Sony patents headset chip that skips image decoding to cut lag
Sony describes a system for head-mounted displays where a chip relays compressed image data from the source to the screen without fully unpacking it first. This allows the display to show the image immediately rather than waiting for the entire frame to be processed, which can reduce delay.
In the filing’s own words
A content processing apparatus compresses image data of content in a lossy manner and transmits the image data to a head-mounted display through an interface. An image processing integrated circuit of the head-mounted display transmits the image data to a display panel through an interface whose protocol is different from a protocol of the interface, without decoding and decompressing the image data. The display panel displays the image that has been decoded and decompressed after being transmitted through the interface.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. An image processing system comprising: processing circuitry configured to: compress data of an image to be transmitted through a first interface; relay transmission of the data of the image from the first interface to a second interface with a different protocol; display the data of the image transmitted through the second interface, wherein the data of the image is relayed without decompressing the data of the image; decompress and display the data of the image; and output the data of the image to the display without waiting for acquisition of the data of the image for one frame.
Facts
- Company
- Sony (Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.)
- Official title
- Image processing system, image processing integrated circuit, and image processing method
- Patent number
- US12738194B2
- Application number
- 18925186
- Filed
- Oct 24, 2024
- Granted
- Sep 15, 2026
- Inventors
- 1
- Claims
- 20
Classified under
G09G 3/2096 Physics & computingG06F 1/14 Physics & computingG06F 3/1423 Physics & computingG06F 21/602 Physics & computingMore from Sony in AR, VR & displays
- Sony patents device that warms or cools you when you touch virtual objects Sep 15, 2026
- Sony patents VR box that mimics a transparent fish tank Oct 13, 2026
- Sony patents cloud gaming that puts characters in your room Oct 15, 2026
- Sony patents LED screens that show unique views to each person in a room Oct 15, 2026
- Sony patents cloud gaming that adjusts to your brain state Sep 8, 2026
Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.