Author: Mr.Yu

As the Hanover International Commercial Vehicle Show (IAA Transportation) approaches, ZF held their 2022 Technology Day event. During the event, ZF showcased a range of latest innovative achievements and leading technologies on its testing ground in Jeversen, Germany.

On one side is leading the company to maintain growth in the international environment of pandemic, chip shortage, and uncertainty while continuing to increase investment in China, the largest single market. Wolf-Henning Scheider, the current chairman and CEO of ZF Group, who will step down in early 2023, shared multiple latest business developments with attendees.

From the next-generation electric drive system to the AI-based digital fleet management platform and the open autonomous driving platform. This well-established global top automotive supplier is committed to achieving the sharing of automation and electric drive technologies and capabilities between different fields, such as commercial vehicles and passenger vehicles.

New Electric Mobility Solution for Heavy-Duty Commercial Vehicles

“The new Commercial Vehicle Solutions business unit (CVS) has won important customer orders with new technologies in just six months,” this news was placed in the most prominent position of the press release.

This is undoubtedly a very encouraging news for ZF’s CVS, led by Wilhelm Rehm, who is responsible for the Commercial Vehicle Solutions business unit, the Industrial Technology business unit, and the Material Management business, and for the entire ZF. Like Wolf-Henning Scheider, Wilhelm Rehm will also retire at the end of 2022 after a job well done. He successfully led the acquisition and integration of WABCO, a supplier of automotive electronic braking, stability, suspension, and transmission control systems, in 2020 when he was in charge of ZF’s commercial vehicle business. He also established the new Commercial Vehicle Solutions business unit (CVS) in early 2022.

CeTrax2 system by ZF Axle Drives is the first global launch for heavy-duty commercial vehicles, which is an integrated and modular electric propulsion system. The new system combines outstanding power-to-weight ratio and highly integrated compact design, and can continuously output a power of up to 360 kW and enhance efficiency through non-powered shifting.

The system also features multiple high-end technologies, including claw pole motor, innovative cooling system, and silicon carbide inverter, all of which leverage ZF’s expertise in the passenger car sector and make adaptive adjustments. In 2023, ZF will collaborate with an international OEM partner to achieve mass production of this system.

The identity of the partner was not disclosed during the event.

ZF seamlessly integrates intelligent technology and control systems on trucks and trailers to meet sustainable development needs in a unique system. By equipping innovative trucks and semi-trailers with a whole set of the latest safety and efficiency technologies, ZF demonstrates its expertise in vehicle matching, with the goal of advancing the industry towards “zero accidents” and higher efficiency.

Wilhelm Rehm said: “The trend towards vehicle automation, networking and electrification means huge technological development for OEMs. With ZF’s extensive integrated solutions, we not only provide cutting-edge technology but also reduce development costs for our customers.”

ZF SCALAR: Management platform specifically designed for fleet operators

The negative impact of external factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic on the global public transport and logistics industry is evident. For the logistics industry, the shortage of freight drivers caused by the pandemic has become normalized. According to CCTV, there is a shortage of about 10 million freight drivers in China alone.

Before the situation improves, it is particularly important to maximize efficiency using existing resources and platforms.

ZF has launched a new digital solution, SCALAR platform, specifically designed for commercial fleet management worldwide, providing fully automatic, AI-based planning, routing and scheduling solution. The goal is to achieve an efficient “Transportation-As-A-Service (TaaS)” model.

By integrating multiple commercial vehicle on-board technologies with third-party systems through AI, ZF SCALAR platform will help fleet operators optimize operation efficiency, enhance sustainable development capabilities, improve planning reliability, and increase safety levels for cargo and passengers.# ADOPT 2.0, the Next Generation Open Autonomous Driving Platform

ZF hopes that SCALAR will become an indispensable partner for the passenger and cargo transport industry.

In order to demonstrate the advanced solutions from component manufacturing to autonomous driving system integration, ZF has also released Orchestration solutions and the next-generation open autonomous driving platform ADOPT 2.0.

Orchestration solutions can fully utilize ZF’s rich products and powerful system integration capabilities to bring more valuable system services to customers through the synergy of different product advantages.

ADOPT 2.0 carries ZF’s professional technology in autonomous chassis control solutions, which can achieve end-to-end low-speed autonomous driving scenarios within industrial parks at speeds below 20 km/h. In addition, ZF will also showcase ADOPT 3.0 to meet the autonomous driving scenarios between hub-to-hub with speeds below 80 km/h on highways.

Passenger Cars are Not Left Behind with the New Electric Line Control Steering System

From traditional mechanical transmission to today’s electronic signal transmission, in order to meet the arrival of autonomous driving, smart cars need to respond with faster, more precise, and smarter line control technology. At the 2022 Technology Day event, ZF demonstrated its brand new electric line control steering technology for the front axle of vehicles.

Wolf-Henning Scheider, CEO of ZF Group, said: “ZF’s brand new electric line control steering system is an advanced line control technology. ZF’s comprehensive product portfolio will help the Group take a unique industry-leading position in an extremely competitive environment to achieve fully automated line control vehicle control.”

He added: “Our various business units work closely together to continuously optimize the value brought by technology sharing. ZF’s new line control steering technology is an important prerequisite for achieving highly automated driving for passenger cars. Upholding the concept of ‘one development, universal application,’ this technology will also be applied to the autonomous driving field of commercial vehicles.”The wire-controlled steering technology completely transfers the driver’s instructions to the steering system through electronic signals, so there is no need for a mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the front axle. As expected by ZF, wire-controlling technology is expected to play an increasingly important role in controlling vehicle longitudinal, lateral, and vertical movement. ZF’s new generation software that supports wire control actuators can be upgraded online at any time to ensure that this technology is always at the forefront of the industry.

Currently, ZF’s new wire-controlled steering system has received several major customer orders.

Facing global challenges based on the Chinese market

As a global automotive supplier that has been in China for more than 40 years, the Chinese market is extremely important in ZF’s planning.

Regarding the impact of changes in the China-Europe international political situation on commercial activities during a group interview, Wolf-Henning Scheider stated that he did not believe ZF would have any policy changes. While expanding its Shenyang factory, ZF is building a second factory in Shenyang. China is already ZF’s largest single market and ZF’s investment in China will continue. Over the next year and a half, more investment will be made to build new factories and plan more products.

“Ten years ago, many of our parts were imported from Europe and other countries, but now they have all been localized,” said Wolf-Henning Scheider, “The world is a global village, and countries are interdependent. We still need to strengthen cooperation in the field of technology in the future. Therefore, our purpose and strategy remain unchanged, and we always insist on localization.”

In the global commercial vehicle market, China is ZF’s only stable market. With the continuous increase of production capacity in China, ZF’s products can not only supply domestic customers in China but also export to other regions such as North and South America.

“We are a multinational company headquartered in Germany. However, our capabilities, knowledge, and technology are all over the world, including research and development centers in Guangzhou, Shanghai, and other places in China. Our development goal is global, and our distribution centers are also global. At the same time, our headquarters also have regional suppliers and supply networks, which is a trend that is closer to the market,” said Wolf-Henning Scheider.

This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.