Schaeffler and Sonatus partner to integrate AI algorithms into control units for software-defined vehicles
Schaeffler and Sonatus are bringing artificial intelligence algorithms directly onto vehicle control units to accelerate the shift to software-defined vehicles.
- over 8 million vehicles
What Happened
Schaeffler and Sonatus announced a global partnership to integrate edge AI into vehicle control units, combining Schaeffler's hardware with Sonatus's AI-based software. The solution brings intelligence directly into the vehicle, accelerating development, reducing complexity, and enabling continuous optimization over the vehicle lifecycle.
The partnership integrates Sonatus Collector AI and Sonatus AI Director into Schaeffler's control units. Collector AI enables real-time targeted data collection without large logs, while AI Director manages execution and lifecycle of AI models directly in the vehicle.
- Sonatus Collector AI: real-time data collection without extensive data logs
- Sonatus AI Director: execution and lifecycle management of AI models in the vehicle
“Software-defined vehicles need a robust and scalable hardware base. Our control units execute data-based and AI-supported functions directly in the vehicle, enabling the next generation of vehicle architectures.”
Why this matters
This partnership enables real-time, AI-driven data collection and model execution directly in vehicles, reducing complexity and allowing automakers to update and optimize functions over the vehicle's lifetime without hardware changes.
Terms in This Story
- Edge AI
- Artificial intelligence algorithms that run locally on devices (e.g., vehicle control units) rather than in the cloud, enabling real-time processing and reduced latency.
- Software-defined vehicle
- A vehicle whose features and functions are primarily controlled by software, allowing updates and new capabilities to be added over the air.
- Control unit
- An electronic control unit (ECU) that manages specific functions in a vehicle, such as braking, steering, or energy management.
- Lifecycle management
- The process of managing a product's lifecycle from development through deployment and updates, ensuring continuous improvement and maintenance.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.