Bosch’s New Infotainment Computer Aimed at Software Defined Vehicle

Tier 1 giant Bosch unleashes a new domain computer designed to run the infotainment system in future software-defined vehicles.

Automakers are moving away from individual electronic control units – 80-100 of which operate various electronic functions in today’s vehicles – and toward bigger, more powerful computers designed to oversee a multitude of operations within a handful of domains, such as infotainment, body and advanced driver-assistance systems.

These new domain controllers are expected to pave the way for expanded features and capability, from in-vehicle video streaming to autonomous driving.

The Bosch computer was developed in partnership with several technology companies and is aimed at infotainment functions, including in-car communication, in-car payment, video streaming and voice assistants.

The unit is flexible, meaning OEMs will be able to add features developed in-house to those already built in, speeding time to market for new products and capabilities and lowering development costs, the supplier says. Because it’s scalable, they’ll also be able to utilize the same hardware across a wide variety of model lines spanning various price points.

The computer is powered by Qualcomm Technologies’ third-generation Snapdragon microprocessor and utilizes the QNX Neutrino Realtime Operating System. Options include a virtual voice assistant through Amazon Alexa and Cerence; in-vehicle streaming via Access Twine4Car; and embedded and cloud-based navigation through TomTom.

The controller will support the BlackBerry IVY Intelligent Vehicle Data Platform co-developed by BlackBerry and Amazon Web Services to enable development of new applications and use cases. Rightware and Wipro also provide software for the system.

“With the Information domain computer, Bosch is providing connectivity and computing power to the modern world of mobility,” says Stefan Buerkle, senior vice president and head of Connected Information Solutions for Bosch in North America.

In January, Bosch announced the creation of a new organization designed to speed development of software and more advanced zone controllers to support new electrical/electronic architectures automakers are expected to roll out in force by the middle of the decade.

The new division, called Cross-Domain Computing Solutions (or XC for short), includes some 17,000 employees worldwide and is tasked with gaining a share of the $24 billion market for software intensive in-vehicle electronic systems, a sector expected to grow 15% annually through 2030.