Ram TRX Know & Go App Introduces Augmented Reality to the FCA Lineup

TRX features are explained to owners via a smartphone app that will come to future models as well.

The Ram 1500 TRX is chock full of premium technology that hasn’t been used in FCA vehicles before. To help walk owners through all of these new features, the 702-horsepower beast will also be the first to showcase the company’s new Know & Go app. This new software was developed as part of the company’s first ever “Pitch Night”, where employees were asking to come together with any ideas that they think could benefit future vehicles.

The TRX Know & Go app uses augmented reality to explain all of the key features of the truck, similar to an owner’s manual. The difference here is that the app leads to a more intuitive, hands-on experience that organizes the information in a way that easy to use on the fly. The owner simply points the camera of their smartphone at an area on or in the truck, and the app adds icons to the image for the features explained by the app.

“We created the Know & Go app as a way for customers to interact with and learn about their vehicles throughout their ownership lifecycle and personal experiences,” said Carolina Harris, Feature Innovation Manager – FCA and co-creator of Know & Go.

Augmented Reality in the TRX

If you are not familiar with an augmented reality system, similar to the one used with the Ram TRX Know & Go app, here is a quick explanation.

Say that you are sitting in the interior of your supercharged Ram 1500 and you aren’t familiar with the various gadgets. Using the Know & Go app, you point the camera system of your smartphone at the dashboard. On the screen of your phone, all of the features which are explained in the app and shown in your camera’s lens will have icons over them on the screen.

The image here shows the dash with the Know & Go app working its magic. There are eight icons on the screen, including the heads-up display, the steering wheel, the digital rear-view mirror, the Off-Road Pages, the drive mode system, the pressure monitoring system of the integrated trailer brake controller and the auxiliary switch bank. With the app, if you clicked on drive modes, your phone would load details on how that system works, with similar information offered for all of the new tech in the Ram 1500 TRX.

“With all of the content on the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX, the Know & Go mobile app highlights the many new features and capabilities our customers will enjoy in a creative, exciting and engaging way,” added Mimi Nguyen, Propulsion Systems Program Manager, Product Development – FCA and co-creator of Know & Go.

In addition to the augmented reality system, the Ram TRX Know & Go app offers self-discovery of features, push notifications of undiscovered features, how-to videos, a general overview of features and unique owner’s manual pages.

More Integration Coming

The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX is the first vehicle to make use of the FCA Know & Go app. Considering the fact that the supercharged half-ton includes so much new-to-FCA and new-to-Ram tech, it makes good sense for this to be the first vehicle included in the app. The app will eventually be offered for other models, with premium models being the most likely candidates. Models like the Hellcat-spec Dodge vehicles and the Jeep Trackhawk offer similar premium tech features, so owners could benefit from the easy introduction of information with those vehicles as well.

However, even owners of more affordable models with less gadgetry are likely to use the Know & Go app before they are going to dig the owner’s manual out of the glove box. For example, if you buy a new Chrysler Pacifica with the UConnect 5 infotainment system, you can either read about how it works in the manual or you can use the Know & Go app to quickly pull up the information on your smartphone. Of course, the app offers things that a manual cannot, such as the how-to videos.

The Know & Go app will be available for both Android and iPhone users. Owners will only be able to download and access the app once they have purchased an applicable vehicle, but once downloaded, owners can unlock all of the key details of the world’s fastest pickup.

Photos: FCA

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Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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