Leveraging Novel Beam Steering in Phased Array Antennas for Autonomous Vehicle Communications

Abstract

In the era of autonomous vehicles, establishing low-latency, high-reliability links is essential for safe and efficient operation. Phased array antennas (PAAs), with their inherent capacity for rapid beam steering, are uniquely positioned to meet these demands. This paper introduces cutting-edge beam steering methods for PAAs in vehicular networks, overcoming the angular precision and switching-speed limitations of conventional approaches. We present novel digital beamforming algorithms—augmented by real-time adaptive control—and a hardware-accelerated architecture optimized for dynamic road environments. Comprehensive simulations and real-world experiments demonstrate substantial gains in beamforming accuracy, latency reduction, and interference mitigation. Our results confirm that these advanced techniques can satisfy the stringent communication requirements of autonomous vehicle systems, paving the way for safer, more resilient transportation networks.