Innovation by Accident is No Accident
While some innovations have come about by accident, Rameez Ahmad had his innovation come about because of an accident.
Rameez is an engineering manager focused on occupant safety systems at Bosch Mobility Solutions. The accident he was in played a role in the creation of a software solution to help increase protection for others who are in this type of vehicle crash.
The solution is called Off-zone Crash Detection and it has been named a CES Innovation Award Honoree by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)® Innovation Award Honoree at CES® 2023.
It was 2019 and Rameez was vacationing in his native Pakistan with two of his friends from college when a motorcycle crashed into the front-end passenger side of their car. Fortunately, no one was hurt.
‘Off-zone side collisions’ most often occur during lane changes, merging, and crossing intersections. These types of events accounted for 14.4% of car crashes in the U.S. according to the 2019 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Traffic Safety Facts Annual Report.
Rameez is part of a global Bosch team that developed a new software algorithm that utilizes existing airbag sensors in the vehicle to help detect these types of impacts.
Within a millisecond of impact, the programming can deploy appropriate safety systems such as airbags and seat belt tensioners to help protect the occupants.
The algorithm integrates with sensors and software already in the vehicle, thereby getting more value out of existing hardware while providing a beneficial new feature to drivers.
This is an example of the increasing role software plays in the vehicle, something Bosch is at the heart of. In fact, half the R&D associates in the Bosch Mobility Solutions business sector are software engineers.
Since childhood, Rameez has been interested in finding solutions through physics and math, which are the foundations of engineering. While his father, an engineer himself, wanted Rameez to become a cardiologist, he eventually supported his son’s pursuit of his life dream.
That’s also the prime reason Rameez came to Bosch. “I knew that Bosch lives up to its motto of being Invented for life. That really resonated with me. I knew that working here I could have a positive impact on people’s lives.”
While Rameez says he’s grateful for the team and their success so far, he won’t consider their Off-zone Crash Detection solution to be a complete success until it reaches as many consumers as possible.
