Alfa Romeo, Audi, BMW, Ferrari, Ford, GM, Honda, Jaguar, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Mini, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Porsche, Tesla, Toyota, and VW to name a few.

OmniAir has offered certification for DSRC-V2X devices since 2017 and launched the world’s first comprehensive certification program for LTE-based C-V2X devices in April 2021.  This new program was developed to meet the growing demand by deploying agencies for trusted communications devices for connected vehicles and connected infrastructure.

Please visit our product certification page to learn more about the TCU-FITAX-3.5 OBU and other OmniAir Certified devices.

About OmniAir Consortium

OmniAir Consortium is the leading industry association promoting interoperability and certification for ITS, tolling, and connected vehicles. OmniAir’s membership includes public agencies, private companies, research institutions, and independent test laboratories. Learn more about OmniAir at www.omniair.org.

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The OmniAir Michigan Plugfest, hosted by Danlaw, is coming up fast! We have fewer than 50 days before we kickoff of the premier testing event for connected vehicle technologies.

Laboratory bench testing will occur at the Danlaw corporate headquarters in Novi, MI, June 14,15, and 16, and field testing will take place at the University of Michigan’s Mcity Test Facility in nearby Ann Arbor, June 17 and 18.

OmniAir has secured nearly a dozen test stations offering security, conformance, and interoperability testing for C-V2X modules, OBUs and RSUs. OmniAir understands that many C-V2X device makers face travel limitations. Like our 2020 OmniAir Global Plugfest, OmniAir will facilitate both in-person testing and remote testing and witnessing for both laboratory and field testing. The following companies are offering their services:

  • Autocrypt 
  • Blackberry
  • Integrity Security Services
  • Microsec
  • Keysight
  • Nordsys
  • Rohde & Schwarz
  • S.E.A. Datentechnik GmbH
  • Spirent
  • SwRI
  • Wayties
  • WSP

To help prepare our device vendors, OmniAir is hosting a series of presentations featuring participating C-V2X test tool providers. Our goal is for device makers to learn more about each test system and to hear firsthand from providers which types of testing they will offer during the week-long testing event.

We have two more presentations scheduled for next week, Tuesday, May 4, at 12:00 pm EDT, from Keysight, our first C-V2X OmniAir Qualified Test Equipment provider and Spirent on their C-V2X bench testing solutions.

Our guests have already heard from Nordsys about their C-V2X sniffer tablet and their work with RSU cooperative perception; FHWA’s Saxton Laboratory about the Connected and Automated Vehicle education in-a-box (CAVe-in-a-box) tool kit and the V2X Hub; as well as presentations from Wayties on their location testing tool and S.E.A. GmbH on their C-V2X sniffer.

If you missed the first set of presentations, check out our YouTube Channel.

If you are interested in attending future presentations, please contact Kate Oldham for meeting details.

Those wishing to participate as a test station operator or a device manufacturer are encouraged to register now, as space is limited. Contact Ryan Hall, Senior Director of Marketing and Business Development, or visit our Eventbrite page to register.

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OmniAir Consortium is joining in the efforts to help reduce large truck crashes in works zones by supporting a new work zone safety outreach campaign led by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). As the annual National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) kicks off the roadway repair and construction season, OmniAir calls on all drivers to “share work zones safely” by staying alert, obeying traffic signs, and allowing all vehicles extra space while driving through active work zones this summer.

“We are pleased to support an effort that reminds both passenger and Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) drivers on our roadways to slow down and pay attention when driving through work zones,” said Jason Conley, Executive Director for OmniAir. “Nationally, in 2019, over 33 percent of fatal crashes involved CMVs, and compared to the year before, the U.S. saw a 16 percent increase in the number of fatal work zone crashes involving large trucks or buses[1]. So we need everyone to do their part to share the road safely, and help us reduce crashes in work zones.”

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reports that in 2019, the most recent year for which data are available, 842 people died in highway work zone crashes compared to 757 the year before[2]. The 11.2-percent increase is the largest percentage increase of highway work zone fatalities this century. Rear-end collisions and speeding, both preventable factors – also saw a 29 percent and 40 percent increase from 2018 to 2019, respectively[3]. Additionally, the number of worker fatalities in road construction sites increased by nearly 9 percent between 2018 and 2019[4].

These are just a handful of statistics showing the importance of communicating work zone safety, for the collective effort to reduce work zone crashes and save lives.

[1] FARS 2019 Annual Report File, NHTSA.
[2] FARS 2018 Final File and 2019 Annual Report File, NHTSA.
[3] FARS 2018 Final File and 2019 Annual Report File, NHTSA.
[4] 2018 and 2019 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, in cooperation with States, New York City, the District of Columbia, and Federal agencies

For more information on work zone safety, visit the ​NWZAW website.

About OmniAir Consortium

OmniAir Consortium is the leading industry association promoting interoperability and certification for ITS, tolling, and Connected Vehicles. OmniAir’s membership includes public agencies, private companies, research institutions, and independent test laboratories. Learn more about OmniAir at www.omniair.org

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