SKT Expands Mobility Collaboration... 'GoyohanM' Driven by Hearing-Impaired Drivers

SKT and Coactors Expand Collaboration from 'Goyohan Taxi' to New Mobility 'Goyohan M'
Developing ADAS and Smartwatch for Hearing Impaired... Alerts Driving Warnings via Vibration

An SK Telecom employee is explaining the usage of the 'ADAS for the hearing impaired' and the 'T Care Smartwatch' to a hearing-impaired driver.

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] "It's not dangerous at all. I was able to rest comfortably without any inconvenience and come home."

Known as the "Taxi that even moved the President," the "Goyohan Taxi," recognized as a successful case of coexistence, is expanding its mobility business with sports utility vehicles (SUVs). Under the name "Goyohan Mobility (GoyohanM)," 10 SUV vehicles will run in the city starting next month. To this end, 15 hearing-impaired drivers have been employed.

The service provider, Coactors, emphasized the change in employment form, saying, "Unlike the existing Goyohan Taxi drivers who belonged to a corporate taxi company, GoyohanM directly employs the drivers." Coactors is expanding its business as a "directly managed transportation operator" under the Ministry of Science and ICT's regulatory sandbox (regulatory exemption system) demonstration exception.

SK Telecom and Coactors introduced the results of their two-year cooperation and announced the newly launched "GoyohanM" service through an online briefing on the morning of the 29th. GoyohanM will start service from the 1st of next month. As with Goyohan Taxi, communication between hearing-impaired drivers and passengers is handled via tablet PCs. Starting with 10 SUVs, the plan is to expand to 100 vehicles by the second half of 2021.

◆Win-win for large, medium, and small enterprises... SKT develops customized driver support system

SK Telecom, which empathized with the purpose of Goyohan Taxi driven by hearing-impaired drivers and proposed cooperation to Coactors two years ago, once again took on the role of "drivers' ears" by mobilizing its technology.

GoyohanM vehicles are equipped with an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) exclusively for the hearing-impaired, linked with the T Care smartwatch. This is a measure to minimize unexpected accidents. SK Telecom developed customized equipment based on the fact that existing ADAS, which alerts drivers to accident risk factors, was designed mainly for non-disabled drivers. Unlike general ADAS that provides real-time driving information such as lane departure and forward collision warnings through auditory and visual signals, the hearing-impaired customized ADAS delivers warning situations via wrist vibrations through the T Care smartwatch.

Additionally, SK Telecom established an emergency SOS system in cooperation with the National Police Agency for urgent situations. When a hearing-impaired driver presses the SOS button on the smartwatch, real-time location and scene information are transmitted to 112. SK Telecom expects this to play a significant role as a safety assistant for drivers.

While the previously introduced Goyohan Taxi drivers belonged to corporate taxi companies, GoyohanM operates under Coactors' direct employment system. Through direct employment and full monthly salary payment, an environment where people with disabilities can work more stably has been created. Coactors stated, "We chose SUVs to expand into specialized mobility services for people with mobility difficulties such as the disabled and the elderly." They plan to launch a service to assist disabled passengers' mobility in the first half of next year and increase the fleet to 100 vehicles in the second half.

◆'Goyohan Taxi' has completed 150,000 rides over two years

The cooperation between SK Telecom and Coactors dates back to June 2018. Sharing a consensus on social advancement for people with disabilities and innovation in mobility services, the two sides are cited as a representative collaboration case based on the social venture's ideas and the large corporation's ICT. The number of Goyohan Taxi rides has exceeded 150,000, and the number of hearing-impaired drivers has reached 62.

Two years ago, President Moon Jae-in, who encountered Goyohan Taxi at the Social Economy Expo, said, "Thank you for creating Goyohan Taxi. I support you." This year, it received the top prize at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) Glomo Awards in February, and overseas awards and investment attraction continue.

Yeojiyoung, head of SK Telecom's Open Collaboration Group, said, "We will take the lead in solving social issues using ICT in the 5G era and strengthening the social safety net." Song Minpyo, CEO of Coactors, stated, "We will strive to provide quality jobs to hearing-impaired people with warm technology that changes the world while being recognized for the highest level of service to passengers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.