Bosch Software Innovations Offers Software, Systems Solutions

The future is connected. The internet allows objects and devices, entire homes and even power plants or cities to communicate with each other. By interacting in this way they create what is known as the Internet of Things, bringing independent components together to form a new domain – and linking together different aspects of life such as energy, the home, mobility and work.

From Feb. 5-6 in Berlin, the “Bosch ConnectedWorld” conference showcased some of the many possibilities generated by this connectivity megatrend. The conference was organized by Bosch Software Innovations, the Bosch Group’s software and systems unit, which brings all the group’s activities in this arena under one roof.

This new connectivity is based on sensors that record data from objects and electrical devices, passing it on via wireless internet connections. A dedicated software program analyzes and combines this data according to different criteria – and this data interplay gives rise to new business models. For instance, owners of electric vehicles can use an app to reserve a charge spot, while buildings can calculate their energy consumption autonomously and source the electricity they need from a range of suppliers in the most cost-efficient and sustainable way possible.

Bosch is a world leader when it comes to microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors. Bosch Software Innovations’ products have already proved their worth in 600 international projects. Wireless networks and energy-saving transmission technology are already widespread. For Bosch CEO Dr. Volkmar Denner, one thing is certain: “It isn’t a question of whether the objects will become internet-capable, but when.”

“This interaction of sensors, software, and services is the basis of the internet of things,” Denner added. “We are not creating technology for its own sake, but developing new business models whose main concern is customer benefit. That is why the main force driving the connectivity trend is collaboration between companies that have never before had business dealings with each other. All of us – industry, retail, service providers, and tradespeople – have to fully comprehend the possibilities. And we have to cultivate a more ‘connected’ mindset.”

In addition, Bosch recently founded a separate company dedicated entirely to the Internet of Things. Bosch Connected Devices and Solutions GmbH offers the compact electronic products and the software know-how needed to make devices and objects internet-capable in a wide range of application areas. The company will initially concentrate on sensor-based applications for households (“smart home”) as well as for the transportation, traffic, and logistics segments. Bosch Sensortec is a world leader in micromechanical sensors for the internet of things, with some three million of these tiny components being produced every day at the company’s state-of-the-art wafer fab in Reutlingen, Germany.