LG Electronics and HERE Technologies Partner on Autonomous Cars

LG Electronics (LG) is partnering with HERE Technologies (HERE), a global provider of digital mapping and location services, to offer a next-generation telematics solution for autonomous vehicles. The solution combines LG's advanced telematics technology with high-precision map data and location services powered by the HERE Open Location Platform. Through their planned collaboration, the companies aim to support automakers globally with a robust and secure data communications hub for highly automated and fully autonomous cars.

When fully developed, telematics, an industry that is defined as the integration of telecommunications and informatics, will play a key role as the communication hub for autonomous vehicles. First, sensors in the vehicle's ADAS – comprised of cameras, radar and lidar – read the surrounding environment and send the data to the cloud along with information on nearby vehicles collected via V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything). All the information gathered is repeatedly analysed and transmitted to the telematics systems of vehicles for customised driving information.

LG's telematics solutions support various communication technologies from GPS to Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and mobile communication. LG engineers are working earnestly to develop 5G products, which will be four to five times faster than LTE with 90% reduction in latency, ideal for next generation autonomous vehicle operation.

"We're presenting a new standard for autonomous mobile communication solutions in cooperation with HERE, which has unsurpassed cutting-edge automotive guidance technology," said J.Y. Kim, executive vice president of LG's Vehicle Components Smart Business Unit. "With partners like HERE, LG can continue to advance the next generation of connected car technologies to help prepare automakers for the self-driving era."

"To operate safely and efficiently, autonomous vehicles will need many kinds of robust data sources and powerful communication technologies," said Moon Lee, vice president of HERE Technologies APAC. "We believe our Open Location Platform-powered services can play a critical role in next-generation telematics technology for autonomous vehicles, and we're excited to be working with LG to make this a reality."