[co-author: Tawanna Lee]
On April 14, 2021, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) issued an Order waiving its Section 15.255 technical and service rules for unlicensed operation in the 57-71 GHz band to permit six equipment manufacturers to operate radar-based vehicle cabin monitors. Specifically, Vayyar Imaging Ltd., Valeo North America Inc., Infineon Technologies Americas Corp., Tesla Inc., IEE Sensing Inc., and Brose North America Inc. (the Requestors) sought to use in-vehicle radar to provide vehicular passenger safety and theft prevention applications. The Order has significant implications for next generation connected and automated vehicle technologies.
The Part 15 Waiver Requests
The Part 15 rules, which are designed to permit the operation of unlicensed low-power devices, establish power limits to prevent harmful interference to authorized users of the radio spectrum. As the Commission notes in its Order, general mobile radar operations were historical