ZF has joined the recently established Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (MOBI) as a founding member. MOBI is a group of leading automotive and technology organisations seeking to establish a unified blockchain network. With this initiative, ZF and other companies are aiming to provide secure, peer-to-peer blockchain technologies which 'make mobility more efficient, affordable and safe'.
To help prevent hackers from accessing and capturing the transmission of sensitive data, vehicle and infrastructure software must be more securely protected from cyber-attacks in the future, ZF points out. It says blockchain technology – the cryptographic, manipulation-resistant and decentralised transaction of data – provides a safe medium for mobility applications of the future.
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Until now, there has been no universal standard for this technology. For this reason, ZF has joined other leading organisations in MOBI to establish new 'interoperability standards for blockchain applications and to build an open multi-sided marketplace that covers all forms of mobility'.
ZF says it was one of the first tier one automotive suppliers to develop blockchain technology-based mobility applications. The company's Car eWallet technology allows vehicles to interact with other machines for technical services and small financial transactions related to mobility services, such as parking, highway or bridge tolls, or charging electric vehicles. Such applications are gaining increasing significance as more highly automated or even autonomous cars enter the market, ZF maintains.
"As for a global leader in automotive technology, ZF constantly strives to make mobility more efficient and convenient," said Arwed Niestroj, vice president, Global Innovation Hubs and Digital Transformation at ZF. "With the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative, we can provide benefits to our customers by developing secure and efficient solutions for the future of autonomous mobility."
ZF also says a standardised blockchain network for the mobility industry would allow cars, infrastructure and service providers to efficiently communicate and transact directly with each other, supporting digital currency payments from car-to-car, tax authorities, cloud services and more. Contracts and logic can be distributed to the vehicle or infrastructure and executed locally instead of centrally. This, it says, eliminates the complexity and dependency associated with remotely connecting multiple, often proprietary technologies and services together. It also lends itself to safely storing relevant data within the vehicle, providing valuable control, access, and insights related to mobility information. This becomes critical as the industry shifts to more autonomous, shared services. At the same time, blockchain technology can help to prevent fraud, manipulation or cyberattacks.
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By GlobalDataBy working together to set mobility blockchain standards, the automotive industry will be able to accelerate the creation of a better, more secure, interoperable, and high-value marketplace. Over time, the alliance seeks to address not only the needs of privately owned cars and motorcycles, but also public transportation and emerging ride sharing services, thereby helping to reduce congestion and pollution.
