ZF has debuted its exciting new platform at CES 2023 in Las Vegas as it looks to begin series production in 2025
ZF says its new ProConnect connectivity platform – which was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada in January – connects vehicles with the cloud and with the traffic infrastructure.
The platform is one of the first on the market to meet the highest security requirements and the first major order from an international vehicle manufacturer has already been received, with the product going into series production in 2025.
For the deployment of advanced driver assistance systems – and later autonomous vehicles – vehicles must be able to network with the outside world in a wide variety of ways. Enormous amounts of data have to be exchanged – quickly and reliably via many different interfaces.
The ZF ProConnect connectivity platform gives future vehicle generations this high-end networking capability.
By mastering standards such as DSRC (Dedicated Short-Range Communication), C-V2X and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, ZF ProConnect enables communication with roadside infrastructure such as traffic lights.
ProConnect can also receive information about a sudden end to a traffic jam behind a curve or an approaching ambulance on duty and warn the driver.
The high-performance computer ZF ProAI – the most powerful supercomputer for the automotive industry – processes the data supplied by ProConnect, combines it with existing sensor and other vehicle data, derives safe driving strategies using artificial intelligence and passes these on as action commands to the actuator systems.
In interaction with ProAI, ProConnect is a central piece of the puzzle for the software-defined vehicle – a basic prerequisite for the mobility of the future and its databased business models.
ZF ProConnect enables a wide range of digital services. In addition to over-the-air updates, which can continuously update the software in the vehicle or temporarily expand it on-demand, this can also include high-resolution map data for ADAS comfort functions for automated overtaking, which requires precise positioning data.
The transmission of sensor and diagnostic data also requires connectivity – for example, to report road conditions such as potholes to the cloud.
For autonomous vehicles, services such as orchestrated fleet management, interactions with smartphone apps (service information, timetables, etc.), remote control or even communication and interaction with control centres of autonomous shuttles play an important role. These can only be realised via reliable networking of the vehicles, leading to enhanced comfort and safety.
“Vehicles need V2X communication so that they can exchange with other road users, the infrastructure and the cloud. With ZF ProConnect, we are also opening the door to digital business models for our customers, which are playing an increasingly important role in the software-defined vehicle,” says ZF head of AD components and connectivity Oliver Briemle.
As one of the first systems on the market, ProConnect also meets international automotive grade requirements such as the ISO 26262 standard for electrical/electronic systems, the functional safety criteria according to ASIL-B(D), and the cybersecurity standard ISO/SAE 21434. This provides a vehicle with the best protection against external access without authorisation.
At the same time, it offers vehicle manufacturers maximum flexibility as ZF ProConnect is extremely compact and scalable at 8.6 x 6.7 x 2 inches – thanks to modular hardware and software.