Ford has developed a system that takes all the stress and guesswork from hitching a trailer. Dubbed Pro Trailer Hitch Assist, it is currently offered exclusively on the Ford F-Series and uses artificial intelligence to perform the job flawlessly, always according to the company.
If you’ve ever needed to hitch a vehicle to a trailer, RV, caravan, or anything else you may be towing, you’ll know that actually lining up the hitch ball and the hitch coupler is difficult, particularly when you don’t have someone to guide you into position.
To ensure owners of the F-150, F-150 Lightning, and F-Series Super Duty don’t have to go through this, Ford’s team developed the industry-first technology with advanced machine learning to detect the hitch ball, trailer and couple at up to 20 feet. The system can be activated by pressing and holding the Pro Trailer Hitch Assist button.
The system automatically reverses the vehicle into position and once the driver has verified that the coupler is positioned higher than the hitch ball, the system uses algorithms to steer the truck and position it perfectly. Ford says its team secured 60 patents in developing the feature.
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“Pro Trailer Hitch Assist is another smart solution to save time for our customers,” Ford Truck general manager John Emmert said. “Instead of struggling to hitch a trailer alone or with a spotter, customers can now get hitched more confidently and on their way to the lake or a jobsite.”
Ford has also developed other features to make towing that much easier. For example, there is a Pro Trailer Backup Assist function where you simply turn a knob to indicate which direction the trailer should go while reversing and the car will follow your input. There is also a Smart Hitch system that measures the tongue weight of a trailer to help the driver distribute weight across the trailer in the best way possible.
