The combination of technologies from South Korean and Japanese companies in the robot parts market is set to accelerate. LG Innotek said on Monday it has signed a strategic partnership with Japan’s electronic components maker TDK in the physical AI field. The companies plan to combine LG Innotek’s optical and ultra-precision design technology with TDK’s sensor technology to develop sensing solutions for physical AI, including next-generation vision sensing modules and tactile sensing modules.

TDK has fostered its sensor business for more than 20 years and has a broad sensor portfolio spanning inertia, position, pressure and temperature. Under the cooperation, the companies will push forward early-stage research to apply TDK’s inertia and position sensors and microphones to LG Innotek’s vision sensing modules. They aim to unveil a next-generation vision sensing module in 2027 that integrates and processes motion, direction and acoustic data to enhance robot perception performance.

Equipping the next-generation vision sensing module with TDK’s inertial measurement unit, or IMU, can correct shakiness in image data caused by robot movement, allowing more accurate recognition of the surrounding environment. For robot makers, it can ease the burden of buying and connecting individual sensors by receiving an integrated module that combines multiple sensors. An LG Innotek official said, "We will first unveil a module equipped with an inertial sensor in 2027."

The companies will also jointly develop a tactile sensing module, with completion targeted in 2027. A tactile sensing module is a component that is mounted on a robot’s hands, arms and torso like human skin and enables it to detect contact and pressure. LG Innotek will contribute modularisation and digital signal processing technology, while TDK will provide ultra-precision tactile sensing technology built across industries including consumer goods and automobiles.

TDK President and CEO Noboru Saito (사이토 노보루) said, "We will unveil products that can change the landscape of the market by combining TDK’s fundamental technologies and sensors with LG Innotek’s core technologies." LG Innotek President Hyuksoo Moon (문혁수) said, "Multisensing, which combines numerous sensors, will draw attention in the robotics field," adding, "By cooperating with various companies, we will advance key technological capabilities applied to robots’ eyes and hands and accelerate efforts to take the lead in the physical AI market."