Yahoo Autos ZF Teams with Tech Startups to Diversify beyond Transmissions
You may know the ZF name from the ubiquitous 8HP eight-speed automatic transmission, which you'll find on everything from the Aston Martin Vanquish to the Dodge Durango, but after 102 years as a leading automotive supplier, ZF is looking to shift its business into new arenas. As automakers continue to pour billions into the development of new technologies, ZF, based in Friedrichshafen, Germany, is undergoing a cultural shift of its own. And this company clearly intends to ensure it's still a major force in the century ahead.
"We're still going to build the transmissions, motors, and parts that have put us in this position. We'd be foolish to give that up," ZF CEO Wolf-Henning Scheider told Car and Driver. But we have a bit of cash, and we're actively looking for new partners."
We spoke with Scheider in the grand lobby of one of the newest buildings on ZF's campus, after a press conference in which Scheider announced one such partnership, with e.Go Moove. He and e.Go's CEO, Günther Schuh, announced plans for an autonomous electric minibus (pictured above) called the e.Go Mover. The ambitious startup has already garnered interest from several cities in Germany and elsewhere in Europe, and the company projects its initial production of 400 units next year, which will swell to 15,000 by 2021.
"That's with one-shift production. We can easily scale that to produce far greater quantities as the market demands," said Scheider. While Europe will be the first market to receive the minibus, the two believe there will be demand in China and the U.S. as well.
The e.Go Mover-which initially will have a driver even after it has reached Level 4 autonomy-will use a clever Internet of Things platform and smart algorithms similar to the kind used by Lyft and Uber with their Lyft Line and Uber Pool. Partnerships like these play into ZF's new strategy of leveraging opportunities in digitalization.
"Are we going to be the next Blockbuster-or the next Netflix?" asks Mamatha Chamarthi, ZF's chief digital officer. Chamarthi leads a new and quickly growing team in ZF's Sunnyvale, California, headquarters, in the heart of Silicon Valley. One aspect her team is studying is the anticipated effects of driverless cars on society. While most people might be aware that driverless cars could help traffic and reduce accidents, there are other interesting consequences, too. Chamarthi's team projects faster short-haul trips, which could affect, for instance, the bottom line for airlines.
Her thoughts range further afield from direct effects on transportation: "Even energy drinks and coffee consumption could go down, if we don't need to stay fully alert and awake behind the wheel as we do today."
Two ideas that are already being implemented are the Car eWallet and Sound.ai. The eWallet uses blockchain technology to make car-related financial transactions such as paying parking meters and tolls more seamless. Sound.ai uses two waterproof microphones placed at the front and rear of the car, to detect sirens and emergency vehicles, and provide a notification to the driver. We recently rode along and got to see how a prototype works. ZF says while it can immediately help the sound-impaired, or distracted drivers that may have the music cranked up; eventually it can work in an autonomously-driven car to take needed action, such as slowing down, or pulling to the side to let emergency vehicles pass.
One of the two ZF employees that came up with the idea said extensive sensor and camera systems allow cars to currently see other cars, pedestrians, animals, and more. And cars can feel road surfaces and vehicle motion inputs and adjust accordingly, so why shouldn't a car be able to hear, as well?
New partnerships with Microsoft and Nvidia are expected to help it offer greater potential for components and systems, as the industry changes. ZF executives believe this is just the start of a growing shift in the types of products and services it will be able to provide its customers.
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