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| (Source: Hyundai) |
Hyundai Motor and Kia have failed to secure patent protection in South Korea for an autonomous driving safety technology designed to manage vehicle safety after an emergency stop.
On Jan. 12, 2026, the Korean Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board dismissed an appeal filed by Hyundai Motor and Kia challenging the rejection of their patent application titled "Apparatus for controlling autonomous driving of a vehicle, system having the same and method thereof" (KR1020200035725).
The application, originally filed in March 2020, relates to a post-stop safety control technology following a minimum risk maneuver, or MRM, used when autonomous driving systems encounter situations beyond their operational limits. The applicants requested substantive examination in December 2022, but the Korean Intellectual Property Office issued a final rejection in April 2025. Hyundai and Kia sought appellate review in August 2025, which was ultimately rejected by the tribunal.
According to the specification, the invention addresses scenarios in which an autonomous vehicle determines that driving conditions have become unsafe due to factors such as sensor failures or environmental uncertainty. In such cases, the system requests a takeover by the driver. If the driver fails to respond, the vehicle automatically executes an MRM to bring the car to a safe stop. Once the vehicle is stationary, the system requests engagement of an electronic parking brake and transmits a signal disabling reactivation of autonomous driving functions to prevent secondary risks.
The rejected application is one of several Hyundai and Kia filings in Korea that include references to "controlling autonomous driving" and MRM-related concepts. As of Jan. 16, 2026, the automakers have filed 22 such patent applications in Korea.
Among them, two have been successfully registered, including "Autonomous Driving Controller and Vehicle" (KR2888525), registered in November 2025, and "Autonomous Vehicle and Method for Controlling Indicator Thereof" (KR2909019), registered in January 2026. Three MRM-related applications, including the present case, have been denied registration.
By PatenTrip
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