College - Author 1
College of Engineering
Department - Author 1
Electrical Engineering Department
Degree Name - Author 1
BS in Electrical Engineering
College - Author 2
College of Engineering
Department - Author 2
Electrical Engineering Department
Degree - Author 2
BS in Electrical Engineering
College - Author 3
College of Engineering
Department - Author 3
Electrical Engineering Department
Degree - Author 3
BS in Electrical Engineering
Date
6-2025
Primary Advisor
Payam Nayeri, College of Engineering, Electrical Engineering Department
Abstract/Summary
This project focuses on building a realistic, standards based V2X communication platform using DSRC (IEEE 802.11p) to support future autonomous vehicle control research. The system is built around commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware, specifically the NXP i.MX 8XLite – V2X Evaluation Kit, which integrates an automotive-grade processor and the SAF5400 V2X modem to handle low-level DSRC transmission in the 5.9 GHz band.
We successfully completed the hardware bring-up, verified over-the-air communication between two nodes, and performed initial RF characterization using a spectrum analyzer. The SAF5400 was confirmed to operate on all seven DSRC channels (172–184), maintaining the correct 10 MHz bandwidth centered on each frequency in compliance with the IEEE 802.11p standard. We also measured the system’s power draw under idle and transmit conditions to support future power budgeting and integration with mobile platforms such as TurtleBots.
A key objective of the project was to enable the transmission of fully custom, user-defined data over the V2X link. We successfully used the llc tx command to transmit fully custom 802.11p frames and verify their reception on another node using llc rx. This confirmed that reliable transmission of arbitrary payloads is possible using the existing software stack. All payloads were received as expected, with the exception of a 4-byte region that is automatically modified, likely for internal data for sequencing the number of transmissions. This capability provides a solid base for future teams to transmit real-time vehicle data to other vehicles using this V2X system.
The next steps include automating this transmission process, integrating live data sources such as messages from the exposed CAN bus, and physically integrating the V2X kits onto the TurtleBots with dedicated electrical power subsystems (EPS). These additions will enable the V2X kits to support an autonomous vehicle wireless communication system between TurtleBots that are compliant with industry standards today.
URL: https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/eesp/687