A rendering of a next-generation electric vehicle charging station that Chaevi is developing. [Chaevi]
A rendering of a next-generation electric vehicle charging station that Chaevi is developing. [Chaevi]

Development is now underway on technology that would allow an EV charger to locate a vehicle's charging port on its own, insert the connector and disconnect it once charging is complete — all without human involvement. The effort is part of a broader push to automate the entire charging process in preparation for the spread of self-driving cars and unmanned mobility services.

Chaevi, an operator of rapid EV charging infrastructure, announced Tuesday it would join the "robot-based autonomous EV charging system" development project as a co-institution and demand enterprise under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's AI Application Product Rapid Commercialization Support program.

The project aims to develop a system that uses AI-based robotics to handle the entire EV charging process automatically. It runs from May this year through December 2027, with a total budget of 6.43 billion won ($4.27 million), of which about 4.5 billion won will come from government funding.

Chaevi's role in the project is to carry out real-world demonstration and commercialization verification using its own charging infrastructure. The company operates about 10,000 charging spaces in total, including roughly 6,000 it runs directly, and plans to use that network to confirm the autonomous charging technology works reliably across a range of field conditions.

Pilot sites have already been partially identified. Chaevi has signed letters of intent with Seoul's Nowon-gu and Siheung in Gyeonggi Province, and plans to test the robot charging system under actual usage conditions at charging stations in those areas.

The defining feature of the technology is full automation. Existing robot charging systems have largely been semi-automatic, still requiring drivers to open the charging port cover or remove the dust cap themselves. This project aims to have the robot handle everything — from opening the dust cap to connecting the charger and disconnecting it after charging is complete.

Achieving that requires the robot to accurately identify the charging port location and dust cap configuration, which vary from vehicle to vehicle. Conditions also differ across charging stations — parking positions, charger installation angles, spatial layouts, lighting and weather all introduce variables. For the robot to assess situations and respond like a human operator, the system must combine AI vision technology, precision control and reinforcement learning.

Chaevi handles the full cycle of charging infrastructure in-house, from manufacturing and installation to operations and maintenance. The company plans to draw on data accumulated through running actual charging stations to verify the stability and versatility of the autonomous charging system.

The technology could also benefit people with mobility limitations and others who find charging difficult. For users who struggle to lift a heavy charging connector or align it precisely with a vehicle's port, automated charging would improve convenience.

Over the longer term, the technology ties into the broader ecosystem of self-driving vehicles and unmanned delivery and shuttle services. Even if a vehicle can navigate on its own, any requirement for human intervention during charging creates a ceiling on fully driverless operation — which is why charging automation is considered foundational infrastructure for the autonomous driving era.

Competition in autonomous driving and software-defined vehicles is intensifying across the automaking industry. Real-world rollout of such services depends not only on vehicle performance but also on the maturation of surrounding infrastructure — charging, maintenance and fleet management — making charging automation technology increasingly important.

Through this project, Chaevi will also participate in developing core technologies needed to commercialize autonomous charging, including automatic connector coupling and position-alignment systems and charging safety controls. The company plans to build toward commercialization not through laboratory experiments alone, but through repeated verification at actual charging stations.

"Autonomous charging technology is an essential capability for completing the coming era of self-driving vehicles and a core piece of infrastructure for the future mobility industry," said Choi Young-hoon, CEO of Chaevi. "True unmanned mobility can only be realized when charging, not just movement, happens without human involvement. Chaevi will continue to strengthen its demonstration-focused technology verification and commercialization competitiveness, drawing on our experience operating real charging infrastructure."

Chaevi operates and manages about 10,000 rapid charging spaces nationwide. Since its Kosdaq listing in April, the company has been pursuing next-generation charging technology development — including ultra-rapid charging infrastructure expansion, AI-based charging services and autonomous charging technology.

MCS, or megawatt charging system, is a high-power charging standard designed for large commercial electric vehicles. As electrification extends beyond passenger EVs to electric trucks, electric buses and future autonomous logistics vehicles, charging speed and automation are expected to become key competitive differentiators for charging operators.


kwater@heraldcorp.com