Video: Hyundai mini EV supports child patients
Hyundai has a mini EV equipped with Emotion Adaptive Vehicle Control (EAVC) technology which optimises the vehicle’s environment to suit young patients in it.
The EAVC-equipped mini EV based on Hyundai’s ‘45’ concept car supports treatment of young patients at SJD Barcelona Children’s Hospital through its ‘Little Big e-Motion’ project.
A six-minute YouTube video shows how it works using artificial intelligence (AI) technology which monitors facial expressions, determines the driver’s mood, medical status and other factors.
The technology then processes the data utilising machine learning to optimise the vehicle environment and actively controls vehicle systems such as lighting, climate, music and a fragrance dispenser.
Hyundai Motor Group is leading the development of this next-generation technology, as part of an academic research collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab.
Equipped with this technology, the mini EV – designed by the same team that oversaw the ‘45’ concept – will be used to support the treatment of young patients at hospitals.
Hyundai donated this one-of-a-kind EV to SJD hospital in Barcelona where it will be used to support the mobility of young patients from hospital bed to treatment room, which is considered one of the most stressful trips for the children.
“We want our technology to help improve the lives of our customers in various mobility spaces beyond the roads,” Hyundai senior research engineer Jinmo Lee says.
“We hope the EAVC technology on the minicar will provide a fun, safe mobility experience for young patients and help improve their health outcomes.”
In addition to providing emotional support for the young patients, EAVC also assists the work of medical staff by informing them about the emotional state of the young patients without in-person interactions, useful in the COVID-19 era.
“The hospital is very excited to have such a technology available for kids,” SJD hospital paediatric cardiology department head Joan Sanchez de Toledo says.
“This will dramatically change the way patients will face treatment.”
Hyundai is fine-tuning its EAVC technology through the hospital and hopes to expand its use in mobility devices to enhance driver safety and well-being in the future.
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