Hyundai reveals interior of Purpose-Built Vehicle concept, eyes production in 2025

Interior and exterior of the ‘PBV Engineering Buck’ displayed at Hyundai Motor Group’s UX Studio in Seoul.

Hyundai Motor Group has unveiled the results of the PBV UX ((Purpose Built Vehicle User Experience) development direction, including the PBV Test Buck being developed at ‘UX Studio Seoul’ in Seocho-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. The test buck is a model that is manufactured in advance for the purpose of verifying usability in the development process of vehicles or parts.

UX Studio Seoul is a dedicated space for vehicle UX R&D designed to invite customers to listen to their opinions on UX and reflect them on products throughout the entire process, from the initial concept development of the vehicle to the stage of verifying the merchandising just before mass production.

During the initial development of the PBV, Hyundai Motor Group exhibited a wooden ‘study buck’ for concept development and an ‘engineering buck’ in which technology was actually implemented, allowing people to experience the process of the initial concept of the vehicle to be materialised.

Airport pick-up PBV
The engineering buck on display was made based on the PBV-only electric vehicle platform that is being developed with the goal of 2025, and was developed with the concept of a ‘airport pick-up PBV’ that transports travellers to and from the airport.

It is characterised by a large number of technologies optimised for both travellers and business operators. A carrier holder is provided instead of the passenger seat, and the boarding space is extended to the rear instead of the trunk space so that up to five people can enjoy a spacious interior. In addition, a door system that maximises the opening width is installed so that wheelchairs can easily enter and exit in consideration of the convenience of boarding not only for ordinary passengers but also for the transportation vulnerable.

The ‘Responsive PBV Seat Concept’, jointly developed by Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors and MIT Media Lab of the US, is a technology that makes the seat shape according to the body shape after the seat detects the passenger’s body. If this technology is applied to a PBV that carries an unspecified number of passengers, the long bench-shaped seat can be variously modified according to the number of passengers and body type.

Hyundai Mobis introduced a ‘mode conversion cockpit’ that enhances the convenience of passengers in highly autonomous vehicles. Depending on the three modes: drive mode, office mode, and relaxation mode, it changes to a user-optimized UX such as lighting, seat angle, display and operation system.

Hyundai Transys introduced a ‘multi-purpose mobility seat system’ that considers each user’s lifestyle. We implemented 10 integrated scenario modes that optimise the indoor environment according to various situations that passengers can experience, such as bio-signal analysis technology for the transportation vulnerable and technology to increase indoor space utilisation for family passengers with infants.

Hyundai Motor Group plans to develop a PBV-only model using a PBV-only electric vehicle platform, and build Korea’s first new-concept PBV electric vehicle-only plant with an annual production capacity of up to 150,000 units with the goal of mass-production in the second half of 2025.