Hyundai Engineering & Construction said on the 6th it plans to apply an advanced parking system that combines Hyundai WIA's "parking robot" with fire risk detection and automatic response functions to Apgujeong Zone 3, the biggest redevelopment site in the Gangnam area.
Earlier, Hyundai Engineering & Construction proposed the nation's first "robot-friendly complex" in the Apgujeong Zone 2 redevelopment. At the time, Hyundai Engineering & Construction suggested an unmanned valet parking service by applying Hyundai WIA's "parking robot" to the complex, which lifts designated vehicles and moves them to empty spaces.
A Hyundai Engineering & Construction official said the service in which a robot parks the car without a person having to drive is a first in Korea. The company highlighted the advantage that the robot can move precisely even in tight spaces, allowing more vehicles to be accommodated in the same area.
Two robots can even lift a vehicle from both sides and move it sideways at 90 degrees in "sideways parking" (crab drive), making it easy to use cramped spaces that would otherwise require multiple forward and backward maneuvers.
The "parking robot" set to be introduced to Apgujeong Zone 3 is characterized by adding fire safety functions. By integrating fire detection and transport safety technologies into the existing system, the company plans to implement a comprehensive solution that detects potential electric vehicle fires during parking in advance and responds preemptively.
For example, when signs of fire-related abnormalities are detected, an alert is immediately sent to the control system. The robot, acting on the control command, transports the risk vehicle straight to a dedicated disaster prevention zone within the complex. The disaster prevention zone, with specialized fireproof design, features existing firefighting water spray, fire isolation, and toxic gas exhaust systems to safely isolate the burning vehicle and block secondary damage, actively protecting residents' safety and property.
In particular, fires in lithium-ion batteries for vehicles involve thermal runaway, reaching temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Celsius and producing large amounts of smoke and toxic gases within minutes. Because of this, in underground spaces where direct human access is difficult, a robot-based preemptive response system before a fire breaks out is considered one of the most effective means. Such technology is drawing attention as a proactive response by the private construction sector to fire response infrastructure, as recent electric vehicle fires have emerged as a key variable in residential safety.
Unmanned autonomous shuttles, artificial intelligence (AI)-based personal mobility robots, and electric vehicle charging robots, already applied in Apgujeong Zone 2, will also be expanded. Hyundai Engineering & Construction plans to organically link these robot technologies throughout the complex to implement a "robot-based smart complex" integrating mobility, convenience, and safety.
A Hyundai Engineering & Construction official said, "Apgujeong Hyundai is the starting point of Korea's residential innovation," adding, "By introducing fire-response parking robots, we will achieve an ideal fusion of robot technology and residential life and complete Apgujeong Hyundai, with its half-century history, as a symbol of future high-tech housing."
Apgujeong Zone 3 is a large-scale redevelopment project targeting 3,934 aging apartments around 393-1 Apgujeong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Through redevelopment, Apgujeong Zone 3 is set to be transformed into a new complex with a total of 5,175 households. The maintenance plan notice was completed on the 22nd last month, and the project aims to select a builder in the first half of this year.