Samsung Electronics announced on January 4 that it has unveiled a strategic collaboration with Hyundai Motor Group, aimed at expanding its SmartThings platform to include support for connected cars, particularly electric vehicles (EVs).
This announcement follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on January 3, solidifying their commitment to jointly develop solutions that seamlessly integrate the smart home and connected cars into future lifestyles.
Under this partnership, Samsung and Hyundai plan to forge ahead in advancing the next-generation smart home. Their focus will be on linking Samsung’s SmartThings with the connected cars of Hyundai and Kia, specifically EVs. The objective is to create innovative "Home-to-Car" and "Car-to-Home" services, along with a comprehensive integrated home energy management service.
The "Home-to-Car" and "Car-to-Home" services are designed to establish a connection between the smart home and in-vehicle infotainment systems. This integration enables users to exercise remote control functionalities in both directions. Leveraging the SmartThings platform, individuals will have the capability to perform various actions related to their cars while being at home.
This includes tasks such as starting the vehicle, managing smart air conditioning, opening and closing windows, and monitoring the charging status. Furthermore, the integration extends to the control of home appliances like TVs, air conditioners, and EV chargers directly from the cars.
“This collaboration will enable communication from Home-to-Car and integrated home energy management services that are optimized for future lifestyles,” said Chanwoo Park, Executive Vice President at Samsung Electronics. “By connecting the SmartThings platform with vehicles, we’ll be able to significantly enhance the customer experience in both the home and the car.”
Users will be able to adjust their environments with SmartThings by simultaneously operating multiple devices — including vehicles — through routines such as “good morning routine” and “arriving home routine.” For example, when a Galaxy smartphone’s morning alarm goes off, the curtains will automatically open, and the lights and television will turn on. When users are ready to go out for work, the user’s car will adjust itself to an ideal temperature. Also, the smartphone and TV screens will display information such as the EV’s remaining battery and driving range.
“This is an opportunity to make the connected car’s Car-to-Home and Home-to-Car services more convenient in various fields,” said Haeyoung Kwon, Vice President of Hyundai and Kia’s Infotainment Development Center. “We plan to accelerate our technology development to continuously make global Hyundai and Kia customers’ journeys meaningful.”
The integrated home energy management service will allow users to monitor how much energy is consumed by the connected devices in their homes. Energy information of their EVs and chargers will also be available, enabling users to adjust the optimal time for charging their vehicles.
EVs connected to the integrated home energy management service offer the possibility of automatically setting the optimal time for charging by factoring in different pricing by time of day, the power demand response (DR) program, photovoltaic (PV) and energy storage system (ESS) data, and time-specific carbon emissions.
HARMAN’s “Ready Upgrade” is a digital cockpit package product that allows hardware and software upgrades. With Ready Upgrade, users will be able to install SmartThings functions to utilize various Car-to-Home services.
