"Autonomous Driving Anywhere Nationwide with Just Map Tuning"

Startup Autonomous A2Z
"Developing Everything for Autonomous Vehicles"
'LiDAR' Signal Processing Technology is Key
Selected as 'Future New Industry Big 3' by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups

Han Ji-hyung, CEO of Autonomous A2G, demonstrated the company's autonomous vehicle driving test in downtown Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, on the 29th of last month. Photo by Moon Hye-won

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] The driver's seat of the moving vehicle was empty, but the steering wheel was busy turning left and right. The turn signal automatically activated when changing lanes, and when the traffic light turned yellow, the vehicle slowed down and stopped at the red light. Even after the light turned green, the vehicle waited until pedestrians who had not yet finished crossing the street passed first before resuming driving. When a large bus ran in the adjacent right lane, the vehicle maintained an appropriate distance with lateral spacing. The autonomous driving system developed by Autonomous AtoZ went beyond the concept of 'self-driving' to implement textbook-like driving that protects the safety of drivers, passengers, and pedestrians.

Han Jihyung, CEO of Autonomous AtoZ, demonstrated the company's autonomous vehicle driving for 30 minutes on the roads of Anyang City, Gyeonggi Province. The company established a research center in Anyang, Gyeonggi last year to secure research personnel in Seoul and the metropolitan area. Autonomous AtoZ is a startup founded in 2018 by four engineers from Kyungil University’s Autonomous Vehicle Convergence Technology Research Center, including CEO Han. True to its name, which means developing 'everything from A to Z for autonomous vehicles,' the company has independently developed autonomous driving systems and algorithms, surpassing a cumulative autonomous driving distance of 25,000 km on roads.

CEO Han said, "Autonomous driving is possible anywhere nationwide as long as the map is 'tuned.' We are focusing on technology development by navigating actual roads in major cities across the country, including Seoul, Gyeonggi, Sejong, Daegu, Gwangju, and Ulsan, to commercialize autonomous driving."

Autonomous A2Z's self-driving car. Photo by Moon Hyewon

The external recognition sensor 'LiDAR' installed on Autonomous A2Z's self-driving vehicle. Photo by Moon Hyewon

The core of the company's autonomous driving system is LIDAR signal processing technology. LIDAR acts as a kind of 'eye' by emitting lasers and using scattered or reflected light to recognize the surrounding environment. Autonomous AtoZ installs LIDARs on both side mirrors of the autonomous vehicle to observe the surroundings within approximately 50 meters without blind spots. The LIDAR classifies the recognized data into categories such as vehicles, people, and obstacles, enabling the autonomous vehicle to decide whether to reduce speed or avoid obstacles. The time taken for perception, judgment, and control is about 0.1 seconds.

Autonomous AtoZ’s ultimate goal is to equip all vehicles driven by humans with its solution. The short-term goal is to develop and commercialize special vehicles such as street sweepers, tractors, and container trucks. Special vehicles that must operate at low speeds within limited areas have relatively easier certification processes before commercialization.

In the mid to long term, the company plans to commercialize generally available autonomous vehicles such as small buses and robot taxis. Within this year, it plans to sell four small buses to Ulsan City and is discussing supplying public transportation vehicles to Sejong City after 2021. Robot taxi pilot operations are underway in Seoul Sangam, Gyeonggi Pangyo and Anyang, Ulsan, and Daegu. According to regulatory exemptions and the Autonomous Driving Promotion Act, related projects will be promoted in Daegu starting this year.

Recently, Autonomous AtoZ was selected by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups as a supported company in the autonomous driving sensing field, one of the future new industry Big 3 (Biohealth, System Semiconductors, Future Cars). The 200 million KRW funding received will be used to develop an 'unmanned vehicle test kit' utilizing autonomous driving technology.

The ability to achieve results within two years of founding was thanks to the experience held by Autonomous AtoZ’s founding members and researchers. CEO Han, along with directors Oh Youngcheol, Yoo Byungyong, and Heo Myungseon, were core engineers at Hyundai Motor’s autonomous driving development center. Having experience in manufacturing complete vehicles allowed them to start development from a holistic system perspective.

CEO Han did not accept external investment from the early stages of the business, judging that shareholder performance pressure or unreasonable business demands could become obstacles to progress. The company’s research personnel have grown to 32 within two years of founding, most of whom are former employees of complete vehicle manufacturers such as Hyundai and Kia Motors.