Bühl, Germany – Measuring a seven on the Beaufort scale, the air in the wind tunnel blasts the stroller at a speed of 60 kph. Its hood may be flapping wildly, but the stroller doesn’t budge. This isn’t because its parking brake is on, or because someone is holding it still. It’s all thanks to the new Bosch e-stroller system. This is much more than an electrical drive – it is an assistance system for strollers with a comprehensive range of comfort and safety features: in addition to offering push support and an automatic braking function, this includes connectivity via a smartphone app, an alarm function, and a variety of high-tech sensors. This new system marks Bosch’s entry into a new market. “The e-stroller system incorporates know-how from across the company. We’ve applied the same rigorous technology and quality standards here as we do in the automotive sector, including wind tunnel tests,” says Dr. Stefan Hartung, member of the board of management and chairman of the Mobility Solutions business sector. The variable Bosch system is equally suitable for single, twin, or sibling strollers. It will have its market launch in early 2020 with the Swedish stroller manufacturer Emmaljunga. Collaboration with additional manufacturers is planned.
Two electric motors help with acceleration and braking
Demand for electric assistance for strollers is growing. Comfort and safety are the key criteria for nine out of ten parents when buying a stroller. This is the result of a representative Bosch survey of women and men with a child aged 0 to 4 years old as well as expectant parents. “Bosch wants its mobility solutions to offer help even before a child can walk, bringing intelligent mobility to all areas of life,” Hartung says. The system’s drive unit comprises two low-noise electric motors on the rear axle along with a Bluetooth module and a smart sensor system. The sensors, which are also employed in smartphones, measure things like the stroller’s speed and acceleration while assessing the road surface it is moving over. Using algorithms, they can calculate in fractions of a second what mom or dad wants to do next. On an uphill path, the motors automatically help push the stroller, as they do on an e-bike. When on a downhill slope, they step in to help brake. If the parents let go of the stroller, the motor brake prevents it from rolling away unchecked, and the electromechanical lock engages the parking brake. In line with Bosch’s typical approach of combining the highest technical standards with user-friendly operation, the e-stroller system has no need for additional switches or buttons on the push handle.
The electric assistance not only increases comfort and safety, but also improves the stroller’s ergonomics. Bosch user testing showed that the e-stroller system can greatly improve parents’ posture, since it takes a lot less effort to push the stroller uphill, over uneven terrain, or into a headwind. Meanwhile, the self-braking electrical drive noticeably eases back strain when heading downhill. The system’s steering support also brings clear benefits when pushing with just one hand. Among other things, this makes bends easier to manage. What’s more, the drive system helps keep the stroller on course when on a laterally sloping path. After all, parents often push a stroller with one hand, for instance when holding their child’s older sibling with the other hand.
Smartphone connectivity via Bluetooth
Users can choose from three levels of electric assistance using the associated smartphone app (available for Android and iOS). The app communicates with the e-stroller system via Bluetooth. It also displays the charge level of the detachable battery and warns users in good time that power is running out. The stroller’s handy, lightweight 18-volt lithium-ion battery is housed in a lockable compartment. This is the same battery used in standard Bosch power tools such as cordless screwdrivers, which means that the stroller battery can be used to power other devices and vice-versa, whenever a spare battery is needed. With a charging time of some two and a half hours, the fully charged battery offers a range of up to 15 kilometers, depending on the level of assistance selected and the weight of the stroller. Parents can also charge their smartphone using the system’s USB port. The app can be used to activate the alarm function, too, for instance when parents leave the stroller parked outside a café. Provided a Bluetooth connection has been established with a parent’s smartphone, a warning will appear if anyone tries to push the stroller away. In addition, an alarm will sound from the stroller’s integrated loudspeaker and the parking brake will automatically reengage. Should the battery run out on the move after all, the stroller can still be used like a normal stroller – with no perceptible motor resistance.
Zita Hella Varga
Phone: +36 70 667-6374
Mobility Solutions is the largest Bosch Group business sector. In 2018, its sales came to 47.6 billion euros, or 61 percent of total group sales. This makes the Bosch Group one of the leading automotive suppliers. The Mobility Solutions business sector pursues a vision of mobility that is accident-free, emissions-free, and fascinating, and combines the group’s expertise in the domains of automation, electrification, and connectivity. For its customers, the outcome is integrated mobility solutions. The business sector’s main areas of activity are injection technology and powertrain peripherals for internal-combustion engines, diverse solutions for powertrain electrification, vehicle safety systems, driver-assistance and automated functions, technology for user-friendly infotainment as well as vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, repair-shop concepts, and technology and services for the automotive aftermarket. Bosch is synonymous with important automotive innovations, such as electronic engine management, the ESP anti-skid system, and common-rail diesel technology.
The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs roughly 410,000 associates worldwide (as of December 31, 2018). According to preliminary figures, the company generated sales from operations of 77.9 billion euros in 2018. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility Solutions, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. As a leading IoT company, Bosch offers innovative solutions for smart homes, smart cities, connected mobility, and connected manufacturing. It uses its expertise in sensor technology, software, and services, as well as its own IoT cloud, to offer its customers connected, cross-domain solutions from a single source. The Bosch Group’s strategic objective is to deliver innovations for a connected life. Bosch improves quality of life worldwide with products and services that are innovative and spark enthusiasm. In short, Bosch creates technology that is “Invented for life.” The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its roughly 440 subsidiary and regional companies in 60 countries. Including sales and service partners, Bosch’s global manufacturing, engineering, and sales network covers nearly every country in the world. The basis for the company’s future growth is its innovative strength. At 125 locations across the globe, Bosch employs some 69,500 associates in research and development.
Additional information is available online at www.bosch.com, www.iot.bosch.com, www.bosch-press.com, www.twitter.com/BoschPresse