▲Hyundai Motor Group Robotics Lab Managing Director Hyun Dong-jin (left) and SOS Lab CEO Jeong Ji-seong (right). (Photo courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group)


Collaboration planned for the development of 3D lidar for robots
Sensor miniaturization and expansion of short-range object recognition range

Hyundai Motor Group is partnering with SOS Lab, a fixed-mount lidar sensor specialist, to accelerate the development of mobile robots.

Hyundai Motor Group announced on the 17th that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with SOS Lab at its Uiwang Research Institute for the joint development of lidar for mobile robots.

SOS Lab (Smart Optical Sensors Lab) is a company that develops fixed lidar sensors for industrial and automotive use. SOS Lab's lidar sensors have advantages in the following areas: size, weight, power consumption, price, and durability compared to existing mechanical lidars. Currently, it is selling high-resolution 2D/3D lidar to industrial robots, port security, etc., and is evaluated as a leading lidar development company in Korea.

This joint development agreement aims to develop a dedicated high-resolution 3D lidar to optimize the autonomous driving performance of Hyundai Motor Group's mobile robots, including 'MobED', a small mobility platform unveiled by Hyundai Motor Group in December of last year, and the two companies plan to collaborate over the course of two years.

For this joint development of LiDAR for mobile robots, Hyundai Motor Group will support mobile robot hardware design technology and algorithms, while SOS Lab will provide cutting-edge 3D high-resolution LiDAR design technology and software know-how.

Through this collaboration, Hyundai Motor Group plans to develop a mobile autonomous driving robot that can move more reliably on irregular road surfaces and between obstacles by miniaturizing the lidar sensor while dramatically expanding its short-range object recognition range.

“By equipping Hyundai Motor Group’s mobile robots with a 3D lidar optimized for autonomous driving, we are one step closer to commercializing a compact mobility platform that can autonomously navigate complex indoor and outdoor spaces,” said Hyun Dong-jin, managing director of Hyundai Motor Group’s Robotics Lab. “Through this, we will be able to introduce various businesses and services such as courier/delivery and single-person mobility.”

“The robotics field is an industry that will bring innovation to the mobility market and ultimately create a better life. We will supply safe, accurate, high-resolution 3D lidar sensors optimized for robotics,” said Jeong Ji-seong, CEO of SOS Lab.

Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor Company unveiled its vision for future robotics at CES 2022, declaring that it would implement a new 'Mobility of Things (MoT)' ecosystem using robots.At the '2022 CEO Investor Day', Kia announced that it plans to focus its capabilities on launching robotics, the next-generation business of Hyundai Motor Group.