The USDOT Vehicle-Infrastructure Integration (VII) Program represents a new paradigm for surface transportation — one which reflects a new spirit of cooperation among surface transportation stakeholders and a new concept for the integration of vehicles and the surface transportation system. VII presents opportunities to take the next great step forward toward improving surface transportation safety, mobility, and commerce. To learn the fundamentals, visit http://www.its.dot.gov/vii/index.htm.
OmniAir and OmniAir members are actively participating in the VII Program in significant ways:
- 5.9GHz DSRC Certification Program
- VII Tactical Deployment
- VII Tolling and Payments Concept of Operations
In June 2006, OmniAir began a 5-year Cooperative Agreement with USDOT to develop the 5.9GHz DSRC Device Standards-Compliance Certification Program. The work comprises a series of tasks. The first is to create the look, shape, feel, extent and scope of the program as articulated by major users and stakeholders. The second is to investigate "Safety, Liability & Reliability Regarding Certification Issues and Develop Industry Recommendations." This thorough investigation of existing practices, policies, procedures and processes will lead to recommendations meant to ensure a fair, transparent program, but one with reasonable risk and liability protections. The most technical task at OmniAir is writing the IEEE P1609.2-4 Standards Version 1 Conformance Draft Test Methods. These are the standardized methods for how industry will certify compliance to the standards. OmniAir believes that a single interpretation of 'standards-compliant' helps advance interoperability. It is part of OmniAir's "One-Stop-Shop" approach.
A successful nationwide deployment of VII needs to recognize and take advantage of the forces that will naturally shape the situation. Combining applications in unconventional ways and investigating an alternative to embedded on-board vehicle technology will lead to eventual full deployment. This is a general picture of VII Tactical Deployment and is one of OmniAir's most exciting programs taking shape, and features the 2008 VII Tactical Deployment Workshop.
This task was assigned by USDOT in 2007 and the final deliverable exists in draft form with the possibility of extending the work to reflect VII Tactical Deployment. In a nutshell, a Concept of Operations attempts to understand, define and refine requirements in a multi-stakeholder ecosystem. For VII Tolling and Payments, this is necessary because there are new, critical stakeholders able to participate in VII payment services: the auto OEM and the financial industry.