CES 2019: Hyundai Mobis gestures towards the future

Hyundai Mobis is the material and assemblies division of the Hyundai /Kia conglomerate. Not to be outdone by the parent company with its climbing robot, Mobis presented a well-designed concept pod that displayed interesting ideas both inside and out.

On the exterior it displayed a lighting solution for autonomous driving – different light combinations signal other cars and pedestrians of the car’s intent. The range of these lighting schemes is quite impressive; pedestrians can see the warning lights from up to 450 feet away. The lights are also well integrated into the body structure, giving the Mobis a seamless look.

Seamlessly integrated lighting and good proportions make the Mobis very handsome, as pods go

On the interior, Mobis displayed a projection system that can project movies and other infotainment on the windscreen and side glass. In driving mode the glazing is transparent, but in autonomous mode, the windscreen becomes opaque and projects the infotainment on the windscreen. The driver can use gesture controls to select entertainment and fine-tune the interior environment of the car.

It’s a beautiful system and a very popular one, as the line to try it out was an hour long at least. And the system has to cool down every 10 minutes, so it is definitely not perfected yet. Still, it is an interesting alternative to umpteen screens being placed around the cabin, though perhaps individual entertainment selection could be compromised.

Interior cutaway model with system demonstration