Bosch and Baidu are further strengthening their partnership: on June 1, the two companies signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement on smart mobility in China, witnessed by Premier Li Keqiang and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Dr. Dirk Hoheisel, member of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH, and Lu Qi, group president, vice chairman of the board of directors and chief operating officer at Baidu, attended the ceremony and signed the agreement.
Baidu, one of the largest Chinese search engines and internet service providers, has built up expertise in many core technologies relating to automated driving, such as environmental perception, behavior prediction, trajectory planning, smart connectivity, HMI, accurate localization and HD maps. Baidu has been involved in R&D related to automated driving technology since 2013.
“China is the biggest automotive market in the world, and also among the leading countries worldwide in the development of the internet of things (IoT) and artificial intelligence. We are pleased to have the opportunity to cooperate strategically with Baidu in this way. Combining the know-how of a high-tech internet corporation with our expertise as the world’s biggest automotive supplier, the alliance will promote the development of smart mobility in China,” said Hoheisel.
As a cooperation partner, Bosch will be involved in Baidu’s “Apollo” project, which aims to provide open, comprehensive and reliable software for the development of automated vehicles. Among other things, Bosch will contribute its sensors and the “Bosch Road Signature” for vehicle localization. Moreover, Bosch and Baidu will provide their technical expertise to support the drafting of legislation relating to automated driving in China.
In April 2017, Bosch established partnerships with leading Chinese map providers, including Baidu, to cooperate on high-definition maps for automated driving, and to jointly introduce the “Bosch Road Signature” as an accurate localization service in China. This service will combine high-definition maps with Bosch’s advanced camera and radar sensors to ensure the stable positioning and localization of automated cars even in adverse weather conditions.
“Developing autonomous driving and intelligent cars is a vast collaborative endeavor that requires tremendous efforts from all participants to advance the industry. Through working together, the two companies will upgrade the intelligent systems of the automobile industry and create an entire new ecosystem for intelligent and autonomous driving cars,” said Qi.
Bosch has been working on the development of automated driving since 2011. Today, some 3,000 Bosch engineers are working on automated driving worldwide.
In China, Bosch is committed to a systematic realization of automated driving, and is working with many OEMs on driver assistance, braking and steering systems. Following Germany, the U.S. and Japan, Bosch also is now testing automated driving in China.
For partially automated driving on Chinese freeways, Bosch and Baidu have set up a test vehicle on the basis of a Jeep Cherokee. The test vehicle is equipped with numerous Bosch components. These include, among other things, five mid-range radar sensors and a multi-purpose camera for environment recognition, as well as an ESP braking control system and electronic power steering.
Editor’s Note: We will be talking more about China’s rapidly growing automotive market in the weeks to come. Stay tuned for a number of reports from AMN Global Editor Amy Antenora, who attended the University of the Aftermarket’s Leadership 3.0 program, recently held in Shanghai.
