If you use an electric car, you have no doubt noticed that connecting to a charging socket has two major disadvantages. The first is that since the stations are outdoors, the cables often drag on the ground and are subject to bad weather. Thus, if the cable is not correctly wound, you have to put your hands on it wet. Another sometimes annoying aspect, depending on the charging power, the cables are more or less heavy and their twisting hinders the connection.
To address these drawbacks, Hyundai has developed an automatic charging robot (ACR) for electric vehicles and is releasing a video that demonstrates some of its capabilities.
The ACR is a single-armed robot capable of connecting a cable to the charging port of an EV and automatically unplugging it once the feast of electrons is over. In the video, a Hyundai Ioniq is seen parking. Once the vehicle is parked automatically via Vallet mode activated with the key, the ACR communicates with the car to open the cover of the charging port, determining the position and inclination of the socket thanks to an integrated camera.
The robot then takes the charger to connect it to the vehicle and thus start the charging session. Done, the robot unplugs the charger, puts it back in its place and closes the lid.
For Hyundai Motor Group Robotics Lab Manager Dong Jin Hyun, “The ACR will make charging easier and more convenient, especially in dark environments. It will also contribute to improving accessibility, in particular for people with reduced mobility, knowing that the chargers are increasingly bulky and heavy to support fast charging”.
The ACR seems simple at first sight, but incorporates the manufacturer’s latest robotic technologies. “For the development, the group’s robotics laboratory took into account many variables, such as where the vehicle was parked, the shape of the charging port, the weather, potential obstacles and the weight of the charging cable. […] Hyundai Group has developed an algorithm that applies AI technology using a 3D camera to robots”he says.
In addition to an IP65 index which protects it from extreme conditions, the engineers have installed a safety post on the periphery of the robot equipped with a laser sensor which makes it possible to detect fixed and mobile obstacles in order to avoid any risk of accident.
This gas station attendant of the future will be presented on the Hyundai Motor stand at the 2023 edition of the Seoul Mobility Show (March 31 to April 9, 2023). Obviously, we won’t see this robot in action right away, as Hyundai is part of the Ionity consortium, the highway fast charging network. However, it is not excluded that this solution could be released one day.