NextG-VCP for cyber-physical vehicular health monitoring system (CP-VHMS)

The evolution of vehicular networks has led to the emergence of Next Generation Vehicle Communication Protocols (NextG-VCP) within Cyber-Physical Vehicular Health Monitoring Systems (CP-VHMS). These systems enable real-time diagnostics, predictive maintenance, and intelligent transportation management. However, current vehicular communication frameworks face challenges such as bandwidth limitations, high latency, interference, scalability constraints, and security vulnerabilities. This paper presents a comprehensive taxonomy of NextG-VCP, analyzing six key dimensions: dependability, mobility, intelligence, efficiency, communication, and security. Unlike existing surveys that treat vehicular networking, cybersecurity, and health monitoring as separate domains, this work provides an integrated six-dimensional analytical taxonomy explicitly aligned with CP-VHMS requirements. We systematically compare state-of-the-art vehicular technologies and discuss emerging solutions such as 6G networks, Digital Twin Networks (DTN), AI-driven security frameworks, blockchain-based authentication, and edge computing. Rather than proposing a new standardized communication protocol, this paper offers a structured analytical synthesis and migration-oriented perspective that bridges legacy in-vehicle networks with NextG-VCP ecosystems. The analysis further incorporates standards alignment with IEEE, 3GPP, ETSI, and ISO frameworks to contextualize protocol evolution within functional safety, cybersecurity, and interoperability requirements. Furthermore, we highlight the growing role of aerial and terrestrial vehicular communication, addressing challenges such as spectrum management, interference mitigation, and intelligent traffic coordination. Failure scenarios, degradation mechanisms, interoperability constraints, and standards alignment considerations are also examined to clarify practical deployment implications. Future research directions are outlined, focusing on real-world deployment strategies, hybrid communication models, adaptive security mechanisms, and resilience-aware architectural design. Our findings contribute to the development of a highly efficient, secure, and intelligent vehicular health monitoring system, paving the way for safer and more resilient connected transportation ecosystems.