It will be mandatory for all newly registered vehicles in the European Union to be equipped with assistance systems for emergency braking, lane keeping or intelligent cruise control as of July 2024. While these features make driving safer and more comfortable, these assistance functions are increasingly being moved from sensors to central computers.
With a global market share of 30 percent, ZF is a leader in smart cameras for ADAS, which combine sensing and driving functions in a single device. The company has recently added autonomous driving functions to its portfolio as standalone software. These solutions feature flexible designs that are compatible with control units from different vendors, as well as the ability to control braking and steering systems via central or local computers.
To meet the increasing customer demand for ADAS turnkey solutions, ZF also offers these systems for testing, validation and homologation processes. This can be done faster and more efficiently using AI-enabled tools such as ZF Annotate, which tests and validates ADAS hardware and software.
“We have been continuously developing our expertise in recent years and offer our customers turnkey driver assistance systems that meet the requirements of software-defined vehicles and new E/E architectures,” said Dr. Christian Brenneke, Head of ZF Group Electronics and ADAS. “These turnkey solutions cover a wide spectrum, starting with the system design of hardware and software and ending with the validation and homologation of driver assistance systems. This portfolio provides us with excellent potential for growth.”
World leader in smart cameras for ADAS functions
ZF is a leader in smart cameras with ADAS functions. Having sold 75 million cameras to date, ZF continues to consolidate its innovation strength in this area as the market leader. Since its first smart camera was launched in 2008, ZF has continuously made improvements to its front cameras, including being the first company to offer a 100-degree horizontal field of view.
With its latest generation, the Smart Camera 6, ZF has taken the next step in the evolution of front cameras. The Smart Camera 6 has a 4-degree field of view with four times the image resolution (8 megapixels) and more processing power than the previous generation. Featuring remote update capability, the Smart Camera 120 increases performance while enabling new functions that will enable future system developments.
As a supplier of ADAS sensor technologies, including front cameras, to more than a dozen vehicle manufacturers worldwide, ZF's portfolio supports critical driving functions and driver assistance systems while helping manufacturers improve vehicle safety.
ADAS and parking functions as standalone software solutions
Previously, many ADAS software functions were implemented in hardware and stored on chips in the relevant components. However, with the transition of software to centralized architectures, it is now possible to use these functions independently of the hardware.
ZF also offers ADAS and parking functions as a standalone software product covering around 25 safety, comfort and parking features. Vehicle manufacturers can select the functions they want to implement in a specific vehicle series from a function pool in an individual, modular and scalable manner.
ProAI: Automotive computing solutions from XS to XXL
ZF’s ProAI family is a central computer suitable for all vehicle platforms, software applications and E/E architectures. The high-performance version of the ProAI will enter series production by the end of 2024, while other versions such as ADAS cameras and parking solutions have already entered series production.
In addition to the existing ProAI versions, ZF is expanding its product portfolio with more cost-effective computing units for high-volume models, also under the name ProAI. Thanks to the scalability and modularity of ProAI, this is a significant step towards a well-structured product range. ProAI can be configured individually and as required for all vehicle classes, types and architectures, from low-cost entry-level models for pure front camera solutions or parking applications, to powerful comfort configurations for Level 2+, Level 3 ADAS and chassis solutions in the premium segment, and all-in-one supercomputers controlling all autonomous applications. This makes “ProAI” compatible with ZF’s automotive computing solutions.
ProConnect: Connecting vehicles to the cloud
For our connected world to function seamlessly in vehicles, connectivity solutions are needed. With the ProConnect platform, ZF offers a modularly configurable solution for the highest performance requirements of modern connectivity, such as AD/ADAS from SAE Level 2+ to Level 4. This solution includes the latest generation hardware modules for accommodating all connectivity standards (cellular, satellite, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, V2X), cybersecurity, a flexible cloud environment and a comprehensive digital service portfolio that meets all requirements for the software-defined vehicle of the future. (OTA/Over-The-Air updates, HD mapping, fleet management, data collection, incident management, remote diagnostics, etc.)
Annotate: Virtual testing and validation of ADAS functions
To further advance the development of ADAS and AD solutions, ZF has developed ZF Annotate, a cloud-based, AI-powered verification service.
In order for a vehicle to correctly calculate and execute a driving function, sensor data must be processed digitally in an accurate manner. This allows the vehicle to reach the “absolute truth” known as the “reference value”. Comparing the collected sensor information with a reliable and highly precise reference sensor set increases accuracy. This is where ZF Annotate comes into play.
The cloud-based solution, based on the customer’s own vehicle data and additional ZF sensor data recordings (reference measurement), provides the “real reference”. ZF Annotate acts as a backup installation that is independent of the sensor set to be checked and encounters the same information while driving on the road. The recorded data is then uploaded to the cloud and analyzed. Using AI, all relevant objects are accurately marked, classified, associated and tracked by assigning unique identification numbers to moving objects. This object information forms part of the complete description of the environment model, the real reference. The software then provides a highly precise comparative measurement. This makes ZF Annotate a state-of-the-art, AI-powered verification solution for testing and training modern ADAS/AD systems from Level 2+ to Level 5. This speeds up the verification process by up to 10 times, reducing the annotation process from 12 months to just 2 months.
