Hyundai unveils human-centered future mobility vision at CES 2020

Hyundai Motor presents smart mobility solution ‘UAM-PBV-Hub’ to vitalize future cities

KUWAIT CITY, Jan 14: Hyundai Motor Company has unveiled at CES 2020 its innovative vision for urban mobility to help vitalize human-centered future cities.

To realize the vision, Hyundai Motor showcased three mobility solutions, comprising Urban Air Mobility (UAM), Purpose Built Vehicle (PBV) and Hub, a place for mobility transfer and community activities.

Based on these mobility solutions, Hyundai aims to free future cities and people from constraints of time and space and allow them to create more value in their lives.

The company will also accelerate the implementation of its brand vision ‘Progress for Humanity’ and transform itself into a ‘Smart Mobility Solution Provider’.

Working closely together, UAM, PBV and Hub play key roles in vitalizing human-centered future cities and enriching people’s lives.

UAM connects the sky and the ground, while PBV links people to people on the road. These two smart mobility solutions connect at the Hub, which will be installed across future cities to form a mobility ecosystem.

With this smart mobility vision built around the UAM-PBV-Hub network, Hyundai has outlined its commitment to provide customers seamless mobility and a differentiated mobility experience.

The vision is also in line with the company’s mid-term innovation plan ‘Strategy 2025’ to shift to its business structures based on two pillars – ‘Smart Mobility Device’ and ‘Smart Mobility Service’.

“For our smart mobility solutions, we considered what truly matters in cities and in people’s lives. UAM, PBV, and Hub will revitalize cities by removing urban boundaries, giving people time to pursue their goals, and creating a diverse community. Our goal is to help build dynamic human-centered future cities and continue our legacy of progress for humanity. CES 2020 is just the start and we will continue to realize this vision,” said Euisun Chung, Executive ViceChairman of Hyundai Motor Group.

‘Human-Centered City Advisory Group’ and a study on creating new values for future cities

Hyundai’s future mobility vision stems from the idea that mobility is closely related to city infrastructure.

The company established the Human-Centered City Advisory Group with top global experts from fields such as psychology, architecture, urban design, transportation, and political science, and conducted research on how future cities should be designed to foster new human-centered values.

The advisory group derived three key values for future cities: vitalize, enable, and care. Considering Hyundai’s strength in mobility and connecting people, the advisory group decided to place priority on the ‘vitalization’ of cities.

“All three values are important, but Hyundai is exceptionally well-positioned to vitalize communities with new forms of mobility,” said Art Markman, a member of Hyundai’s HumanCentered City Advisory Group and professor of Cognitive Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin.

In addition to the advisory group, Hyundai also envisioned different city archetypes and developed future city scenarios to predict the infrastructure and development direction that will be required for future cities.

The company focused on humancentered mobility solutions to address traffic congestion challenges in major cities.

“Based on advice from the advisory group, we tried to find mobility solutions that will vitalize communities in a meaningful and imaginative way. UAM, PBV, and Hub are solutions that will help alleviate pain-points in big cities like San Francisco,” said Youngcho Chi, President and Chief Innovation Officer at Hyundai Motor Company.

UAM, innovative mobility solution offering liberation from grid-lock

The first solution that Hyundai is offering to vitalize future cities is Urban Air Mobility, an innovative mobility solution that offers ‘liberation from gridlock’ and ‘democratization of flight’.

Mega-urbanization taking place around the world has resulted in dramatic reduction of transfer efficiency for urban residents and increased social costs related to logistics transportation.

UAM enables runway-free urban air travel with Personal Air Vehicles capable of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL).

UAM is considered a key future innovation business that can help overcome urban challenges like traffic congestion and transform the paradigm of mobility.

“We are looking at the dawn of a completely new era that will open the skies above our cities. Urban Air Mobility will liberate people from gridlock and reclaim time for people to invest in activities they care about and enjoy,” said Jaiwon Shin, Executive Vice-President and Head of Urban Air Mobility Division at Hyundai Motor Company.

Hyundai also announced four pillars of UAM: safe, quiet, affordable, and passenger-centered.

For safety, the PAV has multiple rotors to provide multi-layer redundancy and ensure safe operation, and a parachute deployment system will be placed in the vehicle for emergencies.

PAVs will be designed with low noise levels, making them more acceptable for urban travel and offering comfort to passengers.

UAM will be made affordable and accessible through utilization of Hyundai’s manufacturing know-how in automobiles, aerodynamic design, use of light-weight from carbon composite materials, productive design technology, and reduced operating costs.

Lastly, Hyundai’s UAM will be passenger-centered by designing the interior with Internet of Things (IoT) features while ensuring comfort and safety of passengers.

World premiere of ‘S-A1’, concept PAV developed jointly with Uber

Hyundai unveiled its first concept Personal Air Vehicle today, named ‘SA1’. The concept PAVis equipped with eVTOL and designed to seat five people, including a pilot.

The PAV will be operated initially by a pilot during the early stages of commercialization and enable autonomous operation once the relevant technologies are developed.

Hyundai has the manufacturing capacity and expertise required to develop and mass-produce transportation vehicles such as the PAV.

The ‘S-A1’ concept PAV was developed jointly with Uber, the world’s largest mobility company.

“Hyundai is our first vehicle partner with experience of manufacturing passenger cars on a global scale. We believe Hyundai has the potential to build Uber Air vehicles at rates unseen in the current aerospace industry, producing high quality, reliable aircraft at high volumes to drive down passenger costs per trip. Combining Hyundai’s manufacturing muscle with Uber’s technology platform represents a giant leap forward for launching a vibrant air taxi network in coming years,” said Eric Allison, Head of Uber Elevate.

Hyundai plans to strengthen its partnerships with global companies like Uber and accelerate its UAM business, including developing world-class PAVs, offering fleet service and maintenance, and developing skyports.