CAR BATTERY MONITOR
27 February 2007 - Bosch

Bosch Electronic Battery Sensor in series production

· No more flat car batteries thanks to enhanced energy management

· Compact sensor fitted in the battery''s pole niche

· Integrated software determines battery''s current condition

Bosch has started manufacture of the Electronic Battery Sensor (EBS). It
can go a long way towards avoiding the most common cause of breakdowns: a
flat battery. With its integrated evaluation electronics, the sensor
measures the battery voltage, current, and temperature, calculating from
these all the information that describes the condition of the car
battery. The energy management system incorporated in modern cars uses
these values to continuously guarantee sufficient battery energy, so that
the vehicle can be started reliably even after a long stationary period.
In 2007, more vehicles equipped with the sensor will go into series
production.

The Bosch battery sensor consists of a chip that contains all the
electronics, and a shunt for current measurement. These two components,
along with the pole terminal, form a unit that can be connected directly
to the car battery, fitting into the pole niche of standard automotive
batteries. This yields a significant saving in both space and costs over
the solutions used hitherto.

Bosch has developed the software for battery state detection in
collaboration with Varta. The algorithms are fully integrated into the
EBS chip. The sensor directly measures the battery temperature, voltage,
and current, and uses these to calculate the capacity, the state of
charge, and the current performance to be expected from the battery. It
supplies this information via an LIN interface to the vehicle''s
superordinate energy management system, which can use this data to
optimize the state of charge. To give a concrete example: if, over a
relatively long period of time, more electric charge is used than the
alternator can provide, the level of charge in the battery will fall. The
energy management system compensates for this before a critical battery
state is reached by reducing the power consumption of comfort items such
as the seat heating, and may even switch them off altogether for short
periods. It can also increase the combustion engine''s idle speed, and
thus the alternator speed, if the vehicle is stuck in a traffic jam for a
longer period. This improves the battery''s state of charge, which means
that the period in which a vehicle can be re-started reliably is now much
longer, even if a large number of electrical consumers drew on the
battery on the vehicle''s previous journey or if the vehicle has been left
standing for a considerable period.

Apart from the present state of charge, the software can also forecast
the battery''s future charging condition. In addition, it will be possible
to control power generation by the alternator more precisely. This
reduces fuel consumption, and thus also emissions of pollutants. Accurate
information about the battery is also needed in vehicles with stop-start
systems. For example, the engine will only be switched off if there is
sufficient power available to restart it subsequently without any
difficulty. And even when the vehicle is being manufactured, a quiescent
current test can be done, allowing any problems to be detected. No less
importantly, the sensor opens up greater diagnostic possibilities for
garages - for example, when a customer is having recurring problems with
a flat battery.

The Bosch Group is a leading global manufacturer of automotive and
industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology. In fiscal
2006, some 260,000 associates generated sales of 43.7 billion euros. Set
up in Stuttgart in 1886 by Robert Bosch (1861-1942) as ''Workshop for
Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering,'' the Bosch Group today
comprises a manufacturing, sales, and after-sales service network of some
300 subsidiaries and more than 13,000 Bosch service centers in over 140
countries.

The special ownership structure of the Bosch Group guarantees its
financial independence and entrepreneurial freedom. It makes it possible
for the company to undertake significant up-front investments in the
safeguarding of its future, as well as to do justice to its social
responsibility in a manner reflective of the spirit and will of its
founder. A total of 92 % of the share capital of Robert Bosch GmbH is
held by the charitable foundation Robert Bosch Stiftung. The
entrepreneurial ownership functions are carried out by Robert Bosch
Industrietreuhand KG.

Additional information can be accessed at www.bosch.com.

www.bosch.com

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