HEILIGENHAUS, Germany -- Kiekert AG plans to introduce an innovative "brake system" for car doors called "i-protect." Kiekert's sensor-based system is designed to reduce sheet metal damage and costly insurance claims by automatically stopping car doors from striking other objects as they are being opened.
The idea for the "i-protect" system initially was developed as a technology project by students at Cologne's Erzbischoefliche Liebfrauenschule in Germany. The project took first place in a recent "business@school" competition for high-school students sponsored by the Boston Consulting Group. Kiekert, the leading global supplier of car-door locking systems, supported the student team in the competition and will further develop and industrialize the innovation.
"Our work with business@school, as well as our partnership programs with universities throughout the world, helps us maintain our position as the technology leader in automotive locking systems," said Dr. Karl Krause, Kiekert's CEO.
The mechanism built into Kiekert's i-protect system will stop car doors from slamming into parked cars, garage walls and other obstacles and potentially could eliminate millions of irritating and often costly dings and dents, Dr. Krause noted.
The Cologne student group will retain patent rights to its basic, award-winning technology as part of the business@school program and its partnership with Kiekert.
Kiekert works closely with a wide variety of external partners in industry and academia, including ties with the University of Bochum in Germany, Yichun University in China, Kettering University in the United States and the Instituto Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico.
Additional information is available at:
http://www.business-at-school.net
http://www.kiekert.com