Bosch's lightweight smart charging cable says goodbye to the "charging box"

Stuttgart and Munich, Germany – The era of charging your electric car has arrived: With its new lightweight, intelligent charging cable, Bosch can be plugged into a 230-volt power socket with integrated control and safety technology, without the need for a “charging box” – a heavy control box on the cable. The cable will be presented for the first time at the 2021 IAA Mobility trade show in Germany. Weighing less than three kilograms, it is on average around 40 percent lighter than conventional cables with a control box on the cable, and saves space in the trunk. Thanks to adapters for Type 2 and household plugs, owners can choose to charge their car using a household power socket or at a roadside charging station without an additional charging cable. In fact, charging an electric car has never been easier. “With this universal charging cable, Bosch is further optimizing the user experience of electric vehicles,” says Dr. Uwe Gackstatter, president of Bosch’s Powertrain Solutions division. “We want to set a new industry standard for charging cables for electric vehicles.” Bosch expects to start selling the product to automakers and car owners in mid-2022.

Universal charging cable: Charge at home or on the go, up to 22 kW

The three-phase cable enables AC charging in mode 2 and mode 3 with a charging power of up to 22 kW. When using the new Bosch charging cable at home, owners do not need to use a wall box. This is exactly what electric car users want. According to the newmotion EV Driver Survey 2020, 84% of electric car owners in Europe choose to charge their vehicles at home in the evening or at night. The technology integrated into each plug makes the charging process safe and reliable. The end of the charging cable used to connect to the vehicle is a Type 2 connector, which contains components for controlling and monitoring the charging power. The other end of the cable is a household plug with an adapter, equipped with temperature control and residual current device. This ensures that there is no overload or overheating even when using a household power socket with a power of 2.3 kW for conventional charging. If necessary, the safety technology equipped in the cable disconnects the power supply before the situation becomes critical.

Expertise in miniaturization: Bosch shrinks technology three times smaller

To integrate control and safety technology into the compact cable connector, Bosch developers significantly reduced the size of the electronic components in the original control box. This success is due to Bosch's ongoing expertise in miniaturization. Gackstatter said: "The lightweight smart charging cable is a good example of Bosch's high-tech empowerment of convenient life while promoting electric vehicles." In addition, the development of the charging cable took a short time. The development team successfully brought this innovative product to the market in just 18 months.

Leading with innovation: Bosch expands its e-mobility portfolio

Bosch takes a comprehensive approach in the field of electric mobility, and the lightweight smart charging cable is a new member of its product portfolio. As an industry innovation leader, Bosch's electrified powertrain product portfolio is very extensive, from electric bicycles, passenger cars to construction machinery, etc., providing solutions for battery power and fuel cell power systems. In addition, Bosch's solutions also include charging services and cloud-based battery management services to improve battery performance and service life. In addition, Bosch has also launched a business that provides factory equipment for battery production.