Porsche's glasses connect service techs with factory in real time

Think of them as Google Glasses for Porsche dealership service technicians — except that these devices, unlike their ill-fated predecessors, actually work.

Porsche Cars North America is completing the rollout of its Tech Live Look program at its 189 U.S. dealerships. The effort uses online augmented-reality technology to enable dealership techs to communicate directly with Porsche's Atlanta-based technical support team about thorny repair issues in real time in such a way that the factory experts see what the tech sees.

This collaboration happens when the technician dons lightweight glasses with advanced projection technology, including a high-resolution video camera. A mechanic's flashlight illuminates the darkest nooks and crannies under a vehicle's hood or other difficult-to-see areas. Special earphones enable the dealership tech to speak with experts at Porsche's U.S. headquarters.

Porsche says Tech Live Look is reducing the time required to identify technical problems and perform challenging repairs by as much as 40 percent.

Doug House, technical support manager for Porsche Cars North America, directs the four specialists who staff the hotline at headquarters in Atlanta, along with 11 regional field representatives who work with Tech Live Look. All U.S. Porsche dealerships will take part in the program by early this year, he says.

"Our response time to a dealer is about 45 minutes," House told Fixed Ops Journal. "The average call length is about 11 minutes. With Tech Live Look, you can see what the guy is talking about instead of relying on him to describe it to you."

The new technology enables precise recalibration of cameras to specific distances and heights to capture needed images, House says. It also permits precise measurement of high-voltage batteries on electric and hybrid vehicles.

"We use it to make sure we are following safe procedures because of the amount of voltage we are dealing with," he says. "Technical experts and the dealership technicians are more comfortable because they make sure measurements are performed in a safe and proper manner. It makes our people comfortable."

Other automakers are using new technology, including robotics, to connect dealership technicians with factory experts. Audi's Robotic Telepresence system employs onboard diagnostic systems to enable members of Audi's national tech center team in suburban Detroit to see what a tech in a service bay sees.

BMW uses a different vendor and hardware — the Technical Support & Research Assistant and its TSARAVision Smart Glasses — with its BMW and Mini brands, but the underlying philosophy is the same. The expert at headquarters can project step-by-step technical bulletins and schematic drawings onto the local technician's display glasses so the tech can work a solution without having to step away from the vehicle.

The Collection in Coral Gables, Fla., was one of the first Porsche dealerships to use the Tech Live Look protocols.

The high-end dealership carries eight brands under one rooftop. Scott Struble, the dealership's Porsche service director, says an average of about 40 Porsches a day are worked on there, which in the automaker's world is considered a high-volume dealership service department.

"We have our own escalation process, which starts with the actual technician," Struble says. "If he comes across an issue, he escalates to his team leader. If, at that point, they're not able to diagnose the issue, my shop foreman becomes involved. The shop foreman will contact Porsche technical services at Porsche Cars North America."

In the past, especially difficult problems were escalated by submitting an electronic request on the dealership's system. The service technician would describe the issue, giving Porsche information on the vehicle and telling them what had been done so far. Porsche would contact them by phone, with some back and forth via electronic forms.

"Porsche would respond and we would read it," Struble says. "Naturally, it was a time-consuming process. With Tech Live Look and these [augmented-reality] glasses, once they get the ticket with the escalation request, they contact us directly."

The response time has been cut from weeks to, in most cases, a same-day resolution.

A pair of the glasses costs a dealership $3,250 and Porsche charges a monthly fee — which it wouldn't disclose — to connect with its Atlanta-based experts.

Because they communicate live through the glasses, the technicians at Porsche now have a chance to see precisely what the Collection's service technicians see. Porsche can supply a service bulletin through the glasses to local technicians so they can follow explicit instructions without having to look at a computer screen sitting on a desktop on the other side of the service bay.

The occurrences are minimal, but when the need arises, it's usually of a time-sensitive nature.

"When you have a customer with a concern for their vehicle, it's an inconvenience," Struble says. "You're forced to bring your car in for service or repair, and time is of the essence. The sooner you can get the vehicle back to the customer, the quicker they forget about what happened. The increase in customer satisfaction goes up considerably."

Vince Stephens, the Collection's Porsche shop foreman, says the "live aspect" of the system helps immensely, especially with "one-off issues" and new models.

"With a new model, we get our manuals, technical bulletins and more, but when a product is too new, or we haven't seen a particular problem before, that's when we use these glasses," he says.

After a quick briefing on how the glasses work, the techs get to try them out.

"When we're looking, we're also talking," Stephens says. "As I am turning my head, the [Porsche] adviser may say, 'Hey, turn back a little bit to where you just were. I thought I saw something. We haven't seen that before, let's take a closer look.' "

The Tech Live Look system can also serve as a safety officer of sorts. With new hybrid and electric-powered vehicles requiring knowledge that was generally more familiar to an electric company's high-voltage linemen, the system helps to safely guide technicians through their tasks.

"We had a Panamera hybrid in for an issue with the cooling system," Stephens says. "The Tech Live Look adviser helped by watching and guiding us through the ins and outs of high-voltage safety."