On the 30th, Doosan Robotics announced that it would be signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, LG Electronics, Hyundai Motor Company & Kia, and LS E-Link at Seoul City Hall for the establishment of user-friendly electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The event will be attended by officials including Yeo Jang-kwon, Director of the Climate and Environment Headquarters of Seoul City, and Junghoon Ryu, CEO of Doosan Robotics.

This MOU was set up to go beyond simply increasing the number of EV chargers to speed up the supply of electric vehicles, and to distribute electric vehicles chargers optimized for demand, such as fast charging and assistive charging for those with limited mobility.

Under this MOU, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will be responsible for providing candidate sites, leasing sites, permitting, granting permits, and other administrative support, while Doosan Robotics will supply an automatic electric vehicle charging solution that combines its collaborative robots with LG Electronics' 100 kW and 200 kW fast electric vehicle chargers, and will discover and develop related new technologies.

The automatic electric vehicle charging solution uses a 3D vision camera attached to the collaborative robot to identify the location of the electric vehicle's charging port, and the collaborative robot connects the charging cable to the charging port to start charging. When charging is complete, the robot automatically removes the charger from the charging port and puts it back in its original position.

Typically, electric vehicle fast charging systems have large, heavy and difficult-to-handle charger cables compared to slow charging systems. In this regard, the automatic electric vehicle charging solution can make charging more convenient for those with limited mobility such as the elderly and people with disabilities.

Doosan Robotics and LG Electronics plan to supply their first automatic electric vehicle charging solution to the Municipal Mapo Silver Care Center and install it at 10 locations designated by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, including community centers and welfare facilities, in stages by 2026.

Junghoon Ryu, CEO of Doosan Robotics, said, "This MOU with the Seoul Metropolitan Government is expected to serve as a springboard for expanding our business in earnest, going beyond the pilot operation we are conducting with LG Electronics," and added, "We will actively supply the automatic electric vehicle charging solution in line with the Seoul Metropolitan Government's policy of promoting the spread of charging stations, thereby making transportation more convenient for citizens."