Bosch offers innovative services that help drivers find parking spaces. And when parking, modern assistance systems help them avoid collisions.
Connected parking: taking the hassle out of finding a parking space
Active parking lot management: Bosch’s active parking lot management makes it easier for drivers to find a parking space and helps parking garage operators improve capacity utilization. Sensors installed in the pavement indicate whether or not a space is occupied. The sensors wirelessly relay this information via a gateway to a server, where the data can be incorporated into a real-time map. Drivers can then access this map over their smartphones or the internet. This allows drivers to pick out an available space and navigate to it.
Automated valet parking: Automated valet parking is a Bosch function that not only relieves drivers of having to search for a parking space, but also enables the vehicle to park itself. Drivers simply drop off their vehicle at the entrance to a parking garage. Using a smartphone app, they instruct the car to find itself a place to park. They instruct the car to return to the drop-off point in exactly the same way. Fully automated parking will require several things, including an intelligent parking garage infrastructure, on-board vehicle sensors, and connectivity for both. The car and parking garage communicate with each other: sensors in the pavement identify where free parking spaces are located, and transmit this information to the car. Bosch is developing all the necessary components for fully automated parking in-house.
Community-based parking: In residential and inner-city areas, on-road parking spaces are a scarce commodity. Bosch community-based parking makes the search for suitable spaces easier. Using the sensors of their parking assist system, cars identify and measure the gaps between parked cars as they drive past them. The information is transferred to a digital parking-space map. Using smart information processing, Bosch then corroborates the data to supply a prediction of the parking situation. The digital map is available in the cloud for vehicles in the vicinity, allowing drivers to navigate straight to a vacant spot. Once the size of the available parking spaces has been determined, it is also possible to search for spaces for a specific type of vehicle, such as a compact car or motorhome. The more cars that participate in the community-based parking system, the more detailed and up-to-date the map.
Automated parking: parking without fender benders
Smart trailer parking: Maneuvering a car and trailer into a parking space is truly an art. The smart trailer parking system offers a convenient way for drivers to control their vehicle and trailer from the curbside using a smartphone or tablet computer. It is based on electric power steering, the ESP electronic stability program, the electronic gas pedal, and a trailer hitch featuring a trailer angle sensor. Users can select steering angle and vehicle speed with an app. The driver can stand anywhere that offers a good view of the procedure.
Parking aid: Most accidents occur when parking. At speeds of up to ten kilometers per hour during parking maneuvers, ultrasonic sensors integrated into the bumpers constantly monitor the distance to any obstacles in the parking area. Drivers are also warned optically and/or acoustically about other vehicles that are parking. The closer the car gets to an obstacle, the more frequently the acoustic warning is sounded, until it becomes a continuous tone.
Remote park assist: With the remote park assist, vehicles park themselves as if by magic. All drivers need to do is press and hold a button on their ignition key or smartphone. This tells the vehicle to automatically maneuver itself into the parking space it has previously detected and measured using ultrasonic sensors. However, drivers retain responsibility for the parking maneuver. As soon as they release the button on their ignition key or smartphone, the assist system immediately stops parking.
Home Zone park assist: This function is for cars that regularly park in a private garage, car port, or underground parking space. Home Zone park assist takes on this recurring maneuver, including the approach (up to 100 meters) to the parking space. For this, all drivers have to do is teach in the maneuver just once in a dummy run, then save it. After that, their car will park itself independently in the preset parking space. Drivers monitor the system from the driver’s seat or from outside the vehicle, where they can use a smartphone to regain control. For the maneuver, the vehicle uses twelve ultrasonic sensors and a stereo video camera to orient to the objects it registered in its vicinity during the dummy run. If the sensors detect an unknown static obstacle such as a garbage can left in the car’s path, the car automatically stops dead. If the obstacle can be avoided by deviating slightly from the preset route, the car will steer independently around it.
Maneuver emergency braking: At a speed of up to ten kilometers per hour, ultrasonic sensors permanently monitor the entire area around the vehicle up to a distance of four meters. The system uses this sensor data to detect relevant and non-relevant obstacles and to calculate the path the car should travel. If there is a risk of collision, the driver is warned. If the driver fails to react, the system itself intervenes to stop the car.
Multi-camera system: Four near-range cameras fitted in the vehicle provide drivers with good all-round vision while parking. With an aperture of 190 degrees each, the cameras capture the vehicle’s entire surroundings. Thanks to special visualization technology, the display unit provides 3D images that are practically distortion-free. Drivers are also free to choose any perspective they wish, so they can see even small obstacles in the parking area.
Park assist: This system uses ultrasonic sensors to detect parallel or perpendicular parking spaces suitable for the vehicle in question and informs the driver. Upon activation, the system then automatically steers the car into the space. The driver remains responsible for accelerating and braking.
Rear cross-traffic alert: When reversing out of a perpendicular parking space, this radar-supported system detects vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians that are crossing behind the car up to 50 meters away. It then gives the driver an acoustic or optical warning when there is a risk of collision.
Original source: Bosch
