Telefónica Tech announced its alliance with EHang, the world’s leading technology company for Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing Vehicles (eVTOL) for the transport of passengers and cargo without a pilot on board, with the aim of boosting Urban Air Mobility, deploying smart aerial solutions and driving the growing Low-altitude Economy in Europe and Latin America.
Within the framework of this alliance, which both companies will present on 26 February in the Agora of the Telefónica stand at the Mobile World Congress (MWC), EHang has chosen Telefónica Tech’s connectivity capabilities (5G and private networks) to enhance the security and efficiency of this type of mobility in both regions, and to continue expanding and exporting its smart solutions with unmanned aerial vehicles.
Both companies intend to implement use cases in Europe and Latin America around Air Mobility, Smart City Management and Aerial Media solutions in areas as diverse as passenger transport, logistics, health services, emergency response and Smart Cities management.
Telefónica and EHang will also collaborate on ‘Drone Light Shows’ with swarms of drones to digitalise and increase the sustainability of large-scale shows and events.
Connectivity plays a key role in the development and integration of Urban Air Mobility. 5G mobile networks have the capacity to guarantee reliable communications, low latency and high data transmission capacity. These characteristics make it possible to optimise the real-time control and monitoring of aircraft by sending telemetry or multimedia data to both ground control systems and centralised public information systems for immediate processing and management. Similarly, 5G helps to ensure the continuity of UAV operation by preventing potential interference and providing security through the encryption of SIM cards in UAVs.
In addition to these attributes, in the case of private mobile networks, the level of privacy and security of the information obtained by the drone is enhanced by preventing data traffic from being shared outside the customer’s premises and can also provide coverage in isolated and remote areas.
In this sense, the two companies have set out to develop connectivity solutions based on mobile networks for the safe and efficient integration of drones and eVTOL aircraft with digital unmanned air traffic management systems (UTM and U-Space).
To articulate this collaboration, both companies rely on Telefónica Tech’s TheThinX laboratory, considered one of the most advanced and best equipped IoT environments in the world, and EHang’s Urban Air Mobility Centre in Europe, located in Spain, a pioneering centre in Advanced Air Mobility and intermodal transport.
Victoria Jing Xiang, EHang’s COO for Europe and Latam, said: “We are delighted to join forces with Telefónica Tech to jointly deploy Urban Air Mobility and the low altitude economy in Europe and Latin America. Telefónica Tech’s capabilities and expertise in connectivity and the internet of things will enable EHang to deploy its solutions efficiently and securely, allowing millions of people to benefit from its applications in their daily lives”.
Alfredo Serret, Global Head of IoT at Telefónica Tech, said: “The partnership with EHang means being part of a pioneering project for the air mobility of the future. The fact that EHang relies on our connectivity to develop the sector in Europe and Latin America confirms the strong positioning of our service in both markets, and means combining capabilities to enable connected, safe, efficient and green air mobility for all”.
