Since I have a parade of technicians coming through to fix the issue, I had the opportunity to talk with them. The high-end units of all brands these days have sensors everywhere to save water and energy, and simultaneously monitor cleaning effectiveness as they are all competing on advertising the least utilization with the most cleaning power (monitoring cleaning power and cleaning results is another aspect of saving water and energy). It reminds me of Apple's "you can never be thin enough" focus.
In my case, it has led to an issue that is still stumping the techs, where something is causing the unit to believe it has finished the session well before it even gets under way with the hot water cycle sometimes, and other times to not even start after the initial tub fill. The diagnostic code thrown indicate a malfunctioning sensor they've already replaced twice. Maybe if I call them out enough times, Bosch will just offer to replace the entire unit for me. While I don't get charged labor for subsequent tech visits for the same issue, I still pay for parts, so maybe Bosch's dastardly plan is I'll Ship of Theseus pay for a new unit part-by-part and end up paying 10X what a normal unit would cost before it works again.
In the meantime, it has been fascinating getting an inside look at the design decisions. Lots of incredibly clever engineering has gone into these beasties, which screams to me as a software guy of a ton of refinement over decades of accumulated experience, much of it learned the hard way in the field. Kind of like when I see a software system where the sharp edges have been burnished away into a smooth patina of refinement, and there are still odd bugs that pop up now and then.
In my case, it has led to an issue that is still stumping the techs, where something is causing the unit to believe it has finished the session well before it even gets under way with the hot water cycle sometimes, and other times to not even start after the initial tub fill. The diagnostic code thrown indicate a malfunctioning sensor they've already replaced twice. Maybe if I call them out enough times, Bosch will just offer to replace the entire unit for me. While I don't get charged labor for subsequent tech visits for the same issue, I still pay for parts, so maybe Bosch's dastardly plan is I'll Ship of Theseus pay for a new unit part-by-part and end up paying 10X what a normal unit would cost before it works again.
In the meantime, it has been fascinating getting an inside look at the design decisions. Lots of incredibly clever engineering has gone into these beasties, which screams to me as a software guy of a ton of refinement over decades of accumulated experience, much of it learned the hard way in the field. Kind of like when I see a software system where the sharp edges have been burnished away into a smooth patina of refinement, and there are still odd bugs that pop up now and then.