30th Seoul Mobility Show Media Day
Hyundai Motor Unveils Electric Vehicle Automatic Charging Robot
Tesla Exhibits Human-like Humanoid Robot
Ghost Robotics Demonstrates Partial Mass Production Robot Dog in Korea
#On the 30th, the Seoul Mobility Show was held at KINTEX in Goyang. Hyundai Motor's single-arm robot is charging an electric vehicle. The robot holds the heavy fast-charging cable and plugs it into the charging port instead of a person. If someone approaches during charging, the robot sends a safety warning, and when charging is complete, it returns the cable to its place. At the Tesla booth, there is a humanoid robot. It is the very robot that Elon Musk showcased at Tesla's IR events. Near the exit of the venue, Ghost Robotics Technology's robot dog 'Vision 60' is running around. 'Vision 60' was developed by replicating the movements of mammals. It can lie down and hop while walking.
On the 30th, the press briefing of the '2023 Seoul Mobility Show' held at Kintex in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, was crowded with reporters. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@
The scene at the Seoul Mobility Show has changed. In the past, mobility shows were exhibitions that showcased the direction of future automobiles. This year, it was possible to see how advanced technology has spread to various mobility devices. Among them, the most eye-catching item was robots. From Tesla's globally famous humanoid robot to Ghost Robotics Technology's robot dog (quadruped robot) and Hyundai Motor's electric vehicle charging robot, they attracted the attention of visitors.
Hyundai Motor unveiled an electric vehicle automatic charging robot and a delivery robot developed by its Robotics Lab. The charging robot is a single-arm robot that holds the ultra-fast charger cable instead of a person. Drivers only need to park, and the robot charges automatically. The delivery robot autonomously drives based on LiDAR and camera sensors. It is equipped with four plug-and-drive (PnD) modules, allowing it to move freely in all directions. It finds the optimal route by itself.
Ghost Robotics Technology, a developer of quadruped robots, also attracted attention at this event. Ghost Robotics Technology has acquired the core technology from the American robotics company Ghost Robotics and mass-produces some parts of the products in Korea.
Ghost Robotics competes with Hyundai Motor affiliate Boston Dynamics in the global 'robot dog' market. The quadruped robots supplied to major government agencies and militaries worldwide are only two models: Ghost Robotics' 'Vision 60' and Boston Dynamics' 'Spot.'
The two companies' robot dogs differ in how they move their leg joints. Spot uses torque sensors to recognize objects and calculate movements, which is advantageous for precise motions. In contrast, Vision 60 calculates the ground force transmitted to the motors to move. Since it uses the motors as sensors, it has excellent durability for outdoor activities. It is made with a modular assembly method, allowing only the broken parts to be detached and repaired. A Ghost Robotics official said, "We recently started mass-producing the legs of the robot dogs in Korea," adding, "Our long-term goal is to mass-produce the entire product in Korea."
Tesla exhibited the humanoid robot 'Optimus,' which resembles a human, at this event. Although only a non-functional model was displayed, it attracted great attention from the press worldwide due to its fame.
Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, first unveiled the 'Optimus' prototype at AI Day last September. Its walking was unstable, and its movements were very limited to carrying simple parts. However, it shocked the market as it was an achievement made only six months after declaring robot development.
The 'Optimus' revealed at the Investor Day held in March this year tightened screws with natural hand movements. Although it is still lacking compared to the technologies of robot companies that have been dedicated to robot development for decades, the speed of progress is considered remarkable. Tesla was able to reduce development time by applying autonomous driving technology, which goes through cognition-judgment-execution processes, directly to the robot.
Tesla sees this artificial intelligence (AI) robot as a key solution to cost reduction issues in automobile production processes. They plan to lower the launch price to under $20,000 and grow the robot industry itself into the next-generation growth engine. Experts believe that considering humanoid robots typically cost around $100,000, Tesla Optimus has sufficient price competitiveness.
Yang Seung-yoon, a researcher at Eugene Investment & Securities, said, "The autonomous driving field, which mobility companies are currently developing and commercializing, can broadly be defined as robots," adding, "Considering labor shortages and rising labor costs, the rapid rise of the robot industry is not a temporary trend but a mid- to long-term change."
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