Hyundai showed a factory where cars are assembled by robot dogs. Video

2023: Hyundai showed a factory where cars are assembled by robot dogs. Video

At the end of November 2023, the South Korean automotive company Hyundai demonstrated a high-tech plant in Singapore, at which approximately 60% of all operations are performed by robots. It is noted that robotics is an important part of Hyundai's transformation into a provider of intelligent mobility solutions.

The Singapore facility produces Ioniq 5 electric vehicles. More than 200 automated systems of various types are involved at the site. Robots transport and install parts, carefully tighten bolts and perform laborious routine operations. Even quality control is carried out by the Spot robot dog developed by Boston Dynamics.

Hyundai demonstrated a high-tech plant where approximately 60% of all operations are performed by robots

There is no traditional production line at the plant. Instead, the assembly process is based on so-called cells that provide maximum autonomy. Special robots deliver parts and components to various cells where installation is carried out. Some robotic pallets can transport a partially assembled vehicle from one cell to another. It is noted that the cells can be reprogrammed to work with various models of vehicles. Traditional assembly lines will require significant re-equipment to provide the same adaptability.

Only about 100 human workers are involved at the Hyundai site in Singapore. At the same time, the plant is capable of producing approximately 30 thousand cars per year. Thanks to the widespread introduction of robots, the company expects to reinvent production, maximizing efficiency and reducing the burden on employees. Overall, Hyundai sees robotics and mobility as complementary directions that drive each other's development. Together, they "form a synergistic combination that will benefit businesses and contribute to progress for humanity."^[1]

2021: Boston Dynamics Robots Start

In mid-September 2021, Hyundai Motor Group began using Boston Dynamics robots to monitor safety at its car plant.

Hyundai Motor Group, which operates two leading car companies Hyundai Motor and Kia, announced the start using a four-legged Boston Dynamics Spot robot to check safety on the Kia AutoLand Gwangmyeong, Kia's car factory in Gyeonggi-do province (South Korea).

Hyundai began using Boston Dynamics robots to monitor factory safety

This is the first joint project between Hyundai and Boston Dynamics after the Korean automotive group acquired an 80% stake in the American robotic startup.

The flexibility of the Boston Dynamics Spot robot allows it to move freely in bottlenecks inaccessible to humans and on stairs. AI-based software dubbed the AI Processing Service Unit (AI Unit), developed by the robotics lab Hyundai Motor Group, enhances the robot's autonomous capabilities and functions to provide a safe work environment in factories, Hyundai said.

The AI Unit runs on deep learning technology and includes a 3D lidar, thermal imaging camera and other various sensors, so the Boston Dynamics robot can independently navigate factories, but can be manually controlled if desired. The technology used by the automaker can also check whether the equipment is overheating, or determine the opening of doors.

Hyundai explained that the data collected as part of the pilot project will be used to optimize the performance of the robot, including to support the new necessary functions, so that as a result, the robot can be fully used at other industrial facilities.^[2]

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