Thomas Lich

"A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life"– Charles Darwin

As senior expert and team leader in accident research, I carry the overall responsibility for Bosch accident research worldwide.

On the basis of real-world traffic accidents, I derive the strategic goals for products of the business and regional units of Bosch. In addition to my international activities, I also participate in committees and publicly funded projects.

My current research focus is the conception of a simulation environment for the evaluation of automated driving functions. To do this, I build a link between data from traffic observations and conventional on-the-spot investigated crash data.

Curriculum vitae

Accident Research: Analysis, evaluation and simulation of reconstructed real-world crashes by all types of vehicles. Take over team and project lead in 2011
Lateral velocity estimation: Series development of a lateral speed estimator for the improved release of restraint systems in the event of a side impact or a rollover operation in a passenger car (Combined Active and Passive Safety)
Interior Occupant Classification: Series development becoming the world's first interior occupant classification system for adaptive triggering of passive restraint systems at Bosch
Tire pressure monitoring: Research and development for a tire pressure monitoring system of heavy commercial vehicles using neural networks at Daimler AG

Selected publications

Sulzberger et al. (2019)

Derived requirements for an Automatic Emergency Braking System for trams based on real-world crashes

Sulzberger L, Lich T., Schmidt D. Dr., Scheschko T.
VDI safe.tech

Moennich et al. (2018)

Benefit estimation of an Antilock-Braking System (ABS) for Pedelecs based on simulation of real-world accidents

Moennich J., Lich T, Georgi A., Maier O. Dr.

Lich et al. (2018)

How can vehicle safety contribute to improve road traffic safety in India?

Lich T., Mönnich J., Georgi A., Kumaresh G.
14th International Symposium and accompanying Exhibition on Sophisticated Car Safety Systems

Freienstein et al. (2017)

Reliable pre-crash detection and decision making for accidents against oncoming traffic

Freienstein H. Dr., Lich T., Höpfner H. Dr., Drews F. Dr., Österle F. Dr., Klier W. Dr.
VDI conference for vehicle safety

Lich, Sawaki (2017)

mpact on a test setup for the evaluation of Advanced Emergency Braking for cyclists in Japan using Event Drive Recorder data

Lich T., Sawaki M.
FAST-zero 2017 No. 20174678 / 2019 Volume 10, Issue 2, Pages 167-174

Learn more

Klier et al. (2015)

Strategy for integrated safety systems (ISS) - Status and Outlook

Klier W. Dr., Lich T., D'Addetta G. A. Dr., Freienstein H. Dr., Reckziegel B., Köhler A., Yu Z.,
VDI conference for vehicle safety

Lich et al. (2015)

Benefit estimation of Antilock Braking System (ABS) for Powered Two Wheelers on Indian highways

Lich T., Moennich J., Georgi A., Kumaresh G.
SIAT 2015-26-0167

Lich et al. (2015)

Motorcycle Stability Control - The next generation of motorcycle safety and riding dynamics

Lich T., Block W.G., Prashanth S.N., Heiler B.
JSAE 20159834 / SAE 2015-32-0834

Lich et. al (2012)

Benefit analysis of predictive rear end collision avoidance and mitigation systems for South Korea using video documented accident data

Lich T., Mettler A., Georgi A., Danz C. Dr., Lee D, Lee S., Sul J.
AVEC'12

Lich et. al (2006)

Combined Active and Passive Safety (CAPS) - Intelligent side and rear-crash systems for occupant safety

Lich T., Marchthaler R., Sailer U. Dr.
FISITA 2006 / F2006V199

Interview with Thomas Lich

Senior Expert and Team Leader Bosch Accident Research

Please tell us what fascinates you most about research.
The fascination of research lies in taking new, previously untreated paths. As a lateral thinker, the attraction lies in generating new ideas and demonstrating their feasibility by combining different fields of knowledge.

What makes research done at Bosch so special?
Unlike the vehicle manufacturer, at Bosch I can support the entire value chain, from the idea through the design to product development. It takes patience and perseverance, but the result is all the more satisfying, as you can see its contribution to the final product.
In addition, Bosch's research enables me to collaborate in an international environment. This also forces me to take a different perspective in order to develop global solutions.

What research topics are you currently working on at Bosch?
I am responsible for worldwide accident research at Bosch, and this is the basis for new safety systems for all types of mobility. I have to cover various topics.
On the one hand, I analyze, simulate and evaluate real-traffic accidents. The aim is to support the regional product strategy and development. Both can be derived from the accident situation, from Pedelec to heavy commercial truck.
On the other hand, it is about the interpretation of the product and evaluating its effectiveness: e.g. which properties must a sensor have or what a function must pay particular attention to, so that e.g. the maximum number of accidents can be prevented.
A prerequisite is to have an appropriate data source available. It may be that I initiate a project to investigate the accident on the spot and accompany in the initial phase. This is happening in India, China and Brazil, or as is currently the case in the ASEAN region.

What are the biggest scientific challenges in your field of research?
To assess the impact of automated driving on the traffic of the future.
The root causes of an accident are very complex because the most diverse factors come together. However, automation leads to a shift in accident causes, especially when conventional mobility meets automated driving vehicles.
The impact on future traffic needs to be researched and reliably predicted. It is indispensable to combine new data sources, for example from traffic observations with on-the-spot investigated crashes. The impact assessment is then carried out using traffic simulations. This is necessary, because temporal effects being understood only in this way.

How do the results of your research become part of solutions "Invented for life"?
I have been involved in improved side impact protection in a car to motorbike stability control in the two-wheeler to a system for collision avoidance in head-on crashes, for example.
Furthermore, I have established accident research as a methodology in emerging countries. This not only allowed me to show how many crashes or lives in industrialized countries, but also in developing countries with their specific needs can be avoided by various Bosch safety systems. Accident research thus supports the contribution made by "Invented for Life" to traffic safety.