LG Electronics first in industry to deploy 5G R16 telematics in European production vehicles

LG Electronics announced Wednesday that it has become the first company to supply next-generation 5G smart telematics solutions for vehicles to the European market.

The company said it has integrated an R16-based smart telematics solution into European mass-production vehicle models — marking the first time an R16-based automotive telematics solution has been deployed in European production vehicles.

R16 is the second major 5G standard, building on R15, which focused on initial 5G commercialization, with improved performance and stability. It supports ultra-reliable, low-latency communications that increase data transmission reliability and reduce delay compared with R15. The data error rate stands at 0.001 percent, while latency between the telematics module and base stations is 0.001 seconds — improvements of 100 times and five times, respectively, over 4G.

The solution serves as essential infrastructure for the era of software-defined vehicles (SDV) and AI-defined vehicles (AIDV). It supports over-the-air (OTA) software updates, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) real-time data exchange between vehicles and surrounding objects and infrastructure, and high-volume data transmission for autonomous driving systems. R16-based smart telematics delivers these capabilities with greater stability, providing a communications environment better suited to autonomous driving, where fast response times and safety are paramount.

The ultra-reliable, low-latency communications provided by the smart telematics solution underpin LG αWare, LG Electronics' software platform for SDV and AIDV. LG αWare comprises PlayWare, an in-vehicle entertainment solution; MetaWare, which delivers AR/MR and AI-based user experiences; and VisionWare, an advanced driver-assistance system solution using AI algorithms and camera sensors.

LG Electronics also eliminated the externally protruding shark-fin antenna to support cleaner vehicle exterior design. Conventional automotive communications systems separated the telematics module from a shark-fin antenna mounted on the vehicle's exterior. As the number of communications functions — including 5G, Wi-Fi, V2X and GNSS — grew, so did the number of antennas required, forcing automakers to scatter across the vehicle any antennas that could not fit inside the shark fin.

LG Electronics addressed this by integrating the communications module and up to 12 antennas into a single hardware unit, minimizing signal loss at connection points between components and simplifying wiring and spatial layout. Automakers can reduce installation space inside the vehicle and lower costs as a result. Eliminating the shark-fin antenna also enables a smoother exterior design.

The solution also delivers enhanced stability and reliability. It is designed to maintain consistent performance even in high-temperature desert driving conditions, ensuring strong connectivity across diverse global communications environments.

As the world's No. 1 telematics provider by market share, LG Electronics is strengthening its leadership in automotive components for the SDV and AIDV era. In March, the company joined the 6G Alliance to pursue standards development and system verification, laying the groundwork for an open ecosystem.

LG Electronics is positioning itself as a key partner for automakers by offering a total SDV solution that spans not only infotainment — including its automotive webOS content platform — but also in-cabin sensing to protect driver safety and telematics for collecting diverse vehicle data.

"We will continue to introduce innovative solutions in automotive communications, which has become a core competitive advantage in mobility, to further solidify our telematics market leadership beyond the SDV era and into the age of AIDV," said Eun Seok-hyun, president and head of LG Electronics' vehicle solutions business division.