Samsung has announced it will be working with Hyundai to expand its SmartThings platform to support connected cars, most notably, electric vehicles (EVs). The announcement came after the companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on January 3 to develop fully integrated solutions for the smart home and connected cars.
The integration industry is no stranger to the auto industry, with many prominent audio manufacturers also having ties to cars either through partnerships or parts development. On the smart home side of things, however, Alarm.com partnered with Android Auto as of last year to connect smart security systems with car activities.
More recently, the association between cars and smart homes has been growing more mainstream as topics of energy management and EVs unite the two in the home, with Samsung having taken a rather aggressive stance on the subject.
According to a press release posted to Samsung’s website, the two companies will work together to connect Samsung’s SmartThings with Hyundai and Kia’s connected cars to develop “Home-to-Car” and “Car-to-Home” services as well as an integrated home energy management service.
Through the SmartThings platform, users will reportedly be able to perform a variety of actions to their cars through SmartThings such as starting them, controlling smart air conditioning, opening and closing windows and checking their charging status.
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Meanwhile, users will also be able to control home appliances such as TVs, air conditioners and EV chargers from within their connected vehicles. Samsung has even stated the capability of setting up routines. For example, as the user is getting ready to go to work, the car can start to warm itself up (or cool itself off) while the user’s phone/smart TV notifies them of remaining car battery.
The integrated home energy management service will allow users to monitor how much energy is consumed by the connected devices in their homes in addition to viewing energy information on EVs and chargers.
To further strengthen these Car-to-Home services, Samsung is working closely with HARMAN, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics. HARMAN’s “Ready Upgrade” is a digital cockpit package product that allows hardware and software upgrades. With Ready Upgrade, users will be able to install SmartThings functions to utilize various Car-to-Home services.
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