Genesis Brings Augmented Reality to Owner's Manual with New Virtual Guide

Press Release

How many times have you pulled out your car's owner's manual and were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information in that digest size booklet? And, how long did it take you to find the section in the manual you needed? Several minutes? Thanks to Genesis Motor America, the global luxury automaker, they have come up with a new way for owners to easily find the information they need in a matter of seconds using Augmented reality (AR), the technology that adds a layer of information on top of what you see. Today, Genesis introduces their Genesis Augmented Reality Manual (Genesis Virtual Guide).

The Genesis Virtual Guide is a free download on the Apple^® App Store and Google Play^®. It's the first augmented reality owner's manual that allows consumers to use their smartphone or tablet to get how-to information for repairs, maintenance and vehicle features. Genesis uses 2-D and 3-D tracking technology to deliver in-depth levels of information related to specific parts of Genesis vehicles. The Genesis Virtual Guide is now available for the 2017 Genesis G80 and Genesis G90 and will be compatible with 2018 models later this year.

"As a new luxury brand, we continue to focus our efforts on the continually evolving customer expectations and innovations," said Erwin Raphael, general manager of Genesis in the U.S. "Our mobile app strategy is designed around empowering our customers and helping them to save time and frustration. The Virtual Guide provides our owners with a new way to learn about and get to know their vehicles."

To maximize on customer value, Genesis used quality and consumer survey results to determine the top features to incorporate into the Virtual Guide. The app contains several informational guides including: 135 how-to videos and 25 3-D overlay images that appear once users scan areas of their vehicle, like the engine bay. A complete owner's manual is also included inside the app.

How it Works

If you have ever used an augmented reality app on your smartphone, you know how easy it is to setup and use. You just download the Genesis Virtual Guide app on your device and select your Genesis vehicle. Then, open the Virtual Guide and you are ready to go. Just hold your smartphone or tablet camera in front of the area of the car you want more information, then simple to understand visuals appear. You can select engine, interior, exterior, instrument cluster or Genesis videos from the menu.

Engine

The engine section contains an AR manual and a pictorial index. Positioning a device camera over the engine bay gives AR maintenance instructions for each part of the engine. The engine pictorial index provides the same content without using the camera.

Interior

Inside the interior section there is a button scanner, 360 virtual reality (VR) and an additional pictorial index. The button scanner uses the device camera to identify interior button functions and educates owners about those buttons via video. The 360 VR tool generates a 360-degree virtual reality experience of the interior. The user simply moves the phone or tablet around or swipes to explore the interior and access how-to videos. The interior pictorial allows the user to tap all the same icons in the 360 VR without moving the device.

Instrument Cluster

The instrument cluster tool helps to educate owners on warning and indicator lights and pop-up LCD messages.

Exterior

On the outside, taking a picture of the front, rear or trunk with the AR capture brings to life important exterior features.

Genesis Videos

Finally, the videos section delivers information about the Genesis brand and new models.

"The Virtual Guide is going to wow our owners," said Raphael. "It takes hundreds of pages of information and puts it on a device we know consumers touch all day long –their smartphone. And most of the content is in the form of videos, which we also know is the preferred method for consumers to digest information today."

The Genesis Virtual Guide can virtually identify and provide convenient how-to information on the following features:

• Smart Cruise Control
• Bluetooth^® phone pairing
• Warning indicators
• Clock
• Smart trunk
• Engine oil
• Brake fluid
• Fuse box
• Air filter
• Battery jump start
• Washer fluid
• Spare tire installation

Virtual Guide joins a suite of innovative Genesis applications designed to provide the best customer experience possible, including the Genesis Intelligent Assistant mobile app, Genesis smartwatch apps and Amazon Alexa integration.

For more information on Genesis and its new definition of luxury please visit www.genesis.com.

Don't forget to check out The GearBrain to see what other connected devices work with Google Home or Amazon Alexa enabled device.