Autonomous Truck Specialist Leverages 4G/5G, GNSS, and Wi-Fi to Maximize Productivity and Safety

U.S. trucking companies face a major challenge: a chronic shortage of qualified drivers.

“About 237,600 openings for heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are projected each year, on average, over the decade [of 2024-2034],” the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says. “Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.”

Replacing them isn’t easy because it’s a demanding profession. This challenge affects the businesses that rely on trucking companies, which moved 72% of all domestic freight in 2025 and the majority of surface trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Delays are particularly problematic for businesses with lean supply chains and just-in-time manufacturing, such as automakers.

The good news is that fully autonomous trucks are increasingly filling the gap. For example, autonomous tractor trailers now shuttle freight in and between Dallas, Houston, and other major cities. Analyst firms predict that the autonomous truck sector will have an annual compound growth rate between 16.2% and 36.92% through 2034-2035.

The driver shortage isn’t the only market driver. Autonomous trucks also are leveraging technological advances such as the steady buildout of vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) systems. Also known as smart roads, V2I systems enhance both safety and efficiency by providing the truck’s artificial intelligence (AI) with additional real-time data about traffic and other conditions.

Taoglas rose to this challenge by combining its extensive product portfolio, dedicated customer support, and state-of-the-art facilities to deliver a tailored connectivity solution. Read on to discover how.

The Challenge:

V2I is just one example of the mission-critical role that wireless technologies such as cellular and GNSS play in enabling autonomous trucks. That’s why the companies that specialize in autonomous truck systems are focusing on antennas to ensure a fast, reliable, steady stream of real-time data to and from their vehicles.

One of the industry’s leaders turned to Taoglas for an antenna system that could meet its unique requirements for technologies, bands, form factor, and automotive-grade ruggedization.

“With AI implementation, more data will be needed that will require new antenna products — i.e., multiple 5G, Wi-Fi, GNSS — under one housing,” says an executive at this autonomous truck specialist. “It is challenging to come up with a single antenna housing with multiple elements working on different frequency bands.”

The Solution:

To overcome those challenges, the company chose two Taoglas products:

• The World SuperCombo MA1047 is a 7-in-1 shark-fin-style antenna that supports multiple GNSS constellations (GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, and Galileo) to maximize reliability and accuracy for positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) applications. It also provides broadband connectivity via 4G/5G MIMO and dual-band Wi-Fi, as well as 2G and 3G for fallback when trucks are in remote areas such as rural interstates. The enclosure is IP67 rated to protect the antenna elements against dust and rain.
• The Comet MA321 has two 5G/4G MIMO antennas covering 600 MHz to 6 GHz one GNSS antenna covering BeiDou, GPS, and GLONASS, all in a low-profile, puck-style enclosure that can be adhesive or magnet mounted. The MA321 can be mounted internally, such as inside the windshield. For exterior installations, the IP67-rated enclosure provides high protection against the elements.

The Outcome:

Autonomous trucks also are an example of why tech experts in these and other sectors turn to an expert partner to help them add cellular, GNSS, and Wi-Fi to their products. As innovators in AI and other cutting-edge technologies, these companies recognize the value of working with a partner that has the proven design expertise and specialized test equipment necessary to achieve mission-critical performance and reliability.

“They have the design expertise, state-of-the-art facilities, and great customer support,” the executive says.