Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) will be deploying Singtel’s 5G infrastructure network solutions at its innovation centre in Singapore to develop a metaverse for its electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing operations.
The Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre in Singapore (HMGICS) is an open innovation hub for research and development in advanced mobility ecosystems, including EVs and autonomous vehicles. It will also serve as a testbed for human-centred intelligent manufacturing and verification of Industry 4.0 technologies.
By Q4 2022, HMGICS will use Singtel’s Paragon – an all-in-one platform for 5G networks, edge computing management and services orchestration – to support a digital twin of its EV factory in Singapore. The factory will therefore be able to manage and analyse the manufacturing process and performance of the networks, allowing real-time monitoring and feedback.
The centre will also leverage Singtel’s 5G mobility network to deliver the company’s ‘metamobility’ concept, which refers to going beyond physical movements through robotics and into the metaverse to affect change in the real world. This expands the use of robots as a medium between the real and virtual worlds.
Additionally, HMG will use Paragon to enable customers to personalise their chosen vehicles and watch their cars being manufactured live via their smart devices. Once ready, the vehicles will be transported by specially designed autonomous guided vehicles to HMGICS 620-metre-long Sky Track where customers can test drive them.
“Through this partnership, HMGICS will feature HMG’s first deployment of a 5G network in vehicle manufacturing, leveraging 5G for a cloud-based centralised mobile robot management solution,” says Hong Bum Jung, chief executive officer of HMGICS.
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He adds: “Singtel’s 5G solutions will not only redefine our manufacturing process but also [help us] realise our vision of becoming the first mobility innovator to build a Meta-Factory concept, a digital twin of an actual factory, supported by a metaverse platform. The Meta-Factory will enable us to test-run a factory virtually in order to calculate the optimised plant operation and enable plant managers to solve problems without having to physically visit the plant.”
Lim Seng Kong, managing director of Singtel Enterprise Business, says: “Singtel’s 5G network and mobile edge computing solutions will overcome the performance limitations of WiFi to deliver the promise of digital twins and eventually metaverse for advanced manufacturing operations.
“With innovation from Hyundai and enablement from our 5G solutions, we are looking at a new concept of manufacturing where the station comes to the cell, unlocking opportunities for hyper-customisation and other novel applications. Together, we are paving the way for Singapore to be the centre for Smart Manufacturing in the region.”
