| Sejong and U+ to Detail Autonomous Shuttle Demonstration
Vehicle location control with 3cm accuracy using high-precision positioning
Expected expansion of cooperation areas, including smart city projects, in the future

Sejong City, designated as a regulatory-free zone for autonomous driving, is partnering with U+ to fully establish a city specialized in autonomous driving.

Sejong Special Self-Governing City announced on the 29th that it will partner with LG Uplus to foster technology and invest in the commercialization of autonomous vehicles.

Last July, U+ and Sejong City attended the 'Meeting of Governors of Special Regulatory Zones' presided over by President Moon Jae-in in Haeundae, Busan, and unveiled 5G technology that will enhance the safety of autonomous driving and plans for the demonstration of autonomous driving projects. At the event, Sejong City was selected as a regulatory free zone and is pursuing a project to create an autonomous driving specialized city with LG Uplus until 2021.

On the afternoon of the 29th, both parties met at Sejong City Hall to sign a 'Memorandum of Understanding for the Activation of Autonomous Driving Services' and agreed to establish a mutual cooperation and support relationship for carrying out demonstration projects.

Specifically, the plan is to engage in organic cooperation regarding: fostering and investing in autonomous vehicle businesses, including mutual cooperation to revitalize Sejong, a city specialized in autonomous driving; promoting institutional improvements to provide support for mutual growth between large corporations, SMEs, and startups related to autonomous vehicles and to ease entry barriers; forming and operating a consultative body to foster new transportation-related businesses based on 5G communication and boost regional economic vitality; and matters requiring mutual support for regional job creation, boosting economic vitality, and commercializing autonomous vehicles.

"With this MOU, we have taken the first step toward the 5G autonomous driving shuttle operation business, which is part of the 5G autonomous driving roadmap," a U+ official explained. "We will focus on advancing technology so that autonomous driving shuttles can be stably piloted on general roads, residential complexes, and urban parks."

Both sides will select a pilot operation area for the 5G autonomous driving shuttle as early as this October, set up support equipment, and launch a demonstration service. Based on autonomous driving platform technologies such as dynamic precision maps and high-precision positioning (measuring vehicle location in 3cm increments), 5G networks that exchange information with autonomous vehicles in real time, and big data technologies that analyze and predict operation services and data, the goal is to introduce safe autonomous shuttles in Sejong City by June of next year.

LG Uplus Vice Chairman Ha Hyun-hoe stated, “We plan to fully cooperate to help Sejong City transform into a city specializing in autonomous driving through LG Uplus’s 5G autonomous driving technology,” adding, “We will spare no support to accelerate the commercialization of 5G autonomous driving and further contribute to job creation and economic revitalization in Sejong City.”


Making smart city construction smart
On the same day, U+ announced that it is partnering with the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) to apply smart construction technology to the development of residential areas in Sejong Special Self-Governing City.

U+ and LH are introducing a dedicated 5G network for construction sites in the Sejong National Smart City construction area to establish a safety management environment using 5G-based remote control of heavy equipment, surveying and process management using drones, and intelligent CCTV and IoT sensors.

Sejong 5-1 Living Area, spanning 830,000 pyeong, was selected last January as a national pilot smart city designated by the government, along with Busan Eco Delta City. Last October, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport presented a smart construction technology roadmap and decided to promote technological innovation to elevate construction into a high-tech industry.

U+ is embarking on the construction of additional base stations to enable seamless communication services even underground at construction sites. The company plans to provide 5G and LTE services across the entire target area without any dead zones. Furthermore, by configuring the communication network as a dedicated network for smart construction sites, it helps ensure the more stable operation of services that require communication signals, such as remote control of heavy equipment, drones, and IoT.

Cho Won-seok, Senior Vice President and Head of the Corporate New Business Group at LG Uplus, stated, “Through a business agreement with LH, we have introduced 5G network-based remote control, drones, CCTV, and IoT to the construction process of Sejong Smart City,” adding, “We will continue to collaborate with LH and research institutions in the future.”