At its Mobility Experience 2024 last week, leading Tier One auto supplier Bosch displayed for media and customers its latest advanced technologies including several that made their North American debuts. At the company’s recently upgraded proving grounds in Flat Rock, MI, it demonstrated the integration of software and hardware in solutions aimed at enabling precise vehicle control, enhancing performance, and supporting safety.
“We are focusing on growing our revenue profitably by meeting the unique needs of our OEM customers—and ultimately the end consumers who purchase their vehicles—by developing solutions that fit this market,” said Paul Thomas, President of Bosch in North America and President of Bosch Mobility in the Americas, in kicking off the event for media. “We have the benefit of tapping into a network of innovators, technology, and manufacturing experts of the largest automotive supplier in the world—but we also have the talent and the license to develop solutions here in the region.”
The Americas is a critical growth region for the company, particularly in the mobility sector. By 2029, the ambition for Bosch Mobility in the Americas is to contribute about 25% of the company’s global annual mobility turnover ($60.8 billion globally in 2023), up from the current 20% ($12.4 billion in 2023), reflecting Bosch’s commitment to the region’s strategic importance.
“What sets Bosch apart from other suppliers in the auto industry is our cross-domain expertise in areas beyond mobility,” added Thomas.
To help capitalize on the synergies, last week he also took on the role of President of Bosch in North America, overseeing all aspects of the nearly $20 billion business.
The Bosch Mobility Experience showcased solutions specific to the North American market focused on three main themes: the evolution towards electrification; the journey towards software-defined reality; and the progression towards by-wire.
Evolving electrification
In the U.S., Bosch says that the pace of electrification continues to shift, and more options such as hybridization emerging to support consumer choice in the market—with vehicle affordability a key consideration. As a long-standing expert in powertrain solutions, Bosch is aiming to support customers with a variety of options to support these trends.
“The pace of electrification has changed dramatically,” said Thomas. “High costs are reducing consumers’ likelihood to buy a battery electric vehicle—down from 25% in 2022 to 18% in 2024 when compared to ICE, according to AAA. The reality in the U.S. is that consumer choice and value drive innovation. That’s why we’re seeing more hybrid options emerge.”
In a market where trucks and SUVs are prominent, particularly for “trucks that work,” hybrid solutions make a lot of sense, he said: “We’re supporting hybrid solutions with products like e-axles, inverters, and charging converters in a full or partial EV environment.”
Electrified axles are increasing in prominence as an approach for automakers aiming to electrify their vehicles, according to Bosch. The company showed a Ram 2500 demo vehicle from partner Linamar equipped with front and rear eUD10 beam e-axles to create 4WD capability delivering 750 kW and a staggering 15,200 N·m (11,200 lb·ft) plus torque output. These e-axle systems can be applied to full EV, hybrid, or hydrogen vehicle applications.
Bosch said it brings extensive system knowledge and tools for simulation and modeling to optimize the performance of the motor, inverter, and axle in one unit to enhance vehicle performance, towing capacity, and payload capabilities.
“It shows the importance of industry collaboration,” said Thomas. “We have to work across the industry as we develop new solutions for the future of mobility.”
Enabling software-defined vehicles
The technological pace is also accelerating for software-defined vehicles (SDVs). Bosch is supporting its customers with software and hardware solutions that enable SDVs while also recognizing the need to manage vehicle costs for the end consumer.
“Much like EVs, value is a major part of the discussion here,” he said. “With EVs and with software-defined vehicles, they must be affordable to the end consumer.”
One of the company’s “comprehensive solutions,” meaning hardware and software, was a vehicle featuring cockpit and ADAS integration on one vehicle computer.
“Frankly, the end user experience isn’t so different, but the technology impact is significant,” said Thomas. “This shows how we are moving away from lots of individual ECUs towards fewer and more powerful vehicle computers that can handle multiple functions.”
At the event, the company also demonstrated how software can impact the vehicle motion experience with its Vehicle Dynamics Control 2.0 solution.
“This is a software-based solution that is hardware-agnostic,” he said. “That means it can work with Bosch hardware, and it also can work with hardware from another company.”
It is an element of Vehicle Motion Management, a hardware-agnostic software control layer that integrates and optimizes the various systems in a vehicle for dynamics and handling to enhance overall performance, safety, and comfort. Its systems-integrating software on central vehicle computers interfaces with the actuators of various domains to control vehicle motion in all six degrees of freedom, coordinating braking, steering, powertrain, and suspension.
In addition, Vehicle Motion Management helps make the complexity of new vehicle architectures manageable. It also can help contribute to improved fuel efficiency, or EV battery management, by optimizing power delivery and braking energy recovery.
Progression towards by-wire
As the industry continues to work towards increasing levels of vehicle automation, by-wire technologies are a key enabler and can allow for new human-machine interface and vehicle-design opportunities. Bosch showcased both brake- and steer-by-wire technologies at the Mobility Experience.
“The brake pedal is something that we’re all familiar with,” said Thomas. “Now with by-wire technology coming for braking, there’s an opportunity to re-think areas like the brake pedal with a mind towards the future and increasing levels of automation.”
The Brake Control Pad, shown for the first time publicly in North America at the event on a Tesla Model S demo vehicle, enables a fully integrated brake-by-wire system that replaces the traditional brake pedal with a force-based pad. Instead of physical connections, it senses and sends braking commands electronically, and the company says it drives toward more precise braking through improved integration with electrification and other advanced driver assistance systems.
“It requires only a simple touch of the brake to measure driver input,” he said. “The feedback is immediate. A customer liked this solution so much that they asked for it on an accelerated timeline—forgoing traditional vehicle planning cycles.”
In a cross-domain control example involving new by-wire technologies, a Lucid Air demo vehicle combined the benefits of Vehicle Motion Management software with steer-by-wire technologies. The “multi-actuator” benefits enable shorter braking distance and less driver steering intervention needed in an emergency braking event on a split-µ surface.
The system’s decoupling of the steering wheel and road wheels enables engineers to “freely shape” the steering wheel behavior, ratio, and feedback. Safety is improved through active collision avoidance by applying additional steering angle only to the road wheels and could enable an automated driving experience with non-rotating and stowable steering-wheel opportunities.
For OEMs, it could enable reduced complexity with a reduction of rack variants by up to 80% and more design freedom for front axle and engine areas—and new human-machine interface opportunities for interior vehicle designers.
Improving user experiences
In 2022, Bosch says that data revealed that 11 million American households owned an RV (recreational vehicle). As interest in travel and outdoor activities surges, making trailering easier and more accessible could significantly boost sales of trucks and trailers.
Developed for the North American market but applicable in other RV hot spots globally, company engineers showed how the end-user experience can be improved. Their Anywhere parking trailer demonstrated how software and sensors can automatically park a vehicle hitched to a trailer.
“You’re going to be amazed at how a simple drag and drop on the screen can park a vehicle with its trailer—even without a defined parking space,” said Thomas. “We’ve shown Anywhere parking for a passenger car in the past, but this is the first time we are showing Anywhere parking with a trailer publicly in North America.”
With the system, data fusion from cameras, sensors, geo-coordinates, and input from the driver are used to park in a precise position, even in difficult situations like unmarked pavement or tight spaces. Drivers can select the target parking spot and orientation by dragging and dropping on a vehicle interior display, with the driver controlling speed while the system controls steering.
Mobility semiconductors and electrical safety
Enabling much of this new technology is advances in hardware.
As a major Tier One supplier, Bosch is unique in making its own semiconductors. A high-profile example of this is silicon carbide (SiC) chips that enable greater range for EVs and hybrids because they have up to 50% lower energy loss.
“Production is planned to start in 2026 for silicon carbide chips at the Roseville, CA, facility we acquired last year,” said Thomas. “We plan to invest around $1.5 billion to upgrade that facility. In fact, the Roseville transformation is already underway.”
The SiC metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors for power conversion in applications like inverters, DC/DC converters, and onboard chargers reduce conduction and switching losses and allow for higher switching frequencies. The Bosch chips are available in 1200- and 750-V versions developed specifically for automotive applications with very low RDS (on), easy application, and operation at 200°C (392°F) for limited timeframes.
The company offers bare dies for inverters and discretes for power conversion, with a claimed best price/performance ratio.
As the complexity of vehicle electrical systems increases with higher levels of electrification, software, and automation, keeping everything safely operating gets much more complex. Powernet Guardian, shown for the first time publicly in North America, helps to provide an ongoing power supply for safety-critical functions in the event of a fault.
Bosch engineers demonstrated the solution’s ability to keep power steering functioning even if a vehicle fault results in sudden power loss. The system provides real-time diagnostics and monitoring of a vehicle’s electrical system, including the battery, alternator, and power distribution network to help identify potential issues before they lead to failures.
