Damn there’s a lot of people here complaining about innovation.
Here’s a quick tip, if you can think in 10 seconds a problem with this, the engineers that work on these projects for YEARS probably already thought of it.
1 - Yes, wireless isn’t 100% reliable, so they are going to need more than one backup system. With a data connection between the trailer and the car, you have MANY ways to alert the driver that there’s a problem, AND your trailer has a processor that can safely handle problems. Heck, a VERY easy fix is to just keep a camera pointed at the license plate and keep it centered in the view while flashing a thing on the dashboard that the trailer isn’t working correct and you need to pull over. Worst case the trailer detects a problem and slows to a stop with the emergency flashers on, but even that would only be needed if several other options failed.
2 - People bitch all the time about Giant Dually Trucks™ that are just used for daily driving. Well, pulling trailers on the weekend is why a lot of people have the excuse for this. If we can eliminate the need for the heavy tow vehicle, then you can just drive a small sedan and still be able to go glamping on the weekends.
3 - There are MILLIONS of travel trailers out there right now. If we switch to small EVs overnight, we can either landfill all those trailers, or figure out a way to retrofit them to still be useful.
4 - Encryption is a thing. If this is using current, modern Wi-Fi, then you can be pretty damn sure that nobody is going to hack into that connection.
Sure, companies cut corners and cheap out of things all the time, but this is absolutely possible to do right, and solves an actual problem.
As someone who’s observed the process for these patents, typically the company just patents anything it thinks it can, regardless of whether or not the idea is practical or if they have any interest in bringing it to market. It doesn’t even need to relate to their core business. Just cause they filed a patent, does not mean they spent any time determining if it was a good idea. Someday one of these crazy patents might prove valuable so they want as many as they can.
Yeah, and some countries (like the US) are all about first-to-file, which means that even if someone thought of something first (with documentation to prove it), if a second party files for a patent first, they’ll get it. So it’s better to file and not use it than to hold onto it.
Yeah, of course, the engineers thought of the problem. Then they reported it to management and management will ensure to always find a reason why exactly this problem (much like the rest of backlog) cannot be prioritized right now.
Also a corporate engineer. I put faith in corporations wanting to avoid lawsuits. Assuming you don’t have an insane billionaire calling the shots, the suits will make sure things are as safe as they need to be to avoid losing money.
Touchscreens in cars are a great example of this. It’s not a safety-critical component (like steering or brakes). The negative safety impact can be argued away in court. So the suits give touchscreens the a-okay. But if there’s a hint of a problem with steering, braking, or ECM, management will be in full support of a proper fix.
Not that they’d manage to avoid messing up wireless towing, but as long as there’s financial incentive in doing things right, management will fight for it.
Here’s a quick tip, if you can think in 10 seconds a problem with this, the engineers that work on these projects for YEARS probably already thought of it.
Then why do so many cars have fucking touchscreen infotainment systems?
A processor that can safely handle problems on the road does not exist. And if a pseudo trailer exists with it and a drive train, it’s just an autonomous electric car. Buying two electric cars will not be price competitive with buying a larger vehicle for cargo/towing capacity, especially considering the additional hassle on the user (have to store two expensive vehicles, have to set up a pseudo tow between the two anytime you think you might need the capacity). So people will still buy large vehicles, there definitely won’t be a switch “overnight”. Besides, most of them already are bought based on an overstated/oversold need, making the purchase less rational will have a marginal, but not sea-changing, impact on buying habits. Encryption is good, but plenty of companies and individuals get hacked today, it will stop the vast majority of attack vectors but the idea of it stopping all attack vectors is borderline laughable. Why is landfilling trailers a positive thing? Preemptively replacing gear that is perfectly operational is part of the toxic consumerism cycle that has put our environment in this mess.
Speaking as an engineer, we may think about the best solution to a problem for years, but that doesn’t mean we are solving the right problem
2 - People bitch all the time about Giant Dually Trucks™ that are just used for daily driving. Well, pulling trailers on the weekend is why a lot of people have the excuse for this. If we can eliminate the need for the heavy tow vehicle, then you can just drive a small sedan and still be able to go glamping on the weekends.
How do you think this ‘little towing-robot-car thing’ is going to tow, steer and break a heavy trailer safely on the highway?
It got to be heavy for itself, needs a big battery pack, powerful motor… It’s basically got to be an F150 itself. Nice if you don’t need daily drive it, but it cost almost as much and won’t actually be very environment-friendly either I assume.
The brakes are part of the trailer. I’d imagine laws are different everywhere, but where I’m at trailer brakes are required for 3000+ pound trailers, though it’s a bit more complicated than that and even a 1500 pound trailer could require them.
Anyway, the point is that big 5th wheel travel trailers are way heavier than even a huge dually truck. A 7,000 pound truck can tow a 25,000 pound trailer. I’d imagine the towbot would be limited to something a bit more sane, like 6,000 pounds (class 3 hitch). Since the towbot doesn’t also have to carry passengers etc, I’d imagine 1,500 to 2,000 pounds for it.
(since you are using pounds, I’m just gona assume you are American?)
In Germany (and most of Europe) every car model has a its with/without breaks trailer wight limit in the paperwork, in general this is about the wight of the car and half of it if your trailer has no overrun breaks - no matter your license.
Without a special trailer or heavy duty license, you may not carry more then a metric ton (or 3/4 of it without breaks). Car+Trailer combined have to be below 3.5 metric tons - no matter the car you drive.
For your giggles: There are Hummers in Europe, but they are not allowed to carry more load then a Seat Ibiza if they are not registered as a heavy vehicle.
I would buy this, assuming it’s reliable over an f150 in a heart beat. If they can actually get it working reliably they will print money. I’d easily drop 15k on something like this. Fuck you can even share the cost between family members and friends.
I want to tow like 10-15 times a year though. I have no interest in an f150 but I’m saving up a down payment for that when what I would love is something like a Volvo v90 recharge to daily. I’d more than be able to share this tool with friends as well as family.
It has so so many use cases. Toyota really could print money here I think.
Damn there’s a lot of people here complaining about innovation.
Here’s a quick tip, if you can think in 10 seconds a problem with this, the engineers that work on these projects for YEARS probably already thought of it.
1 - Yes, wireless isn’t 100% reliable, so they are going to need more than one backup system. With a data connection between the trailer and the car, you have MANY ways to alert the driver that there’s a problem, AND your trailer has a processor that can safely handle problems. Heck, a VERY easy fix is to just keep a camera pointed at the license plate and keep it centered in the view while flashing a thing on the dashboard that the trailer isn’t working correct and you need to pull over. Worst case the trailer detects a problem and slows to a stop with the emergency flashers on, but even that would only be needed if several other options failed.
2 - People bitch all the time about Giant Dually Trucks™ that are just used for daily driving. Well, pulling trailers on the weekend is why a lot of people have the excuse for this. If we can eliminate the need for the heavy tow vehicle, then you can just drive a small sedan and still be able to go glamping on the weekends.
3 - There are MILLIONS of travel trailers out there right now. If we switch to small EVs overnight, we can either landfill all those trailers, or figure out a way to retrofit them to still be useful.
4 - Encryption is a thing. If this is using current, modern Wi-Fi, then you can be pretty damn sure that nobody is going to hack into that connection.
Sure, companies cut corners and cheap out of things all the time, but this is absolutely possible to do right, and solves an actual problem.
As someone who’s observed the process for these patents, typically the company just patents anything it thinks it can, regardless of whether or not the idea is practical or if they have any interest in bringing it to market. It doesn’t even need to relate to their core business. Just cause they filed a patent, does not mean they spent any time determining if it was a good idea. Someday one of these crazy patents might prove valuable so they want as many as they can.
Yeah, and some countries (like the US) are all about first-to-file, which means that even if someone thought of something first (with documentation to prove it), if a second party files for a patent first, they’ll get it. So it’s better to file and not use it than to hold onto it.
deleted by creator
The engineers do their best, then management gets to it.
Yeah, of course, the engineers thought of the problem. Then they reported it to management and management will ensure to always find a reason why exactly this problem (much like the rest of backlog) cannot be prioritized right now.
Also a corporate engineer. I put faith in corporations wanting to avoid lawsuits. Assuming you don’t have an insane billionaire calling the shots, the suits will make sure things are as safe as they need to be to avoid losing money.
Touchscreens in cars are a great example of this. It’s not a safety-critical component (like steering or brakes). The negative safety impact can be argued away in court. So the suits give touchscreens the a-okay. But if there’s a hint of a problem with steering, braking, or ECM, management will be in full support of a proper fix.
Not that they’d manage to avoid messing up wireless towing, but as long as there’s financial incentive in doing things right, management will fight for it.
Then why do so many cars have fucking touchscreen infotainment systems?
A processor that can safely handle problems on the road does not exist. And if a pseudo trailer exists with it and a drive train, it’s just an autonomous electric car. Buying two electric cars will not be price competitive with buying a larger vehicle for cargo/towing capacity, especially considering the additional hassle on the user (have to store two expensive vehicles, have to set up a pseudo tow between the two anytime you think you might need the capacity). So people will still buy large vehicles, there definitely won’t be a switch “overnight”. Besides, most of them already are bought based on an overstated/oversold need, making the purchase less rational will have a marginal, but not sea-changing, impact on buying habits. Encryption is good, but plenty of companies and individuals get hacked today, it will stop the vast majority of attack vectors but the idea of it stopping all attack vectors is borderline laughable. Why is landfilling trailers a positive thing? Preemptively replacing gear that is perfectly operational is part of the toxic consumerism cycle that has put our environment in this mess.
Speaking as an engineer, we may think about the best solution to a problem for years, but that doesn’t mean we are solving the right problem
How do you think this ‘little towing-robot-car thing’ is going to tow, steer and break a heavy trailer safely on the highway?
It got to be heavy for itself, needs a big battery pack, powerful motor… It’s basically got to be an F150 itself. Nice if you don’t need daily drive it, but it cost almost as much and won’t actually be very environment-friendly either I assume.
The brakes are part of the trailer. I’d imagine laws are different everywhere, but where I’m at trailer brakes are required for 3000+ pound trailers, though it’s a bit more complicated than that and even a 1500 pound trailer could require them.
Anyway, the point is that big 5th wheel travel trailers are way heavier than even a huge dually truck. A 7,000 pound truck can tow a 25,000 pound trailer. I’d imagine the towbot would be limited to something a bit more sane, like 6,000 pounds (class 3 hitch). Since the towbot doesn’t also have to carry passengers etc, I’d imagine 1,500 to 2,000 pounds for it.
(since you are using pounds, I’m just gona assume you are American?)
In Germany (and most of Europe) every car model has a its with/without breaks trailer wight limit in the paperwork, in general this is about the wight of the car and half of it if your trailer has no overrun breaks - no matter your license.
Without a special trailer or heavy duty license, you may not carry more then a metric ton (or 3/4 of it without breaks). Car+Trailer combined have to be below 3.5 metric tons - no matter the car you drive.
For your giggles: There are Hummers in Europe, but they are not allowed to carry more load then a Seat Ibiza if they are not registered as a heavy vehicle.
I would buy this, assuming it’s reliable over an f150 in a heart beat. If they can actually get it working reliably they will print money. I’d easily drop 15k on something like this. Fuck you can even share the cost between family members and friends.
Yeah I’m imagining that they’d be easy to rent U-Haul style. No need to drop 15k if you only tow your camper a few times per year.
I want to tow like 10-15 times a year though. I have no interest in an f150 but I’m saving up a down payment for that when what I would love is something like a Volvo v90 recharge to daily. I’d more than be able to share this tool with friends as well as family.
It has so so many use cases. Toyota really could print money here I think.