VW, Bosch teaming up on automated software

Photo courtesy of Bosch

Cariad, the software subsidiary of Volkswagen, and Bosch are working together to develop automated vehicle software for use in the automaker’s vehicles.

The two companies made the joint announcement Jan. 25.

“The companies want to make partially and highly automated driving suitable for volume production, and thus available to the broad mass of consumers,” the announcement said.

Bosch and VW’s goal is to reach Level 2 autonomy, meaning hands-free systems for urban and freeway driving, and reach Level 3 where the systems take over all driving functions on the highway.

The companies outlined that they expect to have the first of these functions installed in 2023.

The company will be feeding data gathered in real traffic conditions into the development process in real-time. With each kilometre of data gathered, the companies said, the bigger the pool of data to make automated driving safe and reliable.

“The best proving ground for the development of automated driving is road traffic,” says Dr. Mathias Pillin, president of Bosch Cross-Domain Computing Solutions, in a statement. “With the help of one of the world’s biggest connected vehicle fleets, we will gain access to a huge database. This will allow us to take automated driving systems to a new level. All our customers will be able to benefit from this.”

Bosch and VW also agreed to look into reaching Level 4 autonomy, which is considered fully autonomous but still one step below Level 5.

For partially and highly automated driving, Bosch and VW will develop a state-of-the-art standardized software platform for VW vehicles. They noted it may be possible to integrate all component parts in vehicles and ecosystems developed by other automakers.

It’s expected 1,000 experts between the two companies will be working on the project, with recruitment for roles already underway.