Hyundai: First charging robots on the way 🎥
FUTURE At the Seoul Mobility Show, Hyundai is presenting an automatic charging robot for electric vehicles. This can work in all conditions, regardless of weather and obstacles.
Hyundai Motor Group, which owns the Kia, Hyundai and Genesis brands, has developed a one-armed automatic charging robot for electric vehicles that can insert the charging cable plug into an electric vehicle's charging port and unplug it when charging is complete. The robot will be unveiled at the Seoul Mobility Show, which runs through April 9.
Control as if by magic
The accompanying video shows how a Hyundai Ioniq 6 autonomously parks at the charging station. Subsequently, the robot communicates with the vehicle to open the charging port. The exact position and angle of the charging port are calculated using a camera. The robot then inserts the plug of the charging cable into the port and starts the charging process. Once this is complete, the robot removes the charging plug, returns it to its place and closes the vehicle's charging flap.
Artificial intelligence in action
Dong Jin Hyun, head of Hyundai Motor Group's Robotics Lab, said, "The ACR will help make electric vehicle charging more convenient, especially in dark environments."
To ensure that the robot works reliably, the Group has developed an algorithm that uses 3-D camera-based artificial intelligence. Next-generation control technology based on this application enables the robot to handle heavy charging cables with precision. Automatic charging robots will therefore significantly increase the convenience of charging electric vehicles.
In addition, in combination with autonomous parking control systems, they can help improve the utilization of charging stations in the future by charging several parked vehicles one after the other or next to each other.
