Hyundai, Kia Study Self-Parking EVs

Hyundai and Kia are looking at autonomous electric vehicles that go off to charge themselves and return to the owner when called.

The automakers unveil a video featuring the concept of an EV wireless charging system linked with an automated valet parking system (AVPS).

The system is aimed at drivers faced with overcrowding of both parking and charging locations as EV numbers grow steadily. It automatically moves fully charged vehicles from charging stations to be replaced by EVs waiting to be charged.

Hyundai says in a statement it is considering commercializing the technology with the launch of level 4 autonomy around 2025. It also plans to commercialize autonomous vehicles in various smart cities from 2021 with a goal of launching fully autonomous vehicles by 2030.

The concept video shows that when a vehicle is ordered by smartphone to charge, the vehicle will automatically cruise to a vacant wireless charging station. Once fully charged, the EV will relocate to a vacant parking space using the AVPS.

When the driver calls for the vehicle, it will autonomously return to the location of the driver.

“The overall process is performed by continuous communication between electric vehicle, parking facility, charging system and driver,” Hyundai says.

“The parking facility sends the location of empty parking spaces and charging stations, while the charging system updates the charging status of the vehicle in real-time.”