Hyundai Mobis to set up second tech centre in India

SEOUL: Hyundai Mobis Co., South Korea's biggest auto parts maker, said Monday it will expand its technical centre in India in the latest move to strengthen software development for autonomous vehicles, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The second technical centre, which will be set up near Hyundai Mobis' first one in Hyderabad, will focus on the development of recognition algorithms for cameras, radars and light detection and ranging (LiDAR) as well as other technologies for autonomous vehicles, Hyundai Mobis said.

LiDAR is one of the key components in the overall sensing package required to make autonomous cars a reality.

In January, Hyundai Mobis said it will invest US$50 million in US autonomous vehicle technology firm Velodyne Lidar as part of efforts to mass-produce Level 3 autonomous driving systems by 2021.

A Level 3 car, if fully developed, will allow lane changes and other autonomous driving functions to work without intervention by the driver.

Hyundai Mobis has developed Level 2 technology in which the driver can initiate a lane change on a highway, as well as exit and join highways, if the driver merely uses the indicator light.

Hyundai Mobis has about 5,000 employees at its technical centres in South Korea, the United States, Germany, China and India.

Hyundai Mobis, a key affiliate of Hyundai Motor Group, said it aims to clinch overseas orders worth US$2.7 billion this year, up from US$1.7 billion last year.