Connected Motorcycle Consortium - this is Big News
Founded in 2016, the Connected Motorcycle Consortium (CMC) is a multi-manufacturer effort to establish a common standard that would be a foundation on which motorcycle makers could base interconnectivity systems and devices (Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems/C-ITS) for motorcycles to be able to communicate with other vehicles.
After four years, December 2020 finally saw the members of CMC (ACEM, BMW, KTM, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Triumph) publish the 'Basic Specification' - a set of documents addressing various topics related to the introduction of C-ITS for motorcycles, such as the system triggering conditions, localization accuracy, algorithms and communicated data, as well as rider interface and antenna performance.
ACEM's Antonio Perlot stated: "This breakthrough result is the outcome of all the efforts made over the years by CMC members. They have been working intensively to achieve this goal and have made significant progress in this area through several studies, the development and evaluation of prototype bikes and through meetings and discussions with different major stakeholders.
"the work of CMC 'Next' started in January 2021"
"The CMC built on the ACEM Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems - motorcycle manufacturers, suppliers, researchers and associations joined forces with the objective to make motorcycles part of the future connected mobility." The primary first objective of the consortium has now been achieved by meeting the stated aim to define common 'Basic Specifications' for C-ITS systems for motorcycles and have them ready for publication by the end of 2020.
C-ITS allows road vehicles to communicate with each other, with roadside infrastructure and with other road users. C-ITS has a high potential to prevent accidents, especially for motorcycles. CMC has been working on around 30 applications in which connectivity would warn drivers and riders of potentially dangerous situations.
"The integration of motorcycles in the C-ITS ecosystem will bring significant safety benefits and will lead to better integration of motorcycles in the transport system," said Perlot.
At the presentation of the 'Basic Specification' documents and signing of the extended CMC 'Next' agreement between the manufacturers, BMW stated that "for decades, BMW Motorrad has been leading the way with regard to improving motorcycling safety. As a founding member of the CMC, BMW Motorrad will continue to work together with other renowned manufacturers to further increase the safety of motorcycling and to make riding pleasure on two wheels even safer and more attractive".
The next phase will now see the approach widened and the work include investigating the conspicuity of motorcycles by ADAS systems (Advanced Driver Assistance System). This 'system' approach looks at creating synergies between on-board sensor systems and connectivity.
"The 'Basic Specification' is a first step to describe the function of motorcycle V2X systems (Vehicles- to-Everything - which includes 'Vehicle-to-Vehicle' and 'Vehicle-to-Infrastructure'). In a further step beyond basic specification, the participating manufacturers will define further essential functional requirements to standardize in detail.
"V2X - 'Vehicle-to-Everything' communications technology"
Now that motorcycles will be able to develop standardized communication, a further crucial step for CMC 'Next' is cooperation with the car industry and other vehicle manufacturers, so that motorcycles can integrate with the on-board sensor systems (radar, camera, etc.) and driver assistance systems being developed in the automotive, rapid transit and road freight markets.
CMC believes that tailored motorcycle/car scenarios and tests need to be developed and standardized. The new organization has already started its work in January 2021. The six motorcycle manufacturers encourage other motorcycle manufacturers, suppliers, car manufacturers and the other related organizations to join the cooperation to further pursue the deployment of new elements for motorcycle safety.
Executive Officer Takuya Kinoshita, Chief General Manager of Motorcycle Business Operations for Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd., stated: "The future of traffic has to be one of being increasingly connected, and motorcycles must be integrated into that ecosystem.
"Motorcycles need to stay a solution and remain an enjoyable means of transport for the decades to come. This is why activities like CMC are so important for the motorcycle industry."
The CMC 'Basic Standard' documents are available for download at www.cmc-info.net