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Press release #Connected mobility
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No more lost keys

Bosch’s Perfectly Keyless turns the smartphone into a car key

  • Use a smartphone to unlock the car, ignite the engine, and lock the car again
  • Digital key can be passed on to other users
  • Personalized vehicle settings for each driver
  • Digital key management for vehicle fleets and vehicle-sharing providers
Joern Ebberg

Joern Ebberg

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Stuttgart, Germany – It’s a scene most of us will be familiar with: in the mad morning rush, the car key is nowhere to be found. And anyone who has ever had both hands full with shopping bags will have wished that an “open sesame” was all it took to open their car door. By turning the smartphone into a car key, Bosch will be putting an end to this irksome hunt for the key. “Perfectly Keyless, our digital vehicle access system, means that drivers will be able to do without traditional car keys. It’s a great example of stress-free connected mobility,” says Harald Kröger, president of the Bosch Automotive Electronics division. As drivers approach their vehicles, their smartphones are identified by the on-board sensors. “Once this identification has happened, the vehicle is unlocked without any need for a physical key. Similarly, no key is needed to start the engine or to lock the car again at the end of a journey,” Kröger says. Vehicle owners can also use an app to give other drivers permission to use their vehicles. In a secure process that is protected against unauthorized access, an additional virtual key will then be sent via the cloud to other smartphones. This will allow the providers of car-sharing services and the operators of vehicle fleets to manage access and keys flexibly.

Perfectly Keyless, our digital vehicle access system, means that drivers will be able to do without traditional car keys. It’s a great example of stress-free connected mobility.

Harald Kröger, president of the Bosch Automotive Electronics division

A stress-free, keyless journey

Perfectly Keyless is a digital car key. To use it, drivers download an app onto their smartphones, and connect their cars to the app. Once they have done this, the smartphone generates a one-off security key that fits their respective vehicle’s digital lock. Perfectly Keyless uses a wireless connection to the on-board sensors to measure how far away the smartphone is, and to identify the security key. Once the distance between driver and vehicle is less than two meters, the car door is unlocked. Hunting for the car key is no longer necessary. As soon as the vehicle has been unlocked, any predetermined individual settings, such as those for the rear-view mirror and seat position, are activated. And if Perfectly Keyless detects that the smartphone is in the vehicle, a touch of the start-stop button is enough to start the engine. When the driver gets out of the car at the end of the journey, the system continues to keep a virtual eye on the smartphone. Once driver and phone have moved more than two meters away from the car, it is automatically locked securely. The system sends an acknowledgment to the driver’s smartphone.

Individual key management

Car owners can use Perfectly Keyless to make their cars available to others, such as family members and friends. Instead of handing over the key personally, parents can simply use the app to grant their children access to the family car. The system generates a further individual security key, and sends it via the cloud to the smartphone. So that each user’s settings can be personalized, each key is unique. The Perfectly Keyless system also works for entire vehicle fleets. Users can be granted and blocked access digitally, subject to geographical and time limits if so desired. This allows fleet operators such as car hire companies, providers of car-sharing services, and businesses in general to manage their vehicle keys digitally, using an app and the cloud.

Additional questions and answers

For Perfectly Keyless to work, what hardware does my car need to have?

Automakers will have to install proximity sensors and a control unit as fixed features in their vehicles. These sensors measure how far away the driver’s smartphone is from the car. They also register what direction the driver is approaching from. The control unit administers the digital security key and ensures that smartphone, cloud, and vehicle systems communicate smoothly.

What if a user loses their smartphone?

If the smartphone is lost, and the app with it, the digital key can be deactivated online. This blocks access to the vehicle, both for authorized persons and third parties. A new smartphone can be connected with the vehicle at any time, and a new unique security key generated. In the interim period, the conventional vehicle key will work as usual.

How does Perfectly Keyless differ from the keyless entry systems already in the market?

Today’s keyless entry systems still feature a physical key fitted with a chip, which drivers still have with them in their pocket or handbag. The first app-based digital access systems are now being used by sharing services to cut out the complicated task of keeping track of car keys. To get in or to drive off, users request access by smartphone before each journey. With Perfectly Keyless, simply having a smartphone in one’s pocket is enough. The vehicle access system automatically unlocks the vehicle as soon as the driver and smartphone come close. There is no need for a key, chipcard, or swipe of the smartphone touchscreen.

Which mobile operating systems does Perfectly Keyless work with?

The systems supports devices using any of the common operating systems.

Video about Perfectly Keyless on YouTube.

Additional details about Perfectly Keyless at www.bosch-mobility-solutions.com.

The Bosch innovations on show at the IAA 2017

EXPERIENCE BOSCH AT THE IAA 2017 in Frankfurt: Bosch believes the mobility of the future will be accident-free, stress-free, and emissions-free. On a technological level, Bosch wants to achieve the objectives of zero accidents, zero emissions, and zero stress through automation, electrification, and connectivity. At the IAA 2017, Bosch will be presenting its latest solutions in each of these three spheres – solutions that make driving safer and more efficient, and turn cars into a third living environment.

BOSCH PRESS CONFERENCE: From 13:15 to 13:40 local time on Tuesday, September 12, 2017, with Dr. Volkmar Denner, chairman of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH and Dr. Rolf Bulander, chairman of the Mobility Solutions business sector, at the Bosch booth A03 in Hall 8.

FOLLOW the Bosch IAA 2017 highlights at www.bosch-iaa.de and on Twitter: #BoschIAA

Mobility is the largest Bosch Group business sector. In 2023, its sales came to 56.2 billion euros, or just under 60 percent of total Group sales. This makes the Bosch Group one of the leading mobility suppliers. Bosch Mobility pursues a vision of mobility that is safe, sustainable, and exciting. For its customers, the outcome is integrated mobility solutions. The business sector’s main areas of activity are electrification, software and services, semiconductors and sensors, vehicle computers, advanced driver assistance systems, systems for vehicle dynamics control, repair-shop concepts, as well as 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 429,000 associates worldwide (as of December 31, 2023). The company generated sales of 91.6 billion euros in 2023. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. With its business activities, the company aims to use technology to help shape universal trends such as automation, electrification, digitalization, connectivity, and an orientation to sustainability. In this context, Bosch’s broad diversification across regions and industries strengthens its innovativeness and robustness. Bosch uses its proven expertise in sensor technology, software, and services to offer customers cross-domain solutions from a single source. It also applies its expertise in connectivity and artificial intelligence in order to develop and manufacture user-friendly, sustainable products. With technology that is “Invented for life,” Bosch wants to help improve quality of life and conserve natural resources. The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its roughly 470 subsidiary and regional companies in over 60 countries. Including sales and service partners, Bosch’s global manufacturing, engineering, and sales network covers nearly every country in the world. Bosch’s innovative strength is key to the company’s further development. At 136 locations across the globe, Bosch employs some 90,000 associates in research and development, of which nearly 48,000 are software engineers.

Additional information is available online at www.bosch.com, www.iot.bosch.com, www.bosch-press.com.

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