Bosch and Plus unveil driver-assist truck tech at Advanced Clean Transportation Expo

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Global supplier Bosch and trucking technology company Plus are working together to develop and deploy advanced driver-assistance features, the companies said Monday at the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo.

The new system combines Plus’ predictive 360-degree sensors and assisted driving tools such as merge handling and suggested lane change with Bosch’s hardware and steering system.

New mobility solutions require enhanced collaboration, said Paul Thomas, executive vice president of mobility solutions, Americas for Bosch. “Our agreement with Plus complements existing Bosch portfolio elements and is one of multiple ways we can work together to support our customers,” he said.

This marks the second formalized collaboration between an automated technology provider and a major global supplier in as many weeks. Last week, Continental and Aurora detailed a new tie-up involving the industrialization of Aurora’s self-driving systems.

While Aurora is focused squarely on Level 4 automation, Plus believes in a gradual path toward autonomy that starts with driver-assist systems. Plus delivered its first trucks outfitted with those systems in 2021. Later that year, the Santa Clara, Calif., company completed a driverless demonstration of a tractor-trailer changing lanes as it traversed a 20-mile stretch of highway in China.

Bosch provides steering solutions for commercial vehicles and driver-assist hardware and software. It recently announced plans to acquire a California microchip maker, TSI Semiconductors.

Plus and Bosch say the driver-assist technology will improve driver retention, boost fuel economy savings and reduce crashes. The American Trucking Associations says the U.S. faces a severe truck drivers shortage. Almost 6,000 people died in large truck crashes in 2021, according to the National Safety Council. The Department of Transportation has not yet released truck fatality data for 2022.

“Plus’s underlying next-generation safety solution enabled by our open autonomy platform, combined with Bosch’s steering software system, will help to prevent accidents in commercial vehicles and make roads safer,” said Shawn Kerrigan, Plus COO.

Kerrigan has said Plus’ system can improve fuel savings by 5 to 10 percent.

Plus has collaborated with companies such as Teledyne FLIR to develop thermal cameras for use in the sensing capabilities on commercial trucks.