Sony’s new PlayStation patent shows that they wants to continue investing in haptic feedback beyond the PS5 DualSense controller’s current capability and create a new type of immersion not beholden to a VR headset or AR glasses. The patent, published on recently, (which SegmentNext first uncovered) outlines Sony’s plans to create haptic vibrations in midair using ultrasonic soundwaves, possibly for the PS VR 2 or potentially for other, non-gaming uses as well.
“There is a need in the art for a mid-air haptic interface that imparts a degree of realism equal to that implemented by an immersive computing experience without the need for complex physical installations or other custom-designed venues,” Sony said in the patent application.
Rather than emitting these waves from a controller, Sony plans on creating some kind of projection and tracking device. The patent includes an image showing a person interacting with a virtual object whose parameters are, presumably, defined by the haptics.
Another image shows the user interacting with objects in a larger room, and it seems Sony is looking further than just gaming applications for this new device. In the application’s background section, Sony outlines gaps in VR, AR, and traditional gaming technology – including the DualShock controller and Nintendo’s Joy-Cons – that make its new device worth creating, along with needs it can help meet in immersive cinema and other areas
●Important Things About Sony’s New Patent- Eye-tracking, headset feedback, a 4K HDR display, and other features have been promised for the new device, but a new patent hints at even more high-tech ideas.
Discovered by SegmentNext, there is a PlayStation patent for an ultrasonic haptic feedback system. In the simplest possible terms, a system like this would allow you to reach out and ‘feel’ an object that’s not actually there. Picture those holograms and floating screens from sci-fi movies reacting to your touch even though they’re just projections in the air. If it comes to fruition, this idea could take PlayStation’s virtual reality plans to the next level. PSVR 2 already tracks players’ fingers for more precise in-game manipulation — imagine if you could also feel the thing you’re interacting with.
It’s a big and a grand idea, but then again, Sony has been talking a big game about PSVR 2 for a while now. Shuhei Yoshida, head of PlayStation’s Independent Developer Initiative, recently said that “indies have been waiting for” a headset like PSVR 2, naming the Rez series in particular. Sony certainly wants the new headset to be a success, though not having backward compatibility with the first one seems like a misstep to many.
Right now, the main question is when PSVR 2 will release. We don’t have a specific date yet, though we do know about a pair of launch titles. A new version of Resident Evil Village and Horizon Call of the Mountain are both set to be day-one games.