Patent application points to room-scale and wireless features in PSVR’s future

Sony Interactive Entertainment have recently filed a patent for a lighthouse style tracking system, somewhat similar to HTC’s 3D tracking, which could indicate positional tracking in the future for the PSVR or a follow-up device.

The patent application, which was spotted by CGM, is no guarantee Sony will do anything with the technology, it’s only indicative that they’ve put some thought and money into the concept. The application outlines specifications for a device that uses a beam projected into a room to determine the position of the headset, something that’s more accurate than the PlayStation Camera the PSVR currently uses for tracking. HTC Vive uses a similar system, shipping with two "lighthouses" that also project beams to determine where people are in the 3D space. This improvement is great for the PlayStation VR which has historically had some trouble with tracking in bright areas.

This new system, if it were used, would make Sony’s offering more comparable to the Vive and Oculus in terms of features, but there’s also a hint in the patent application that Sony could be looking to build a wireless version of the PlayStation VR, as they refer to wireless connections between a headset and computing device.