Bosch Uses Shanghai Motor Show to Launch Automated Driving Initiative in China

Bosch used the Shanghai Motor Show to launch the company’s automated driving initiative in China. At its booth, the company showcases solutions geared towards providing motorists with stress-free, accident-free, and emissions-free mobility in the future. The company has already finalized collaboration agreements with Baidu and map providers NavInfo and AutoNavi to generate high-precision, up-to-the-minute maps. All four companies are jointly working on a solution that will allow them to use the data collected by Bosch’s radar and video sensors installed in vehicles to generate and update maps.

Speaking about the venture, Dr. Rolf Bulander, member of Robert Bosch GmbH’s board of management and chairman of the Mobility Solutions business sector said that automated driving is not possible without the use of high-precision maps. This is the reason why Bosch is using an open, standardized approach by collaborating with other companies. Automated vehicles will use the data obtained through Bosch sensors to determine their own location, and this data will be compatible with the map data of the company’s three partners. The four partners are working on coming up with a solution before the end of the year.

Research has found that a very high percentage of Chinese people (74 per cent) are in favor of quick introduction of automated driving. Bosch and Baidu have jointly deployed a test vehicle, a modified Jeep Cherokee which is equipped with a multitude of Bosch components like radar sensors, a multi-purpose camera, electronic power steering and ESP braking control system on Chinese freeways.

According to Bulander, China will be the fourth testing location, in addition to Japan, the United States and Germany in which Bosch is trying out automated driving. China is a key market for automated driving technologies and Chinese consumers have revealed that they are very open to the concept, as 74 per cent of consumers were amenable to automated driving while the corresponding percentage for Germany was 33 percent and that for the US was 31 percent.

At the Shanghai Motor Show, Bosch showcased how a car can be much more than a means of transportation and can become a driver’s personal assistant through the use of modern user interfaces and display instruments.

Bosch also has a lot to offer when it comes to powertrain technology and electrification, with a range of customized petrol and diesel direct injection systems, systems for hybrid and electric vehicles, and its extensive modular concept for CNG powertrains, which can help Chinese automotive manufacturers to meet the China6 emissions standard.

“China is and remains a synonym for growth for us. In 2016, we generated 20 percent of our Mobility Solutions sector sales here,” said Bulander. Bosch currently employs more than 34,000 associates in the Mobility Solutions sector in China at 21 manufacturing sites. These include more than 4,600 developers working on innovations for the local market in 12 Bosch technology centers.