Ford is about to turn your truck and trailer into a giant R/C car!

Backing a trailer can be difficult. This is because it is sometimes difficult to determine which way to turn the steering wheel to go in the desired direction. But what if you could get out of your truck and have better visibility? Ford is about to patent a technology that would make that possible.

The patent, filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), shows how to turn trucks and trailers into giant R/C cars. Drivers use mobile devices like smartphones to remotely back up the vehicle/trailer combination without actually taking the wheel.

According to the application, steering angles are set by tilting the device and acceleration is controlled by turning the device. The signals are then sent to a controller mounted on the vehicle, which provides the necessary steering, acceleration, and braking inputs.

Potential applications are not limited to trucks, Ford said in its application. According to the automaker, the proposed system could also be used in passenger cars and would work equally well with internal combustion engines, hybrids, or all-electric powertrains.

As with other patent applications, it is unclear whether Ford's remote-control trailer backup technology will reach production. Often, automakers patent new features in order to protect their intellectual property.

However, this technology does not go much beyond what is already available on the market. It is essentially a mashup of Ford's Pro Trailer Backup Assist, which allows a vehicle to automatically steer a trailer while the driver remains behind the wheel, and Tesla's Summon feature, which allows a car to enter and exit a parking space with no one in it (a feature (though not always reliable). This is certainly less radical than another patent on brain-based driving recently filed by Ford.