Bosch, a driving force behind the Internet of Things (IoT), said connectivity is reaching the next phase of development: personalization.
The company’s vision is for devices to become constant intelligent companions that can accompany and assist people in all aspects of daily life.
“Personalization is a growing trend in the realm of connectivity, and we are driving this trend forward,” said Bosch board member Dr. Werner Struth. “The connected world is getting emotional. Devices are becoming intelligent companions that make everyday life easier and safer at home, in the city, in the car and at work.”
To that end, the global technology and services supplier is bringing its sensor technology, software and services, and proprietary IoT Cloud to bear in four key areas: smart homes, connected mobility, smart cities and industrial applications.
At home, where intelligent “helpers” like smart smoke detectors are already multitasking by also monitoring air quality and warding off intruders with sirens, Bosch’s smart system makes it possible to control a household full of connected devices with a single app, making life safer and easier. In addition, Bosch is also developing finished personal assistant products like Mykie (“My kitchen elf”), a voice-controlled hub that can control a host of connected home appliances and provide useful information ranging from recipes to the weather.
Taking it a step further, the company, through its Mayfield Robotics start-up affiliate, introduced Kuri, its first commercial robot, which is scheduled to launch in the U.S. by year’s end. Standing just 20 inches tall, Kuri is equipped with loudspeakers, microphone, camera and a host of sensors, enabling it to move throughout a household and interact with residents by playing music, providing traffic updates or other services that are personalized to each family member.
In the automotive realm, where the car is quickly becoming a mobile personal assistant and the global market for connected mobility is set to grow by almost 25 percent a year by 2022, Bosch is introducing a concept car offering personalized communication between machine and driver and new functionality that will make “highly automated driving” possible.
