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22 Undercar Digest techniques to identify and overlay infor- mation directly onto the vehicle system or component that is currently being serviced. This includes service proce- dures such as parts removal and instal- lation, parts breakdowns, hardware specifications, torque requirements and more. With the camera of the tablet point- ed toward the engine compartment, all components of the specific make and model are identified. The software also has the ability through VIN recognition to identify the vehicle and pull the nec- essary specific information for that par- ticular car. There is also a Bluetooth dongle that plugs into the old OBD socket and provides communication to a smart device such as a tablet or smart phone using the Bluetooth inter- face. As quoted from Continental's liter- ature, "The dongle enables client applications to either send diagnostic commands to access the vehicle direct- ly or to use a simple command set to access key parameters from any vehi- cle." One of the key advantages of this system is that it provides you with component recognition for whatever part of the car you are working on and fuses that object-recognition tracking with task-oriented user interface. This feature leads to great efficiency on the part of a technician. Technical service information can also be displayed on the tablet, along with a step-by-step test sequence with specifications and pass/no pass output readings. Imagine a situation in which a vehicle enters your service bay. You use a tablet to identify the VIN, put the dongle in the OBD connecter and lift the hood if it is an under-hood component. The tablet displays its location, its test parame- ters, possible solution and other items. Once you have this information, you never have to leave the vehicle's side in proving out the suspected diagnostic problem on this car. The tablet can also be configured to interface with a cus- tomer, allowing the customer to obtain a visual understanding of the overview of the engine compartment, the specific component that is causing the problem and the pass/no pass readings. This process saves a lot of time because you don't have to leave your workstation to communicate with the service writer or the customer. You can also interface the tablet to send information to a ser- vice writer's workstation so that he can communicate with the customer if he is onsite, or via e-mail or whatever method the customer prefers. Someone who is not personally fa- miliar with working on vehicles and some of the past problems associated with obtaining accurate information, service solutions and previously found service fixes may look at the augment- ed reality diagnostic tool from Continental and think, "Oh, that's nice." If, however, you are familiar with work- ing on vehicles and understand some of the problems that have occurred in the past with obtaining complete infor- mation, test parameters all at one loca- tion without having to go back up to the shop, walk up to a shop computer, search the vehicle identification again if someone has used the computer since you did, you will find that this tool is a timesaver that will enable you to be- come the efficient worker you have al- ways wanted to be. Using the augmented-reality diagnostic system may seem simple, but the key is in the software, the background programming and the information database required to put such a program together. As a technician, you have grown to expect service information to be readily available and think that "it's not too bad to get" using your current method. Wait until you get a chance to use this sys- tem. You'll actually be able to pour yourself an extra cup of coffee with the time you save on repair jobs not walk- ing back and forth or leaving your workstation. As everyone knows, com- ponent locations, wire colors and test specifications can vary among models and even among production dates on the same model. Information presented on a tablet immediately in front of you that is accurate and up to date is a major benefit in getting vehicles re- paired. Many programs have come out in the last few years using Internet- based database storage systems, but most of them have a feature that re- quires you to go to a computer to ob- tain the information and then back to the vehicle to perform the service. The augmented reality diagnostics and its software, along with the various components tablets that can be used, provide an onsite workstation-based program that is immediately in front of you. This, along with the breadth of ac- curate technical information, graphics and illustration provides a truly one- stop technical-based repair system. Once you get an opportunity to see or use it, you'll ask yourself why you didn't have it years ago. Although still in the initial stages of application to the aftermarket, this is really something to look forward to. If you ever get the chance at a trade show to see a demonstration, take the time to stop, look and visualize as I did the benefits of the systems when com- pared to the older way of doing vehicle repair. In the early days I could keep track of a lot of vehicle information, component locations, etc., but as cars have become more complex, it has be- come increasingly difficult to keep track of all the specifications, component lo- cations, wire colors, test diagnostics, etc. This is the solution to that prob- lem. Do I like this system and think it's the future? Definitely. In whatever con- figuration it finally hits the aftermarket shops, I'm sure you will soon have a drawer in your toolbox with your tablet and automatic charging station. Things have come a long way from the old days and continue to advance, enabling us to do a better job in a more efficient and professional manner. The future is here today and will be here again to- morrow. We're almost to the point where repairing vehicles has become efficient and we have all the adequate information at hand. ■ Technically speaking ® Repairing Vehicles the Modern Way continued from previous page